SDSM&T Humanities and Social Sciences

Last fall, three STS faculty and two STS students went to the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) conference in Seattle. Learn more about faculty presentations and what students learned!

Reflecting on STS at 4S: The Conference Experience Last fall, three STS faculty and two STS students went to the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) conference in Seattle. Learn more about faculty presentations and what students learned!

This semester, classes taught by Dr. Erica Haugtvedt and Dr. Christy Tidwell made commonplace books. Read the full post to learn more about commonplace books and their place in the classroom - plus, see samples of student work!

Commonplace Books in the Classroom: Organizing Ideas and Making Art This semester, classes taught by Dr. Erica Haugtvedt and Dr. Christy Tidwell made commonplace books. Learn more about commonplace books and their place in the classroom – plus, see samples of…

For Worldwide Climate Games Day, Dr. Mary Witlacil's Environmental Law and Policy class played CATAN - New Energies.

Learn more here about the game and its relevance to the class:

What can games teach us about climate change?: Playing CATAN – New Energies for World Climate Games Day For Worldwide Climate Games Day, Dr. Mary Witlacil’s Environmental Law and Policy class played CATAN – New Energies. Learn more about the game and its relevance to the class!

This semester's final STS 401 student post features Kendall Custer writing about her capstone research on forecasting large snowfall events. https://sdsmtnovum.org/2025/11/21/were-off-to-see-the-blizzard/

Image credit: Mid-Latitude Cyclone Over the Midwestern US as seen from the GOES West Satellite. Photo: NOAA Satellites.

We’re Off to See the Blizzard! This semester’s final STS 401 student post features Kendall Custer writing about her capstone research on forecasting large snowfall events.

The third in this year's series of posts from STS 401 students is by Colin Gholson, whose capstone project will focus on environmental justice issues related to uranium mining in western New Mexico.

Unseen Impacts: Lasting Health Effect on Uranium Miners in Western New Mexico The third in this year’s series of posts from STS 401 students is by Colin Gholson, whose capstone project will focus on environmental justice issues related to uranium mining in western New …

Dinosaur marionettes in the Apex Gallery! This pop-up show of student work highlights connections between engineering education, art, and STS.

Giant Dinosaur Marionettes: Engineering Education, Art, and STS Dinosaur marionettes in the Apex Gallery! This pop-up show of student work highlights connections between engineering education, art, and STS.

In this post from STS 401, Atmospheric and Environmental Science student Ryenne "Rye" Julian writes about improving methods of measuring sea ice to provide better ice forecasts. https://sdsmtnovum.org/2025/11/18/where-the-heck-is-the-ice-deriving-arctic-sea-ice-concentrations-using-remote-sensing-methods/

Image credit: NOAA CoastWatch L1/L2 Spatial Search, https://coastwatch.noaa.gov/cw_html/NearRealTimeSearch.html?region=NP&product=nrcs&sensor=SAR&daysback=5&desc=sat.

Where the Heck Is the Ice? Deriving Arctic Sea Ice Concentrations Using Remote Sensing Methods In this post from STS 401, Atmospheric and Environmental Science student Ryenne “Rye” Julian writes about improving methods of measuring sea ice to provide better ice forecasts.

How accurate are pop culture representations of dinosaurs? And why does their accuracy matter? This year's series on STS 401 capstone projects begins with STS student Paul Roques considering these questions. https://sdsmtnovum.org/2025/11/17/reality-and-realism-in-dinosaur-fiction/

Image credit: Heather Kyoht Luterman, CC BY 2.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5, via Wikimedia Commons.

Check out the winners of this year’s STS Costume Contest! We got some great entries and are looking forward to seeing more next year!

STS Costume Contest Winners: Halloween 2025 Check out the winners of this year’s STS Costume Contest! We got some great entries and are looking forward to seeing more next year!

Dr. Erica Haugtvedt’s STEM Communication course is working with Trinity Eco Prayer Park this semester – bringing together the science and society at the heart of STS.

Science communication in the community: Trinity Eco Prayer Park Dr. Erica Haugtvedt’s STEM Communication course is working with part of the community this semester – bringing together the science and society at the heart of STS.