Science and Technology for Future Policy Wonks

We will cover the broad range of physics and technology topics that are at the heart of current local and national policy debates. The aim of the course will be to give you the tools for distinguishing between sense and nonsense when confronted by technology-based arguments - it is not to turn you into physicists! The course text - "Physics and Technology for Future Presidents", by Richard A. Muller - was written specifically with this aim in mind, and will be used as a general guide to the subject areas that we will cover. Most of the course topics will revolve around energy - its generation, distribution, use, and abuse - but depending on students' interests, we may also go into other areas, such as transportation and national security.