Pat Munday | Montana Tech (original) (raw)
Bio by Pat Munday
Papers by Pat Munday
Journal of Modern Chinese History, 2022
With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study in... more With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study investigates how a second-generation Chinese American woman negotiated her identity as she moved to China and then back to the United States. Margaret Woo (1912-1982) was born in China and immigrated to the U.S. with her mother in 1914. Her father, Woo Du Sing, had immigrated c.1882 and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he owned a restaurant. A classic sojourner, Du Sing built a house in his home village and intended to retire there. He died in Minneapolis in 1935, however, and his family returned to China to bury his body there and to live in the overseas house. As a young woman raised in America, Margaret disliked village life and left for nearby Canton to become a student at Lingnan University. She returned to the U.S. in late 1937 to escape the Japanese. This study is based on primary sources including interviews with Woo family members in China and the U.S., Margaret’s diary from her time in China, artifacts such as the Woo family house in Kaiping and a collection of cheongsam (qipao) dresses owned by Margaret Woo, and Lingnan University records. Historiographic issues addressed include the sojourner hypothesis, the transnational nature of early 20th century overseas Chinese who built houses in their home village, the role of fashion in exemplifying Chinese feminism and modernity, and the assimilation of second generation Chinese American female immigrants into American life.
This too is China: Hui Muslim Culture and the Fulbright Experience at Ningxia University, 2019
Ningxia University (Ningda) is in Yinchuan, Ningxia, a Hui Muslim autonomous region in the north... more Ningxia University (Ningda) is in Yinchuan, Ningxia, a Hui Muslim autonomous region in the northwest of China. Because of the 40% minority population, Ningda is a very different experience from my previous teaching and living in Chongqing (Southwest University) and Guangzhou (Zhongshan University, also known as Sun Yat-sen University). The national government is investing a great effort to more fully integrate Hui people into dominant Han culture. This investment is evident in the local infrastructure: wide well-designed roads, an excellent bus system, elegant new buildings, and many state-of-the art museums and parks in and around Yinchuan. This investment is also evident in the support for Hui education at every level, from new well-funded schools in the most remote parts of Ningxia Province to the support for Hui minority students at Ningda. I previously taught in a minority pre-graduate program and was familiar with many of the 50-some minorities in China. I remain good friends with some of those former students and have visited their home areas. But living in a minority region is a very different experience from merely having minority students in the classroom or playing tourist somewhere for a few days. It is a perspective on China that is not well understood or appreciated in the West. Though the outward signs of Hui Muslim culture are subtle – e.g. few female students wear the hijab – the sociocultural dimensions are deep and profound when it comes to marriage, employment prospects, foodways, rural poverty, and education. There are moments when I say, "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in China anymore. . ." But Ningxia is China and understanding this region requires transcending the well-established tropes of life in coastal cities such as Shanghai or Guangzhou.
Sturm und Dung: Justus von Liebig and the Chemistry of Agriculture, 1990
Liebig was a central figure in 19th century chemistry. He pioneered organic chemistry, developed ... more Liebig was a central figure in 19th century chemistry. He pioneered organic chemistry, developed mass laboratory instruction, and begot physiological chemistry. To date, a pervasive mythology has hindered our historical understanding of Liebig’s work. Buoyed up by the nationalism and positivism of the late 19th and early 20th century, this false lineage can only be corrected through a fresh look at the original documents. With Liebig off the pedestal, we can better understand the workings of everyday science (i.e. politics), the creative process, and the great changes wrought by applied science in the 19th century.
The purpose of this dissertation is to show the connections between Liebig's work in organic chemistry, his so-called research school, and his chemistry of agriculture. I have used Liebig's correspondence and other documents to establish the continuity of Liebig's career, from his studies with Kastner to his appointment in Munich. 'Throughout, I have utilized sources on the political and social history of Germany, sources that many historians of science deem irrelevant to their field. By selecting Liebig's work in plant physiology and what he called the chemistry of agriculture (as opposed to agricultural chemistry), I have shown that Liebig's science, the applications of that science, and the society within which they developed are all of a piece am cannot be understood each alone.
The main conclusion of this dissertation is that science exists in no vacuum. Even when Liebig's efforts were most ''pure,'' and directed at seemingly abstract research problems, his work was shaped by religious and political and social currents, and taken in directions he could not fully control. As a clever man, he could, however, profit from these currents in various ways. If one is "pro-science," then perhaps these human and passionate dimensions of science need to be emphasized more heavily in order to attract bright young children to this career. If one is more critical, then it is these very dimensions that should shape our expectations regarding progress and the brave new world. As the novelist Thomas Pynchon might say, it's all about shit (dung), money (and social climbing), and the word (science as truth).
Sturm und Dung: Justus von Liebig and the Chemistry of Agriculture (part two) , 1990
See Munday PhD 1990 part one
Technical Communication Department, 2005
Every creek and gulch in the upper Clark Fork River was prospected for gold as part of the Montan... more Every creek and gulch in the upper Clark Fork River was prospected for gold as part of the Montana placer mining boom in the 1860s and 1870s. By 1870, more than 500 placer gold mining camps dotted Montana Territory. At this time, "Butte City" was just a loose collection of mining camps on Silver Bow Creek, and there was little to set it apart from Montana's many other placer developments. By 1870, the gold rush in Butte was declining, and only about 240 people remained.
Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, 2024
James G. Needham (1868-1958) was a professor of entomology at Cornell University from 1906 to 193... more James G. Needham (1868-1958) was a professor of entomology at Cornell University from 1906 to 1936, and an active emeritus for about ten years thereafter. As a professor, mentored a group of women graduate students at Cornell, a group that included twenty-nine who took doctorates. As a scientist, he was a member of an extensive network that included many women entomologists. These women were located throughout the United States and Canada. Some had been his students at Cornell, some were colleagues with whom he did fieldwork, and others were young women who, even though students at colleges other than Cornell, worked closely with Needham on their dissertations. This article is about the role that Needham, as mentor, played in supporting a vision that was both scientifically and socially unpopular. Through studying the Needham network, the complexity of issues faced by these women and their strategies for coping with them comes to life.
Some of Needham's students made major contributions to entomology. This group includes Edith Morgan, Ann H. Morgan, Emmeline Moore, and Elsie B. Klots. Despite the apparent success of these students and of the Needham school as a whole, it was not easy for Needham's female students to establish careers. One problem stemmed from Needham's emphasis on nature study, ecology and systematic entomology; this field simply was not popular in an era dominated by economic entomology, an era that culminated with the widespread misuse of pesticides such as DDT. Other problems reflect the general history of women in American science: professional barriers; conflicts between marriage and career; the onset of the Great Depression, when jobs were reserved for "family men"; competition between women connected by bonds of friendship; and World War II, which brought career opportunities that were often terminated after the war's end. To cope with such problems, "Needham's girls" depended on their mentor and group affiliation to aid them in building and maintaining connections and relationships within a complex network. Though "Needham's Girls" were victims of exclusionary male-gendered science, they also represented a distinct postmodern trend -- the emergence of ecology as a new science.
Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences Articles, 2023
George Caldwell served as president of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in 1892. Prior to this... more George Caldwell served as president of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in 1892. Prior to this time, the ACS had been a rather parochial New York City based organization. In 1890, the constituency of the ACS expressed its desire to become a truly national body. Toward this end, it forged closer ties with the Chemical Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and merged with the Chemical Section in 1891. As Caldwell had been active with the AAAS group for several years previous to this merger, his election to the presidency of the ACS can be seen as an expression of unity in the American chemical community.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant differences exist in Chinese-to-En... more The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant differences exist in Chinese-to-English translation accuracy between moderate to higher-level human translators and commonly employed freely available machine translation tools. A Chinese-to-English language proficiency structure test and a Chinese-to-English phrase and sentence translation test were given to a large sample of machine (n=10) and human translators (n=133) who are native Chinese speakers with at least 15 years of familiarity with the English language. Results demonstrated that native Chinese speakers with this minimum level of English proficiency were significantly better at translating sentences and phrases from Chinese to English, compared to the ten freely available online machine translation applications, which unexpectedly showed a considerable degree of variation in translation accuracy among them. These results indicate that humans with at least a moderate level of exposure to a non-native language ...
Journal of Modern Chinese History
With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study in... more With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study investigates how a second-generation Chinese American woman negotiated her identity as she moved to China and then back to the United States. Margaret Woo (1912-1982) was born in China and immigrated to the U.S. with her mother in 1914. Her father, Woo Du Sing, had immigrated c.1882 and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he owned a restaurant. A classic sojourner, Du Sing built a house in his home village and intended to retire there. He died in Minneapolis in 1935, however, and his family returned to China to bury his body there and to live in the overseas house. As a young woman raised in America, Margaret disliked village life and left for nearby Canton to become a student at Lingnan University. She returned to the U.S. in late 1937 to escape the Japanese. This study is based on primary sources including interviews with Woo family members in China and the U.S., Margaret’s diary from her time in China, artifacts such as the Woo family house in Kaiping and a collection of cheongsam (qipao) dresses owned by Margaret Woo, and Lingnan University records. Historiographic issues addressed include the sojourner hypothesis, the transnational nature of early 20th century overseas Chinese who built houses in their home village, the role of fashion in exemplifying Chinese feminism and modernity, and the assimilation of second generation Chinese American female immigrants into American life.
This chapter explores patterns of communication between human hunters and the non-human animal, C... more This chapter explores patterns of communication between human hunters and the non-human animal, Corvus corax—the common raven. The scope of the chapter includes the general historical and anthropological context in which humans have interacted with ravens. The primary method utilized is semiotic analysis of historical and anthropological literature, along with personal ethnography. As the study of signs and sign processes, semiotics provides useful insights into ways both human and non-human animals give meaning to their world. Results demonstrate the potential for interspecies communication as a postmodern corrective to the human/nature divide imposed by modernism.
Teaching and Learning for Social Justice and Equity in Higher Education, 2022
The British Journal for the History of Science, 1998
Compared with other scientists of the nineteenth century, the German chemist Justus von Liebig (1... more Compared with other scientists of the nineteenth century, the German chemist Justus von Liebig (1803–73) was a complex figure. In part, this was because Liebig established such broad borders for his science. Chemical methods, popular and professional publications about chemistry, technological applications, promoting the car and even politics – all were central concerns stemming from Liebig's notion of chemistry as the central science.When Liebig discovered John Stuart Mill's Logic, a work on the philosophy of science, it struck a deep chord within him. Mill's high praise for Liebig's chemistry certainly provided Liebig with a means to promote his own reputation. In addition, Mill's Logic presented science as a central method for the general reform of society, a goal Liebig was himself struggling to define in the early 1840s. In the scientific method, Mill discovered a ‘rule by the elite’, which he could never find nor justify in his political philosophy. This wa...
Ambix, 1991
IN a recent contribution to the "Critiques & Contentions" section of IS... more IN a recent contribution to the "Critiques & Contentions" section of ISIS, 1 Evan Melhado impugned the late Carl Perrin's "excessively narrow conception ofprofessional standards in the history of science". According to Melhado, Perrin inherited an "excessive deference to the facts" ...
Technology and Culture, 2016
American National Biography Online
Journal of Modern Chinese History, 2022
With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study in... more With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study investigates how a second-generation Chinese American woman negotiated her identity as she moved to China and then back to the United States. Margaret Woo (1912-1982) was born in China and immigrated to the U.S. with her mother in 1914. Her father, Woo Du Sing, had immigrated c.1882 and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he owned a restaurant. A classic sojourner, Du Sing built a house in his home village and intended to retire there. He died in Minneapolis in 1935, however, and his family returned to China to bury his body there and to live in the overseas house. As a young woman raised in America, Margaret disliked village life and left for nearby Canton to become a student at Lingnan University. She returned to the U.S. in late 1937 to escape the Japanese. This study is based on primary sources including interviews with Woo family members in China and the U.S., Margaret’s diary from her time in China, artifacts such as the Woo family house in Kaiping and a collection of cheongsam (qipao) dresses owned by Margaret Woo, and Lingnan University records. Historiographic issues addressed include the sojourner hypothesis, the transnational nature of early 20th century overseas Chinese who built houses in their home village, the role of fashion in exemplifying Chinese feminism and modernity, and the assimilation of second generation Chinese American female immigrants into American life.
This too is China: Hui Muslim Culture and the Fulbright Experience at Ningxia University, 2019
Ningxia University (Ningda) is in Yinchuan, Ningxia, a Hui Muslim autonomous region in the north... more Ningxia University (Ningda) is in Yinchuan, Ningxia, a Hui Muslim autonomous region in the northwest of China. Because of the 40% minority population, Ningda is a very different experience from my previous teaching and living in Chongqing (Southwest University) and Guangzhou (Zhongshan University, also known as Sun Yat-sen University). The national government is investing a great effort to more fully integrate Hui people into dominant Han culture. This investment is evident in the local infrastructure: wide well-designed roads, an excellent bus system, elegant new buildings, and many state-of-the art museums and parks in and around Yinchuan. This investment is also evident in the support for Hui education at every level, from new well-funded schools in the most remote parts of Ningxia Province to the support for Hui minority students at Ningda. I previously taught in a minority pre-graduate program and was familiar with many of the 50-some minorities in China. I remain good friends with some of those former students and have visited their home areas. But living in a minority region is a very different experience from merely having minority students in the classroom or playing tourist somewhere for a few days. It is a perspective on China that is not well understood or appreciated in the West. Though the outward signs of Hui Muslim culture are subtle – e.g. few female students wear the hijab – the sociocultural dimensions are deep and profound when it comes to marriage, employment prospects, foodways, rural poverty, and education. There are moments when I say, "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in China anymore. . ." But Ningxia is China and understanding this region requires transcending the well-established tropes of life in coastal cities such as Shanghai or Guangzhou.
Sturm und Dung: Justus von Liebig and the Chemistry of Agriculture, 1990
Liebig was a central figure in 19th century chemistry. He pioneered organic chemistry, developed ... more Liebig was a central figure in 19th century chemistry. He pioneered organic chemistry, developed mass laboratory instruction, and begot physiological chemistry. To date, a pervasive mythology has hindered our historical understanding of Liebig’s work. Buoyed up by the nationalism and positivism of the late 19th and early 20th century, this false lineage can only be corrected through a fresh look at the original documents. With Liebig off the pedestal, we can better understand the workings of everyday science (i.e. politics), the creative process, and the great changes wrought by applied science in the 19th century.
The purpose of this dissertation is to show the connections between Liebig's work in organic chemistry, his so-called research school, and his chemistry of agriculture. I have used Liebig's correspondence and other documents to establish the continuity of Liebig's career, from his studies with Kastner to his appointment in Munich. 'Throughout, I have utilized sources on the political and social history of Germany, sources that many historians of science deem irrelevant to their field. By selecting Liebig's work in plant physiology and what he called the chemistry of agriculture (as opposed to agricultural chemistry), I have shown that Liebig's science, the applications of that science, and the society within which they developed are all of a piece am cannot be understood each alone.
The main conclusion of this dissertation is that science exists in no vacuum. Even when Liebig's efforts were most ''pure,'' and directed at seemingly abstract research problems, his work was shaped by religious and political and social currents, and taken in directions he could not fully control. As a clever man, he could, however, profit from these currents in various ways. If one is "pro-science," then perhaps these human and passionate dimensions of science need to be emphasized more heavily in order to attract bright young children to this career. If one is more critical, then it is these very dimensions that should shape our expectations regarding progress and the brave new world. As the novelist Thomas Pynchon might say, it's all about shit (dung), money (and social climbing), and the word (science as truth).
Sturm und Dung: Justus von Liebig and the Chemistry of Agriculture (part two) , 1990
See Munday PhD 1990 part one
Technical Communication Department, 2005
Every creek and gulch in the upper Clark Fork River was prospected for gold as part of the Montan... more Every creek and gulch in the upper Clark Fork River was prospected for gold as part of the Montana placer mining boom in the 1860s and 1870s. By 1870, more than 500 placer gold mining camps dotted Montana Territory. At this time, "Butte City" was just a loose collection of mining camps on Silver Bow Creek, and there was little to set it apart from Montana's many other placer developments. By 1870, the gold rush in Butte was declining, and only about 240 people remained.
Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, 2024
James G. Needham (1868-1958) was a professor of entomology at Cornell University from 1906 to 193... more James G. Needham (1868-1958) was a professor of entomology at Cornell University from 1906 to 1936, and an active emeritus for about ten years thereafter. As a professor, mentored a group of women graduate students at Cornell, a group that included twenty-nine who took doctorates. As a scientist, he was a member of an extensive network that included many women entomologists. These women were located throughout the United States and Canada. Some had been his students at Cornell, some were colleagues with whom he did fieldwork, and others were young women who, even though students at colleges other than Cornell, worked closely with Needham on their dissertations. This article is about the role that Needham, as mentor, played in supporting a vision that was both scientifically and socially unpopular. Through studying the Needham network, the complexity of issues faced by these women and their strategies for coping with them comes to life.
Some of Needham's students made major contributions to entomology. This group includes Edith Morgan, Ann H. Morgan, Emmeline Moore, and Elsie B. Klots. Despite the apparent success of these students and of the Needham school as a whole, it was not easy for Needham's female students to establish careers. One problem stemmed from Needham's emphasis on nature study, ecology and systematic entomology; this field simply was not popular in an era dominated by economic entomology, an era that culminated with the widespread misuse of pesticides such as DDT. Other problems reflect the general history of women in American science: professional barriers; conflicts between marriage and career; the onset of the Great Depression, when jobs were reserved for "family men"; competition between women connected by bonds of friendship; and World War II, which brought career opportunities that were often terminated after the war's end. To cope with such problems, "Needham's girls" depended on their mentor and group affiliation to aid them in building and maintaining connections and relationships within a complex network. Though "Needham's Girls" were victims of exclusionary male-gendered science, they also represented a distinct postmodern trend -- the emergence of ecology as a new science.
Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences Articles, 2023
George Caldwell served as president of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in 1892. Prior to this... more George Caldwell served as president of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in 1892. Prior to this time, the ACS had been a rather parochial New York City based organization. In 1890, the constituency of the ACS expressed its desire to become a truly national body. Toward this end, it forged closer ties with the Chemical Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and merged with the Chemical Section in 1891. As Caldwell had been active with the AAAS group for several years previous to this merger, his election to the presidency of the ACS can be seen as an expression of unity in the American chemical community.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant differences exist in Chinese-to-En... more The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant differences exist in Chinese-to-English translation accuracy between moderate to higher-level human translators and commonly employed freely available machine translation tools. A Chinese-to-English language proficiency structure test and a Chinese-to-English phrase and sentence translation test were given to a large sample of machine (n=10) and human translators (n=133) who are native Chinese speakers with at least 15 years of familiarity with the English language. Results demonstrated that native Chinese speakers with this minimum level of English proficiency were significantly better at translating sentences and phrases from Chinese to English, compared to the ten freely available online machine translation applications, which unexpectedly showed a considerable degree of variation in translation accuracy among them. These results indicate that humans with at least a moderate level of exposure to a non-native language ...
Journal of Modern Chinese History
With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study in... more With a historical approach that contextualizes transnational and gender approaches, this study investigates how a second-generation Chinese American woman negotiated her identity as she moved to China and then back to the United States. Margaret Woo (1912-1982) was born in China and immigrated to the U.S. with her mother in 1914. Her father, Woo Du Sing, had immigrated c.1882 and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he owned a restaurant. A classic sojourner, Du Sing built a house in his home village and intended to retire there. He died in Minneapolis in 1935, however, and his family returned to China to bury his body there and to live in the overseas house. As a young woman raised in America, Margaret disliked village life and left for nearby Canton to become a student at Lingnan University. She returned to the U.S. in late 1937 to escape the Japanese. This study is based on primary sources including interviews with Woo family members in China and the U.S., Margaret’s diary from her time in China, artifacts such as the Woo family house in Kaiping and a collection of cheongsam (qipao) dresses owned by Margaret Woo, and Lingnan University records. Historiographic issues addressed include the sojourner hypothesis, the transnational nature of early 20th century overseas Chinese who built houses in their home village, the role of fashion in exemplifying Chinese feminism and modernity, and the assimilation of second generation Chinese American female immigrants into American life.
This chapter explores patterns of communication between human hunters and the non-human animal, C... more This chapter explores patterns of communication between human hunters and the non-human animal, Corvus corax—the common raven. The scope of the chapter includes the general historical and anthropological context in which humans have interacted with ravens. The primary method utilized is semiotic analysis of historical and anthropological literature, along with personal ethnography. As the study of signs and sign processes, semiotics provides useful insights into ways both human and non-human animals give meaning to their world. Results demonstrate the potential for interspecies communication as a postmodern corrective to the human/nature divide imposed by modernism.
Teaching and Learning for Social Justice and Equity in Higher Education, 2022
The British Journal for the History of Science, 1998
Compared with other scientists of the nineteenth century, the German chemist Justus von Liebig (1... more Compared with other scientists of the nineteenth century, the German chemist Justus von Liebig (1803–73) was a complex figure. In part, this was because Liebig established such broad borders for his science. Chemical methods, popular and professional publications about chemistry, technological applications, promoting the car and even politics – all were central concerns stemming from Liebig's notion of chemistry as the central science.When Liebig discovered John Stuart Mill's Logic, a work on the philosophy of science, it struck a deep chord within him. Mill's high praise for Liebig's chemistry certainly provided Liebig with a means to promote his own reputation. In addition, Mill's Logic presented science as a central method for the general reform of society, a goal Liebig was himself struggling to define in the early 1840s. In the scientific method, Mill discovered a ‘rule by the elite’, which he could never find nor justify in his political philosophy. This wa...
Ambix, 1991
IN a recent contribution to the "Critiques & Contentions" section of IS... more IN a recent contribution to the "Critiques & Contentions" section of ISIS, 1 Evan Melhado impugned the late Carl Perrin's "excessively narrow conception ofprofessional standards in the history of science". According to Melhado, Perrin inherited an "excessive deference to the facts" ...
Technology and Culture, 2016
American National Biography Online