University College Dublin

This course explores science and environments from European invasions of Asia, Africa, and the Americas in the 16th century to their legacy in a climate-changed world. Students learn how knowledge is produced through complex and often unequal collaborations of diverse actors. It begins with a critical introduction to key episodes and methods in the history of science, including global, Indigenous, and feminist standpoints. They then venture through thematic weeks—e.g., Islands, Mountains, Arid Lands, Underlands, and Atmospheres—to bring global histories of science and environment into a comparative framework. This course also practices history for the future, asking how historical perspectives can inform contemporary conversations about environmental justice and the value of scientific knowledge.

The course teaches key concepts prevalent in organic chemistry and the resulting properties of organic molecules. These are presented based on standard U.S. text books and are complemented by specific examples of compounds present in important drug molecules and natural products. Introductory topics include molecular structure, chemical bonding, and orbital interactions. The resulting properties of molecules are then introduced on key compound classes such as alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes that later are complemented by aromatic rings and functional groups such as alcohols, carbonyls, and amines. Furthermore, the crucial properties that explain the reactivity of organic molecules and enable a detailed understanding through distinct reaction mechanisms are highlighted throughout the course. Finally, these concepts are applied towards the planned synthesis of target molecules in combination with suitable structure determination methods.

This course introduces and develops some of the basic ideas in the areas of Combinatorics and Number Theory. Topics include: mathematical induction, permutations and combinations, counting arguments, modular arithmetic, Euclidean algorithm, Fermat's and Euler's theorems, fundamental theorem of arithmetic, systems of linear congruences, and the Chinese remainder theorem. Students learn to recognize, read, and use standard mathematical symbols and notation. Students learn to ask pertinent questions, to decide which questions are relevant, answerable, and so on. Students gain an understanding of the reasoning behind any methods or procedures they use and are able to demonstrate that understanding. Students also learn to produce examples themselves, in order to illustrate a definition, show a method, or test boundaries of an idea.