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11 - 20 of 37 results for: THINK

THINK 11: Bioethical Challenges of New Technology

How might we apply ideas from ethical theory to contemporary issues and debates in biotechnology?nnnThis course will provide critical encounters with some of the central topics in the field of bioethics, with an emphasis on new technologies. Controversies over genetic engineering, stem cell research, reproductive technologies, and genetic testing will provide an opportunity for you to critically assess arguments and evidence. We will begin with an overview of the field and the theoretical approaches to bioethics that have been derived from philosophy. You will then have the opportunity to engage in debate and learn how to identify underlying values and how to apply ideas from ethical theory to contemporary problems.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: College, THINK, WAY-ER

THINK 12: Century of Violence

What is modern about modern mass violence? nnnThis course explores the evolution, varieties, and logic of mass violence from the early 20th century to the present day. You will engage with and analyze primary accounts of such violence by victims, observers, perpetrators, and courts. We will then consider the effectiveness of various efforts to confront genocides and crimes against humanity in international courts and institutions, past and present. We start with the emergence of genocide as a modern, international issue; proceed with colonial massacres in early 20th century Africa; move to the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire and WWI; Nazi and Nazi-inspired racial murder; communist-induced mass violence in the Soviet Union and Asia; ethnic cleansing in former Yugoslavia; and end with an examination of the recent genocides in Rwanda, Sudan, and the Middle East.
Terms: Spr | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: THINK, WAY-SI, College

THINK 13: Epic Journeys

What makes an epic hero? How does the epic poem externalize our quest for identity and self-definition?nnnnThe human quest for identity and self-knowledge is the oldest story of human culture. It almost always involves a confrontation with death. As the epic hero journeys across the physical world and descends into the underworld to visit the dead and seek counsel from them, he gradually comes to understand himself in a deeper, more meaningful way than before he set out on his journey. In this course, you will learn to engage in depth with some of the great epics of the Western tradition, beginning with The Epic of Gilgamesh and ending with Dante's masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. In each case, we will consider the unique goals of each hero's journey and the obstacles he must confront in order to reach his destination, with particular attention to the themes of violence in self and society, exile and alienation, the encounter with ancestors, the female voice, and divine guidance. We will focus on how the hero's search for a moral identity in relation to his community connects to current definitions of the ethical life in relation to political violence, war, honoring the dead, and confronting our mortality.
Last offered: Winter 2013 | UG Reqs: College, THINK

THINK 14: From the Closed World to the Infinite Universe: Science, Philosophy and Religion

How and why did the Copernican revolution in astronomy ¿ which placed the Sun at the center of the solar system rather than the earth ¿ have such a profound effect on the relationship between science, philosophy, and religion? How did it ultimately lead to the secularization of modern society?nnnThis course examines the defining moments when western science, philosophy, and religion became disentangled from one another, eventually leading to the development of our modern secular culture. As background for understanding the Copernican revolution and its aftermath, we begin with a brief examination of Plato and Aristotle, and how these two Ancient Greek thinkers were later taken up in the medieval period, resulting in a synthesis in which science, philosophy, and religion were intimately interconnected. Against this background we will then focus on the scientific revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries and encounter thinkers who during their lifetimes defied easy categorization: Were Galileo and Newton philosophers or scientists? What about Descartes and Leibniz? In reading texts that we now understand as belonging to one or the other category, we will see how the two disciplines eventually became sharply distinguished from one another ¿ which then led, in turn, to the modern separation between science and religion.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: College, THINK, WAY-A-II

THINK 15: How Does Your Brain Work?

How to learn to formulate questions about the brain that are observable, testable, and answerable? What is the relationship between the biology and chemistry of the brain and the mind that lets us talk, walk, laugh, love, learn, remember, and forget?What might neuroscience reveal about what makes us human? The human brain is the most complex organ known. It has evolved over time by adapting to the various behavioral and environmental constraints. The validity of common beliefs about the brain and the structure of the brain and the nervous system; how the elements of the brain function and how together these units produce action. The brain evolved in response to natural selection like all other biological structures. Evolutionary comparisons that illuminate questions about brain function including: What are the origins and consequences of brain damage, how and where do drugs act, how do you collect information about the world and how do you interpret and understand it? Through interactive lectures and discussions, this course is directed at understanding the biological mechanisms of brain function, from its individual components to functioning brains. Students learn to analyze how the science of the brain has emerged through the study of experiments and other observations. In the final project, studentsl learn to critically assess, analyze, and write about a popular media representation of brain science from available scientific literature.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: College, THINK, WAY-SMA

THINK 16: Is the Universe Just? Explorations in the Classics

What can the Classics teach us about understanding justice and injustice? nnnDo you ask yourself whether your life is controlled more by your own free choices or by your genetic code? Do you worry whether a superpower can function without hubristic arrogance? Do you ponder what constitutes the Good Life? If these sorts of issues are central to your intellectual and personal growth, this course will demonstrate to you that the ancient Mediterranean world was equally consumed with questions about the nature of human society and human existence. We will explore certain recurring themes within classical text such as the relationship between power and gender; gods and humans; innocence and evil. We will read a wide and deep selection of important and influential literary texts from the Near East, Greece, and Rome, spanning from c.2000 BCE to the first century BCE. The readings will include creation texts, epic, lyric, tragedy, and philosophy.
Last offered: Winter 2013 | UG Reqs: College, THINK

THINK 17: The Poet Re-Making the World

Can poetry change the world?nnnPoets use form and language to hold up a mirror to the events that change the world and the making of a poem can also be the re-making of a world. We will read and study poetry from different historical, cultural, and poetic traditions, and explore whether something as individual as artistic expression can help us cope with the social and political events that bring suffering and destruction. The course follows the adventures of the individual poet: from a young man caught in the trenches of the First World War, to a Japanese haiku master of the 17th century, to an American Beat, to an English woman trapped in the conventions of her time, to a contemporary U.S. soldier in Iraq. Poets show us the many similarities, as well as rich cultural differences, between us all.
Last offered: Winter 2013 | UG Reqs: College, THINK

THINK 18: Rebellious Daughters and Filial Sons of the Chinese Family

How has the family been broken, preserved, and reinvented in the fast-changing world of revolution and modernization?nnnnRebellious Daughters and Filial Sons of the Chinese Family follows the theme of the Chinese family in fiction and film to investigate the core values that hold it together in the midst of great historical change. You will learn to interpret both fiction and film as visual and textual narratives that illuminate the multiple aspects of family and community. We will explore how modernization, colonialism, revolution, war, and immigration disrupt traditional home and family. Through film and text, we will discover the various poignant attempts to rebuild family relations in the midst of such dislocation. As you embark on your college education and take leave of your own families, you might start to consider how your familial ties shape your concept of self, your emotional attachment to community, social relationships with society, and political consciousness.
Last offered: Winter 2013 | UG Reqs: College, THINK

THINK 19: Rules of War

When, if ever, is war justified? How are ethical norms translated into rules that govern armed conflict? Are these rules still relevant in light of the changing nature of warfare? nnnWe will examine seminal readings on just war theory, investigate the legal rules that govern the resort to and conduct of war, and study whether these rules affect the conduct of states and individuals. We will examine alternative ethical frameworks, competing disciplinary approaches to war, and tensions between the outcomes suggested by ethical norms, on the one hand, and legal rules, on the other. Students will engage actively with these questions by participating in an interactive role-playing simulation, in which they will be assigned roles as government officials, advisors, or other actors. The class will confront various ethical, legal, and strategic problems as they make decisions about military intervention and policies regarding the threat and use of force in an international crisis.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: College, THINK, WAY-ER, WAY-SI

THINK 20: Ultimate Meanings: The Stories Buddhists Tell

Does human existence have some ultimate meaning or purpose? What are we here for, and how should we live our lives? Can the stories used by the world¿s religions help us answer these questions? nnnFor a religion which teaches that we have no selves, Buddhism has produced many great stories with many great characters. In this course students will read and think about some of these stories, drawn from the Buddhist tradition in the many forms which it developed as it spread across Asia. We will look at the biography of the founder, the Buddha, the tales of his previous lives, the stories of his disciples, and of later saints and heroes, religious practitioners and ordinary folk. In reading these stories we will investigate how they elaborate a persuasively constructed world of meaning in terms of which people can make sense of their own personal histories, and from which they can learn how to lead a good and meaningful life.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: College, THINK, WAY-A-II, WAY-ER
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