Writing Fellows Courses - Spring 2010
Writing Fellows courses help students improve their writing skills by working with a Brown undergraduate who has been trained in composition and pedagogy. In a "fellowed" course, students receive detailed commentary on at least two paper drafts during the semester. Professors receive the first drafts, annotated by the Writing Fellows, along with the final papers, so that they may review the process of their students' work.
First-Year Seminars
AMCV 0150I - Gritty Cities
A first year seminar that examines hard places in America, the cities and towns that have experienced both industrial prosperity and the painful process of de-industrialization. Some of these urban areas have found successful paths to revitalization, while others remain depressed. Readings, media presentations, and discussions will focus on Butte/Anaconda, Montana; Lowell, Massachusetts; the Olneyville neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island; and the anthracite coal mining communities of Pennsylvania.
Monday 3:00‐5:20 pm
Patrick Malone, Associate Professor of American Civilization & Director of the Urban Studies Program
ANTH 0066Q - Crisis of Identities in the Global Order
Students in this seminar will discuss and analyze of one of the perplexing questions of the modern age: Why, with globalization and a attendant world‐view shaped by the technological revolutions of communication that appeal to commonalities, do we find more emphasis on local differences, more conflicts related to identities determined by opposition to "the other"? A concordant question ill also be explored: How do different disciplines address the concept of identity?
Tuesday 1:30 ‐3:50 pm
Philip Leis, Professor of Anthropology
EDUC 0410D - Brown v. Board of Education
Using sources in history, education, and law this course will explore the landmark Supreme Court case of Brown v. Board of Education which found school segregation unconstitutional and challenged the entire foundation of legal segregation. We will explore the legal, political, and social issues that culminated in Brown and examine the development and deployment of remedies, with particular emphasis on school integration and educational equity. We will consider the legacy of Brown and analyze its impact on the civil rights movement, schooling, law, and politics in the late twentieth century and consider its implications for the future.
Thursday 4:00-6:20 pm
Tracy L. Steffes, Assistant Professor of Education
EDUC 0410F – The Mind, Brain, and Education
What do the brain and body have to do with learning? How can research findings from the brain and biological sciences inform educational practices? This first-year seminar will involve discussion of current research from multiple disciplines (e.g., education, neuroscience, neurobiology, psychology) on topics such as brain development, stress, sleep, rhythms, and emotion/motivation. Mini-lectures will provide students with a basic appreciation of the brain and basic bioregulatory systems. Students will gain an understanding of methods for studying brain/behavior interactions and explore implications of new biological/brain findings for learning and education during the preschool, elementary, middle-school, and high-school years. Enrollment limited to 20 first-year students
Tuesday 4:00-6:20 pm
Monique K. Lebourgeois, Assistant Professor of Education (Research)
ENGN 0120A - Crossing the Space Chasm Through Engineering Design
Five decades of human activity in space has provided the world community with benefits including instant global communications and positioning, human and robotic exploration of the moon, planets and sun, and a perspective of earth which continues to inform and influence our relationship with our environment.
Unlike other technical revolutions of the 20th century space has not transitioned to a commercial, consumer market commodity. Rather its users and applications remain primarily large and institutional.
To experience the challenges of engineering design and of changing an industrial paradigm, we will work in one or several groups to identify a use of space, and a plan for its implementation, that could help transition space from its status as a niche technology. Through the process of design, we will confront the technical, economic, societal and political barriers to obtaining increased benefits from technologies in general, and space in particular, and to making new technologies beneficial to a wider range of users.
Monday/Wednesday/Friday 2-2:50 pm
Richard Fleeter, Adjunct Associate Professor of Engineering
ETHN 0090A - The Border/La Frontera
This seminar examines the historical formation and contemporary reality of the U.S.‐Mexico border within the framework of globalization. Students will study written texts and visual materials in both Spanish and English in order to develop an understanding of how the border is construed from bilingual (English and Spanish), multicultural (U.S. mainstream, Mexican, and Mexican‐American), and transnational (U.S. and Mexico) perspectives. Students enrolled in this seminar must be reasonably proficient in comprehending, reading, and speaking Spanish.
Monday 3:00‐5:20 pm
Evelyn Hu‐Dehart, Professor of History
GNSS 009C - Reproductive Health: Science and Politics
Reproductive health issues such as contraception, abortion, sexually transmitted infections, and gay and lesbian health are some of the most controversial and politically charged issues in the US today. After an introduction to the interpretation of medical literature, we will explore scientific, political, religious, and cultural aspects of these important public policy issues. Successful national and international programs will be discussed. Although all views are welcome, it is expected that students will be respectful of other’s opinions and will incorporate the best available scientific data into their conclusions.
Monday 3:00‐5:20 pm
Sarah Fox, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
HIST 0970U - The Politics of Gender in the U.S. from World War II to the E.R.A.
This course focuses on gender and sexuality in the U.S. from World War II through the defeat of The Equal Rights Amendment in 1982. We will examine issues of privacy, gender equality, reproduction, marriage, the family, homosexuality, and roles and expectations of men and women in both private and public life.
Monday 3:00‐5:20 pm
Robert Self, Associate Professor of History
PSYC 0190D - Animal Indicators of Human Health
Sick animals are often predictors of serious health problems in people. For instance, the near-extinction of the American bald eagle from DDT led to studies of pesticide use and cancer. In this seminar, we will examine the evidence for animals as indicators of human health. Other examples include bleached coral reefs, dying fish, disappearing frogs, deformed alligators, malaria-infected penguins, diabetic cats, wayward whales and dolphins, elephants with TB, and pneumonia in gorillas. By studying the impact of one species’ health on another, we will identify treatments and solutions that benefit people as well as animals.
Thursday 4:00-6:20 pm
Lucy Spelman, Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology
SOC 0300D - Who am I?
This course is a study of self in contemporary society. We will examine the structural and situational forces that shape the self and their impact on personal development, orientations to the world, and interpersonal behavior. We will also investigate the development of the self as a way of being in the world that makes everyday doings and, ultimately society, possible.
Tuesday/Thursday 10:30‐11:50 pm
Gregory Elliott, Professor of Sociology
Courses Open to All Students
AFRI 0220 - Introduction to African American History from Emancipation to the Present
This course explores African American History through the lens of black freedom struggles. The struggles take all forms, between black and white from local to national levels, within and between black communities, and between men and women. This course assumes some familiarity with basic U.S. History and will utilize a variety of primary sources from autobiographical material to visual art and music as well as the usual monographs and articles. Aside from reading, students will be required to do some research, and write historical prose. 3 papers; 2 exams.
Tuesday/Thursday 2:30-3:50 pm
Francoise Hamlin, Assistant Professor of Africana Studies
BIOL 0190H - Plants, Food, and People
Examines the selection, breeding, cultivation and uses of food plants. Discusses the effects on agriculture of pathogens, climate change, and loss of biodiversity. Considers whether enough food can be produced for a world population of potentially 10 billion, while sustaining biodiversity and environmental quality.
Monday/Wednesday 3:00-4:20 pm
Peter Heywood, Professor of Biology
EDUC 1050 - History of African-American Education
This course will examine the history of African-American education with particular emphasis on the twentieth century. We will explore African-Americans' experiences with schooling under slavery and segregation, the struggle for desegregation and equity North and South, and the place of education in African-Americans' quest for equal rights. We will also consider how the African-American experience with public schooling makes us rethink major narratives of American education, democracy, and equality of opportunity and how an historical understanding of these issues may help us engage contemporary debates.
Tuesday/Thursday 2:30-3:50 pm
Tracy L. Steffes, Assistant Professor of Education
EDUC 1860 - Social Context of Learning and Development
Focuses on the social environment that contributes to the development of children's minds, language, self-understanding, relations with others, affect, and attitudes toward learning. Examines the period from birth through young adulthood. Topics include children's social interactions, parental expectations and socialization practices, and the influences of family, peers, school, and media.
Thursday 4:00-6:20 pm
Jin Li, Associate Professor of Education
ENGN 2910Y - Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Creating Value Out of Graduate Research
The course focuses on innovation and entrepreneurship of embryonic ideas, pioneering technologies and scientific breakthrough emanating from the university research enterprise. All assignments will center on your graduate research, culminating with a full business plan. The course is unique in this way for you to remain focused on your graduate work, while simultaneously harvesting the commercial potential of your research.
Friday 3:00-5:50 pm
Danny Warshay, Adjunct Lecturer in Engineering & Angus Kingon, Professor of Engineering
GEOL 0240 - Earth: Evolution of a Habitable Planet
Introduces Earth's surface environment evolution-climate, chemistry, and physical makeup. Uses Earth's carbon cycle to understand solar, tectonic, and biological cycles' interactions. Examines the origin of the sedimentary record, dating of the geological record, chemistry and life on early Earth, and the nature of feedbacks that maintain the "habitable" range on Earth. Two field trips; five laboratories arranged.
Tuesday/Thursday 1:00-2:20 pm
Timothy Herbert, Professor of Geological Sciences
PHIL 0190 - Contemporary Moral Problems
This course will address issues of contemporary moral concern. These will include topics from the public sphere, such as environmental concerns, capital punishment, and affirmative action, as well as issues from the private sphere, including sexuality, drugs, and abortion. The course will present the arguments of various philosophers, but the main emphasis will be on developing the critical and philosophical tools necessary to think through these matters: the identification and evaluation of arguments, and the construction of careful and rigorous arguments. No background in philosophy is required.
Tuesday/Thursday 9:00-10:20 am
Eoin Ryan
RUSS 1200 - Russian Fantasy and Science Fiction
Survey of Russian literature, from fairy tales, utopias, and dream sequences to science fiction, which depict altered states of reality. Readings in English, supplemented with films in March and April. Seminar with emphasis on discussion. Russian concentrators and graduate students expected to cover most of the readings in Russian. Familiarity with Russian literary history is not required.
Tuesday/Thursday 10:30-11:50 am
Alexander Levitsky, Professor of Slavic Languages
SOC 1420 - Violence and Society
The course focuses on the personal and structural sources and consequences of violence in the U.S. We investigate three levels of violence: interpersonal; institutional, wherein social institutions do violence to individuals or groups; and structural, examining the structures of society that tolerate or promote violence, both within the society and toward other societies. Next, we examine the culture of violence that permeates our society, including the mass media and violence. WE focus on specific forms of violence in our society, including gang violence, bullying, violence within schools, sex trafficking, war, religious violence, and terrorism.
Tuesday/Thursday 1:00-2:20 pm
Gregory Elliott, Professor of Sociology