Ireland

Short-lived, high magnitude extreme events, from meteorite impacts, to volcanic eruptions, fire, and storms, have shaped the surface of the earth throughout its geological history. Increasing population densities in critical locations on our planet (e.g. cities at the foot of volcanoes, on tectonic fault lines, and at the coast) and human impacts on the environment at the local, regional and global scale, however, have altered the likelihood and magnitude of certain types of natural hazards. This has brought the vulnerability of societies to natural hazards into sharp focus over recent decades. In October 2020, the UN Office on Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) reported that, over the past two decades, 1.23 million people had lost their lives in a total of 7,348 ‘disaster events’ that had been recorded globally (with floods (40% of occurrences), storms (28%), earthquakes (8%), and extreme temperatures (6%) as the four most impactful types of hazard). In our efforts to reduce the human and economic impact of such events, an understanding of the reasons for their occurrence, their spatial and temporal variability, the degree to which they are ‘natural’ as opposed to ‘anthropogenic’ as well as past and potential future societal responses to such events is critical. This course addresses the above aspects beginning with an introduction to ‘natural’ hazards and general concepts or risk and vulnerability. The introductory lectures are then followed by lectures, targeted reading and discussion groups. Finally, students explore case studies highlighting past, present, and potential future societal solutions for the mitigation of the impact of natural hazards with guest speakers bringing an applied natural hazard and risk management perspective to this course.

This course examines theoretical developments in the psychology of learning from a behavior analytic perspective. It provides definitions of the basic behavioral terminology and an overview of the emergence of the experimental analysis of behavior. By focusing on theoretically important experiments, it traces the evolution of behavior analytic research, starting with animal-based work using simple classical and operant conditioning paradigms and finishing by examining modern behavior analytic research on language and higher cognition in humans. The strong scientific tradition of behavior analysis is emphasized, as evidenced by rigorous measurement of behavior, precise specification of methods, and careful interpretation of outcomes.

The course provides an overview over some of the most important aspects of Nazi Germany – covering political, cultural, social and military history. The course provides insights into one of the darkest, most disturbing and most formative periods of modern European history. The course aims to pay particular attention to different and conflicting interpretations of how the Third Reich came into being and why Hitler’s dictatorship proved to be one of the most murderous in history. Particular attention is paid to racial thinking, the Holocaust and the question of European collaboration with the Nazis. The course aims to improve the students’ capacity to engage with historical interpretations and different methodological approaches.
 

This course offers an overview of sociological approaches to law as social relationships and social institution. It gives an overview of theoretical, methodological, and empirical issues discussed in the Sociology of Law as a sub-discipline. The themes of the course include questions of justice, law enforcement, legal professionalism, everyday 'life' of law, social norms, and social change. These topics are scrutinised through both socio-legal and sociological methods. Drawing on theoretical approaches in legal studies, the course offers a variety of definitions of law that are then critically assessed with sociological tools. Hence, the broader question of the course is: What is law? What forms does the law take in our societies? How does law constitute the societies and do societies constitute the law? In other words, during the classes, we look at social, political, and historical aspects of the formation of justice as we know it.

The course covers literature in the Sociology of Law from classic authors (Marx, Durkheim, and Weber) to contemporary debates (feminist jurisprudence, queer criminology, etc.).

This creative writing course is intended for students with a strong interest in writing poetry and developing their artistic craft. In this course, students begin the work of critically assessing contemporary poetry as practicing poets. It explores some key concerns of contemporary poetry, including race, sexuality and the environment, and covers a range of poets working in both traditional and non-traditional forms. Using sample poems provided in class, alongside critical materials, students develop an informed critical idiom for the discussion and critique of contemporary poetry, and also work towards writing a small portfolio of their own poems. Students must be willing to produce new poems to deadline, and be prepared to have their work discussed in class. It is the responsibility of students to offer constructive and considered feedback to their peers during these weekly sessions. *Students are required to submit an application for this course. 

This course introduces students to the literary genres and theological contours of the Hebrew canon and its transmission, translation and interpretation in antiquity and in contemporary culture. The variety of terms used to designate the ‘Hebrew Bible’ (e.g. Old Testament, Hebrew Scriptures, Tanak) indicate the richness of traditions related to these writings, the various ways that they are viewed, and also their life within different communities at different times. This course orients students to the literary and theological contours of the Hebrew canon, introducing them to the rich variety of genres within. The exploration of the Pentateuch and Chronicler’s History provides a historiographical framework and develops students’ ability to identify literary themes while interrogation of the Prophets, Psalms and Wisdom Literature demonstrate the incredible diversity of literary and theological genres contained within the Hebrew Bible. 

This course develops core competencies for effective learning, wellbeing, personal growth and coping with stress, so that students can equip themselves with lifelong skills for learning, working and being well. Students develop themselves to thrive in university life and beyond - including leadership skills for future employment. This course covers concepts of managing stress, motivation, time management, critical and creative thinking, happiness, personality, positive self-identity, and most importantly fostering physical, cognitive, emotional and social skills that support  learning and wellbeing. Assignments provide students with the opportunity to focus on the self working towards personal goals that students identify as part of the module and track their own personal data and progress in areas of their choice (e.g. emotional wellbeing, study habits, time management, exercise). Students reflect on how their values and goals map onto the way they are currently living and students are facilitated in exploring how they wish to reach their potential. 

This course offers students an introduction to the role of management accounting within the modern organization. Cost terms and concepts are introduced, as well as the various techniques that aid decision making, such as cost-volume-profit (CVP) analysis, cost behavior, pricing decisions and capital investment appraisals. The discipline of management accounting is an evolving one, and topical issues are considered in this course, including how to view and manage costs in a strategic sense. 

This course examines how life arose and evolved into the myriad of forms it takes today. The course introduces the principles of evolution and explores the tree of life, highlighting the major evolutionary advances that have enabled organisms to exploit every habitat on Earth. The major living groups of microbes, plants and animals are presented and the key features of their biology are discussed and illustrated. A wide range of examples are given, spanning microbial parasites, plants, fungi, jellyfish and corals, worms, insects, crustaceans, fish, birds, mammals. The course examines how they feed, survive and reproduce, and, importantly, how they impact our daily lives.

This course involves studying the works of a number of poets, whose work reflects the variety of techniques used in modern and postmodern poetry. Students are asked to focus on, for example, the imagery, structure, prosody and diction used in these poems, and to experiment with these elements in their own poetry writing. Students undertake a series of writing exercises that allow them to explore these techniques and concerns.