Curriculum Updates

HIST 2020: Pyramids, Pirates, and the Polis: The Ancient Mediterranean

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Instructor: Joseph McAlhany

The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the histories and cultures of the ancient civilizations surrounding the ancient Mediterranean, with special emphasis on the transformations they underwent as a result of their interactions, both peaceful and violent. The political and religious developments of these cultures are still with us today, in ways we might not recognize and in ways we might not like.

From readings of both primary and secondary sources, written and visual, you will learn not only what this history was, but also what it wasn’t. Along the way, you will also learn to appreciate how history gets made, both by the people who live it and the people who write it.

(CA 1, CA 4-Int)

SOCI 2275: Social Well-Being

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Instructor: Bradley Wright 

We all have days when we feel happy or sad, with purpose or lost, satisfied or dissatisfied. Why do these states happen when they do? Is it what we are doing? Where we are in life? Who we are with? This course examines how well-being is experienced in society. It explores different conceptualizations of it as well as who has the most of it. It examines the various antecedents of it, including cognitive, emotional, situational, and societal factors.

DMD 3620: Collaborating with Cultural Organizations (Conversion Opportunity)

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[UConn Storrs]

Instructor: Clarissa Ceglio

While this is not an Honors course, Prof. Ceglio welcomes Honors students of all majors and would be happy to offer Honors conversions for interested students. Alternatively, Honors students may enroll in the cross-listed graduate section (DMD 5998-011), which will entail additional advanced work. 

In this Service-Learning course, we will apply digital public history tools and methods to a project undertaken in partnership with a cultural organization. This immerses students in issues of contemporary practice while building collaborative competency.

Students taking this class will be able to:

  • Investigate humanities-based design thinking strategies and apply them to idea and project development
  • Explore the roles and tools of digital public history professionals working in the cultural sector
  • Deepen their ability to be an effective contributor to collaborative undertakings
  • Learn how to develop a creative brief, work iteratively, make research-based recommendations, and propose sustainable practices
  • Conclude the semester with portfolio-ready work and resume-worthy experience

Permission number required. Contact: clarissa.ceglio@uconn.edu

DMD 3620: Collaborating with Cultural Organizations (Conversion Opportunity)

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Instructor: Clarissa Ceglio

While this is not an Honors course, Prof. Ceglio welcomes Honors students of all majors and would be happy to offer Honors conversions for interested students. Alternatively, Honors students may enroll in the cross-listed graduate section (DMD 5998-005), which will entail additional advanced work. 

Museums, archives, and other cultural organizations are spaces of digital media experimentation as they seek new ways to communicate ideas, make collections accessible, inspire learning, connect people, and build community. In addition to exploring what the terms digital, public, and humanities mean—alone and in combination—we will examine ways in which digital media, from apps to virtual reality (VR) to hashtags, are being used to critically engage us in questions about our human past, present, and future. We will explore, too, the place of digital/public/humanities within contemporary debates about cultural organizations’ histories and responsibilities with regard to social justice, activism, and inclusivity. This Service Learning course also involves collaborating with on and off-campus cultural organizations on a set of microprojects with such partners as the Keney Park Sustainability Project. Through this course students will gain an understanding of the roles that current and emerging digital media play in public engagement and gain hands-on experience with basic tools, such as Omeka, an open-source software for building online collections and exhibits. No prior digital media skills required.

PSYC 3250W: Laboratory in Animal Behavior and Learning

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[UConn Storrs]

Instructor: Etan Markus

Prerequisites: (1) ENGL 107, 1010, 1011, or 2011; (2) PSYC 1100; (3) PSYC 2100; (4) PSYC 2200 or 2500 or 3201 or 3552; (5) a good knowledge of statistics

Permission number required. Request a permission number using this form.

Remember how you got to class today? a bad experience? learning to ride a bike? What parts of the brain are involved in these different types of behaviors? How can one examine these questions in the laboratory rat? This hands-on laboratory will provide students with an opportunity to conduct experiments using modern behavioral techniques. The ability of rats to carry out different types of tasks will be related to different brain structures.

This is a serious lab designed for students interested in continuing to graduate or medical school.

  • This is a hands-on lab, most of the time we will only have a brief classroom session. Instead, on about half the weeks students will be training animals for about 1-2 hours/day for 3-4 days a week.
  • On occasion you will have to come in on the weekend to care for your animals.
  • This is also a “W” class, and I’ll be working with you on your writing (& re-writing).

W.

ECON 3473: Microeconomic Issues in Economic Development and Policy Making

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Instructor: Nishith Prakash

Prerequisites: ECON 1200 or 1202; ECON 2201 or 2211Q. The requirement of intermediate microeconomics (2201/2211Q) may be waived for Honors students who have taken ECON 1200 or 1201. Email Prof. Prakash to request a permission number.

A majority of the world’s population lives on less than $2/day. The goal of this course is to better understand the lives of the world’s poor. What are their lives like? Why do they remain poor? In particular, we will explore 3-4 interrelated topics such as poverty, education, political economy and corruption.

Key highlights of this course:

  1. Students will learn impact evaluation.
  2. Students will learn how to evaluate government policies.
  3. Students will learn how to design effective policies aimed at improving the well-being of individuals.
  4. Students will learn a statistical tool – STATA, a powerful tool used in Applied Microeconomics.

WGSS 2105W: Gender and Science

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Requires ENGL 1010, 1011, or 2011.

This class will critically examine how social constructions of gender, race, class, sexuality, and disability shape science, medicine, and technology. We will consider the complex relationships between constructions of nature, science, objectivity, and the body to highlight how culture influences the theory and practice of different sciences, medical research, and technologies.

Some of the questions we will explore include:
How does science and technology influence everyday life? How are gender, race, sexuality and nation woven through the historical development of Western sciences? How has feminist science studies intervened or critiqued the construction of science, medicine and technology?

We will look specifically at how science is used to make claims about social differences, as well as examine some social implications of medical technologies. We will examine the culture of science, the power of scientific discourse, debates on the role of science in shaping government policy, and challenges scientists have faced historically and in this contemporary political context. No scientific background or experience is required; only a willingness to critically examine both science and ourselves.

Note WGSS 2105W is coded at the catalog level as open to sophomores or higher. If you are an Honors student who will have fewer than 24 credits when this course is offered, you may register by emailing honors@uconn.edu and including (1) your name; (2) your 7-digit Student Admin number; (3) your registration “pick time”; (4) the course number and section; (5) the class number from Student Admin; and (6) confirmation that there are seats available in the course.

WGSS 2105W: Gender and Science

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[UConn Storrs]

Requires ENGL 1007, 1010, 1011, or 2011.

This class will critically examine how social constructions of gender, race, class, sexuality, and disability shape science, medicine, and technology. We will consider the complex relationships between constructions of nature, science, objectivity, and the body to highlight how culture influences the theory and practice of different sciences, medical research, and technologies.

Some of the questions we will explore include:
How does science and technology influence everyday life? How are gender, race, sexuality and nation woven through the historical development of Western sciences? How has feminist science studies intervened or critiqued the construction of science, medicine and technology? Is there such a thing as a neutral or gender-free science? Is there such a thing as a feminist science?

We will focus particularly on the culture of science and power of scientific discourse. We will look specifically at how science is used to make claims about social differences, as well as examine the some social implications of medical technologies for women, e.g. how current medical technologies create novel, and even moral, demands and dilemmas for women. No scientific background or experience is required; only a willingness to critically examine both science and ourselves.

Note WGSS 2105W is coded at the catalog level as open to sophomores or higher. If you are an Honors student who will have fewer than 24 credits when this course is offered, you may register by emailing honors@uconn.edu and including (1) your name; (2) your 7-digit Student Admin number; (3) your registration “pick time”; (4) the course number and section; (5) the class number from Student Admin; and (6) confirmation that there are seats available in the course.

SOCI 1701: Society in Global Perspective

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[UConn Storrs]

This course will introduce students to the sociological perspective of society in global perspective. The course will focus on the economic, social and cultural processes that shape contemporary society and will help students understand the links between their personal experiences and larger social forces by focusing on the transnational social relationships in which they are embedded. The course also provides an international perspective on society by elevating the contributions of classical and contemporary sociologists from outside of the traditional western canon. Students will learn to think critically about the causes and consequences of social inequalities and the social construction of human life across the globe.

This class will include active learning, peer mentoring, debates on controversial topics, and engagement (via Skype and blogs) with scholars and students in other parts of the world to help students develop global sociological imaginations.

Sources for course materials and topical coverage include sociology; environmental studies; women’s, gender, and sexuality studies; migration studies; and human rights.

SOCI 1701: Society in Global Perspective

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[UConn Storrs – Distance learning]

This course will introduce students to societies from a global perspective. The course will focus on the political, economic, social and cultural processes that shape contemporary societies and will help students understand the links between their personal experiences and the transnational social relationships in which they are embedded. We will examine topics such as globalization, human rights and its limits; violence against women; migration patterns including forced migration and trafficking; technology-driven transformation of societies, including AI; climate change, sustainability, and environment justice activism. Students will learn to think critically about the causes and consequences of social inequalities and the social construction of human life across the globe. This class promotes active learning; students will engage in debates and discussions, design a part of their own evaluation, and learn from scholars in other parts of the world.

Sources for course materials and topical coverage include sociology; environmental studies; women’s, gender, and sexuality studies; decolonial studies, and human rights.