Public Affairs 5600: Science, Engineering and Public Policy

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This is a sample syllabus to provide general information about the course and it's requirements. Course requirements are subject to change. This syllabus does not contain all assignment or course detail and currently enrolled students should reference the syllabus provided by their instructor. For a specific syllabus, please email us a request.

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Course Overview

3 Credit Hours
Modalities Available: In Person

Science and engineering underpin innovation, national security, and many other areas of public concern. But the contexts regarding (a) investments in science, engineering, and public policy and (b) the causes and consequences of the development of scientific knowledge and engineering innovations tend to be underappreciated by those involved. For example, on one hand, funding decisions are made by policymakers—many of whom lack technical training and an appreciation of the role of government in these arenas—and, on the other hand, scientists and engineers often develop knowledge and innovations because of, and have relevance to, public policy. Scientists and engineers can be empowered by understanding the process of investment, support for research, and the broader influence of their work. Similarly, policymakers can benefit from understanding how science and engineering unfolds and how to use scientific and technical information for decision-making on matters of national and international importance. This course is designed to serve both perspectives—those making policy for science and engineering and those using science and engineering to inform policy—with a survey of policy, processes, and contexts for science, engineering, and innovation in the United States. 

The class will present an overview of (a) the history of the interactions between science, engineering, and public policy in the United States and in the context of global concerns (e.g. climate change, competitiveness); (b) how various the federal government, universities, and corporations conduct and fund science and engineering; (c) how public sector interests and processes influence, and are influenced by, science, engineering, and public policy; and (d) policy analytic approaches for science and engineering. Case studies devoted to the science, engineering, and policy of the University’s Discovery Themes (Energy and Environment, Food Production and Security, and Health and Wellness.) will help students apply policy analysis and developments in science and engineering to understand the relevance to real-world needs and policies. 

Class discussion is an essential component of this course. In the past we have had several guest lectures from a variety of people, including Prof. Bharat Bhushan (a former ASME Congressional Fellow), Mark Reichanadter (former Chief Operating Officer of Stanford Linear Accelerator Center National Accelerator Laboratory), Sarah Forbes (U.S. Department of Energy), David Williams (former Dean of the College of Engineering) and individuals from Virgin Galactica, the Ohio Department of Transportation, and elsewhere.

Learning Outcomes

Through this course, you will:

  • Examine the processes and contexts related to science, engineering, and innovation and understand how they reflect values, goals, and interests.
  • Synthesize strategies for policy analysis and evaluate a real-world topic related to science and engineering using these strategies.
  • Develop the capability to identify the relevance of advances in scientific knowledge and engineering developments to broader public policy issues.
  • Analyze cases that involve the interactions between science, engineering, policy, public choice, risk, and consequences in fields related to Ohio State University’s Discovery Themes and other current issues.

Requirements and Expectations

This course may require materials. Consult your instructor's syllabus for details.

  • Class Participation: first half, 5%
  • Class Participation: second half, 5%
  • Session Reports, 15%
  • Mid-Term Examination, 20%
  • Short Paper #1: policy analysis frameworks, 15%
  • Short Paper #2: policy analysis application, 25%
  • In-Class Presentation on Policy Analysis, 15%

Description: This course relies on a lot of discussion to illustrate issues and perspectives. As a result, regular attendance and active participation are necessary. You are expected to be prepared, read assignments, be prepared for class discussion, thoroughly process and synthesize information, and incorporate your thoughts and experiences into the discussions of this class. In other words, you will need to be reading and thinking as we proceed through the semester. I understand that everyone learns and participates in different ways, some of which may require more reflection than can occur during a class session, and all students are encouraged to take advantage of the Canvas discussion board. Participation on the discussion board counts equally as much as participation in class. 

Independent Work: A rubric will be available for evaluating your individual class participation and so that you can be a meaningful contributor to the class. Your individual class participation will be assessed in two parts: you will receive a grade for your participation in the first half of the semester, and another grade for your participation in the second half of the course. The expectation is that your comments provide insight into something pertaining to the class. Often this involves participating in a line of discussion underway or starting a new line of discussion and in all cases involves your perspective which you should be able to defend.

Description: At the beginning of the semester, you will be assigned to a group and sessions for which you and the others in your group will compile your notes into one unified and cohesive set for that class session. There will be one group taking notes each session, and each group will take notes three times during the semester. These notes are due three days after the assigned class session, as indicated in the course schedule, as a Microsoft Word document. I will review them and post them as a pdf to the course page on the CarmenCanvas site, so they serve as resources for all students in the class.

Collaboration Required: A grading rubric will be provided to help you prepare quality notes. Each group notes will be graded on how thorough, correct, and well-presented they are. The notes should be about the topics that are discussed in class, the required and optional readings, and I encourage you to not limit your notes to just what was presented; also incorporate details from the readings and elsewhere. These notes are to be compiled by your group and your group only. You will need to rely on, and properly cite, sources.

Description: There will be one mid-term exam that will be based on the readings, lectures, and discussions. The mid-term will be a take-home assignment through CarmenCanvas and will cover material up to the exam date. The mid-term has two parts: the first part is multiple choice and common for all students. The second part involves short essays and differs between the undergraduate and graduate students. 

Independent Work: The mid-term is an individual assessment; it is your work and only your work. You may rely on class notes, class materials, class discussions, outside readings, and other references, but there must not be any communication with anyone or anything about the exam. Your responses are yours and yours alone. A grading rubric will be provided to help you prepare excellent answers to the short essays on the midterm. 

Description: The assignment will be distributed at the end of a class session and is due about a month later by uploading to course website by 11:59 pm the day before the first set of undergraduate presentations (see course schedule for the dates). The assignment will have a list of approaches to policy analysis, where 

  • Undergraduate students will work in assigned groups to produce a three-page paper on one approach to policy analysis to which they are assigned.
  • Graduate students will work independently to produce a five-page paper on all the approaches to policy analysis. 

Collaboration Required (undergraduate students) / Independent Work (graduate students): A grading rubric will be provided to help you prepare a quality paper. Your work should be original and completed by only the group or individual submitting it. ChatGPT or other AI-based tools are allowed for a small portion of this assignment, and prohibited for the rest of it. When posted, the assignment will provide the guidelines. otherwise Academic and personal misconduct are defined and dealt with according to the procedures in the Code of Student Conduct: Avoid excessive quotation and paraphrasing of other’s work with or without citation.

Description: The assignment will be distributed at the end of a class and is due about a month later by uploading to the course website by 11:59 pm (see above and course schedule below for the dates).

  • Undergraduate students will work in assigned groups to produce a five-page paper that applies one of the approaches to policy analysis, from Short Paper #1, to a topic that is listed in the assignment.
  • Graduate students will work independently to produce a seven-page paper that applies one of the approaches to policy analysis to a topic related to their research. If a student is not conducting research for his or her graduate degree, he or she will apply one of the approaches to policy analysis to one of the topics on the list.

Collaboration Required (undergraduate students) / Independent Work (graduate students): A grading rubric will be provided to help you prepare a quality paper. Your work should be original and completed by only the group or individual submitting it. ChatGPT or other AI-based tools are prohibited. Academic and personal misconduct are defined and dealt with according to the procedures in the Code of Student Conduct: Avoid excessive quotation and paraphrasing of other’s work with or without citation.

Description: Understanding and applying policy analysis to scientific and engineering issues is a major aspect of this course. Short Paper #1, Short Paper #2, and the In-Class Presentation on Short Paper #1 (by undergraduate groups) or Short Paper #2 (by individual graduate students) develop those capacities. 

  • The undergraduate groups will give an in-class presentation midway through the semester on the approach to policy analysis that they investigated for Short Paper #1. These presentations will be assessed by me and the graduate students in the class. These assessments will be compiled and returned to the undergraduate groups.
  • Each graduate student will give an in-class presentation at the end of the semester on their policy analysis for Short Paper #2. These presentations will be assessed by me and the undergraduate students in the class. These assessments will be compiled and returned to the graduate students. 

Collaboration Required (undergraduate students) / Independent Work (graduate students): This presentation is to be compiled only by the group or individual giving the presentation. A grading rubric will be provided to help you design and give an interesting, quality, informative, and engaging presentation. I highly recommend that you consider how to give the best illustrate the content you intend to convey, which may even involve an interpretive dance.

Previous Instructors Have Included