English

This course investigates questions that are both central to political philosophy and of current political importance. They include: What does it take for a society to be just? How can we come to own natural resources? and more. 

This course examines research and theory on memory. The focus is primarily on animal research but the application of this work to the understanding of memory in humans will be made explicit. For example, the implications of this work for our understanding of memory disorders in humans, and the origin and treatment of clinical disorders will be discussed. The laboratory component of the course will provide “hands on” experience in observing various aspects of rodent behavior that are frequently used in studies on the psychobiology of memory and an opportunity for small group discussion/debate on various issues relevant to the material described in the lecture component of the course.

In developed countries, social security expenditures, such as public pension, health care and long-term care, account for a substantial part of the total expenditures of the public sector. The design of the social security system is an important policy issue in Japan, which is facing a rapidly aging population with a declining birthrate, as well as skyrocketing public debt. This course provides an overview of Japan's social security system and the economic theories behind the system.

With attention focused on the question of independence, recent debates concerning Scottish culture and identity gain a heightened political charge. Literature has not only reflected but actively shaped such debate. In the year the new Scottish Parliament was established (1998), Christopher Whyte argued that "in the absence of elected political authority, the task of representing the nation has been repeatedly devolved to its writers." But what influence have writers played in recent political change, and to what extent has Scottish culture escaped its own stereotypes? This course examines the literary and political currents shaping contemporary Scottish identity, introducing students to key 20th- and 21st century texts. Students encounter and explain a range of cultural debates concerning language, class, democracy, and nationhood, attending to the urgency as well as the complexity of recent Scottish writing.

This course provides a fundamental knowledge of philosophies and concepts for human development and social policy – its definition, theory, approaches and methods for studying social issues and development. The course also discusses the interdisciplinary nature and relevance of social policy for government policy and civil society engagement, based on global and regional frameworks – including case studies of national social policy and practices in various fields.

This course charts the rise and fall of the USSR, from the Russian Revolution of 1917 to the collapse of Soviet Communism in 1991. Students meet familiar characters, including Lenin, Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, and Gorbachev. But they are also introduced to the ordinary people that called themselves Soviets. The course covers themes including ideology, gender, sex and sexuality, race and anti-racism, religion, and multi-nationalism. Students travel from Moscow to Siberia, via the Caucasus and Central Asia, exploring the Soviet Union through a variety of primary sources, including political writings, party resolutions, newspapers, letters, memoirs, agitation and propaganda, and material history. 

This course examines how individuals or firms make decisions about the demand for or supply of a product, how we can determine the efficiency of a market, and how we evaluate the costs and benefits of trade or government interventions in the society. 

This course examines the history of the Indian subcontinent from the 18th century to the present day. It begins by examining the twilight of the Mughal empire on the one hand, and the gradual expansion of European power across the region on the other. After looking at the ways in which the Portuguese and the Dutch established themselves around the Indian Ocean littoral at a time when territorial control was firmly in the hands of local rulers, it then examines how large parts of this region were incorporated into the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the process it examines the pivotal political, economic and social transformations witnessed under colonial rule and examine its legacies. Using a focus on South Asia to probe and better comprehend the development and dissolution of colonialism, it will simultaneously probe forms of colonial control to identify the forces that have most profoundly shaped the region today.

This course introduces students to the basic framework and key concepts to understand the behavior of voters and politicians in elections. It also explores the foundations of political parties and electoral competition. The course acquaints one with the knowledge and terminology of political science, but also gives one tools to evaluate information and think critically about how politics works.

This upper-level seminar course focuses on the history and historiography of the most consequential imperial nation-state in the world today, from its founding at the supposed end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949 to the Tiananmen Square protests and massacre in 1989. After a brief, synoptic overview of modern Chinese history until 1989 in the first two weeks, students spend the rest of the semester working through chronologically and thematically the major periods and issues in PRC history.