English

This course performs micro-genealogies of various strands of “practical philosophy” and “philosophical practice,” both ancient and modern, to rethink how philosophy can provide the conceptual tools needed to tarry with the complexities of individual and social life. It addresses questions such as what is happiness and the good life; at what expense do we find happiness; what are the conditions for freedom; and how to engage with death, illness, and finitude. This course critically examines how happiness has been imagined in the past and the present, from virtue and duty to wellness and bliss.

The course introduces students to the core concepts of applied linguistics - history, origin, and scope. It explores how linguistic knowledge can be used to understand and address real-world language and communication issues.  Students will examine language processing, language disorders, and multilingualism from cognitive, social, and educational perspectives. The course also focuses on identifying contemporary language-related social problems, analyzing their causes, and proposing interdisciplinary solutions.

This course explores the origins of various types of deductive argumentation by working through the arguments of proofs in a historical context. The course looks at the sources of different approaches to mathematical demonstrations in many diverse cultures and periods. It focuses on the continuous tradition that began in Greece; was adopted by Arabic and Hebrew scholars and was further cultivated in the Latin west. Finally, the course confronts contemporary challenges to the idea of proof such as the delicate relationship between rigor and intelligibility and the possibility of computer-generated proofs.   

Although this is not a mathematics course, enrollees should have some familiarity with mathematics and mathematical ideas. The texts demand careful attention to reasoning but they do not require advanced mathematical training. Although it is important to understand mathematical arguments, one must pay attention to the historical and philosophical aspects of the text. The class will work on several proofs on the board at each class meeting.   

This course provides a critical understanding of the major issues currently faced by European countries, and the interplay between Member States, European institutions, global challenges and democratic legitimacy concerns. It analyzes the facts to understand the major causes and potential consequences and think of possible solutions to address challenges existing in the euro area, those created by the unprecedented migrant flows in Europe, stemming from climate change. The course also looks at the rise of Euroscepticism and the issue of democratic deficit in the European Union. The course provides a critical approach and a solid understanding of the major issues and debates on the topics covered during the class.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrolment is by consent of the instructor. The course introduces fundamentals in economic evaluation theory and modeling methodology in healthcare. Students learn how to structure a medical decision model and how to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness (ICER) and cost-effectiveness acceptability curves (CEACs), how to interpret results, and how to draw policy implications. Students are trained in critically reviewing HTA-studies, in order to judge their validity and applicability. The course discusses topics including CEA/CBA analysis; uncertainty and decision-making in healthcare; fundamental concepts of economic evaluation theory; theoretical foundation of modeling; types of models; development of decision trees and Markov models; an sensitivity analysis and the interpretation of the results. The course consists of ten classes. Classes are lectures which last three hours, with breaks where necessary. At least three classes are Excel workshops carried out in the computer lab. The course requires a reasonable level of understanding of basic mathematical concepts and basic probability theory. Students should also be comfortable with the basics of spreadsheet software such as MS Excel.