University of Sussex

The 19th century saw the making of the modern world, with huge and rapid social and political changes. Debates raged about the role of men, women, and the family, the worlds of work and home, the growth of the city and urban poverty, and Britain's place in the world. This course explores the relations between this society and its visual culture. Material considered ranges from vast canvases exhibited at the Royal Academy to smaller, intimate works for the domestic interior, and take in a range of other visual media such as photographs and the applied arts.

This course explores the still image and encourages critical reflection on issues of form and representation in relation to students' own work. Students learn processes and techniques involved in digital imaging. They work individually to complete set exercises both in and out of class, and produce a series of images to a set brief. Students also learn to use production technology in a specific medium. They apply medium-specific critical and aesthetic discourses to their own and others' creative media projects and demonstrate critical reflection on the intersection of practice and theory.

This course introduces students to the field of global history - one of the fastest growing and most dynamic areas of historiography today. Just as we live in an ever more "globalized" world, so have historians become increasingly interested in the ways that past societies interacted with each other on a global basis. There are a number of key themes in global history: the limitations of the nation-state, going beyond Eurocentric perspectives, the spread of capitalism, empire as an enduring form of political organization, and the relationship between the universal and the particular. Nevertheless, Global history is a wide and evolving field that contains differing and contrasting approaches. To what extent is globalization a product of western domination in the post-industrial age? Can we narrate global history through a single person (for example an artist), village, or object, or must we construct grand narratives that encompass the entire world? Is it acceptable for global historians to synthesize the more localized primary research of other historians, or should they consult their own primary sources?

How do we understand ourselves? How closely is our sense of self related to other people? What happens to a person’s self-conception when their sense of self is systematically attacked and undermined? How do people respond to experiences of trauma and personal loss and what kind of psychological strategies of survival do people rely on in order to continue living a meaningful life? The course starts by considering some of the main social psychological theories of the self and self-awareness before moving on to contemplate the darker side of the self specifically addressed in the work of Erich Fromm and David Riesman. The lectures cover a range of influential social theorists and examine a diverse range of contemporary perspectives on the formation and maintenance of self-identity in contemporary society. We will examine why some individuals deliberately choose to engage in behavior that transgresses everyday boundaries and also consider how people respond when their sense of identity is systematically attacked and undermined. This course draws on a wide range of up-to-date research and introduces you to a variety of theoretical perspectives. This course assumes no prior knowledge of the literature and will be of relevance to anyone interested in studying the nature of identity in modern society.

This course offers students an overview of the psychological, pharmacological, neurobiological, and neurophysiological bases of drug use, abuse, and contemporary understanding of addiction (and some mental conditions), and has a strong natural science (neuroscience) orientation. The acute and long-term effects of selected drugs of abuse on behavior, mood, cognition, and neuronal function are discussed using empirical findings and theoretical developments from both human and non-human subject studies on the neurobiological and psychological basis of drug action and addiction.

 

This course provides a foundation of principles for human-centered design. It focuses on physical considerations, including a study of human limits for inclusive design; people's behavior and how design can help to address significant issues for society; and contemporary adaptations that embrace social factors, including consumer behavior and a services approach to design. The course concludes by examining society in developing countries and how design can help to address concerns. Course topics include: ergonomics, anthropometrics, hand-held objects, consumer behavior, inclusive design, sustainable design, global issues, and design concerns.

The module examines the digital environment in which projects and work take place nowadays. Emphasis is placed on virtual teamwork and its unique characteristics (e.g. the role of technology) that make it different to traditional, face-to-face teamwork. This is a management module (not a technical one) and is thus focused on how management can be performed so that project leaders and members can overcome some of the challenges characterising (team)work in the digital age. This is accomplished via state-of-the-art research in the field. By the end of this course a successful student should be able to demonstrate understanding of the notion of digital work, its different elements, and the role of technology in it. We will evaluate traditional management theories, concepts and practices, and assess their relevance (or transformation) in the digital context. Students will develop an improved understanding of how virtual teams, as an example of digital work, can be managed effectively and gain practical experience of how a project can be successfully delivered in a digital context.

This course is a seminar and workshop for aspiring poets. Students read poetry and essays in preparation for class, but the chief activity is original creative work. For the purposes of this course, lively and respectful participation in group discussion is an essential part of the work, and students are assessed partly on the basis of generosity of attention to other students' work. By the end of the semester, students produce a short collection of poems, with the benefit of regular critical attention from fellow students and from the professor. The course concludes with a public poetry reading event on campus in which all students are invited to participate.

This course discusses generalized cash flows, time value of money, and real and money interest rates. The course also examines compound interest functions, equations of value, loan repayment schemes, investment project evaluation and comparison, and bonds. Students evaluate, analyze, and disseminate a real world investment project by writing an easy to understand financial report.