University of Edinburgh

This course charts the arc of political and constitutional change between Catholic emancipation and the full enfranchisement of women a century later. Although Britain's route to participatory democracy was comparatively smooth and peaceful (indeed, Britain was unique among its European peers in being untouched by revolution during this century), progressive reform was never inevitable. This course emphasizes the contingent nature of this process. British democracy was never pre-ordained, despite the claims of Victorian liberals who described successive reforms as evidence of inevitable 'progress'. Nor was the Westminster Parliament in the vanguard of democracy during this period. In 1914 Britain was governed by one of the least representative parliaments in the developed world. This course emphasizes the staying power of the ancient regime in the face of reform. During this period, parliamentary and other reforms were very often initiated by the political establishment itself with the intention of shoring up old systems rather than of bringing new ones into existence. This mentality, which has been described as 'reforming to conserve', is a key focus of this course.

An integrated introduction to spoken and written Japanese for those with little or no previous knowledge of the language. The course includes kana writing (Japanese phonetic writing), and an introduction to some kanji (Japanese Characters), approximately 90-100. Teaching is aimed at enabling students to speak, read and write Modern Japanese at a post beginner level, equivalent to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages level A1. 

This course examines the dynamic nature of cells and the metabolic processes that occur in a regulated manner within cells. The lecture material is complemented by a graphics workshop, tutorials, laboratory practicals, and sessions that follow-up some of the practical classes. The course emphasizes that in order to understand biology it is first necessary to understand the basic unit of life: the cell. It is important not to view cells merely as the highly organized, static structures built up from lipids, proteins, and polysaccharides that seen in electron micrographs. Cells are, first and foremost, dynamic entities and students of this course examine the variety of cell units, biochemistry, and processes which make them so.