Korea University

This course introduces students to various aspects of the socioeconomic, cultural, and political transformations that Japan has undergone since the end of the AsiaPacific War. It explores the historical trajectories of postwar Japan within the broader context of its transition from an imperial power to a post-imperial nation, as well as its involvement in the regional and global Cold War. Major topics to be discussed include: the Allied Occupation of Japan, political developments and social activism, “high-speed growth” and its shadows, national and transnational memory politics related to the Asia-Pacific War, and the impact and repercussions of “March 11.” While the primary focus of this course is on post-1945 Japan, we will examine how the remnants and aftermath of the Japanese Empire have influenced the complexities of the postwar period. In doing so, this course also considers the interactions between postwar Japan and other Asian countries, providing insights into Japan’s evolving role in East Asia. 

This course investigates the process of the formation of the socialist system and the characteristics of the socialist system from historical, ideological, and political-social perspectives, and examines the possibility of its existence as an alternative ideology despite the collapse of real socialism.  

The course places communism as an ideology into dialog with reality as the system manifested in the Soviet Union and North Korea. Students will analyze communism as “theory” or “ideology” while using works of Karl Marx, investigate how the Bolsheviks tried to build the “first socialist country on earth” in the Soviet Union, and investigate the North Korean case, comparing it to the Soviet experience as well as the early ideals of Marxism. 

This course is an introduction to the pre-modern history of East Asia up until the early 1800s, specifically focusing on China and its relations with Korea. In the first half of the semester, the course covers the political and cultural development that initially emerged in China proper and later spread to its neighbors, shaping the common bonds that bring East Asia together as a whole. In the second half of the semester, the course examines important transnational events and connections, most notably wars and commerce, with an emphasis on the 17th and 18th centuries when the social conditions of modern East Asia were shaped. 

This course is an introduction to the principles and mechanisms of epigenetics, exploring how heritable changes in gene expression occur without changes to the underlying DNA sequence. Topics include DNA methylation, histone modifications, chromatin remodeling, and non-coding RNAs. The course will also cover the role of epigenetics in development, disease, and evolution. 

This course is an integrated introduction to fruit, vegetable, cereal, dairy, and seafood and meat science and technology. It provides an overview of the traditional and innovative techniques that are used to protect the quality and assure the safety of these foods. 

The course introduces carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, vitamins, and minerals that are components of food, and examines basic science applied to food processing and storage (gelatinization, aging, denaturation, rancidity, flavor change, color change).  

This course provides a broad introduction to the linguistic analysis of Korean. Topics include phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, as well as a small amount of orthography, history, pragmatics, and sociolinguistics.  

This course primarily focuses on Korean, but it will include examples from other languages to show how Korean compares and contrasts. 

The recommended prerequisite for this course is two years of college-level Korean. If a student has completed one year of college-level Korean, they must be prepared to put in extra time and effort. Students who have completed less than one year of college-level Korean are not encouraged to enroll in this course, unless they have already had some coursework in general linguistics (e.g., an introduction to linguistics, plus one or two additional courses in core topics such as phonetics, phonology, syntax, or semantics).  

This course approaches the Korean Constitution from normative and contextual perspectives and examines the framework of the Korean Constitution and political structure. Topics include the origin and historical development of the Korean Constitution, preamble and legitimacy issues of the Korean Constitution, the political structure and the mechanisms of a democratic constitutional order, the guarantees of fundamental right, and the specific features of Korean constitutionalism. The latter half of the course is dedicated to group presentations and discussions in the format of an academic conference. 

This course examines the primary responsibilities of Congress and its relationships with other political actors. Topics include the theoretical underpinnings of Congress, the rules and procedures that make Congress a unique form of national legislature, the behavior of members in Congress, and the course focuses both on academic study as well as practical applications to the real political world (for example, students will draft, submit, and present a bill proposal.) While this course centers upon Korean and American systems, conclusions drawn from discussion may apply to other systems and countries as well.

This course covers the human microbiome and the interactions these microorganisms have with the human body and with disease. Students explore the pathological mechanism of disease by learning about the morphological and functional changes in each organ tissue due to the cause, developmental mechanism, and progression of diseases occurring in the human body.  Topics include the microbe-human ecosystem, microbial interactions, host-microbe interactions, normal microbiota, the formation of the human microbiome, maternal microbes, gut microbes, digestive infection systems, pro- and prebiotics, etc. 

This course introduces the definition of chronic diseases and major diseases and covers the frequency and distribution of chronic diseases and major risk factors. It also analyzes major issues and research cases related to the prevention and management of chronic diseases and discusses projects and policies for health promotion.  

Students will be able to describe the pathogenic sequence of events associated with development of major chronic diseases (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis and arthritis); understand risk factors for major chronic diseases; and identify factors that are associated with increased risk of major chronic diseases.