United Kingdom - England

The Greek myths of gods, heroes, and heroines have played a crucial role in the history of Western art, literature, and music. This course examines Greek myths as found in Greek literary sources and provides students with an introduction to the study of Greek mythology in its literary, social, historical, and philosophical context.

This course looks at definition of a curve, arc length, curvature, and torsion of a curve, Frenet-Serret equations. It also looks at definition of a surface patch, first and second fundamental forms, isometries, conformal maps, area, Gaussian curvature, mean curvature, principal curvatures, Gauss map, geodesics, and Theorema Egregium.

The course enables students to gain a broad understanding of ten important environmental issues that have emerged during the Anthropocene, the science that underlies them, the various management and mitigation options and technologies, and how this links to policy. Topics include (as representative samples, which may change): deforestation, desertification and agricultural intensification, biodiversity loss, urbanization, pollution, ocean acidification, loss of polar environments, maintaining sustainability and ecosystem services, and understanding ecological systems and resilience.

Much of modern machine learning rests upon a range of mathematical methods and many introductory machine learning courses seek to introduce algorithms before ensuring the link with these methods is made. This course offers students an introduction to traditional Machine Learning in a rigorous mathematical fashion. Assuming a familiarity with key results of linear algebra, differential calculus, probability and statistics, the course introduces the key areas of traditional machine learning and seeks to cover the key tools (and theorems) within these areas, and to illustrate these with practical exemplars. 

Organizations operate in an increasingly complex environment, where change is a constant feature of business life. As generative AI (GenAI) reshapes industries and transforms the way people work, understanding how to manage change and digital transformation becomes increasingly critical. While GenAI offers unparalleled opportunities to enhance efficiency and productivity, it also presents complex challenges for management. Taking a multidisciplinary, social science-based approach, this course equips students with the necessary leadership and change management skills to implement successful digital transformation projects. The course blends theory with hands-on learning, using case studies and an interactive simulation game, where students will apply their knowledge by making strategic decisions. Additionally, students gain practical experience through a real-life GenAI-focused consultancy project.

Computational biology and data science have undergone tremendous expansion in recent years, resulting from increased computational power and accessibility of quantitative biological measurements. The course teaches students about the power of mathematical, computational, and statistical analyses, and their roles in biological research. This is achieved through sessions that combine lectures, paper-and-pen calculations, and computer practicals. Topics include data carpentry, handling, modelling, and data analysis using different types of biological measurements from the areas of Genomics, Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity research. Students gain confidence in searching and curating real-life datasets, constructing mathematical models, and combining them to answer biological questions that are inaccessible without the use of computers or mathematics.

This course is about the geography of social change in Africa. It is designed to build on the second year course Development Geography, but there are no prerequisites. The course analyzes the different factors that shape spatial differences in development indicators across Africa. The course allows students to explore the diversity of forms that the geography of social change in Africa takes. As such the course investigates the impacts of history, politics, sociology, and economics on spatial patterns of development. The course uses postcolonial theory as an analytical framework. This entails reflecting on the ongoing legacies of colonialism not only in terms of empirical institutions, practices and norms but also in relation to the production of knowledge and ideas. The course relies heavily on wide independent reading, including reading from disciplines beyond geography.

From a comparative and multidisciplinary perspective, this intermediate-level course takes a gendered perspective to discuss some of the most important political, economic, and social problems of contemporary societies in the Americas. The course is divided into two parts. In the first part, it assesses the quality of democracy from a gendered perspective, focusing on descriptive representation, elections, and voter behavior. In the second part, the course examines the gendered dimensions of public policy, with a focus on specific policy areas (e.g., poverty, healthcare, violence).

How have global forces shaped Africa’s states and economies—and how will today’s shifting world order define its future? In this course, students explore the evolution of contemporary Africa, examining the uneven trajectories of nations and regions through the lens of geography, history, geopolitics, and global markets. Students trace Africa’s place in the global system from the colonial era to Cold War developmentalism, to the neoliberal “Washington Consensus,” and the “Africa Rising” narrative driven by China’s ascent. Finally, students contemplate today’s tectonic shifts in global geopolitics and the current polycrisis of climate, geopolitics, and deglobalization. Through scholarly readings, policy reports, films, debates, and case studies, students critically engage with these pressing issues, gaining a deeper understanding of Africa’s past, present, and possible futures—while also better understanding the global economic and political shifts since the 1950s.

This course engages with the politics of policy making from queer and feminist perspectives, rooting the discussion in cultural discourse of contemporary society. Students discover how policies shape – and are shaped by – the lived experiences of individuals and communities. Students explore the importance of gender and sexuality for various forms of policymaking across local, national, and international levels. Using various innovative approaches and perspectives in gender and sexuality studies, the course investigates how sexual and gender inequalities, in connection with other power structures like race, ethnicity, and class, are embedded and activated in the policymaking process.