English

This course is an introduction to some of the central themes in environmental anthropology as well as an exploration of some recent anthropological analyses of environmental change. Drawing on a range of ethnographic studies, the course provides perspectives on topics such as: how peoples’ understanding of the environment can be related to their sense of self, identity, and moral obligation; how nature—animals, plants and landscapes—can become sites of contestation and conflict; how environments can elicit different forms of knowledge; how global inequality and colonial dispossession are connected to climate change and biodiversity loss; and how both slow and sudden environmental crises affect how we think about the future and what it means to be human.

This course examines the practical aspects of macroeconomics that are essential in understanding the functioning of global economies, with a specific focus on issues related to the monetary systems around the world and the relevance of the interest rate in the flow of funds around the world.

Spanish 201 aligns with the elementary level A2 objectives of the Common European Framework of References for Languages (CEFR), which focus on learners’ capacity to communicate and act in real-life situations, express themselves effectively, and accomplish tasks of different natures, taking in to account (inter)cultural contexts. It will deepen communicative skills as well as intercultural knowledge of the diverse Hispanic world through relevant contexts such as personal relationships, cultural values, customs, traditions, political and historical leaders, contemporary society and technology. It provides some review of the vocabulary and grammar from Spanish 101/102 (preterit and imperfect), and expands lexical repertoire and introduces new grammatical structures. This classroom offers different ways for content delivery through exposure to literary readings, audios, videos, short films, slides; reflected also in the type of assignments and assessments (written and video assignments, oral interviews) designed for diverse learning styles. Its principal objective is to deepen students’ skills for communicating in Spanish by providing extensive opportunities to use the language as a vehicle for information interchange and for developing cross-cultural awareness, as well as strengthening listening, reading, writing and grammatical skills. This course is conducted in Spanish and students are expected to speak only in Spanish during class.

This course is an introduction to the most important texts in English Literature written between the Middle Ages and the end of the eighteenth century. The course begins with the Anglo-Saxon ('Old English') epic poem Beowulf (a tale of heroes and monsters) and ends with the lyrical poetry of the early Romantic period. The course studies a wide range of poets, including Marie de France, Chaucer, Spenser, Shakespeare, Donne, Herrick, Milton, Marvell, and Pope; as well as the letters and political speeches of England's first modern queen, Elizabeth I.

The course includes reading scenes from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, and parts of Jonathan Swift’s satirical adventure novel, Gulliver’s Travels. 

The course emphasizes themes of the medieval and early modern worlds; the importance of religion in shaping English literature; comic and tragic heroes; women and gender in society, and English poetic language.
This Foundation Course has no prerequisite courses.

This course weaves together social themes and historical processes for introductory acquaintance with the people of South Asia through the lens of musical performance and its allied arts. While the focus is on the Indian Subcontinent, which largely falls into the nation-state of India, the course also thematically explores case studies from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. This course does not aim for coverage of all regions in South Asia, but rather introduces key concepts that can be applied to open up a window to understanding contemporary South Asian society and its diaspora.

Over the twentieth century, the most famous exports of South Asian music for global audiences have been the “classical” music and dance traditions of north and south India, Bollywood movie soundtracks, and ecstatic devotional singing such as qawwali and kirtan. This course engages students in appreciating these performances as sophisticated art forms; familiarizing them with a diverse range of folk and popular genres, but also delving into the historical and social processes that shape them into the way their exponents and audiences understand them today. 

The course examines how contemporary performers reenact theorization from ancient treatises; how colonialism, nationalism, and migration reconfigured people’s engagements with musical performing arts, and how social groupings such as caste, class, religion, gender, and sexuality shape the way people make and listen to music across different localities in South Asia.

 

This course provides an introduction to econometrics, which involves using data and statistical methods to estimate economic relationships, test economic theory, and predict the impact of policy. Topics covered include probability and statistics, single linear regression, multiple linear regression, non-linear regression, model internal and external validity, field and natural experiments, and time series models. Econometric methodology and application will be motivated and illustrated through applications to economics, accounting, finance, marketing, and management.

This course introduces students to the study and history of these economic inequalities. It is a detailed survey of the key evidence on inequality, both contemporary and historical, and the sources and methods used to measure it. Students learn how to critically interrogate the quality of inferences from such evidence. They explore the dimensions of inequality along historical, contemporary, spatial, ethnic, and gender lines, drawing on research in economic history, economic geography, and sociology. 

This course examines stochastic processes. It will cover the basic concepts of the theory of stochastic processes and explore different types of stochastic processes including Markov chains, Poisson processes and Brownian motions.

This course provides a foundation for international development and cooperation. It covers the histories and theories of international development and cooperation; the concepts and evolution of development and its variants, including sustainable development, economic development, human development and capabilities, and post-development; the emergence and functioning of international organizations involved in coordinating global cooperation; and a selection of compelling contemporary issues.

This course exploits the development of biobased materials involving the biology of biological feedstock, the chemistry of biobased building blocks and polymers, the technical processes, principles of circularity, and environmental and societal implications. This course creates a critical and creative attitude towards biobased materials and technologies. Pre-req: Organic Chemistry. Assessment includes assignments, presentations, written exams, and attendance.