University Bulletin (2017-2018)

EL 10a Experiential Learning Practicum
Yields half-course credit.
Offered as part of the Leader-Scholar Community Program.
Staff

EL 12b Multimedia Journalism Lab
Corequisites: JOUR 15a, JOUR 138b, or AMST 132b. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Students learn the digital recording and editing skills required for the accomplished practice of broadcast and internet-based journalism. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Dellelo

EL 13a Multimedia Storytelling
Corequisite: JOUR 120a, JOUR 138b or AMST 132b. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Students at both beginning and intermediate levels of skill and experience produce journalism in multimedia formats. The intermediate students serve as models for the beginning students. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Dellelo

EL 16a The Immigrant Experience in Waltham: A Service-based Practicum
Corequisite: AAAS 177a, AMST 55a, ANTH 1a, IGS 10a, POL 184a, or SOC 122a. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Offers hands-on experience through community work with immigrants, applying frameworks and analysis methods of the base course. Students contribute to an organization that addresses the needs of immigrants and reflect on and explore other social justice/social policy issues of interest. Usually offered every semester.
Ms. McPhee

EL 24b QBReC Lab
Corequisite: FYS 11a. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Students explore the living world through experimental and computational projects conducted in research labs. The emphasis is on interdisciplinary science where techniques from physics, chemistry and biology are used to develop a quantitative understanding of life at the molecular and cellular level. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Kondev

EL 30b Housing for Good: Environmentally Healthy, Socially Just
Corequisite: ENVS 43b, ENVS 102aj or AMST 102aj. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Working one-on-one with clients at the Brandeis/WATCH Housing Clinic, students help ensure healthy living conditions, reduce waste and conserve energy for the low income, richly diverse, immigrant community. Students play a critical role in the local community while they learn. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Goldin

EL 42a Sages and Seekers: A Fieldwork Practicum in Gender across Generations
Corequisite: ANTH 1a, ANTH 111a, ANTH 144a, or PSYC 37a. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Students participate in a 9-week Sages and Seekers program designed to bridge the generational gap between seniors and youth in order to foster the exchange of wisdom and dissolve age-related segregation. Each student also designs and carries out an individual fieldwork and/or community service project. Hands-on experiences complement concepts and questions explored through the base classes, regarding aging, gender, and generational change in socio-cultural context. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Lamb

EL 50a We are Historic: Skills for College and Career Success
Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. Enrollment limited to first-year students who are members of the Student Support Services Program (SSSP). Yields half-course credit.
Examines the fundamentals of performing academic research. Topics include evaluating and analyzing information while thinking critically about current societal matters. The Learning Community culminates in a student research symposium. Offered every fall semester.
Staff

EL 60a Experiential Learning Practicum
Corequisite: ED 175a. Yields half-course credit.
Usually offered every year.
Staff

EL 66a Community Engagement Practicum
Yields half-course credit. Enrollment limited to Waltham Group coordinators.
Focuses on the topics of community engagement and partnerships, responsible leadership, policy, and non-profit development. This stand-alone practicum allows Waltham Group coordinators to reflect on and connect theoretical concepts to their volunteer programs. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Malo and Mr. Quigley

EL 80a Tuvalu to the World: An Eco Art Project
Corequisite: FA 169a, FA 172b, COSI 154aj, COSI 105b. Course may be taken as a prerequisite within the past year with permission of the instructor. Yields half-course credit.
Students contribute to aspects related to this year's "Tuvalu Pavilion as a Global Pavilion" at the Venice Biennale. The class project entails researching international eco art, Pacific Island cultures, and food security for an official website, to be designed collaboratively. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Wong

EL 94a Experiential Learning Practicum
Prerequisites and corequisites vary by section. Yields half-course credit.
Staff

These courses enable students to develop skills, knowledge, and values from practical experiences and ongoing reflection and may include projects that can involve research, lab work, community-based learning activities, theater, or art.

AMST 105a The Eastern Forest: Paleoecology to Policy
[ ss wi ]
Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
Can we make sustainable use of the Eastern Forest of North America while protecting biological diversity and ecological integrity? Explores the forest's ecological development, the impact of human cultures, attitudes toward the forest, and our mixed record of abuse and stewardship. Includes extensive fieldwork. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Donahue

AMST 106b Food and Farming in America
[ ss wi ]
Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
American food is abundant and cheap. Yet many eat poorly, and some argue that our agriculture may be unhealthy and unsustainable. Explores the history of American farming and diet and the prospects for a healthy food system. Includes extensive fieldwork. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Donahue

AMST 191b Greening the Ivory Tower: Improving Environmental Sustainability of Brandeis and Community
[ oc ss ]
Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
Get active, involved, and out of the classroom with this class! In this hands-on, field-based experiential learning course we focus on the human impact on the world's natural resources, and explore strategies for creating healthy, resilient, environmentally sustainable communities in the face of increasingly daunting environmental challenges. Students also create projects that can change the face of Brandeis and the local community. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Goldin

ANTH 60a Archaeological Methods
[ ss ]
Focuses on the exploration of archaeological sites on and near campus to offer a practice-oriented introduction to field methods, including surface-survey, mapping, and excavation of archaeological features. Other topics include principles of stratigraphy and relative/chronometric dating methods. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Golden, Mr. Parno or Mr. Urcid

ANTH 111a Aging in Cross-Cultural Perspective
[ nw ss wi ]
This course offers a 2-credit optional Experiential Learning practicum.
Examines the meanings and social arrangements given to aging in a diversity of societies, including the U.S., India, Japan and China. Key themes include: the diverse ways people envision and organize the life course, scholarly and popular models of successful aging, the medicalization of aging in the U.S., cultural perspectives on dementia, and the ways national aging policies and laws are profoundly influenced by particular cultural models. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Lamb

ANTH 165b Anthropology of Death and Dying
[ nw ss ]
Explores how different societies, including our own, conceptualize death and dying. Topics include the cultural construction of death, the effects of death on the social fabric, mourning and bereavement, and medical issues relating to the end of life. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Hannig

BIOL 16a Evolution and Biodiversity
[ qr sn ]
May not be taken for credit by students who took BIOL 60b in prior years.
"Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution," Dobzhansky said famously. Evolution is the unifying theory of biology because it explains both the unity and diversity of life. This course examines processes and patterns of evolution, including the sources and fate of variation, natural selection and genetic drift, species and speciation, biogeography, and the history and diversity of life on Earth. We end with a discussion of human evolution and the impact of humans on the planet. Usually offered every fall.
Mr. Morris

BIOL 17b Conservation Biology
[ sn ]
Considers the current worldwide loss of biological diversity, causes of this loss, and methods for protecting and conserving biodiversity. Explores biological and social aspects of the problems and their solutions. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Hitchcock

BIOL 18a General Biology Laboratory
[ sn wi ]
Prerequisite: BIOL 14a, BIOL 18b and sophomore standing. Yields full-course credit. Laboratory fee: $150 per semester. This lab is time-intensive and students will be expected to come in to lab between regular scheduled lab sessions. In order to accommodate students with time conflicts it may be necessary to re-assign students without conflicts to another section of the course. Students' section choice will be honored if possible.
Provides firsthand experience with a wide array of organisms and illustrates basic approaches to experimental design and problem solving in genetics and genomics. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Kosinski-Collins

BIOL 18b General Biology Laboratory
Prerequisite: BIOL 15b and sophomore standing. Yields half-course credit. Laboratory fee: $150 per semester. This lab is time-intensive and students will be expected to come to lab between regular scheduled lab sessions. In order to accommodate students with time conflicts it may be necessary to re-assign students without conflicts to another section of the course. Students' section choice will be honored if possible. This course offers a 2-credit optional practicum.
Provides firsthand experience with modern molecular biology techniques and illustrates basic approaches to experimental design and problem solving in molecular and cellular biology including applications of biochemical techniques. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Kosinski-Collins

BIOL 23a Ecology
[ sn ]
Prerequisites: BIOL 16a or 60b, or a score of 5 on the AP Biology Exam, or permission of the instructor.
Studies organisms and the environments in which they live. Focuses on the physical factors and intra- and interspecies interactions that explain the distribution and abundance of individual species from an evolutionary perspective. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Hitchcock

BIOL 43b Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: BIOL 15b or 22b.
Focuses broadly on vertebrate anatomy. The gross and microscopic morphology of each organ system is considered in depth. Comparative anatomy, embryology, and relationships between structure and function are explored. Lectures, laboratory dissections, and clinical cases are used to illustrate the structure and function of vertebrates, with an emphasis on humans. Usually offered every spring.
Mr. Morris

BIOL 154a Environmental Epidemiology: Ticks, Mosquitoes, and Soil Amoebae in the Woods of New England
[ sn ]
Some ticks and mosquitoes in New England are vectors for diseases. We will suit-up and smear-up to collect these creatures. We will also collect Naegleria, amoeba-flagellates in mud. These specimens will be identified morphologically and archived for molecular analysis in Biology 154b. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Wangh

BIOL 162b DNA: Mechanisms and Research
[ sn ]
Prerequisites: BIOL 14a, BIOL 15b and CHEM 25a. May not be taken for credit by students who took BIOL 150b in prior years.
Explores DNA, and a multitude of proteins that interact with the DNA. Examines mechanisms that allow genomes to be maintained and used in cells and organisms: DNA replication, repair and multigenesis, chromatin, cohesion and segregation, DNA modifications, and more. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Woodruff

CAST 170a Documenting the Immigrant Experience
[ ss ]
Investigates documentary film as a genre, and explores the potential of the medium for engaging students with immigrant communities in Waltham through hands-on production experiences. Through the process of exchanging narratives with community members, students generate raw material for a film documentary. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Perdomo

CHEM 18a General Chemistry Laboratory I
Corequisite: CHEM 11a. Dropping CHEM 11a necessitates written permission from the lab instructor to continue with this course. Two semester-hour credits; yields half-course credit. Laboratory fee: $100 per semester. This course may not be taken for credit by students who have passed CHEM 19a in previous years.
Introduction to basic laboratory methods and methods of qualitative and quantitative analyses. Included in the analytical methods are gas chromatography and infrared measurements. A synthesis project that includes analyzing the product by titration. Calorimetric experiment using probes interfaced with computers. Identification of unknowns based on physical and chemical properties. Analysis of the metal content of substances by atomic absorption. One laboratory lecture per week. One afternoon of laboratory per week. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Dolnik

CHEM 19a Honors General Chemistry Laboratory I
Corequisite: CHEM 15a. Dropping CHEM 15a necessitates written permission from the lab instructor to continue with this course. May yield half-course credit toward rate of work and graduation. Two semester-hour credits. Laboratory fee: $100 per semester. This course may not be taken for credit by students who have taken CHEM 18a in previous years.
An advanced version of CHEM 18a. One afternoon of laboratory per week. One laboratory lecture per week. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Dolnik

CHEM 39b Advanced Laboratory: Inorganic Chemistry
[ sn wi ]
Prerequisites: Satisfactory grades (C- or better) in CHEM 121a or 122b, or permission of the instructor. Four semester-hour credits. Laboratory fee: $125 per semester.
While the emphasis of this course is on synthetic inorganic chemistry, the content is interdisciplinary in nature, covering topics and techniques in the areas of analytical and organic chemistry as well as inorganic and organometallic chemistry. Compounds are synthesized and characterized by a wide range of instrumental methods of analysis (including GC-MS, IR, and NMR spectroscopies, magnetic measurements, and electrochemical methods). To better mimic a research laboratory, experiments are comprised of 3 research projects, lasting 3-5 weeks each, followed by a lab report in the style of a peer-reviewed journal article. The lectures cover the appropriate scientific and historical background for each project and the use of experimental techniques. One afternoon of lab per week and one one-hour lecture per week. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Thomas

CHIN 10a Beginning Chinese I
Four class hours per week.
Mandarin is taught in this intensive course, intended for students with no previous knowledge of Chinese. Class meets four days per week plus one section of individual conversation. It offers training in basic Chinese grammar, speaking, aural comprehension, reading and writing. Chinese characters, and the "pinyin" phonetic system as a tool for learning Chinese. Usually offered every fall.
Mr. Feng or Ms. Wei

CHIN 30a Intermediate Chinese
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: CHIN 20b or equivalent. Four class hours per week.
Development of skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, including the writing of short essays. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Lu

CLAS 136b Roman Technology, Medicine, and Art
[ hum ]
Investigates a selection of the most famous monuments and cultural institutions of the Roman world in order to understand the technology and engineering that created them. The primary source is Elder Pliny. We also consider Roman medicine. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow

CLAS 165a Roman Sex, Violence, and Decadence in Translation
[ hum wi ]
Famous Roman texts (200 BCE-200 CE) are read from social, historical, psychological, literary, and religious viewpoints. The concept of "Roman decadence" is challenged both by the Roman literary accomplishment itself and by its import on subsequent periods. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow

CLAS 170a Classical Mythology
[ hum ]
An introduction to Greek and Roman mythology. Considers ancient song cultures, and the relationship between myth, drama, and religion. Also explores visual representations of myth. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Christensen

COML 171a Literary Translation in Theory and in Practice
[ hum ]
Prerequisite: Excellent reading knowledge of any language other than English. Students will be asked to demonstrate proficiency before receiving consent to enroll in the course.
Approaching literary translation from several angles at once, this course combines readings in the history and theory of translation with a practical translation workshop. Students will experience first-hand the challenges of literary translation and, with the help of the theoretical readings, reflect on what the process teaches us about linguistic, literary, and cultural difference. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Powelstock or Staff

COSI 123a Statistical Machine Learning
[ qr sn ]
Prerequisite: COSI 29a and MATH 10a.
Focuses on learning from data using statistical analysis tools and deals with the issues of designing algorithms and systems that automatically improve with experience. This course is designed to give students a thorough grounding in the methodologies, technologies, mathematics, and algorithms currently needed by research in learning with data. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hong

COSI 165a Software Entrepreneurship
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing.
Covers the fundamental concepts needed to transform an idea for a software application into a viable IT business. The focus of the course is on software-based IT enterprises and the specific challenges and opportunities they present. Learn the "Lean Startup" process in this course with a significant hands-on focus. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Salas

COSI 166b Capstone Project for Software Engineering
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: COSI 21a. Corequisite: COSI 167b.
Teaches modern software engineering concepts, emphasizing rapid prototyping, unit testing, usability testing, and collaborative software development principles. Students apply these concepts by building a complex software system in small teams of programmers/developers using current platforms and technologies. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Salas

COSI 167b Software Engineering Laboratory
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: COSI 21a with a B+ or higher. Corequisite: COSI 166b. Yields half-course credit.
Lab session with significant programming component. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Salas

ED 100a Exploring Teaching (Elementary and Preschool)
[ ss ]
Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation. Three hours per week of field experience (participant observation in an elementary or preschool classroom), arranged by the education program, are required in addition to regular class time. A $10. fee is payable at the start of the semester to offset transportation costs.
Examines the relationship of teaching and learning, the purposes of elementary schooling, and the knowledge requirements for elementary and preschool teaching. Through readings, analysis of videotapes, and guided observations, students investigate classroom culture, student thinking, and curriculum standards. Usually offered every fall semester.
Ms. Theodorou

ED 158b Looking with the Learner: Practice and Inquiry
Does not satisfy a school distribution requirement--for education studies core course credit only. Lab fee: $40.
Links theory to practice in learning through the visual arts through three types of experiences: 1) looking at art; 2) museum-based interactions with students from Stanley Elementary School in Waltham; and 3) documenting our experiences as lookers, learners, and teachers. What can we learn about art, artists, ourselves, and young learners through the processes of looking at art? How can we best support students in their own encounters with art and learning? How can museums serve as a model for education in various settings? Usually offered every year.
Ms. Bernson

ED 170a Critical Perspectives in Urban Education
[ ss wi ]
Examines the nature of urban schools, their links to the social and political context, and the perspectives of the people who inhabit them. Explores the historical development of urban schools; the social, economic, and personal hardships facing urban students; and challenges of urban school reform. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ED 175a The Teaching of English Language Learners: Pre-K to 12
[ ss ]
Corequisite: Students are required to do an Experiential Learning component for this class.
Examines the intersection of culture and language, including issues such as testing, family involvement, and different challenges facing English Language Learners. While this course will be of interest to anyone working with English learners, teachers are now required to be teachers of English in addition to content teachers. (Upon completion, participants will have acquired the skills and knowledge base for Category 1 and 2 as defined in the MA requirements for teachers.) Usually offered every year.
Ms. Theodorou

ENG 109a Poetry Workshop
[ hum wi ]
Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. Students will be selected after the submission of a sample of writing, preferably four to seven pages. Please refer to the Schedule of Classes for submission formats and deadlines within registration periods. May be repeated for credit.
A workshop for poets willing to explore and develop their craft through intense reading in current poetry, stylistic explorations of content, and imaginative stretching of forms. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ENG 119b Poetry Workshop: Special Topics in Poetry
[ hum wi ]
Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. Students will be selected after the submission of a sample of writing, preferably four to seven pages. Please refer to the Schedule of Classes for submission formats and deadlines within registration periods. May be repeated for credit.
For those who wish to improve as poets while broadening their knowledge of poetry, through a wide spectrum of readings. Students' poems will be discussed in a "workshop" format with emphasis on revision. Remaining time will cover assigned readings and issues of craft. Usually offered every year.
Visiting Poet

ENG 139b Screenwriting Workshop: Intermediate Screenwriting
[ hum wi ]
Prerequisites: ENG 129b or ENG 79a. Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. Students will be selected after the submission of a sample of writing of no more than five pages. Please refer to the Schedule of Classes for submission formats and deadlines within registration periods.
In this writing-intensive course, students build on screenwriting basics and delve more deeply into the creative process. Participants read and critique each other's work, study screenplays and view films, and submit original written material on a biweekly basis. At the conclusion of the course each student will have completed the first draft of a screenplay (100-120 pages). Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Weinberg

ENG 149b Mash-ups and Shatterings: Writing and Mutating Poetic Forms
[ hum ]
Offered exclusively on a credit/no credit basis. Students will be selected after the submission of a sample of writing, preferably four to seven pages. Please refer to the Schedule of Classes for submission formats and deadlines within registration periods.
Studies reading, writing, and reinvention of diverse poetic forms, with an emphasis on 21st-century hybrid forms. Students will create new hybrid forms through merging forms from poetry, music, art, the web, and pop culture. Special one-time offering, spring 2017.
Ms. Frank

FA 9a Introduction to Digital Photography
[ ca ]
Prerequisite: One Brandeis studio art course. May be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor. Studio fee: $75 per semester.
An introduction to the visual forms and concepts of the photographic image. A range of digital techniques is covered along with aspects of the history of photography. Students must provide their own digital camera. Field trips and image presentations supplement the studio aspect of the course. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

FA 10a Digital Photography: Constructing Imagery
[ ca ]
Studio fee: $75 per semester.
Through examining the notion of artifice, the creation of a photograph can adopt an interdisciplinary practice. Constructing photographic imagery concerns the arrangement and fabrication of materials to be represented as a 2-dimensional object frozen in time. This genre makes use of a vast range of techniques including staging, directing, collaging, sculpting and painting, as well as creating a performative studio based practice. Topics will include: the history and theory of the constructed image, lighting equipment and techniques, intro to editing software, as well as philosophical and political perspectives in the history of the constructed image. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 10b Intermediate Digital Media and Installation: Image/Object/Place
[ ca ]
Prerequisite: FA 4a, 4b, 9a or permission of the instructor. Studio fee: $75 per semester. May not be taken for credit by students who took FA 10a in prior years.
Studies the installation of objects in 3-dimensional space as a common art practice and refers generally to an artist's arrangement of aesthetic material to create a theatrical experience for its viewing subject. The goal of this class is to produce installations using image-based and sculptural practices. Field trips and image presentations supplement the studio aspect of the course. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 23b Architectural Drawing and Design
[ ca ]
Studio fee: $75 per semester.
Teaches basic architectural drawing, drafting, and modeling skills under the umbrella of a unifying theory and/or theme. It is structured as an introductory studio course requiring no previous knowledge or background in architectural design. Students learn how to build models, execute architectural drawings, and to approach architectural design problems. Usually offered every year.
Staff

GER 20b Continuing German
Prerequisite: A grade of C- or higher in GER 10a or the equivalent. Four class hours per week.
Continuation of comprehending, reading, writing, and conversing in German, with an emphasis on basic grammar concepts. Special attention is paid to the development of speaking skills in the context of cultural topics of the German-speaking countries. Extensive language lab, video, and computer-aided exercises supplement this course. Usually offered every year in the spring.
Ms. Seidl

GER 30a Intermediate German
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: A grade of C- or higher in GER 20b or the equivalent. Four class hours per week.
In concluding the development of the four language speaking skills--comprehending, writing, reading, and speaking--this course focuses on finishing up the solid grammar foundation that was laid in GER 10a and GER 20b. It also presents additional audio and video material, films, radio plays, and newspaper and magazine articles, as well as a variety of extensive interactive classroom activities. Usually offered every year in the fall.
Ms. Seidl

GER 103a German Culture Through Film
[ fl hum oc ]
Prerequisite: GER 30a.
Approaches an understanding of contemporary German culture through film by focusing on one of the most fascinating and turbulent of national cinemas. Landmark films from the 1920s to the present and pertinent essays, articles and studies will provide a historical perspective on decisive social and cultural phenomena. Major themes include Vergangenheitsbewältigung, multi-ethnic societies, terrorism, life in the GDR, and cultural trends at the beginning of the 21st century. Students learn also about the technical side of filmmaking and produce their own short film under professional guidance. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Seidl

GRK 10a Beginning Ancient Greek
Three class hours per week.
The basics of ancient Greek language and an initiation into the artistic, religious, social, political, and psychological dynamics of ancient Greece. After taking its sequel, GRK 20b, students can read Homer or Plato in the original. Students must earn a C- or higher in GRK 10a in order to enroll in a 20-level Greek course. Usually offered every year.
Staff

GRK 115b Ancient Greek Drama
[ fl hum ]
The plays of Aeschylus, Aristophanes, Euripides, and Sophocles, in Greek. A different playwright is studied each year. See Schedule of Classes for current topic. Usually offered every fourth year.
Staff

HBRW 10a Beginning Hebrew
Four class hours and one additional lab hour per week.
For students with no previous knowledge and those with a minimal background. Intensive training in the basics of Hebrew grammar, listening comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing. Several sections will be offered. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

HBRW 20b Intermediate Hebrew
Prerequisite: HBRW 10a or the equivalent as determined by placement examination. Only one 20-level Hebrew course may be taken for credit. Four class hours and one lab hour per week.
Continuation of HBRW 10a, employing the same methods. Intensive training in Hebrew grammar, listening, comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing. Several sections offered every semester.
Staff

HBRW 34a Intermediate Hebrew II: Aspects of Israeli Culture
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: Any 20-level Hebrew course or the equivalent as determined by placement examination. Four class hours and one lab hour per week.
A continuation of HBRW 20b. An intermediate- to mid-level course that helps students strengthen their skills at this level. Contemporary cultural aspects will be stressed and a variety of materials will be used. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

HBRW 44b Advanced Intermediate Hebrew: Israeli Culture and Media
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisite: Any 30-level Hebrew course or the equivalent. Students may not take this course and HBRW 49b for credit. Four class hours per week.
Reinforces the acquired skills of speaking, listening comprehension, reading, and writing at the intermediate to mid/high level. Contemporary cultural aspects are stressed; conversational Hebrew and reading of selections from modern literature, political essays, and newspaper articles. Required for NEJS majors and Hebrew majors and recommended for others who would like to continue studying Hebrew beyond the foreign language requirement. It is a prerequisite for many upper-level Hebrew courses. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

HISP 10a Beginning Spanish
Prerequisite: For students with no previous knowledge of Spanish and those with a minimal background. Students enrolling for the first time in a Hispanic Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#spantest.
A systematic presentation of the basic grammar and vocabulary of the language within the context of Hispanic culture, with focus on all five language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and sociocultural awareness. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

HISP 34a Intermediate Spanish: Topics in Hispanic Culture
[ fl ]
Prerequisite: a grade of C- or higher in HISP 20b or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in a Hispanic Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#spantest.
Topics from Hispanic cultures are the context for continuing development of linguistic competence in Spanish. Usually offered every year.
Staff

HISP 105a Spanish Conversation and Grammar
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisite: HISP 104b, or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in a Hispanic Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#spantest.
Students learn to communicate effectively in Spanish through class discussions, oral and written exercises, presentations, literary and cultural readings, film, and explorations of the mass media. Emphasis on improvement of oral and written fluency, and acquisition of vocabulary and grammar structures. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

HSSP 110a Integrative Seminar on Health
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: Senior status in the HSSP major.
The capstone course is required for all HSSP seniors and is designed to integrate their academic coursework and fieldwork/laboratory experiences across a range of health-related disciplines. Section topics vary from semester to semester at the discretion of the instructing faculty member. Refer to the Schedule of Classes for specific topics. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

IGS 8a Economic Principles and Globalization
[ ss ]
May not be taken for credit by students who took ECON 28b or ECON 8b in prior years or taken concurrently with ECON 28b.
An introduction to basic economic principles needed to understand the causes and economic effects of increased international flows of goods, people, firms, and money. Attention paid to international economic institutions (World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund, World Bank), strategies for economic development, and globalization controversies (global warming, sweatshops). Usually offered every year.
Ms. Goodhart

ITAL 10a Beginning Italian
Prerequisite: For students with no previous study of Italian. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Offers an interactive and very lively approach to the learning of Italian. A systematic presentation of the basic grammar and vocabulary of the language within the context of Italian culture, with focus on all five language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and socio-cultural awareness. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino

ITAL 20b Continuing Italian
Prerequisite: For students with some previous study of Italian. A grade of C- or higher in ITAL 10a or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Continuing dynamic presentation of basic grammar and vocabulary within the context of Italian culture and practice of the five language skills. Special attention to reading and writing skills, as well as guided conversation. Usually offered every spring.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino

ITAL 105a Italian Conversation and Composition
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisite: ITAL 30a or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Provides students with an opportunity to develop their oral and written proficiency in Italian, while familiarizing themselves with different facets of contemporary Italian culture and society. Readings will be supplemented by films, videos and music. The course focuses on the expansion of vocabulary and the improvement of analytical, interpretive and presentational skills. Usually offered every spring.
Ms. Monteleone

LGLS 161b Advocacy for Policy Change
[ oc ss wi ]
This hands-on course invites students to address concrete social problems through public policy reform. It provides background in theories, advocacy skills, networks, and key players that drive the legislative process. Focusing on policy change at the statehouse level, students engage with elected officials and community organizations to advance key legislation affecting social welfare, health, education, and economic justice. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Stimell

LING 150a Historical Linguistics and Language Change
Prerequisite: LING 100a.
Introduces the study of historical linguistics and language change, using data from ancient and modern languages in a variety of language families. Examines types and mechanisms of change, linguistic reconstruction, and recent theories about how and why change occurs. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Plaster

MATH 3a Explorations in Math: A Course for Educators
[ sn ]
An in-depth exploration of the fundamental ideas underlying the mathematics taught in elementary and middle school. Emphasis is on problem solving, experimenting with mathematical ideas, and articulating mathematical reasoning. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

MUS 3b World Music: Performing Tradition through Sound
[ ca nw ]
Open to all students. Required of all Cultural Studies track majors.
What are we listening to? Applies engaged listening skills and critical analysis for a deeper appreciation of (non-Western) music as a cultural expression. Focuses on particular traditions as well as social context, impact of globalization, cultural production, cultural rights, etc. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Eissenberg

MUS 55a Music in Film: Hearing American Cinema
[ ca ]
Examines the aesthetics and the history of music in film. Through lecture, class discussions, screenings, and readings, the course teaches students how to critically read image, script, and music as an integrated cultural text, ultimately helping one understand and appreciate the progression of film and sound technology from the 1890s to the present. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Musegades

MUS 116a Chamber Music: from Page to Stage
Offered exclusively on a credit/no-credit basis. Yields two semester-hours credit (one half-course credit). May be repeated for credit. May be undertaken as an extracurricular, noncredit activity by registering in the XC section. Vocalists will be admitted on an individual basis and must take MUS 82 a,b: University Chorus or MUS 80 a,b: Early Music Ensemble as a corequisite. Informal auditions at the beginning of the semester.
Musicians bring their own experience, instinct, and theoretical knowledge to music-making through study and performance of chamber music in a supportive master class setting. Through coaching by a professional performer, readings, and listening to recordings, this course examines how performance practice, basic structural analysis, and historical context affect interpretation. Individual and ensemble preparation required. Class meetings include coaching, discussion/listening salon, masterclass and rehearsals, to be scheduled. Final public performance. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Eissenberg

NEJS 6a Jewish History: From Ancient to Modern Worlds
[ hum nw ]
Surveys ideas, institutions, practices and events central to critical approaches to the Jewish past and present. Dynamic processes of cross-fertilization, and contestation between Jews and their surroundings societies will be looked, as well as tradition and change, continuity and rupture. No background in the subject matter is required. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Sheppard

NEJS 128a Introduction to Christianity
[ hum ]
Open to all students.
An introduction to Christian beliefs, liturgy, and history. Surveys the largest world religion: from Ethiopian to Korean Christianity, from black theology to the Christian right. Analyzes Christian debates about God, Christ, and human beings. Studies differences among Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Brooten

NEJS 169a Inside the Religious School Classroom
[ hum ]
This course offers a 2-credit optional Experiential Learning practicum for students teaching in an area religious school.
Examines the purposes, pedagogies and outcomes of religious education broadly refined by analyzing records of practice (e.g. classroom videotapes, student work, curricula). Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Feiman-Nemser

NEJS 171b Tikkun Olam/Repairing the World: Service and Social Justice in Theory and Practice
[ hum ]
What does tikkun olam mean? What is a life of service? What should one learn from service-learning? Does "social justice" actually do any good? This is a service-learning course, and includes a service component in the field. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Levisohn

NPSY 180a Social Neuroscience and Culture
[ sn ss ]
Prerequisites: PSYC 10a, 51a, and 52a, or NBIO 140a, or permission of the instructor. May not be taken for credit by students who took PSYC 213a in prior years. Formerly offered as PSYC 180a.
Introduces empirical research on a breadth of social neuroscience topics-- including the self, stereotyping, and moral reasoning--with a more focused coverage of culture. Emphasis will be placed on literature comparing Eastern and Western cultures. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Gutchess

PSYC 140a Statistical Analysis Software (SAS) Applications
[ qr ss ]
Prerequisite: PSYC 51a. Some introductory statistics experience will be helpful but not required. No prior SAS experience is required.
Designed for those who are interested in learning to use SAS. By using actual examples (data), students will have a hands-on experience using SAS for data management, data report, descriptive statistics, graphics, and some inferential statistics. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Liu

PSYC 161a Clinical Psychology Practicum I
[ ss ]
Prerequisites: PSYC 10a and 31a or 32a, and permission of the instructor. Students must enroll in this course in order to enroll in PSYC 161b and should enroll in this course only if they intend to enroll in PSYC 161b in the spring semester.
In conjunction with PSYC 161b, provides intensive supervised experience in mental health intervention. Students serve in helping roles as volunteers for eight hours a week in social service and mental health programs. They relate their experience to empirical and literary readings within the context of group supervision in weekly seminars. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Cunningham

PSYC 161b Clinical Psychology Practicum II
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: Students may enroll in the course only if they have completed PSYC 161a in the previous semester.
In conjunction with PSYC 161a, provides intensive supervised experience in mental health intervention. Students serve in helping roles as volunteers for eight hours a week in social service and mental health programs. They relate their experience to empirical and literary readings within the context of group supervision in weekly seminars. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Cunningham

SOC 112b Social Class and Social Change
[ ss ]
Presents the role of social class in determining life chances, lifestyles, income, occupation, and power; theories of class, inequality, and globalization; selected social psychological aspects of social class and inequality; and connections of class, race, and gender. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Fellman

SOC 115a Masculinities
[ ss ]
Men's experiences of masculinity have only recently emerged as complex and problematic. This course inquires into concepts, literature, and phenomenology of many framings of masculinity. The analytic schemes are historical, sociological, and social-psychological. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Fellman

SOC 118a Observing the Social World: Doing Qualitative Sociology
[ ss wi ]
Observation is the basis of social inquiry. What we see--and by extension, what we overlook or choose to ignore--guides our understanding of social life. We practice interviews, social observation and analysis of print and visual media. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Cadge or Ms. Shostak

SOC 119a Deconstructing War, Building Peace
[ ss ]
Ponders the possibility of a major "paradigm shift" under way from adversarialism and war to mutuality and peace. Examines war culture and peace culture and points in between, with emphases on the role of imagination in social change, growing global interdependence, and political, economic, gender, social class, and social psychological aspects of war and peace. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Fellman

SOC 130a Families, Kinship and Sexuality
[ ss ]
Counts toward the completion of the joint MA degree in Sociology & Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.
Investigates changes in the character of American families over the last two centuries. A central concern will be the dynamic interactions among economic, cultural, political, and social forces, and how they shape and are reshaped by families over time. Particular attention is paid to how experiences of men and women vary by class, race, and ethnicity. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Hansen

SOC 153a The Sociology of Empowerment
[ ss ]
Course does not participate in early registration. Attendance at first class meeting mandatory. Students selected by essay, interview, and lottery.
This class combines reading, exercises, journal keeping, and retreats (including a weekend one) to address activism and how sociological constructs affect feelings of helplessness, futility, hope, vision, efficacy, hurt, fear, and anger. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Fellman

SOC 189a Sociology of Body and Health
[ ss ]
Explores theoretical considerations of the body as a cultural phenomenon intersecting with health, healing, illness, disease, and medicine. Focuses on how gender, race, class, religion, and other dimensions of social organization shape individual experiences and opportunities for agency and resistance. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Shostak

SOC 199b Senior Capstone Seminar: So You Want to Change The World
[ ss ]
Preference given to junior and senior Sociology majors and graduate students.
Provides an opportunity for senior Sociology majors to consider in depth how sociologists engage with the research process to inform both academic and public debate over pressing social issues. Usually offered every year.
Staff

THA 23a Movement for the Stage I
[ ca pe-1 ]
Prerequisite: THA 10a or permission of the instructor. May not be taken for credit by students who took THA 9a in prior years. Counts as one activity course toward the physical education requirement.
The actor's job is to create action out of meaning and meaning out of action. Exercises designed to lead students into their imaginations in order to bring courage and responsiveness into the body. Focus on building necessary tools to create the balance between free form and free expression and an artistic and intelligent relationship to theater. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Dibble

THA 25a Voice for the Stage
[ ca ]
The focus of the class is to develop the human voice in preparation for performance. Foundational exercises are designed to deepen the student's connection to breath, expand vocal color, range and resonance, and to develop clarity, stamina and power, while connecting body, voice and imagination to the expressive use of language. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Lowry

THA 30a Theater Practicum
Yields half-course credit. May be repeated once for credit. There is a mandatory class meeting for this course at the beginning of each semester. Contact the theater arts department office for exact date and time. Formerly offered as THA 41a, 12a and 81a.
A hands-on production course, providing exposure to and experience in the practical aspects of theater production. Under professional direction, students develop a working knowledge of a specific theatrical area and learn how all areas come together in creating theater. Students work as crew members for the Brandeis Theater Company. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Cleary

THA 109b Physical Theater, Body, Gesture, and Character
[ ca pe-1 ]
Counts as one activity course toward the physical education requirement. May not be taken for credit by students who took THA 9b in prior years.
Works on physical awareness, economy, precision, specificity and introduces methods of stage movement training that encourages creativity, flexibility and grace. The course focuses on teaching the student how to develop an imaginative,expressive and dynamic stage presence while telling a character's story in a play or movement piece. The course includes Rudolf Laban's movement theory, mask and 'red-nose' clown training. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Dibble

THA 110a Moving Women/Women Moving
[ ca pe-1 ]
Counts as one activity course toward the physical education requirement.
Among the influential women leaders in America are choreographers who shaped the history of modern dance in the twentieth century. This course will focus on the work and lives of these women. Students will learn dance techniques and investigate the twists and turns in the lives of these extraordinary artists. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Dibble

THA 110b Modern Dance and Movement
[ ca pe-1 ]
Counts as one activity course toward the physical education requirement.
Offers a variety of fundamental dance/movement methods, while focusing primarily on the basic forms and movement vocabulary of Modern Dance. Students will learn to appreciate modern dance as a valuable art form and engage in collaborative creative projects, history, research, and a variety of choreographic styles. Students will develop physical and mental strength and flexibility by participating in warm-ups, traveling phrases across the floor, combinations, and structured improvisations. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Dibble

THA 120a Dance in Time
[ ca pe-1 ]
Focuses on how life cycles, nature and the elements, rhythm and structure in traditional dance forms and rituals, poetry, social events, and human behavior, for example, can all contribute to the understanding of dance and its place in the history of the world. Students are given the opportunity to explore these ideas as well as learn about and practice the creative process by using a variety of sources that inspire and inform the human being who participates in dance of all kinds. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Dibble

THA 120b Movement and Dance Theater Composition
[ ca pe-1 ]
Counts as one activity course toward the physical education requirement.
A studio course designed to teach the art of making dances and Movement Theater. Explores the use of space, theme, rhythm, repetition, and music and their relationship to the process of creating original work for the stage. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Dibble

WMGS 89a When Violence Hits Home: Internship in Domestic Violence
Combines fieldwork in domestic and sexual violence prevention programs with a fortnightly seminar exploring cultural and interpersonal facets of violence from a feminist perspective. Topics include theories, causes and prevention of rape, battering, child abuse, and animal abuse. Internships provide practical experience in local organizations such as rape crisis, battered women's violence prevention, and child abuse prevention programs. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Hunter