[UConn Storrs]

Not open to students who have passed GSCI 1050 or GSCI 1051. Equivalent to GSCI 1051 for the purposes of prerequisites.

This is the Honors version of introductory geology. The goal is for students to learn how the earth works, what its history has been, how life and planetary processes have co-evolved, and how the student can put this knowledge to use to solve practical environmental problems. Though geology is the main course, it will be heavily seasoned across time and space by American literature, environmental history, and our national parks.

The main pedagogy involves pre-class student preparation, followed by student-led discussions of each new topic, ranging from crystals to climates as outcomes. Field trips, seminars, a symposium and a final project round out the activities.

In this course, students will:

• Become geoscience literate
• Understand geology’s pervasive influence on human society
• Realize that geoscience is a respected scientific career with excellent job prospects, especially with respect to water and energy resources
• Realize that a geosciences major is a solid platform for graduate education in other non-scientific fields

General Education information GSCI 1055 alone is a CA 3 non-laboratory course. If you add the GSCI 1052 geology laboratory (either in the same semester or a future one), you may request the conversion of GSCI 1055 to fulfill your CA 3-Laboratory requirement.

[UConn Storrs]

Not open to students who have passed ERTH/GSCI 1010, 1050, 1051, or 1070. Formerly offered as GSCI 1055.

Welcome to the Honors Core version of introductory geoscience. The main goal is for students to learn how Earth works, what its history has been, and how this knowledge can be put to good use. More specifically, to reframe environmental thinking, mitigate natural hazards, and obtain the resources we need. Climate change, ecological collapse, human inequality, and planetary futures look very different when seen through an earthly lens.

The main pedagogy emphasizes hybrid learning via pre-class explorations, readings, and podcasts followed by in-class, student-led discussions. Four “cohort” days give students a chance to bond as a group and help guide the course direction. A final creative project is presented in a student symposium. There are zero tests or quizzes.

By the end of this course, students will:

• Comprehend how the Earth works as a grand holistic system that includes ecosystems and human systems as components.
• Realize that the world we know is a thin membrane created and controlled by whole-earth processes.
• Understand the deep-time origins of landscapes to enhance their appreciation and management.
• Learn that geoscience is a rigorous, environmental STEM career with excellent job prospects and one that provides a solid platform for graduate education in non-STEM fields.

General Education information ERTH 1055 alone is a CA 3 non-laboratory course. If you add the ERTH 1052 geology laboratory (either in the same semester or a future one), you may request the conversion of ERTH 1055 to fulfill your CA 3-Laboratory requirement.

[UConn Storrs]

Not open to students who have passed GSCI 1010, 1050, 1051, or 1070. Formerly offered as GSCI 1055. Equivalent to ERTH 1051 for the purposes of prerequisites.

This is the Honors version of introductory geoscience. The goal is for students to learn how Earth works, what its history has been, and how this knowledge can be put to good use — for example to reframe the climate crisis, ecological collapse, human inequality, and our planetary future.

The main pedagogy involves active learning through pre-class podcasts, readings, campus field trips, student leadership, and a final engagement project presented in a student symposium.

In this course, students will:

• Understand how the Earth works as a holistic system.
• Realize that social systems and ecosystems are subsystems of Earth.
• Reflect on geoscience as STEM career with excellent job prospects involving environmental risk and water, material, and energy resources.
• Learn that a major in geosciences provides a solid platform for graduate education in non-STEM fields.

General Education information ERTH 1055 alone is a CA 3 non-laboratory course. If you add the ERTH 1052 geology laboratory (either in the same semester or a future one), you may request the conversion of ERTH 1055 to fulfill your CA 3-Laboratory requirement.

Appropriate for honors students at all class levels, Current Issues in Environmental Science (nicknamed “Alternative Futures”) explores a wide variety of current issues emphasizing linkages between earth, oceans, atmosphere, and biosphere. Topics include: earth processes, climate change; human population; food resources; genetically-engineered organisms; soil/water/air resources; alternative energy; biodiversity; deforestation/restoration; urban planning; risk assessment; tradeoffs; problem-solving. The format includes guest and instructor lectures, class discussions, student-led presentations of scientific and media-reported current events, group and individual projects, and more.

I’m very excited to introduce a discussion/activity section to accompany the course. It is experimental this semester and so listed under EEB 3895. Please sign up for both courses. The discussion section includes field trips (e.g., visit to a zero energy house, recycling facility, UConn co-gen facility, UConn Conservation Area, and guest lectures from award-winning environmentalists from a variety of professions).

[UConn Storrs]

Appropriate for honors students at all class levels, Current Issues in Environmental Science (nicknamed “Alternative Futures”) explores a wide variety of current issues emphasizing linkages between earth, oceans, atmosphere, and biosphere. Topics include: earth processes, climate change; human population; food resources; genetically-engineered organisms; soil/water/air resources; alternative energy; biodiversity; deforestation/restoration; urban planning; risk assessment; tradeoffs; problem-solving. The format includes guest and instructor lectures, class discussions, student-led presentations of scientific and media-reported current events, group and individual projects, and more. The lab consists of lectures by award-winning environmental experts from other institutions as well as field trips (e.g., visit to a zero energy house, recycling facility, UConn Conservation Area).

This course aims to introduce students to the cutting-edge toolkit for historical and comparative analysis of challenging issues facing modern societies, such as poverty, gender roles, discrimination, migration, labor coercion, and armed conflict. The course will consist of three parts. In the first part, we will develop common ground by learning broadly about the application of recent methods of historical and comparative analysis and the importance of colonization, historical events, and geography. The second part will focus on the channels of transmission between the past and today. We will examine why the effects of certain historical events soon disappear but others persist over time. Using the best examples of persistent effects that have been identified in the literature, we will study the roles of biology, culture, and institutions that transmitted these effects to today. Finally, in the third part we will apply these insights to investigate the deep roots of some of the challenging issues affecting modern societies.

Each student will choose a geographic region of the world and one of the issues to be covered in the course. This choice will guide your individual research and exploration and be the basis for your paper and presentation assignments.

[UConn Storrs]

Requires ECON 1200 or both ECON 1201 and 1202.

This course examines the sources of challenging issues facing modern societies, such as inequality, racism, sexism, and armed conflict. You will learn pathbreaking approaches that inform our understanding of these issues by revealing their historical roots and the channels that transmitted these roots to today.

The course will consist of three parts. In the first part, we will survey a brief economic history of the World, our long journey from a period in which human life was “nasty, brutish, and short,” to highly developed modern societies with vastly higher but unequal living standards. The second part will examine the origins of our journey by differentiating between the proximate reasons and deep roots of today’s problems and the channels of transmission between the past and present. We will study the relative importance of institutions, culture, geographic endowment, agricultural history, and human diversity. In the third part, we will apply these insights to examine the deep roots of some of the important problems facing modern societies.

Each student will choose a geographic region of the world and one topic from each of the three parts of the course. These choices will guide your individual research and exploration and be the basis for your writing and presentation assignments. You will have the opportunity to contribute to class discussion from the perspective of your region and topics.

[UConn Storrs]

Requires ECON 1200 or both ECON 1201 and 1202.

This course examines the sources of challenging issues facing modern societies, such as poverty, gender roles, discrimination, migration, labor coercion, and armed conflict. Going beyond the study of limited proximate reasons affecting these problems, we analyze ever deeper, more fundamental causes that lie deep in history and natural conditions, such as colonization, slavery, globalization, warfare, geographic endowment, and environmental history. You will learn innovative methods to analyze important questions and scientific standards to communicate ideas and critique other approaches.

The course will consist of three parts. In the first part, you will learn recent methods of economic history to differentiate between proximate reasons and deep roots. The second part will apply these insights to investigate the effects of historical and geographic factors on specific contemporary issues and the channels of transmission between the past and present. In the final part, you will examine differences between traditional and modern societies with the objective of answering why certain traditional practices have disappeared while others have persisted over time.

Each student will choose a geographic region of the world and one of the issues to be covered in the course. This choice will guide your individual research and exploration and be the basis for your paper and presentation assignments.

[UConn Storrs]

Requires ECON 1200 or both ECON 1201 and 1202. Not open for credit for students who have completed ECON 2103.

This course examines the sources of challenging issues facing modern societies, such as inequality, racism, sexism, and armed conflict. You will learn pathbreaking approaches that inform our understanding of these issues by revealing their historical roots and the channels that transmitted these roots to today.

The course will consist of three parts. In the first part, we will survey a brief economic history of the World, our long journey from a period in which human life was “nasty, brutish, and short,” to highly developed modern societies with vastly higher but unequal living standards. The second part will examine the origins of our journey by differentiating between the proximate reasons and deep roots of today’s problems and the channels of transmission between the past and present. We will study the relative importance of institutions, culture, geographic endowment, agricultural history, and human diversity. In the third part, we will apply these insights to examine the deep roots of some of the important problems facing modern societies.

Each student will choose a geographic region of the world and one topic from each of the three parts of the course. These choices will guide your individual research and exploration and be the basis for your writing and presentation assignments. You will have the opportunity to contribute to class discussion from the perspective of your region and topics.

Note This class has a catalog-level pre-requisite of ECON 2201, ECON 2202, ECON 2211Q, or ECON 2212Q. We can override this requirement so long as you have credit for ECON 1200 or both ECON 1201 and 1202. If you are an Honors student, you may register by emailing honors@uconn.edu and including (1) your name; (2) your 7-digit Student Admin number; (3) confirmation that you have credit for ECON 1200 or both ECON 1201 and 1202; (4) your registration “pick time”; (5) the course number and section; (6) the class number from Student Admin; and (7) confirmation that there are seats available in the course.

This class has a catalog-level pre-requisite of ECON 2201, ECON 2202, ECON 2211Q, or ECON 2212Q, but we can override this requirement. If you are bringing in credit for both ECON 1201 and 1202, talk to your Orientation advisor about enrolling in this course.