University of Sussex

This course introduces the design and analysis of algorithms. Students examine topics including the use of big­-O notation to characterize an algorithm's running time, invariants as a way of specifying how an algorithm solves a problem, and alternative approaches to the design of algorithms for different kinds of problems, such as including divide­and­conquer, greedy methods, and dynamic programming. Students use a range of illustrative problems, such as sorting, string-matching, and several standard graph algorithms.

This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to reflect on how, in times of conflict, it is possible for previously law abiding people to commit the most atrocious acts of cruelty and violence. Crimes against humanity have only recently caught the attention of criminologists and the course provides students with information on the origins and dynamics of such crimes. Students explore the work of influential social theorists, psychologists, criminologists, psychoanalysts, and philosophers, including Erich Fromm (ESCAPE FROM FREEDOM), Hannah Arendt (EICHMANN IN JERUSALEM), Zygmunt Bauman (MODERNITY AND THE HOLOCAUST) and Ernest Becker (ESCAPE FROM EVIL). In addition to contemplating the driving force of aggression, conflict, and mass violence, the course also addresses the psychological trauma experienced by victims and the role of both internal and external bystanders.