ANT 307 Feminist Ethnography and Methodology
A reading of ethnographies written by and about women while tracing the evolution of feminist thought and fieldwork in anthropology. Discussion of the ways in which the gender of the anthropologist does and does not make a difference in the field. The class will also question if there is a distinction between anthropology about women and feminist anthropology; and, if so, what those distinctions are. In addition, students learn feminist thought, ethics and technique concerning qualitative methodologies such as interviews, oral histories, case studies, content analyses and participant observation. Prerequisite: ANT 110 or SOC 110 and sophomore standing or higher.

ANT 453 Peoples of Mexico: Oaxaca at the Crossroads
A brief introductory overview of the prehistory, history and ethnology of Mexico with the major focus "Oaxaca at the Crossroads." Includes an in-depth look at the prehistory, history and current ethnography of the general area of Oaxaca, Mexico, and an examination and assessement of its past, present, and future importance in the cultural development of Mesoamerica and the Americas in general. Emphasis on the influence of “visual language” (i.e. writing systems), the arts, and folklore of the Oaxaca region on the development and maintenance of nearby cultures, such as the Maya, and even as far-reaching as the ancient Teotihucanos of central Mexico. A segment of the course includes hands-on epigraphy, specifically teaching students how to de-code some ancient scripts. Prerequisite: ANT 110, one ANT course numbered 300 or higher, and junior or senior standing.

BIO 235 Marine Ecology
An overview of important physical, chemical, and biological processes in the oceans, accompanied by more detailed coverage of selected ecosystems such as tropical and temperate reef, and in-depth discussion of selected special topics such as marine protected areas, and conservation of coral reefs. A field trip to a marine laboratory is planned. Prerequisite: BIO 110.

CSC 112 Digital Media
Images, sounds, video, even the web itself are all examples of digital media. This course examines digital media, from how information is represented in digital media to how we can manipulate the media. Examples include image filtering, steganography (hiding data in images or sound), splicing sounds, creating animations, and extracting data from the web. Manipulating media is a computational process. Some programming is required, but the the environment is friendly, the focus on media, and no prior programming experience is needed. Not open to students with credit for FRS 150.

DRA 326 Creativity (Noises Off Receivers On)
A practical hands-on investigation into YOUR imagination and its capacities to express itself in a broad variety of realms. As both your imagination and your abilities to express it are “housed” in your body, there is a focus on the body and its participation in the creative process. The foundation of the class is not only “thinking outside the box,” it also addresses designing a new, more permeable box, if you will. Includes concrete exercises and assignments that zero in on the auto-critique in most of us. The ability to create is NOT the realm of a select few, it is the playground of those who dare.

EDU 350 Practicum and Research in Education
A course allowing students to explore special topics related to such content areas as psychology or sociology with children outside the preparation for teaching. Students complete a research project in a local school. The includes weekly seminars incorporating student research and professional readings in education. Prerequisite: EDU 226, EDU 227 and EDU 228; major or minor in education.

ENG 313 Chaucer
Selected works from Chaucer's early poetry, Troilus and Criseyde , and The Canterbury Tales , read in Middle English.

ENG 368 Marriage and Maturity in the 19th-Century Novel
The bildungsroman (novel of development) and the domestic plot were the two dominant narrative forms in the nineteenth century. But how do the stories of growing up and getting married fit together? More specifically, how does a novel suggest genuine development in a life-story that ends at early adulthood? Or alternatively, how can a protagonist grow past the unfortunate marriage choice that signaled his early immaturity? This course takes up four justly famous nineteenth-century novels, Emma, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, and Portrait of a Lady , to explore the range of issues these plots raise for the protagonist: class identity, professional development, social discernment, and self-knowledge. Prerequisite: Preference to junior English majors.

ENG 386 Getting Back to Nature
A study of US literary works in which the primary concern is the relation between the natural world and the human mind. After addressing seminal 19th-century works by Emerson, Thoreau and others, we will spend the rest of the term on more recent essays, poetry, and fiction, including such authors as Frost, Dillard, Faulkner, Ehrlich, and Berry .

FRE 430 The Molière Stage
A course using student improvisation of selected scenes from Molière's farces and bitter-sweet comedies as the chief means of understanding
17th-Century French classicism. Most classes are held in a ballroom setting where students are required to dress in loose-fitting clothing and to wear tennis shoes but the course meets from time to time in a traditional classroom setting for lectures, grammar study and exams. Prerequisite: one course higher than French 220.

HIS 332 Modern China
An examination of Chinese history from the rise of the Qing (17th century) to the present. Special emphasis is given to the issue of Chinese modernization from different perspectives.

HIS 454 Gender and Sexuality in Africa
A thematic course about gender and sexuality in African history, introducing students to gender as trope of interpreting African history. Students examine how masculinity and femininity, and how sexuality have been constructed and reconstructed in the pre-colonial, colonial and postcolonial periods. The course deals with concerns of gender and sexuality, and why it is important in the study of African history, religion, science, social organization, politics, and economics. Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing.

MAT 408 Computational Geometry
A study of geometry from an algorithmic perspective, this course examines classic problems such as The Art Gallery Problem, The Post Office Problem, and The Piano Movers' Problem. Computational Geometry focuses on the design and analysis of efficient algorithms to solve problems which can be stated in terms of basic geometric objects like points, lines, segments, polygons, etc. We will consider various strategies for building convex hulls, Voronoi diagrams, and Delaunay triangulations; finding nearest neighbors and closest pairs; as well as line segment intersection, linear programming, polygon triangulation, point location, and range searching. Prerequisite: MAT 290; or MAT 230 and CSC 117; or permission of the instructor.

MUS 334 Opera, Culture and Storytelling
An in-depth investigation of five operas, spanning the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. The course is highly interdisciplinary, and non-music students are encouraged to enroll. Students examine the historical and societal factors that underlie each opera — the neo-classical Florentine project to restore Greek drama (at that time thought to have been all sung), the early eighteenth-century agenda of presenting rulers as wise and benevolent, Wagner's and Verdi's respective roles in creating unified German and Italian states, and so on. The class will also approach the complex question of opera as a unique and highly problematic mode of storytelling, one in which actors portray the speech of characters by means of singing on the operatic stage, and will consider as well the changing, ever nebulous role of the operatic orchestra in conveying the story to the audience. These and other questions intersect with philosophical, literary, and dramatic theory and criticism, leaving ample room for each student to bring his or her interests and course of study to bear on discussion, presentations, and final papers.

PHI 453 Philosophy of Language and Mind
This course addresses a number of closely-related issues central to the philosophy of language and mind. Among other things, it asks: How do our thoughts and words succeed in picking out individual things such as Plato or Game Six of the 1977 World Series? Do the contents of our thoughts and the meanings of our words depend on factors external to the mind? What role does sense-perception play in enabling us to think and speak about the world? Authors studied include Frege, Russell, Kripke, Putnam, Burge, Evans, and McDowell. Prerequisite: One PHI course numbered 200 or higher.

REL 335 Sacred Literature in Sanskrit Language
Sanskrit is regarded as a language of learning and culture in India for over three thousand years. Its refined grammar and poetry have led to its widespread use in worship, scholarly discourse, and religious writing. In this course, students learn how to read and recite classical Sanskrit poetry, as well as basic grammar and vocabulary. Students then use these skills as a means of entrance into Sanskrit sacred literature.

SOC 307 Feminist Ethnography and Methodology
See ANT 307 above.

SPA 357 Nueva concepción de frontera e identidad : U.S. Latino/a Lit
An exploration of how identity is shaped by ethnicity, class and sexuality in works of Chicano, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban, and Dominican authors writing in the United States. The course emphasizes the aesthetics of poetry, theater, and autobiography in the literature of U.S. Latina/o writers. Students analyze how these writers experiment within these genres in order to confront rapidly changing notions of identity, immigration, exile, colonization and language. Prerequisite: SPA 230; 240; one of SPA 250, 260 or 270; and one SPA course numbered above 300.