Global Arc

An exploration of the complex relationship between the making of brain science and the human experiences of brain damaged people. Topics include iconic cases of brain damage like the railway worker Phineas Gage who survived an iron rod perforating his brain, the emergence and historical function of neurological case histories, the study of brain-damaged soldiers in WWI, the "neurological novels" of Alexander Luria, and the popular writings of Oliver Sacks.

Alchemy provides a core theme in medieval and early modern European culture, and a key to understanding early science and medicine. From transmuting base metals into gold and silver, to prolonging human life, alchemy offered fabulous rewards. Alchemical books were studied by princes, physicians, priests, and noblewomen, who sought experimental instructions, medical remedies, and political influence. Yet alchemical ideas also challenge modern perceptions of the relationship between art and nature, science and religion, and learned and craft knowledge. We will explore these contrasts using texts, images, objects, and laboratory reconstructions.

The neurosciences have adopted a leading position among the natural sciences. They have also emerged as a dominant viewpoint for examining all aspects of human life, from social relations, to economics, even religion. But while the truths the neurosciences teach seem to be eternal, the disciplines themselves are of a very recent vintage. In this course we will focus on their history, showing how they participated in larger scientific developments after WWII in order to understand their immense cultural authority. We'll pay careful attention to leading primary sources from the field and draw on relevant secondary texts from science studies.

The sourcing, preparation, and consumption of food (and drink) represent essential aspects of human culture, even as these activities have long had massive implications for the planet. Science and technology are deeply implicated in the history of changing diets, and industrialized agriculture has profoundly shaped both human populations and global environmental conditions. This course aims to introduce students to a range of recent writings that take up these problems, with an emphasis on scholarship in history and history of science.

The history of the border between what counts as science and what does not tracks the complex tensions in different times and places among science, religion, politics, and culture. This course explores the boundaries science has staked for itself -- or has had staked out for it -- by focusing on the elusive category of "pseudoscience." What have people considered the character of natural knowledge, and how to attain it? What is at stake in appearing scientific? Why exclude certain things from this designation? Each week this course moves backward in time to highlight the diversity of phenomena at the margins of science.

A review of recent thinking/writing about objects; an effort to experiment with activations of this work. Our course will explore approaches to material culture from the early modern period to the present, with particular attention to new philosophical and anthropological perspectives. Historical questions will be paramount, but aesthetic and epistemological problems will also be engaged. Guided by diverse readings, we will endeavor to heed Wordsworth's bold injunction--to "see into the life of things."

Introduction to limits and derivatives as preparation for further courses in calculus. Fundamental functions (polynomials, rational functions, exponential, logarithmic, trigonometric) and their graphs will be also reviewed. Other topics include tangent and normal lines, linearization, computing area and rates of change. The emphasis will be on learning to think independently and creatively in the mathematical setting.

One semester survey of the major concepts and computational techniques of calculus including limits, derivatives and integrals. Emphasis on basic examples and applications of calculus including approximation, differential equations, rates of change and error estimation for students who will take no further calculus. Prerequisites: MAT100 or equivalent. Restrictions: Cannot receive course credit for both MAT103 and MAT102. Provides adequate preparation for MAT175. Three classes.

First semester of calculus. Topics include limits, continuity, the derivative, basic differentiation formulas and applications (curve-sketching, optimization, related rates), definite and indefinite integrals, the fundamental theorem of calculus. Prerequisite: MAT100 or equivalent.

Continuation of MAT103. Topics include techniques of integration, arclength, area, volume, convergence of series and improper integrals, L'Hopital's rule, power series and Taylor's theorem, introduction to differential equations and complex numbers. Prerequisite: MAT103 or equivalent.