Connective Experience [COE]. Four courses, 10 credits.
Three 3-credit courses plus one 1-credit integration course (10 credits total). All four courses are taken in the same academic year, either in the sophomore or junior year.
The Connective Experience is a unique feature of LVC, in which students choose a topic reflecting their interest and explore that topic from three angles. Each of the three courses explores the topic from a specific disciplinary perspective, or ‘path of inquiry’, either in the natural sciences, humanities, or social sciences. These courses allow our students to pursue their own interests within our core curriculum, to recognize the unique contribution of each discipline to human knowledge, and to develop their ability to integrate information from a variety of perspectives.
Approved COE Courses:
COE 202CS Gender and Identity: Synthesis| Gender is a fundamental organizing principle of society; for better or worse, we allow our assumptions regarding gender to shape how we interact with and perceive others. In this connective experience, we will explore the dimensions of gender, a concept no longer restricted solely to the definitions of men and women. We will explore research, which investigates the degree to which males and females are similar and/or different in the biological, cognitive, social, and emotional domains. The impact of gender on identity will be examined in a variety of contexts, such as leadership in the workplace, and the impact of gender inequality on the process of economic development and socio-political systems in developing countries. We will examine gender and its relationship to broader historical, social, and geopolitical contexts. We will address gendered communication, verbal and nonverbal, and how it changes based on where and with whom we communicate. Finally, we will explore theoretical and literary texts that address some of the most fundamental issues of gender and identity, and analyze intersections among gender and other categories of difference, such as class, race, religion, and national identity. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Students must register for all four courses in this
Connective Experience in the same academic year. All
courses carry the same course number. 1 credit. |
| What does it mean to be a man or a woman? Where do these categories come from, and what functions do they serve? Most importantly, is there anything beyond them? This course will introduce students to a broad selection of theoretical and literary texts that pose, and attempt to answer, some of the most fundamental questions of gender and identity. Students will read, study, and critique texts that represent diverse gender and sexual experiences, as well as analyze the ways different identities intersect with other cultural categories, such as race, ethnicity, class, and religion. Through class discussion, critical writing, and close reading of both theory and fiction, students will examine the historical and cultural constructions of gender, and analyze the ways that literature has informed, resisted, and richly complicated our understanding of what it means to be gendered beings. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE 112. 3 credits. |
| This course is part of a Connective Experience, which examines a broad spectrum of issues related to Gender and Identity. A primary focus will be to examine how scientific methodology is used to answer questions related to Gender Identity. Of central importance is the examination of empirical findings related to gender differences and similarities in biological, behavioral, cognitive, social, and emotional domains. This course will also involve a critical examination of the meaning of gender in the field of psychology and within broader society. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is designed to provide students with ideas, information, and insights that pertain to gender and leadership. The course will look at the status of gender and leadership through a global perspective and will examine leadership through many lenses including government, civic leadership, industry, education, and the sciences. The course will strive to have students examine if women indeed still have less access to leadership roles than men and, if so, to then identify the numerous and complex reasons for this diminished access. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| A hunger for perfection is a universal human trait. Whether the search for the perfect community, the perfect body, or the perfect dream, countless hours have been both productively spent and uselessly wasted in the pursuit of this ideal. A core of shared readings will be scrutinized in all three courses, supplemented by readings tailored to each path of inquiry. Students will explore the influence of pursuing perfection on everything from social movements to physics to speculative fiction, ultimately confronting the questions, "Just what is perfection? And is it even worth it?" Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Can society be perfect? Can it be perfect for everybody? What do we lose or gain in our pursuit of perfection? In this seminar-style course, students will read and discuss literary works and view films within the field of utopian and dystopian fiction. By looking critically a the political, cultural, economic and historic events of the time period, students will seek the basis of the 'problem' that drove the author to create the utopian or dystopian work in the literary selections and the efficacy of the author's "solution" for the myriad of characters in the created world. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Many proposed Utopias view the scientific method and its resulting body of theory as the "most perfect" pursuit of "perfect" knowledge, but is this truly the case? In this course, we will first explore how the scientific method was developed in the pursuit of perfect inquiry, leading into a consideration of what scientists mean by the term "perfect knowledge" and how it has changed over time. This section of the course will contain hands-on experiments, dry lab experiments, and mastery of some simple but powerful statistical tools common in the natural sciences to equip you with important fundamental science skills. The latter half of the course will explore the role of scientific advances in pursuing Utopia. Science has given us the ability to do many things, but should they be done? Ethical discussions on data handling, scientific narrative creation, and the responsible use of science will permeate the course as we tackle an exciting selection of readings, films, and articles that we will use as focal points of discussion. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Utopian thinking builds on the ancient parts of our brain that quickly categorize people into insiders or outsiders. Such implicit biases shape the social movements claiming to perfect the world that are as old as Islam and as recent as free-market capitalism. Marx inspired reformers who banned child labor but he was also used by communist regimes that justified their dictatorships by appeals to his ideals combined with a police state. Adam Smith's thinking inspired economic changes that have raised global living standards but have also been used to rationalize corrupt police states throughout the world. Understanding the appeal of perfection, the good and bad that it has done, provides a window into the messy nature of the human condition and the world itself. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Genealogy is now a multidisciplinary field. Current practitioners combine traditional methods with computer technology and genetic tests. In turn, the genetic testing of large populations and of ancient specimens has revolutionized those parts of anthropology that concern human evolution and population migration. And, as a meaning-making species, we use artistic and journalistic expression to explore genetics in light of human relationships, human identity, human health, and our ties to the past. This connective experience will introduce both the traditional methods of genealogy and modern enhancements, with a focus on variety and critical evaluation of sources. It will introduce students to a modern account of "the human story" as known through both archaeology and genetics. And it will explore questions of identity and ethics that arise as part of genealogical investigations. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| The search for identity often leads us to seek wisdom from our ancestors and cultural traditions. Early human narrative art interrogates ancestral history and values just as contemporary narratives attempt to find meaning nestled in genetic code. In this course, students will read and view a variety of texts, both fiction and nonfiction, that explore the desire to connect with the past via family trees and the perils and benefits of modern science as a new kind of ancestral shaman. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Humans have roamed the earth for perhaps as long as 250,000 years. This course will examine humans and human history through the lens of genetics. Students will learn about the relationship between genes and traits and the way that genetic studies are used to infer human history and heredity. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will introduce both traditional and modern methods of genealogy, emphasizing critical evaluation of sources and the genealogical proof standard. It will present traditional types of sources and modern tools including source repositories, crowdsourced research, and genetic individual research with autosomal testing and of population-scale research from widespread testing of mitochondrial and Y-chromosome DNA. (Genetic tests are neither provided nor required as part of the course but will serve as a useful enhancement if a student has one done.) Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Tom Boswell once said, "More than any other American sport, baseball creates the magnetic, addictive illusion that it can almost be understood." This connective experience seeks to almost understand three facets of baseball: the rich literature about the game; the game and its players in the context of societal changes in the Americas over the past century; and the objective efforts to quantify and maximize player performance in the game. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Baseball may be the most literary of sports, and American English is well-peppered with the language of baseball, from striking out on a date to knocking an interview out of the park. This course will explore the world of baseball literature and the way the sport and the word come together. The course will focus on connections between the game and creative expression, on literature as cultural artifact, and on the principles of reading and writing about literary works. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| How can pitching, hitting, defense, and base running be quantitatively measured to understand how player performance translates to scoring or preventing runs and, ultimately, to winning and losing baseball games? Baseball organizations and fans alike have recently developed increasingly sophisticated tools to answer these and other questions. This course will introduce students to the terminology and methods associated with sabermetrics. Students will critically analyze statistical arguments, access data from available sources, and formulate and test their own hypotheses. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Dubbed "our national game" as early as the 1850s, baseball has alternately anticipated, reflected, and lagged behind social and cultural changes in the larger American experience. From demographic changes to labor strife to matters of race, critical moments in American life have frequently been played out in microcosm on the diamond. This course will use the history of baseball as a window toward examining the country's social and cultural history over the last century and a half. The course will also offer a look into baseball's international expansion in recent decades, even as the fame has faced challenges to being considered America's "national pastime." This course fulfills the Social Sciences component of the Baseball Connective Experience. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| From Bach to BeyoncT, music permeates our life and enriches it in countless ways. These connective courses will challenge students and instructors to explore music as so much more than mere background sound or ambient noise. Join us for this multifaceted exploration of music including a scientific study of how sound is generated and analyzed including in-class experiments and demonstrations. Through listening and discussion, students will investigate musical elements and historical developments to create their own well-informed opinion about music's value. Finally, through exposure to documentaries, text, and audio recordings, we will explore music's impact on individual and societal developments and expression. This will include research and discovery of music's effects on consumerism, politics, social movements, cultural expression, and personal identity. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Why do we like the music we prefer? How does the music of today relate to the music of Bach, Beethoven, and Stravinsky? Discover the historical context of music from the middle ages to the modern classical period. Through listening and discussion students will develop and understanding and appreciation of the classical music and will be able to analyze the musical content and create their own well informed opinion about the music's value. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| In this course students will learn how sound is generated, propagated, detected, and analyzed. Topics include: a general introduction to the physics of waves; properties of sound waves; the elements of music as they relate to physical properties of sound; an introduction to the design of musical instruments; a basic introduction to Fourier analysis; and the electrical production and recording of sound. Demonstrations and in-class experiments will supplement the course content. No prior knowledge of physics is assumed in the design of this course. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| From entertainment to education, music is all around us. Many of our earliest memories include music as a learning tool, expression of our cultures, and mood manipulator. But, how aware are we of the influence of music on our societies and selves? In this course, we will explore the impact of music as an instrument for personal and societal expression. This will include its effects on consumerism, politics, social movements, cultural expression, and personal identity. This course will also provide a backdrop to debate society's level of responsibility toward arts advocacy. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| These connective courses will examine the cultural foundations, foreign policy strategies and data analytics involved with the use of information and disinformation and hybrid warfare designed to influence, exploit and sabotage businesses, governments, and individuals. Misinformation is used to distort history, undermine governance, and weaken scientific truths, and actors go to great lengths to avoid attribution and responsibility. Through controls placed on the dissemination of information, use of government-sponsored asymmetric methods and hybrid warfare tactics and cyber-attacks, facts can be undermined, experts dismissed and ignored, and populations and policymakers confused regarding what is real and what is false. These connective courses will challenge both students and instructors to read texts from different academic disciplines and think across conventional disciplinary boundaries to more fully comprehend the extent to which institutions and individuals can fall victim to deceptions and falsehoods. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| The Library. It conjures images of soaring stacks of leather bound books and hushed whispers between students. This class will examine that aesthetic and explore the context and meaning of the library with cultures. The library of a culture tells you what people value. Through the lens of art, architecture, photography, film, and literature, this class will examine how cultural narratives have shaped the library. The class will end by examining how modern society romanticizes the aesthetic of libraries while simultaneously determining they are useless in the face of the internet and digital information. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| How can we understand when we are being lied to and manipulated with information? How do we generate research and information that is sound? Do we know the difference? In this course, we will learn how to understand the ways that research, data, and quantitative information can deceive us intentionally or unintentionally. Through class research and critiques of the information Americans receive daily, we will arm our toolbox to sleuth out manipulation and learn how to produce accurate and sound information. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| In this course, students will be challenged to understand the roles played by state and non-state actors engaging in cyberattacks, direct disinformation, and covert influence campaigns to undermine and undercut democratic political systems, confuse citizens, and shape public opinion around the world. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Memory shapes our identities as individuals and as groups, it determines our national identity, and it shapes our individual and collective behavior. Without our memories of the past, we would not be who we are. We do not, however remember everything in our past and our recollections are often biased by our motivations, present experiences, and outside influences. How we select what we remember and what we choose to forget, are important aspects of memory and identity. This program addresses the topic of memory through courses in Psychology, History, and English. These courses will address the biological and psychological basis of memory, how the memory of the past shapes events in the present through an examination of religious violence, and how memory plays a role in representation in the arts. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| What do we remember? How do we remember? And why do we forget? For millennia much of artistic representation has concerned itself with our recollection of the past and the stories we choose to tell about it. This course will explore how memory is represented in literature and the other arts. Since memory crafts both personal as well as national identity, the course will examine the ways in which memory acts as a political, social, and cultural impetus in contemporary society. The course will focus on the different ways in which memory is represented in literary and cultural texts across the world through various genres like memoirs, fiction, "found footage," mockumentaries, oral narratives, photography, etc. In this way, the course will interrogate the contentious relationship between truth and memory. This course fulfills the Humanities component of the Memory connective experience. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| The natural science component of this connective experience will focus on the cognitive and neurological underpinnings of human memory. Topics will include: types of memory, how/where memory is localized in the brain, development of memory across the lifespan, disorders of memory, methods of studying memory, ways to improve memory, how memory can be distorted/faulty, and the societal implications of memory in things like eye-witness testimony and developing bias. This course will also provide psychological insight into how memory tactics such as misattribution and suggestibility can/have been used historically to shift societal opinions on religious and political events. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| We typically think of memory as the mental faculty by which individuals acquire and retain knowledge about their own experiences. Memories seem like the most private and personal parts of who we are. However, social scientists have argued that there is also a complex collective memory-a set of memories not just belonging to an individual, but rather an entire group or society. Similar to an individual, a society has significant memories-particularly surrounding events such as war, terrorism, natural disasters, revolutions, or pandemics and other health crises- that become defining features of its status and identity. This course is an introduction to that collective memory- to the collection of memories a society creates and shares-and examines the way American culture in particular has constructed, and continues to construct, major cultural memories. Students will pay especially close attention to slavery, the Civil Rights Movement, and September 11th, and will also reflect on the way contemporary events (such as Covid-19) will likely be memorialized. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| These connected courses explore how dramatic changes in art, science and politics disrupt and divide societies, force us to rethink what we thought we knew, and challenge our perceptions of what is good and desirable. Through exposure to the ways that revolution is conceived of and studied in the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, students will learn about and compare some of the different understandings, origins, and consequences of revolution as broadly understood phenomenon, at the same time, students and instructors will think across traditional academic boundaries to better understand how revolutions that start out in one area often spill into others - for example, the ways in which artists and scientist are affected by political revolution just as politicians must create new policies in response to dramatic innovations in the arts and sciences. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course examines the intersections of art and socio-political movements in the 20th and 21st centuries, including works of protest art and covert forms of radical art that transgress established forms or genres. Topics include early abstract art, the emergence of "anti-aesthetics", performance and body politics, punk and DIY. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course introduces students to the fundamental science behind nanotechnology. We will discuss the impact of nanotechnology on the basic sciences of chemistry, physics, and biology, as well as applications in areas such as microelectronics, medicine, energy, and environmental remediation. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is designed to introduce students to the various types of social movements and political revolutions in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. This includes recent developments such as the Arab Spring, the Tea Party, and Black Lives Matter, and pivotal political revolutions in countries from China to Iran to Cuba. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Though human beings differ in myriad ways, we all experience our lives through the arrow of time, moving from the past to the present and on to the future. But where is the line between the past and the present? Does the future exist, really? Is time a fixed feature of reality and invariant aspects of our universe or merely a construct of human nature? Time is a fraught concept that has been studied across multiple disciplines, understood in a variety of ways through history, and has even been posited as unnecessary in ultimate definitions of reality. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| How do authors and directors structure an audience's perception of an interaction with time in their narratives? Literature and film have experimented with using actual time, sequential time, reversed time, and almost every variant we can imagine. What do different narrative approaches to time have to teach us both about time itself, and about our own experiences of time? How do those narrative approaches mirror or distort understandings of time that were available when these narratives were created? Our discussion-based class will engage with these questions. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will explore time and space in the context of various physical laws that govern our universe. Students will examine these ideas on a conceptual and quantitative level within Newtonian mechanics, Einstein's theory of relativity, quantum mechanics, and cosmology. The course assumes no prior knowledge of these areas of physics. Several issues involving the "arrow of time" and the reality of time will also be analyzed. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course examines the concept of time as a symbolic entity, an artificial phenomenon constructed through human agency, deliberately manufactured to establish social consensus within a society, ensuring that all members partake in a collective consciousness in which rules of order and control governing behavior and productivity are routinely obeyed. Areas include the concept of "clocktime" by which a social member's daily and longitudinal attitudes, behaviors and beliefs are developed through an obsessive adherence to temporal dynamics; the capitalist conception of time as a commodity utilized to increase productivity and its ramifications for economic structure and wellbeing; and the role of time in the construction of cultural identity, breeding a sense of patriotism and ideological values. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Evolution is one of the most revolutionary ideas of the last two hundred years. It continues to guide research in biology, medicine, anthropology, and many other fields. This connective experience will guide you through the science of genetics, the application of evolution to the study of human history, and the enduring controversies surrounding evolution today. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Our modern understanding of both science and religion understand these human enterprises to be fundamentally opposed. This course will examine the relationship between religion and science by focusing on the theory of evolution. Bringing to this course an understanding of the scientific theory and the historical perspective on this theory, students will explore the relationship between science and religion from the earliest expressions of Darwin's idea to the contemporary challenges in courtrooms and classrooms. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Evolution is the unifying theory of the biological sciences. An understanding of evolution is necessary to understand all biological systems, from the molecular to the community level. This course will introduce students to the mechanisms underlying biological evolution and the evolutionary history of life on earth. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course allows students to apply evolutionary theory and evidence to the study of history from the earliest beginnings of humanity to the recent past. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This connective course explores the theme "Growing Pains: Facing the Challenges of Adolescence." Each course follows a path of inquiry into one of the three general education areas: humanities, social science, and natural science. The first course will explore the role and journey of the adolescent in diverse cultures from a sociological perspective. Areas to be explored will encompass the social, emotional, and physical characteristics of adolescence. The second course will broaden the understanding of how the natural sciences constitute a lens for studying the challenges of adolescence. Students will read case studies to learn about the various challenges and unique struggles with adolescence. They will further investigate adolescence using primary research materials and will engage in exercises to understand how meaningful information can be gathered during studies. The third courses will use literature to analyze how the transition from childhood to adulthood is constructed and perceived as well as how it contributes to understanding human identity. Particular courses will build on and draw from one another as students explore the complexities of "growing pains." Students will demonstrate overall connectedness as a result of these courses as measured by selecting from a menu of projects in the 1-credit integration course. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course is one of three connected to the theme "Growing Pains: The Challenges of Adolescence." Participants will examine several prominent "coming-of-age" novels, ranging from classics to contemporary texts, and analyze not only how this transition from childhood to adulthood is constructed and perceived but how it contributes to understanding human identity. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is one of three connected to the theme "Growing Pains: The Challenges of Adolescence." The subtitle "All About Me" is supported by first person cases, written by college students that enable participants to make connections from research to practice. This course will broaden one's understanding of how the Natural Sciences constitute a lens for studying the challenges of adolescents. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is one of three connected to the theme "Growing Pains: Facing the challenges of Adolescence." The subtitles "We Are the World" will explore the role of the adolescent in diverse cultures. This course will broaden one's understanding of how the Social Sciences, drawn from the disciplines of history, sociology and anthropology constitute a lens for studying the challenges of being an adolescent. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| The use of pharmaceutical substances to support human well-being is as old as humanity itself. Pharmaceutical development and use now play a central role within Western medical science -- even in the pursuit of mental well-being and recreation. This connective experience will explore: some deep historical and cultural roots of our society's attitudes towards drug use; the fundamentals of pharmacological principles underlying the actions of drugs on the human body as well as the limitations of therapeutic drugs; and the current policies, ethics, and political issues surrounding the pharmaceutical industry in the United States. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Drugs (whether prescription, over-the-counter or illegal) play an enormous role in our society. But how did we get here? In this course we will explore how we humans have always made use of the pharmaceutical properties of substances; and how our cultural past shapes our present. We will dip into literature and art across the ages to trace the journey from ancient Western and Middle Eastern approaches to medicine to our present hopes and anxieties about the role of pharmaceutical therapy in society today. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is an introduction to pharmacology on a biomedical and an economic standpoint. It will discuss the fundamental pharmacology principles underlying the actions of drugs on the human body and the reactions of the organ systems to various drugs based on the route of administration. The course will also address the economic and legal implications of therapy including but not limited to: drugs production and commercialization, prescription misuses and addictions, and limitations of therapeutic drugs. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will introduce students to the policy, ethics, and political issues surrounding the pharmaceutical industry in the United States. Through lectures, discussions, and readings, we will explore the political processes and concerns which produce our current policy; examine the major issues being debated surrounding the creation and delivery of drug policy, including ethical issues. In addition, we will spend a few units looking, in detail, at the unusual challenges posed by the economics of drug policy. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Why and how do people seek to alter their consciousness? How are these substances made and what are the implications of their use? In this connective experience, we will examine the historical, social and scientific context surrounding drugs and alcohol. We will look in depth at the scientific processes that turn natural ingredients into alcohol and explore how alterations impact the experience of the consumer. We will review the history of drugs and alcohol used by people in the world and their impact on society, examining the physiological, psychological, social and legal aspects of various drugs. Finally, we will consider entheogens, chemical substance used in religious, shamanic, or spiritual contexts to achieve transcendent, or higher conscious, and examine the role entheogens have played in the formation and experience of world religions and world civilizations. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| What are entheogens? Is there such a thing as higher consciousness, and if so what is it? Why are entheogens illegal? What is the traditional use of entheogens, and is there a positive use of them in a modern society? This course will introduce students to a broad range of theoretical and literary texts that pose, and attempt to answer, some of the fundamental questions of higher consciousness. Students will read study and critique texts that represent diverse entheogenic experiences, as well as analyze how the various methodologies of achieving higher consciousness intersect with cultural categories such as race, ethnicity, class, and religion. Through class discussion, critical writing, and close reading of theory and fiction, students will examine the historical and cultural constructions of altered states of consciousness through entheogens, and analyze the ways that literature, music and art has informed, revisited and richly enhanced our understanding of what it means to achieve higher consciousness. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will investigate and examine scientific principles as they relate to the composition, formation, and analysis of beer. Topics will include chemistry basics, ingredients in the brewing process, enzymes and fermentable sugars, fermentation, and flavor chemistry. Students will engage in empirical techniques to critically examine components and products in the brewing process. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| In this course, we examine the physiological, psychological, social and legal aspects of various drugs including alcohol and marijuana. We will explore substance use including the history of various substances and their spiritual uses, addition disorders and co-occurring mental health diagnosis. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Gender is a fundamental organizing principle of society; for better or worse, we allow our assumptions regarding gender to shape how we interact with and perceive others. In this connective experience, we will explore the dimensions of gender, a concept no longer restricted solely to the definitions of men and women. We will explore research, which investigates the degree to which males and females are similar and/or different in the biological, cognitive, social, and emotional domains. The impact of gender on identity will be examined in a variety of contexts, such as leadership in the workplace, and the impact of gender inequality on the process of economic development and socio-political systems in developing countries. We will examine gender and its relationship to broader historical, social, and geopolitical contexts. We will address gendered communication, verbal and nonverbal, and how it changes based on where and with whom we communicate. Finally, we will explore film and literary texts that address some of the most fundamental issues of gender and identity, and analyze intersections among gender and other categories of difference, such as class, race, religion, and national identity. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course represents a portion of a Connective Experience on Gender and Communication. Gendered communication encompasses a number of topics including how we communicate, both verbally and nonverbally, and how that communication changes based on where and with whom we communicate. In this course, students become acquainted with gender and communication theory. In order to apply those theories, students view films and read short literary texts with the purpose of analyzing depictions of gender and gendered communication. Through this combination of communicative theory, film, and literature, students gain insight into their own communicative styles and become well-versed in identifying, examining and addressing the literary and cinematic depictions of gendered communication. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is part of a Connective Experience, which examines a broad spectrum of issues related to Gender and Identity. A primary focus will be to examine how scientific methodology is used to answer questions related to Gender Identity. Of central importance is the examination of empirical findings related to gender differences and similarities in biological, behavioral, cognitive, social, and emotional domains. This course will also involve a critical examination of the meaning of gender in the field of psychology and within broader society. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| What does it mean to be men and women? Why are these categories some of the primary organizing principles of society? Are men and women's roles based in biological realities or mere cultural fabrications? These are just some of the many critical and complex questions that social scientists have been asking for the last forty years. This course will survey the primary debates and discussions surrounding gender in the social sciences. Students will learn how to think about gender as social scientists, and to evaluate masculinity and femininity through the theoretical lens of social constructivism. Students will analyze both historical and contemporary scholarship in the fields of sociology, anthropology, education, and political science. Special attention will be paid to questions of gendered performance and power in popular culture, the home, the economy, and the workplace. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Traditions of Wellness is a course designed to look at how well-being and illness are defined. From the viewpoint of the humanities, famous composers, poets, and artists who have suffered from mental health issues and the effect their illness had on their creative output will be studied. From the natural sciences approach, the culturally specific definitions of health and malaise, along with treatments and the scientific evidence for their effectiveness will be examined. Finally, using the social science lens, the uneven distribution of health, disease and healing in the population and the relationship to social structure, social process and culture will be investigated. Together, this connective experience will integrate perspectives on the blurred line between fitness and sickness, highlighting both the beauty and tragedy of this continuum. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Students will study a number of famous composers, poets, and artists who have suffered from some form of mental illness and will consider the effect that their illness had on their creative output. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course is part of a Connective Experience which examines the cultural definitions of wellness and illness. Students will learn about treatments and the scientific evidence for their effectiveness. We will also explore the empirical evidence linking social and psychological belief systems to efficacy outcomes. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will look at how health, disease and healing are distributed unevenly in the population and how this distribution is related to social structure, social process and culture. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Focusing on what the 19th century naturalist Alexander von Humboldt called the "web of life," this connective experience explores the complex material and symbolic relationships that connect human beings and human societies and cultures to the non-human natural world. Students will critically engage with diverse perspectives on these relationships from the disciplines of art, biology, and history, with an eye toward transcending conventional conceptual frameworks that sharply distinguish between "human society" and "nature." Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course examines the field of Environmental Art, with an emphasis on how art has been used since the 1960s as a vehicle to improve our relationship with the natural world. Specific artists and works of nature-based public art will be explored through readings, films, and site visits. Students will study and research current environmental issues and prepare an art proposal that confronts a pertinent environmental issue. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| In this course, students will learn how to identify common plants and animals of Pennsylvania. Students will also investigate natural phenomena by designing, implementing and analyzing the results of field studies. This course will involve extensive fieldwork, and students should be prepared to work outdoors. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will explore the relation between social, economic, and environmental factors influencing resource distribution and corporate initiatives. It will look at the role and impact which the corporate world and civil society play in regard to sustainability in the global marketplace. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Starting with the Renaissance, Europeans rejected the authority of the Church in fields such as politics, history, science, and the arts, and emphasized the power of the humanity to understand the world in terms of reason and individual abilities. This connective course explores the paradigm change in epistemology -"how we know" - during the period of the Enlightenment (roughly the 15th to 18th centuries). The Enlightenment represented a turning point in western thinking that pointed forward to religious tolerance, liberalism, rational inquiry, new understanding of time, nationalism, and faith in progress. Through courses in music, Astronomy, and History, this connective experience will examine how these new ways of knowing, of using reason, and challenges to accepted wisdom were embedded in the social context of the time. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course will examine changes in musical practice and shifting attitudes about musical style during the Enlightenment period, with a focus on the 18th century. These reflected the increasingly cosmopolitan nature of society, changes in technology, believes about the importance of the individual consistent with Enlightenment ideals, and new ways of looking at the world that grew from changes in science. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This natural Science Connective course introduces the forces that shape the solar system, the galaxy, and the universe as well as the tools and methods used to observe them. It presents a review of the modern scientific view of the physical universe, with particular emphasis on how a paradigm change during the scientific revolution led to the new ways to study and understand our universe. Topics include the history of astronomy, astronomical technology, and the structure and evolution of astrophysical systems including the solar system, Sun other stars, and galaxies. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course addresses the history and philosophy of the Enlightenment of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Europe, North America, and Latin America. Topics of discussion will include new political and economic ideas such as liberalism and laissez-faire capitalism, the beginning of religious tolerance, experiments in science and education, and the ways in which colonialism and cross-cultural contacts changed the perspectives of the thinkers of the time. The course will also address the social history of the period in order to understand the society that produced Enlightenment ideas and how they circulated. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| The United States of America (Born on date: July 4th, 1776) is always on the world stage. Someone always seems to be concerned with the American economy, the American way of life, American politics and American opinion, among other issues. From Native Americans, to individuals from countries and cultures around the world, we are a collection of people who make our country more than the sum of our parts. Our thoughts, our words and our deeds make us uniquely American. These courses will examine how events, ideas and technologies shape who we are and how we, as Americans, contribute to the world. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Is there such a thing as truly American music? How does our music define us? Students will tackle these questions as they explore American music from the Civil War to present day. As they listen, students will work to identify musical elements in pieces, understand the historical context, and form an opinion on how music shapes us as Americans. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| In this course, we will investigate several key scientific innovations, theories and findings of American Scientists. Beginning in colonial times, we will examine how American innovations have effected changes around the world- for better, or for worse. Further, tutorials, projects and experiments will challenge students to create a knowledge of how science is performed, how findings are interpreted, how studies undergo peer review and how information is disseminated. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| The United States has been called "the first new nation," the first modern state to organize political life and citizenship around an idea rather than ethnic or linguistic notions of peoplehood. This innovative "American Creed," focused on liberty, individual rights, and equality, however, could only offer a partial answer to the questions, "Who is an American?" and "What does it mean to be an American?" The Creed was accompanied by other ideas unique to the American experience, such as "the melting pot," "rugged individualism," and the "rags to riches" story. Each of these ideas became abiding myths to define American identity, but they were challenged by old contradictions, such as slavery, and adjusted in the face of new movements and events, such as successive waves of immigration, economic ups and downs, and innovations in technology and consumption. This course will examine the ideas that have defined this "new nation" and consider the notion that unites them all, American exceptionalism, to try to delineate the American character. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Race increasingly defines Americans and our politics; racial inequities shape public policy, from education to policing. This class challenges students to understand the past and present of history and how science has shaped and undermined assumptions about race. Equally importantly, students learn about how people find meaning in racism or groups, and how a different identity and public life is possible. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| In this course, students will explore the religious and political origins of the concept of race as a social identity. Through the examination of a variety of historical and interpretive texts, they will identify the historical origins of the key ideas central to the social construction of a racial identity, the development of race as central to understanding social relations, and the legacy of the racial project in contemporary society. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| The concept of race has a central place in human self-identity. It is an important facet of social and political issues in the United States and around the world. The concept of race is, superficially, also a biological one. In this course we will explore the structure and diversity of human populations, the validity of race as a biological concept, and the misuse of scientific ideas and processes to promote racist ideas such as eugenics. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This class examines the past and present of race and racism in American society. Americans have long used race to organize property and politics, between masters and the enslaved, between citizens and outsiders, etc. Racism violated the noblest precepts of the republic, and the tension between the view that America was pluralistic versus America as a white man's republic shaped most key political struggles of the 19th and 20th century. We will look at the political, policy and psychological dimensions of race at turning points in American history. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This connective experience will introduce students to the many complex ways in which sexual activity and desire are shaped by social relations, and to the ways that sexual practices and identities vary across a variety of different historical, cultural, and political contexts. Students will explore the representation of sexuality and desire in creative works of varied media covering the last several centuries. A review of biological influences on sexuality and sexual identity will consider how a range of factors, from intrauterine environment to evolutionary forces, may have shaped our sexual behavior. Finally, students will analyze sexuality's place in major institutions, as well as how it intersects with other cultural categories such as gender, race, ethnicity, and class. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course will explore the representation of sexuality and desire in creative works of varied media covering the last several centuries. The course will provide an overview of historical perspectives on human sexuality in order to demonstrate how our definitions of and frames for human sexual behavior have changed through time. Students will be introduced to key literary and filmic texts that originate from or represent a variety of time periods and orientations. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will provide an overview of biological and psychological influences on sexuality and sexual identity, including how a range of factors, from intrauterine environment to evolutionary forces, may have shaped our sexual behavior. By exploring the diverse range of sexual classifications, from heterosexual to homosexual, and asexual to intersex conditions, we will question the value of the term "normal" with regard to our sexuality. We will also examine the types of research methodologies used to understand sexual behavior and its biological bases in both humans and in animal models. Finally, we will explore the concept of "desire" within the framework of human sexual behavior. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will introduce students to the many complex ways in which sexual activity and desire are shaped by social relations, and to the ways that sexual practices and identities vary across a variety of different historical, cultural, and political contexts. Drawing on social construction theory, students will think "beyond" the body, and develop an understanding of human sexuality in relation to social and institutional processes. Students will analyze sexuality's place in major institutions, as well as how it intersects with other cultural categories such as gender, race, ethnicity, and class. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Disability Studies is a multi-disciplinary field of study that examines the experiences and unmet needs of persons with disabilities in a variety of settings. This sequence of courses attempts to define "disability" and our culture's medical, technical, and artistic responses to person with disabilities in the context of online participatory culture, neurobiology, and the narrative arts. Students who take this sequence will gain practical and theoretical understandings of how the dominant culture marginalizes persons with disabilities and how attempts to bridge the gaps between different cultures of ability are active in our society. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course explores the ways that physical and mental disability are portrayed in narrative fiction and how the theme or condition of disability is used by artists to either confirm or challenge values of a dominant ("abled") culture in novels, short stories, plays and films. Critical responses to such art and the political and cultural uses it is put to are also analyzed. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| At some point in our lives, most of us will experience some condition or disorder, whether lifelong or temporary, that can be considered a "disability." In this course, we will explore a wide variety of disorders (visual, auditory, motor, cognitive, and psychological) that are commonly labeled as "disabilities." Understanding the biological bases of these disorders will be a primary focus. We will consider the effectiveness of typical interventions designed to minimize the severity of specific disorders, and analyze the cost/benefit impact of theses for the individual. Finally, we will investigate the various research strategies used to advance our understanding of disability. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Paths to Inclusivity provides an overview of the purposeful, unequal treatment experienced by people with disabilities in the U.S. The course explores the concept of disability in health, educational, economic, and legal systems, as well as the perspectives of people with disabilities themselves. The multiple connections between the study of disability and other identities including class, race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation will also be examined, along with a comparative look at how disability is treated across cultures. The course critically examines factors that support systemic oppression, and methods and strategies of moving toward a more inclusive society. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| One of the greatest challenges before humanity is to find sufficient sources of sustainable energy quickly enough to avoid severe climate change. This connective experience connects the science behind this existential challenge with the deep history of humanity's search for new forms of energy to the various meanings that people imbued the energy of the industrial and post-industrial revolutions. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| This course analyzes the main cultural concepts through which literature, art, and film represent energy and discuss issues related to it. Energy is discussed, among others, as a factor determining many aspects of life, as opportunity, dangerous force, or a source of dependency. Concepts analyzed include, speed, machine, and sustainability. The topics cover from the 18th century through today with a focus on industrialization, before and after WWI, and the environmental movement. Geographical focus is on Germany (but also discusses art movements from Italy, France, and Great Britain) and compares to America. Students will acquire skills in analyzing texts and art works, critical thinking and intercultural competence. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course covers the scientific theory behind energy production, conversion, and consumption. Past, current and future methods as well as environmental and economic advantages and disadvantages of each technology will be discussed. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Human history has progressed when people mastered new forms of energy. Fire allowed our ancestors to develop more efficient ways to ingest calories; a fact that unleashed a host of physical and social changes. The mastery of agriculture was also a form of harnessing new forms of biological energy, which in turn spurred population growth and social transformations. The industrial revolution is merely the latest iteration of the revolutionary transformations in human life. Beginning in the 1740s, and continuing through the present, the industrial revolution has transformed human existence throughout the world. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course considers Quantum Physics as an example of the uncertainty inherent in science. Students will learn the theories of knowledge implicit in the major interpretations of Quantum Physics and explore the intersections between science, politics and culture. This connective experience requires familiarity with algebra and trigonometry. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Mind and Other Ideas (MOI) examines theories of knowledge beginning with the Ancient Greeks and continuing to the modern period. In addition to studying theories ranging from rationalism to empiricism and skepticism, MOI will consider how different interpretations of Quantum Physics are grounded in epistemological assumptions. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course explores four mysterious aspects of nature: the lumpiness of physical quantities, wave-particle duality, action at a distance, and the meaning of quantum theory. We ask how these mysteries emerge from experiments, and how the mysteries are addressed by quantum theory. We learn the subset of quantum theory used to describe experiments with only two or three possible outcomes. We study Stern-Gerlach experiments and the evidence they provide for the theory. The course requires familiarity with algebra and trigonometry. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will introduce students to the history of science, to approaches in the interpretation of history, and to the politics of science. Each student will participate in group projects and will write an individual term paper on a topic related to uncertainty in history, politics, and science policy. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Are opinions and attitudes formed based on reason or emotion? Or are appeals to reason ultimately just appeals to power? In this course, we will examine opinion formation about public policy form scientific, social scientific and philosophical perspectives. Students consider the impact and importance of different cultural, ideological, and religious backgrounds in the evaluation of public policy. They also develop scientific surveys to measure the effect of rational and emotional persuasion concerning issues. Finally, they examine the extent to which theories of knowledge and value are grounded in emotion, reason, or some sort of synthesis of each. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |
| Examines both the moral theories and logical structure supporting social arguments. Students will learn to uncover the moral presuppositions behind arguments and to identify their logical structure and flaws. The course consists of three main parts: a study of logical argument; a survey of ethical theories; and application of logic and ethical theory to the analysis of social debates. In the first unit, students will learn to distinguish formally valid from invalid arguments and be able to identify informal fallacies. In the second unit, students will learn the fundamentals of the major ethical theories from primary readings in Aristotle, Bentham, and Kant. In the final unit, Students will use logical and ethical principles to critique arguments in current social issues including debates about free markets, affirmative action, and marriage rights. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| Are opinions and attitudes rationally or irrationally formed? And what, if anything, can change minds? In this course, we will explore what we think we know about the psychology of opinion formation, viewpoint entanglement, and the role of rational argument versus more emotional appeals in changing minds. This course is part of the Open Minds Connective Experience. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course will introduce students to contrasting policy options and to the value of considering diverse perspectives in the identification and solution of problems facing society. Public policy will provide the primary focus - that is government efforts to solve major problems in the economy, law enforcement, environment, business practice etc. The course will develop rhetorical skills in debate and argument, and skills in the analysis of policy. Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 3 credits. |
| This course completes the Connective Experience requirement of the Constellation LVC program. Students will be guided and evaluated in the task of integrating the three Connective Experience courses. Students must demonstrate the contributions made and insights gleaned from these courses (Natural Sciences, Humanities, Social Sciences), and address how the courses altogether have developed their core competencies (Written and Oral Communication, Critical Reading and Analysis, Information Literacy, Quantitative Reasoning, Intercultural Competence, Problem Solving, and Integration). Fulfills requirement: Connective Experience. Prerequisite: FYE-112. 1 credit. |