CONN

The art and science of distilling alcohol dates back to the fourth century BC. Today, making hooch is something that nearly every society has in common. Moonshine from Tennessee, mescal from Oaxaca, palinka from Hungary, airag from Mongolia, feni from India, cachaça from Brazil, sopi from Indonesia, the list goes on and on. While fermentation and distillation are nearly universal in human society, every flavor of hooch has its own botanical, chemical, cultural, economic, and political story to tell.

Animals or their parts are ubiquitous - they are traded for food, companionship, clothing, research, entertainment, and sport. Animals are living beings that have the legal status of personal property. This dual status of both living being and personal property creates a paradox of thought about how animals fit within western societies and cultures. Contemporary debates concerning the question of the animal tend to become entrenched around this bifurcation, with one side emphasizing the animal state of being, and the other, emphasizing their status as property.

This interdisciplinary Connections course brings together atmospheric science and economics to explore the climate change problem. Students address this overarching question: How do science and economics inform and direct climate change policy? To answer this question, students begin the course by working with climate data to see firsthand evidence of climate change. As students gain competence with data manipulation, they apply those skills to economic models and concepts. No prerequisites are required but ECON 170 is recommended.

Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary study of the mind that exists at the intersection of philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and anthropology among other fields. There are now burgeoning research programs devoted to developing accounts of the cognitive foundations of morality and religion. This is an upper level survey of some of the leading views from these fields.

Children are unique in American law as they are caught somewhere between adult and non-existent status. At least in theory the law is separate from individual moral beliefs or institutional ethical standards, but children blur such distinction. This course attempts to examine the evolution and future of children in the American legal system under legal, ethical, and moral perspectives, while likely recognizing that any pure compartmentalization is impossible.

In 2012, seven neuroscientists collaborated to write the Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness--effectively stating that many other species, including octopuses, have the same neurobiological mechanisms that are associated with conscious awareness in humans. This multidisciplinary course integrates perspectives and concepts from biology, psychology, and philosophy as well as ethics and law to further explore the nonhuman animal mind.

Drawing from the biological, behavioral, and social sciences, as well as ethics and public policy, this course provides the opportunity to explore intrinsic and extrinsic factors that contribute to and detract from health and human performance. By applying concepts and critical thinking processes developed in this course to personal lifestyle and political decisions, students are prepared to make more informed choices on emerging personal and policy issues related to health. The course emphasizes holistic approaches to understanding and preventing disease.

This class explores how new trends and technologies in the fields of biological sciences and biotechnology influence emerging art and artists. The course looks at the world around us from differing perspectives, with the aid of technology, biological phenomena, and artistic eye. The class is designed for students of all disciplines, including the non-declared, with the goal to inspire students to think outside of the box, explore divergent and convergent thought, and seek out knowledge and inspiration from many different disciplines. Students are encouraged to collaborate with peers.

As a Connections course, this class examines the changing relations between China and Latin America using a full range of social-scientific and humanistic methods to understand the nature and stakes of this newest wave of transpacific relations. The course examines historical encounters between the regions, including the colonial, cold war, and contemporary, in order to interrogate both the changing meaning of China and Latin America and also the implications of these changes on the social, economic, and political relations between the two regions.

Why do people see? What is color? How do people see? How do people think of and label color? These questions involve a highly interdisciplinary understanding of chemistry, physics, biology, studio art and art history. This class exposes students to the history of color and the understanding of color theory, i.e., the principles that define color contrast and interaction. Many interesting stories and cultural practices are associated with different colors.