English

This course covers the basic tools for polymer synthesis and characterization as well as applications of polymers in various fields. Topics include: Introduction to polymers; Step growth polymerization: linear and non-linear; Chain growth polymerization: (controlled/free) radical and ionic;  Polymer solutions/mixing/separation; Physical properties/characterization (GPC, NMR, MALDI-TOF MS, thermal and mechanical properties); Applications of polymers in drug delivery and regenerative medicine; Recycling of polymers and designing polymers for recycling; Practical work on polymer synthesis and characterization.  There are 5 pillars of this course are: 1) polymer synthesis; 2) polymer characterization; 3) polymer behavior; 4) applications; 5) recycling and end-of life management of polymers. These pillars provide the tools to understand and design polymers for specific applications, taking into account the desired properties and the end-of-life management of the materials. The course is supplemented by a practical experiment to expose the students to real-case examples. Students are divided into groups, and each group is tasked to polymerize a specific monomer using a specific technique. The second part of the experiment is focused on characterization of the synthesized polymer. The aim of the practical is to further learn through experiment the kinetics of polymerization reactions and the characterization methods. Knowledge on elementary organic chemistry, elementary thermodynamics, elementary physics, elementary reaction kinetics is recommended. 

This course explores the relationship between workers and firms. It begins by examining the issue of worker motivation from a traditional perspective. Assuming a rational, self-interested, forward-looking, utility-maximizing agent, the course studies the best way to structure that worker’s monetary incentives. It then moves beyond purely financial motives, considering the role of psychological motives like social preferences, self-control issues, loss aversion, belief biases, as well as team dynamics and information frictions. Finally, the course shifts to the firm’s perspective, focusing on worker recruitment and the design of compensation structures within a firm. Throughout the course, students engage with insights from labor economics, personnel economics, and behavioral economics and delve into the empirical methods used to address research questions in these fields, including microeconometric techniques, as well as lab and field experiments.

This course examines the intricate relationship between religion and revolution, exploring how religion can simultaneously serve as a radical, messianic force for social transformation and as a guardian of the existing political order. It engages with foundational anthropological and philosophical texts that examine the intricate relation between revolution, religion and ethics — including works by Evans Pritchard, Marcel Mauss, Walter Benjamin, Victor Turner, Georges Bataille and Talal Asad — as well as writings on more recent revolutionary events, particularly in the Arab world, by authors such as Sami Zubaida, Asef Bayat, Walter Armburst and Alice Wilson (among others). The course addresses the following set of questions: how can anthropology enable us to understand the social (and political) transformations that take place over the course of revolutionary
events and their aftermaths? How have ethnographies examined the effects of revolutionary events on the level of the everyday life of communities that are experiencing them? How do ethnographers as witnesses or observers of revolutionary events (and sometimes as active participants in them) consider their own positionality in their respective field sites and in relation to the communities they wish to study? What kinds of moral and political stakes are involved in such positioning? What can ethnography tell us about our moral and political commitments (and disappointments)? 

This course, designed as a series of interactive workshops, offers an opportunity to write in English within the student's own discipline and to discuss writing with international peers. It also invites students to reflect on writing habits and writer identity. Students choose a research problem to investigate and follow the stages of researching and writing as two interlinked processes: focus the research question, find and review relevant literature, and collect the best evidence to argue for the importance of the research project. The course also provides an opportunity to read like a writer by analyzing model texts and sample texts written by peers to better understand rhetorical strategies and stylistic conventions of selected academic text types. Students also practice writing and giving feedback through drafting four sections of the research paper (an extended definition of a key concept, literature review, argumentative synthesis, and an introduction), discussing these drafts with peers and tutors. The semester of reading, writing, and exchanging ideas with international peers from various disciplines allow students to become better academic communicators.

This course introduces the concept of "the family" through both a demographic lens and a sociological perspective. This allows for a macro-micro approach in understanding what structures shape family configurations, processes leading to family formation and dissolution, family practices and transitions during different parts of the life course. Looking first historically at changes to family structures and policies, the course then zooms in onto key debates with the study of families today. Drawing on concepts, theory, and research designs used in population studies and family sociology to study the phenomenon of "the family," students engage in a multi-disciplinary analysis of the various topics introduced through the course.

This course provides critical insights into counterculture, graffiti, street art, underground, punk, hip-hop, political art collectives, etc. Perspectives of anthropology and culture studies are explored. Seminal readings on subcultures, protests, and new social movements are used to discuss the practices of "alternative" urban lives in post-industrial society and certain trends of artistic production. The focus is on the political interpretation of youth subversion and disclosures of power mechanisms. Visuals and field trips to graffiti and other subcultural sites are a part of this course.  

This course consults readings drawn from the social sciences, humanities, and the law; specifically, foundational texts in cultural and moral psychology, philosophical texts on value pluralism, and legal cases from psychological, anthropological, and sociological perspectives. These readings serve as an entry point into class discussions related to provocative cultural practices (polygamy, education quotas, circumcision, minarets, inequalities, honor killings). Each week, different students present assigned readings and have in-depth discussions based on the material. The course involves group work, debates, as well as final presentations, based on students emerging viewpoints.

This course is taught by researchers belonging to the Sections of Functional Genomics and of Biomolecular Science and provides a broad overview of both the fundamental knowledge and the rapidly developing and exciting topics in molecular microbiology. Emphasis is placed on the molecular mechanisms underlying bacterial stress physiology, which is essential for bacterial survival in the environment, and thereby tolerance and resistance to antibiotics. The course involves lectures as well as theoretical excises (colloquium) where in-depth discussion of recent research articles are presented by the students with guidance from the instructors. Finally, in the laboratory exercise part, relevant critical and cutting-edge techniques are used to investigate research problems that are currently being studied in the laboratory. This comprehensive course thus provides a strong platform for students who wish to pursue or already are pursuing a research career in molecular microbiology and also in areas connected with general microbiology.

This course covers the nature of digital logic and numbering systems. Topics include: Basic gates, Boolean algebra, Karnaugh maps, memory elements, latches, flip-flops, design of combinational and sequential circuits, integrated circuits and logic families, shift registers, counters, multiplexers, demultiplexers, decoders, encoders, and parity circuits, Number systems, 1’s and 2’s complements, arithmetic circuits, fixed-point and floating-point representations, memory types, design of circuits using ROMs and PLAs. The course involves exposure to logic design automation software and an introduction to FPGAs and HDL. Prerequisite: fundamentals of computing. 

This course provides an introductory survey of religion and politics in Islam, from its inception to the modern period. It introduces students to basic concepts and topics in Islamic Studies and societies, such as Islamic law, theology, governance, and politics.