Course Sections | Registrar

Must be a senior Chemistry or Biochemstiry major. Nanoparticle chemistry is among today's most rapidly advancing and interdisciplinary research areas, with profound implications for technology, medicine, energy, and the environment. Nanoparticles, including metallic, semiconductor, polymeric, and ceramic systems, exhibit unique size-dependent optical, electronic, magnetic, and catalytic properties that differ dramatically from those of their bulk counterparts. These materials are central to applications ranging from targeted drug delivery and biomedical imaging to solar energy conversion, environmental remediation, and advanced electronics. To design or deploy nanoparticles effectively, scientists must understand how structure, composition, surface chemistry, and morphology at the nanometer scale govern macroscopic performance. Properties such as reactivity, fluorescence, conductivity, and biocompatibility are dictated by atomic arrangement, quantum confinement effects, and interfacial phenomena. In this course, students will explore the synthesis, functionalization, characterization, and application of nanoparticles, with an emphasis on connecting nanoscale structure to emergent properties. The course will survey foundational concepts and examine cutting-edge developments in nanoscience through analysis of the primary literature.

Many of interesting questions in physics are often best approached using computational tools. This half-credit course will be an introduction to simple methods of computer simulation, including Monte Carlo simulations, linear systems, root finding, among other topics. A student, having completed this course, will be able to create small programs in Python to simulate problems arising in physics or engineering, explain how the underlying numerical techniques function and how they are expressed in code, be able to document his code and explain it to others, and understand the advantages and disadvantages in time and complexity of various methods. This is a first-semester course.

Do our brains make us religious? Does evolution? Yes, says cognitive science. But if so, how? And if so, then how can our religious beliefs be "personal"? How can God be real? These are our questions. The relatively new field of cognitive science is the scientific study of the human mind, drawing on fields like psychology, anthropology, archeology, linguistics, and neuroscience. The course has 3 parts. First, we'll read what some cognitive scientists have to say about religion, e.g. Pascal Boyer, Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought. Second, we'll read some critiques of these ideas. Third, in light of these critiques, we'll return to our initial questions, and see what answers we get. This is a first-half semester course.

This course focuses on the practical application of makeup for the stage. Students will explore a multitude of techniques and makeup products. From highlighting and contouring, to adding 3d makeup elements and horror makeup, the class will practice a range of makeup application. Firs-half semester course.