Broadly conceived this course examines so-called natural disasters as key historical moments in the evolution of cultural and economic relationships in the world from the modern era through the late twentieth century. Specifically, it deals with the material causes of natural disasters within a framework of the development and adaptation of technology by various cultural and social groups. It emphasizes the ways people have shaped their environments and how they have assessed and responded to the risk of disaster based on those actions. Of equal importance is the role of systems for the exchange of information in predicting, preparing for, and responding to natural disasters. Readings, lectures, and classroom discussions (supplemented by the use of guest speakers) will focus on major natural disasters as comparative case studies aimed at giving students an understanding of the connections between technology, global power relationships, and environmental change. Students will analyze how people have been affected differently according to their race, ethnicity, class, and sex and use this knowledge to think about continuing environmental change and the disasters faced by the global community now and in the future. As such, students will gain an appreciation for the variety of socioeconomic, political, and cultural factors that blur the line between natural and technological disasters.