Health Sciences

This course covers approaches to meeting the needs of people with neurological disorders and progressive neurological diseases. As the production of purposeful goal directed movement pervades all aspects of behavior, there is a specific focus upon the physical, psychological, and social consequences of movement dysfunction. The course deals with the scientific principles underlying neurological rehabilitation, including motor control and learning. Students are also introduced to intervention strategies that are designed to maintain or re-establish functional capability, such as brain-computer interfaces, robot assisted therapy, deep brain stimulation, and cortical stimulation.

The purpose of this course is applying social and behavioral principles and theories on the phenomenon regarding health, disease, and environment. In academia, health behavior sciences and medical social sciences are often seen as a whole. However, in the recent decades, personal health is drew more attention in the aspects of diseases contract and population health, which makes the term “behavior” favorable and brings enthusiastic discussions and debates. As far as the depth and breadth within health domain, every issue is associated with behavior. Due to the complexity, we need to explore and examine health outcomes through different angles and approaches in order to comprehend the essential and determinants of health issues to further achieve effective solutions. This course contains two sections. First, we review the elements of human behavior through social sciences or even biological sciences (e.g., sociobiology). Second, with the understanding of behavioral basis, we move on to episodes which are related to behavioral, structural, and policy fields as well as the causes and consequences in the contemporary public health to develop proper interventions. Within the structure and thread of the theoretical concepts, the course is expected to acquaint students with the history and progress of human behavior and the fundamental framework utilized to describe human behavior.

This general education course introduces the basic concepts of nutrition as well as the application of nutritional sciences in daily life. The course starts with nutrition fundamentals, such as introduction to the science of nutrition and tools of a healthy diet. It also covers information on all the essential nutrients, emphasizing the structure of nutrients, contents in food, recommended intakes, functions of individual nutrient, and health concerns related to intake, etc. Also introduced are three energy-yielding nutrients—carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins. The course examines energy metabolism and energy balance to demonstrate the importance of nutrition, exercise, and sports. Lectures of vitamins and minerals are categorized by their functions on human diseases and health: Fat-soluble vitamin, energy metabolism related vitamins include most of B vitamins, blood conditions-related nutrients, antioxidants nutrients, water and electrolytes, trace minerals. It also summarizes nutrition applications in the life cycles, such as nutrition during pregnancy, breastfeeding, the growing years, the adult years.

The course provides a solid understanding of the key aspects of energy metabolism and the effects of nutrients on skeletal muscle metabolism during exercise of different types. The first part of the course provides a theoretical framework on the basics of exercise biochemistry and exercise physiology. In the form of tutorial groups, the physiology of muscles, the metabolism of macronutrients, the hormonal regulation of metabolism, and the biochemical and physiological role of micronutrients in relation to exercise and fatigue are discussed. The second part of the course investigates a case study. A recommendation on your case, in the form of a group assignment, concludes this part of the course. The course requires prior knowledge of some simple (bio)chemical concepts (e.g. the structure and function of macromolecules, common forms of chemical reactions, basic cell structure, and metabolism of macromolecules).

This course explores how social systems, relationships, and individual characteristics affect people's health status and illness-related conduct. It enables students to put their nutritional knowledge into a wider context by providing a foundation in the concept and methods of the human sciences.

The course is designed to equip students with experience, knowledge, and skills for succeeding in globally interdependent and culturally diverse workplaces. During the course, students are challenged to question, reflect upon, and respond thoughtfully to the issues they observe and encounter in the internship setting and local host environment. Professional and personal development skills as defined by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), such as critical thinking, teamwork, and diversity are cultivated. Assignments focus on building a portfolio that highlights those competencies and their application to workplace skills. The hybrid nature of the course allows students to develop their skills in a self-paced environment with face-to-face meetings and check-ins to frame their intercultural internship experience. Students complete 45 hours of in-person and asynchronous online learning activities and 225-300 hours at the internship placement.

In this course, students learn to use neuroscience methods to study the cognitive development of infants, children, and adolescents. The course begins with the various methods used in developmental cognitive neuroscience, such as pediatric and infant MRI, EEG, and fNIRS. In this context, students uncover and discuss the benefits and challenges of each approach and the feasibility of studying different age ranges. The course then examines typical brain development as assessed with in vivo MRI (including trajectories of white & gray matter over the life span). Next, are more specific aspects of cognitive development such as the development of visual processes where students learn how learning to read affects the brain and how regions involved in face processing develop throughout childhood to support important social functions such as face recognition. Topics are approached using a mix of formats including active participation, working in subgroups, presentations, short lectures, and videos.

In this course, students are expected to be familiar with ideas and concepts covered in the Adaptability and Wellbeing course units at first and second year levels at the University of Manchester. Topics to be covered include the role of illness and treatment beliefs in health care encounters, how medically unexplained conditions can be explained and managed, ways of improving how health care professionals and patients interact, and risk and decision making. Cutting across these topic areas are the themes of theoretical underpinnings, measurement, and application.

This course provides research training for exchange students. Students work on a research project under the guidance of assigned faculty members. Through a full-time commitment, students improve their research skills by participating in the different phases of research, including development of research plans, proposals, data analysis, and presentation of research results. A pass/no pass grade is assigned based a progress report, self-evaluation, midterm report, presentation, and final report.