Norway

The course provides a basic introduction to sociological studies of legal and illegal drug use. Readings emphasize classics such as Goffman, Becker, Collins, Bourdieu, and Latour, and show how these theories have been integrated in contemporary empirical research, in Norway and internationally. Topics include detailed studies of particular drugs (e.g. cannabis, MDMA, heroin, alcohol, tobacco) as well as studies of the formal and informal control of drug use and different treatment practices. It also discusses the phenomenological and philosophical background of concepts such as intoxication and addiction.

This course discusses how innovations and transitions are embedded in larger processes of social and geographical change. The first module outlines the need for deep seated sustainability transitions in a context of accelerating global climate and environmental change. Theories on sustainability transitions and innovation are presented. A distinction between traditional, social and sustainable innovations is introduced. The Multi-Level-Perspective, which analyzes how niche innovations sometimes scale up and transforms larger sectors in the economy, is presented together with perspectives on power and geography. The second module discusses the role of wind energy in sustainability transitions. The history and current status of wind technology is emphasized. The preconditions and challenges connected with a further upscaling of wind energy are highlighted. The third module discusses the role of solar energy. Current institutional and policy potentials and barriers in the Global South and North towards a further upscaling of solar energy are discussed. The fourth module presents and discusses the role of a more circular economy as part of sustainability transitions.

This course is an introduction to the scientific study of language sounds from a common language and individual language point of view. Students must acquire basic knowledge of phonetic analysis of speech sounds, with emphasis on articulatory and acoustic analysis. The course covers the transcription system of The International Phonetic Association (IPA) and the acoustic analysis program PRAAT. The course discusses basic phonological theory, and uses this in phonological analysis. Emphasis is placed on practical skills in both phonetics and phonology. The course recommends students have taken a previous course in linguistics as a prerequisite.

The most pressing societal challenges in the present have to do with climate change and the loss of biodiversity. In the age of the Anthropocene, nature has become a vital political concern. This course offers cultural historical perspectives upon the present situation. The aim is to explore how humans have used, imagined and shaped animals and physical environments and, conversely, the role that nature and ideas of nature have played in social, cultural, political, economic, and everyday life. The course focuses on ways to describe and theorize the relations between humans and nature—from early modern natural histories and the modern distinction between nature and culture, to ongoing discussions about the Anthropocene. Central themes include the politics of landscape and of domestication, the rise of conservation and scientific ecology, nature and colonialism, nature and the nation-state, and the strange new hybrid natures that emerge with the Anthropocene.

In this course, the art of the later Middle Ages from approximately 1300 to the 1530s is studied from a perspective where the art works are seen as manifestations of the visual culture of the period. Rather than approaching them as works of art in the conventional sense, the course focuses on the way the objects have made sense to their original beholders by virtue of the visual and material qualities that constitute their essential characteristics. It reviews medieval theories of vision, visuality, and materiality, and discusses the perception, reception, and use of images in various cultic settings, i.e., from Norwegian stave churches to convents on the European continent, as well as in secular contexts. The discussions concern art works of various media, with some extra attention given to manuscripts, relics/reliquaries, and polychrome sculpture. The course is taught as a combination of lectures and seminars which take place either at campus or in museum collections. 

This course is an introduction to developmental biology and genetics - in plants, animals and other relevant groups of organisms. It uses concepts and principles from genetics and epigenetics to focus on classical, experimental systems/organisms and connections. The context of the course is system-oriented genetics development in a genome perspective, and the essence is how genetics and epigenetics via specialization and interaction between cells form the foundation for development and morphological traits.