printer friendly pageEARTHSYS 36N: Life at the Extremes: From the Deep Sea to Deep Space
Preference to freshmen. Microbial life is diverse and resilient on Earth; could it survive elsewhere in our solar system? This seminar will investigate the diversity of microbial life on earth, with an emphasis on extremophiles, and consider the potential for microbial life to exist and persist in extraterrestrial locales. Topics include microbial phylogenetic and physiological diversity, biochemical adaptations of extremophiles, ecology of extreme habitats, and apparent requirements and limits of life. Format includes lectures, discussions, lab-based activities and local field trips. Basics of microbiology, biochemistry, and astrobiology.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Dekas, A. (PI)
EARTHSYS 38N: The Worst Journey in the World: The Science, Literature, and History of Polar Exploration (EPS 38N, ESS 38N)
(Formerly
GEOLSCI 38N) This course examines the motivations and experiences of polar explorers under the harshest conditions on Earth, as well as the chronicles of their explorations and hardships, dating to the 1500s for the Arctic and the 1700s for the Antarctic. Materials include The Worst Journey in the World by Aspley Cherry-Garrard who in 1911 participated in a midwinter Antarctic sledging trip to recover emperor penguin eggs. Optional field trip into the high Sierra in March. Change of Department Name: Earth and Planetary Science (Formerly Geologic Sciences).
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci
Instructors:
Dunbar, R. (PI)
;
Illing, M. (TA)
EARTHSYS 46N: Exploring the Critical Interface between the Land and Monterey Bay: Elkhorn Slough (ESS 46N)
Preference to freshmen. Field trips to sites in the Elkhorn Slough, a small agriculturally impacted estuary that opens into Monterey Bay, a model ecosystem for understanding the complexity of estuaries, and one of California's last remaining coastal wetlands. Readings include Jane Caffrey's "Changes in a California Estuary: A Profile of Elkhorn Slough". Basics of biogeochemistry, microbiology, oceanography, ecology, pollution, and environmental management.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Francis, C. (PI)
;
Bullington, J. (TA)
ECON 25N: Public Policy and Personal Finance (PUBLPOL 55N)
The seminar will provide an introduction and discussion of the impact of public policy on personal finance. Voters regularly rate the economy as one of the most important factors shaping their political views and most of those opinions are focused on their individual bottom lines. In this course we will discuss the rationale for different public policies and how they affect personal financial situations. We will explore personal finance issues such as taxes, loans, charity, insurance, and pensions. Using the context of (hypothetical) personal finance positions, we will discuss the public policy implications of various proposals and how they affect different groups of people, for example: the implications of differential tax rates for different types of income, the promotion of home ownership in the U.S., and policies to care for our aging population. While economic policy will be the focus of much of the course, we will also examine some of the implications of social policies on personal finance as well. There will be weekly readings and several short policy-related writing assignments.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-SI
Instructors:
Rosston, G. (PI)
EDUC 115N: How to Learn Mathematics
What is going on in mathematics education in the United States? Why do so many people hate and fear math? What contributes to the high levels of innumeracy in the general population? Why do girls and women opt out of math when they get a chance? In this seminar we will consider seminal research on math learning in K-12 classrooms, including a focus on equity. We will spend time investigating cases of teaching and learning, through watching videos and visiting schools. This seminar is for those who are interested in education, and who would like to learn about ways to help students (and maybe yourselves?) learn and enjoy mathematics. If you have had bad math experiences and would like to understand them - and put them behind you - this seminar will be particularly good for you. The final project for this class will involve developing a case of one or more math learners, investigating their journeys in the world of math.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Boaler, J. (PI)
EDUC 152N: Improving Inclusive Higher Education: Students with Down Syndrome at Stanford?
This course is designed to deepen knowledge related to including individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including Down syndrome (DS), in college settings and to research model post-secondary programs. Students will conduct a project investigating one model post-secondary program at an institute of higher education. We will complete the quarter by authoring a white paper for Stanford leadership that outlines next steps for establishing a world-class post-secondary program that will enhance the lives of individuals with DS and IDD.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-EDP, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Lemons, C. (PI)
EE 14N: Things about Stuff
Preference to freshmen. The stories behind disruptive inventions such as the telegraph, telephone, wireless, television, transistor, and chip are as important as the inventions themselves, for they elucidate broadly applicable scientific principles. Focus is on studying consumer devices; projects include building batteries, energy conversion devices and semiconductors from pocket change. Students may propose topics and projects of interest to them. The trajectory of the course is determined in large part by the students themselves.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-EngrAppSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Lee, T. (PI)
EE 21N: Making at the nanometer scale: A journey into microchips
Have you ever wondered what is inside your phone and your computer? What physical events happen in between the time you press the 'search' button and the information shows up on the screen? In this course, we start with the classic paper by Richard Feynman, "There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom," which laid down a challenge to the nanotechnologists. Today's microchips are nanotechnology in action. Transistors are nanometer scale. We will introduce students to the tools of nanotechnologists and the basic elements of nanoscale science and engineering such as nanotubes, nanowires, nanoparticles, and self-assembly. We will visit nanotechnology laboratories to consolidate our learning, go into the Stanford Nanofabrication Facility (SNF), and do a four-week project on nanofabrication. Hands-on laboratory work will be introduced (e.g., lithography, seeing things at the nanoscale using electron microscopes). We will learn how to build transistors from scratch and test them.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-EngrAppSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Wong, H. (PI)
EE 60N: Man versus Nature: Coping with Disasters Using Space Technology (GEOPHYS 60N)
Preference to freshman. Natural hazards, earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, hurricanes, and fires, and how they affect people and society; great disasters such as asteroid impacts that periodically obliterate many species of life. Scientific issues, political and social consequences, costs of disaster mitigation, and how scientific knowledge affects policy. How spaceborne imaging technology makes it possible to respond quickly and mitigate consequences; how it is applied to natural disasters; and remote sensing data manipulation and analysis. GER:DB-EngrAppSci
Terms: Win
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-EngrAppSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Zebker, H. (PI)
EE 84N: From the Internet for People to the Internet of Things
Driven by the ubiquity of the Internet and advances in various technological fields, all aspects of the physical world in which we live are undergoing a major transformation. Underlying this transformation is a concept known as the Internet of Things (IoT) which envisions that every physical object in the world could be connected to the Internet. This concept is at the root of such developments as the fourth industrial revolution, precision agriculture, smart cities, intelligent transportation, home and building automation, precision medicine, etc. In this seminar, we trace back the origins of the IoT concept in terms of both the vision and pioneering work, identify the building blocks of an IoT system, and explore enabling technologies pertaining to the devices that get attached to things (possibly comprising sensors, actuators, and embedded systems) and the communications capabilities (RFID, Bluetooth, wireless sensor networks, Wi-Fi, Low Power WANs, cellular networks, vehicular communications). Students will apply the acquired knowledge to the design of IoT systems meeting specific objectives in various application domains.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Tobagi, F. (PI)
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