Fall 2024 Courses

An interdisciplinary study of centers of African civilization from antiquity to the 1960s. Such centers include ancient Egypt, Nubia, Axum, Ghana, Mali, Songhai, Kilwa, Malinda, Sofola, Zinzibar and Monomotapa.

(Section 001Q/TTH: 8:30-9:45 a.m.)
GEP: Global Knowledge
GEP: Humanities

Study of human evolution. Processes of evolution, human variation and race, behavior and morphology of nonhuman primates, and the fossil record. Emphasis on the study of human biosocial adaptation, past and present, and on humans as culture-bearing primates.

(Section OO4Q/MW 4:30-5:45 p.m.)
GEP: Social Sciences

This course provides both science and non-science students and opportunity to learn about current and historical issues in biotechnology. From alternative fuel sources to the ramications of the elucidation of the human genome on health care issues, advances in biotechnology are constantly reshaping the world we live in. Students will give presentations and participate in discussions in the classroom, as well as be engaged in the laboratory on a variety of different topics in biotechnology that affects all our lives.

(Section 001Q LEC/T 8:30-11:15 a.m.)
(Section 201Q LAB/ TH: 8:30-11:15 a.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
GEP: Natural Science

This course offers first-year students an opportunity for mentored research. Students will apply the scientific method to make novel discoveries. Students will isolate and characterize naturally-occurring bacteriophage (viruses that infect bacteria, but not humans) from the environment. They will present their data to each other, and the genome of one phage will be sequenced. Students have the option to continue in a second semester to annotate that genome, culminating in a submission to genbank and a poster presentation. Students in the course are part of the National Genome Research Initiative funded by The Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

(Section 001Q/ T 8:30-11:15 a.m.)
GEP: Natural Sciences

This class is all about relationships! We will explore self-concept, language and culture, self-disclosure, active listening, verbal and nonverbal communication, and conict management. We discuss how we form, maintain, and sometimes end friendships, as well as family, romantic, and workplace relationships. We will examine our own lives, as well as examples from social media, television, movies,and other media. Each week we will enjoy discussions that apply what we learn to real life examples, as well as methods to improve our relationships.

(Section 002Q/TTH 10:15-11:30 a.m.)
GEP: Social Sciences

This course introduces students to the basic components of an entrepreneurial lifestyle in the arts for those interested in starting an arts business. Students explore fundamental issues arts entrepreneurs encounter and how they can be addressed before the startup process reaches the launch cycle. Students are required to provide their own transportation to and cover the admission costs of off-campus events.

(Section 001Q/TTH: 10:15-11:30 a.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

We will study significant British chosen from among such figures as Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Swift, Pope, Austen, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Tennyson, Browning, Bronte, Dickens, Joyce, Eliot, Woolf, and Yeats.

(Section 001Q/TTH: 1:30-2:45 p.m.)
GEP: Humanities

A survey of American literature from the Civil War to the present, including such central authors as Whitman,Dickinson, Twain, James, Crane, Wharton, Frost, Eliot, Hemingway, Hurston, Faulkner, Wright, O’Connor, and Morrison.

(Section 001Q/MW: 8:30-9:45 a.m.)
GEP: Humanities
GEP: U.S. Diversity

Food science is an exciting, multidisciplinary career that draws on chemistry, microbiology, and engineering principles to produce, preserve, and protect the foods we eat every day. This course is designed to explore the journey of foods from “farm to fork”, the effect of diet on human health, and the laws governing food labeling and marketing. It’s science you can eat!

(Section OO2Q/MW: 10:15-11:30 a.m.)
GEP: Natural Science

Exploration of the pre-Hispanic indigenous roots and the colonial period in Latin America. Major themes include the origins and development of social, political, economic and religious institutions from pre-conquest times to the achievement of independence. Topics include ancient American cultures, conquest and settlement by Spain and Portugal, colonial rule in theory and practice, religious life and structures, the colonial economy and labor, and independence movements.

(Section 001Q/MW 1:30 -2:45 p.m.)
GEP: Humanities
GEP: Global Knowledge

This course is about the history of the scientific ideas and practices that made science a large part of modern life, including the invention of methods, the mechanistic worldview, the relation of scientists to authority, and the interaction of science with religious beliefs. We will look at some key ideas and moments, and people and places, over the last four centuries. We will use stories about scientific change to open questions about innovation, disruption, persuasion, and values. That means also a bit of myth-busting about some famous figures and events.

(Section 002Q/MW 1:30-2:45 p.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Discussion-based seminar that uses major texts of cultural importance to explore what it means to live in a diverse, just, and inclusive North American society and to develop students’ oral and written communication skills. Readings range in genre from speeches and short stories to court decisions and pop culture across American generations with focus on themes of diversity and difference, equity and justice, and inclusion and belonging. (Section 004Q/MW: 1:30-2:45 P.M.)

(Section 004Q/MW: 1:30-2:45 P.M.)
GEP: Humanities
GEP: USDEI

Introductory analysis of the diverse processes of globalization, and an interdisciplinary survey of the social, political, economic, and cultural patterns reflected in the interrelations between various regions of the world. Emphasis on the historical and cultural contexts of debates in current global issues.

(Section 005Q/MW: 11:45 a.m.-1 p.m.)
GEP: Global Knowledge
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Climate is changing with potentially catastrophic implications for the Earth and for people. In this course we discuss how and why climate is changing and how climate change is affecting and will affect human well-being in society. We draw upon the multiple disciplinary lenses and diverse perspectives needed to evaluate proposed solutions to climate change across multiple dimensions and/or to assess fully the consequences of inaction.

(Section 001Q/TTH: 10:15-11:30 a.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Analysis of American political institutions and processes, including the constitution, political culture, campaigns and elections, political parties, interest groups, the media, the president, congress, the federal courts, and public policy. Discussion of contemporary and controversial issues in American politics. Emphasis on placing current issues in comparative and historical perspective where relevant.

(Section 002Q/MWF: 11:45 a.m.-12:35 p.m.)
GEP: Social Science

Do you want to learn to think critically and creatively when making decisions and learn about a variety of decision-making models across (sub) disciplines? Throughout this course, students will explore a minimum of 4 models on decision-making and thinking processes across (sub) disciplines to consider when addressing different problems. Questions will be asked of students in a way that will foster critical and creative thinking in order to analyze, process, and identify effective ways for approaching a problem/situation using the models presented.

(Section OO2Q/TTH 10:15-11:30 a.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives

World Population and Food Prospects examines the dynamics of population size and food needs production, distribution, and utilization. The course also analyzes the consequences of inadequate nutrition, food choices and efforts to increase the compatibility of effective food production systems.

(Section 002Q/TTH: 4:30 – 5:45 p.m.)
GEP: Global Knowledge

Interdisciplinary introduction to the reciprocal relationships between scientific/technological research and contemporary understanding of gender. Special emphasis on social factors influencing scientists and engineers in their professions.

(Section 001Q/ 11:45 a.m.-1 p.m.)
GEP: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
GEP: U.S. Diversity