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Course Criteria
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1.00 Credits
Michael J. Fox, Richard Pryor, and Christopher Reeves: what do these celebrities have in common Each has tragically sustained an injury to the Central Nervous System. And as a result of their high public profiles, research into the afflictions of each individual - Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and spinal chord injury, respectively - has seen increased publicity, analyses, and funding. This seminar will explore the role that public opinion plays in the allocation of public funds for scientific inquiry. We will study how events outside of science lead to advances in science, for example the formation of the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Laboratories. Associated with this is increased funding of particular research fields with public money. We will emphasize the importance of scientific literacy in the formulation of science policy and allocation of tax money, and see it in action by visits to local and state governmental meetings. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
After the great battles of Ulm and Austerlitz in 1805, Europe opened wide to French domination. The Napoleonic Empire was established with Paris as its administrative and moral core. This seminar explores the lives of those Parisians to whom fortune and fame beckoned from the moment of Napoléon's coup d'état in 1799 on. We will study Napoléon, of course, but also Josephine de Beauharnais, whose first husband died in the Revolutionary Terror and whose marriage to Napoléon was a way for this impoverished aristocrat to reinvent herself. We will look at the life of the painter, David, former Jacobin and follower of Robespierre, now court painter to the Empire. Tallyrand, the General Bourrienne, and the writer Stendhal are some of the other dramatis personae of this seminar that examines in turn those Parisians who set themselves in opposition to the Empire. These include Germaine de Sta l, who so angered Napoléon with her feminist novels that he banished her from Paris and her companion, Benjamin Constant, whose speech to the Tribunat in 1800 remains a stirring statement against authoritarian government. The Paris of the Empire is revealed through the memoirs, letters, novels, and portraits of these Parisians. Through our encounter with their words and images, we will reconstruct the salons, the ministries, the palaces, the streets and the monuments of a Paris some of whose physical traces have faded but whose moral issues remain with us t 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
An investigation of the idea and fundamental mystery of Shakespeare. What is genius Was Shakespeare born a genius, did he learn to be great, or did he simply enjoy being born at the right time and place Is he essentially great, because of the way that he writes, or only because we make him so Why is Shakespeare's currency, beyond any other writer in any tradition, so transferable We will read some of Shakespeare's best-known plays (Midsummer Night's Dream, I Henry IV, Hamlet, Lear, Tempest); learn about Renaissance conditions of playgoing, playwriting, and playacting; secure the few facts about his life; review representative18th and 19th-century Shakespearean critics; and end with a selection of adaptations and revisions of Shakespeare by contemporary playwrights, film directors, and novelists. Reading and writing will be crucial acts as we try to fathom the Shakespeare phenomenon, but so will active viewing of performances - of film on campus, and plays in Hartford, Boston, New Haven, and/or New York. In order to understand better the quality of the drama, we'll have professional actors perform scenes for us, students will write reviews, and possibly, even, their own Shakespearean adaptatio 1.00 units, Seminar
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3.00 Credits
This seminar addresses the issues and controversies surrounding sport in the United States. Students will study the history of sport in an effort to better understand contemporary sports today and they will be asked to consider the social context of sport in relation to gender, race, ethnicity, and class. Seminar topics include discussion of equity opportunities based on the 1972 Title IX legislation which prohibits sex discrimination in all aspects of education and the youth sports phenomenon as a setting for important developmental experiences. Students will also research current controversial data that claims that traditional values of college sports are threatened by an educational divide that exists between academics and athletics. Through this study, we will establish an understanding of why sport is a major force in shaping the quality and character of American culture and how we might enhance the framework. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
The concepts of crime and punishment--transgression and retribution--are so widespread and taken for granted that we often lose sight of the questions of how they originate and have evolved. Through study of important literary, philosophical, and social science texts, we shall be considering, in addition to these historical questions, the issues also of the relation between crime and punishment as well their connection to such related concepts as freedom and responsibility, revenge and forgiveness. Contemporary views of the function of punishment and the causes of crime will be addressed against the background of the classical views discussed. Readings will include selections from Genesis and works by Aeschylus, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche, Kafka, Christopher Browning, and Mary Douglas. Class assignments will include a journal, short essays, and class presentations. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
The U.S. Congress declared the 1990's The Decade of the Brain. As part of this undertaking, vast resources were brought to bear on the topics of brain science, behavior, and learning and memory. This seminar will expose students to the non-technical aspects of brain science, its interdisciplinary nature, and its impact on our society today. We will examine both early and modern theories related to the inseparable relationship between the mind and the brain. We will also explore issues related to the science of emotion, and how physical events become mental activity (e.g. recognizing, remembering, learning), as well as ethical issues raised by advances in our understanding of the neural bases of behavior and personality. Topics related to whether or not behavior, thoughts, and previous experiences can change the actual physical structure of the brain will also be covered. There will be a couple of film screenings outside of class, and several field trips, including a day trip during Trinity Days to either the American Museum of Natural History (NYC) or another local museum to be announced. Only first-year students are eligible to enroll in this class. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
In this seminar particular attention will be given to political violence in America, Northern Ireland, Peru, and Argentina. In each of these areas we will attempt to find answers to questions such as these: What does "political violence "mean What are the goals of those who engage in political violence and those who try to prevent it When is political violence justified When and how should democratic governments respond to political violence What are some of the modern means by which political violence can be stopped How successful have they been Students who trace their ancestors to Ireland or Latin America should find this seminar of particular interest. Sources for learning will include standard texts, novels, and films. Other goals and activities of this seminar will include special projects designed to give first-year students an understanding of Hartford as a wonderful place to study politics, meet talented political leaders, enjoy cultural events, and explore cultural diversity. Special attention will be given to assisting students in using the resources of the library, computers, and the writing center. The mentor of this seminar will be Martha McGivern '02, who is an English major, a skillful rugby player, and a student of both Ireland and Argentina. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
Since the beginning of the 19th century, American involvement with the countries of East Asia has increased dramatically through trade, immigration, diplomacy, and war. Despite this degree of interaction, however, the popular American image of Asia, its cultures and peoples, has largely remained characterized by a belief in inherent difference. While the image of Asian cultures and societies propagated by mass media and the entertainment industry has evolved considerably, even today we find a sense of inscrutable "other-ness" attached to Asia and Asians. This seminar will examine the history of the American images of Asia in journalism, fiction, and film, and interrogate the underlying causes and arising implications of the American "habit" of exoticizing Asi 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
Analyzing the experience of the human face across ages and cultures offers a rich excuse for interdisciplinary work.. This course will look at the special place of the human face as a pattern in psychology (what makes a face attractive How and why do facial expressions convey emotions ), biology (Why do babies look cute Are there special places in the brain sensitive to "face" patterns Why did Charles Darwin write a whole book on facial expression ), anthropology (In what ways do facial expressions differ across cultures ), fine arts (How and why have western artists' depictions of faces changed so much over hundreds of years ), computer science (What must we know to get computers to recognize faces and facial expressions ), and the criminal justice system (To what extent can we trust eyewitness identification from "mugshots" and "lineups "). In addition to books and articles, students will be introduced to extensive data and demonstrations in the area available on the World Wide Web. 1.00 units, Seminar
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1.00 Credits
What is a border A boundary A frontier What does it mean to cross national, cultural, and ethnic borders This course will examine these questions by looking at the borderlands between China and Southeast Asia, one of the most ethnically diverse places in the world. We will discuss such topics as self-determination, environmental degradation, ethno-tourism, prostitution, drug smuggling and HIV/AIDS in this region. Where appropriate, we will engage in comparative discussion of the US borders and border crossings. Readings will include ethnographies, memoirs and novels, and will be complemented by documentary and feature films. 1.00 units, Seminar
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