GS, 3 credits
GenEd Science & Technology courses present
scientific process in context, helping students understand how
scientific phenomena and/or technological change affects human life
and the planet.
Science & Technology courses are intended to
teach students how to:
- Understand and describe the scientific
process;
- Recognize, use and appreciate scientific or
technological thinking for solving everyday problems;
- Understand and communicate how technology
encourages the process of discovery in science and related
disciplines; and
- Retrieve, organize, and analyze data associated
with a scientific or technological model.
Select Two Courses
Mechanical Engineering 0844
Can we replace our "worn-out" body parts with
space-age materials? Will the day come when an injured athlete buys
a tendon for the next big game? Why are your parents spending so
much time at the doctor? We are on the verge of building "the
bionic human" by repairing many of our body parts indefinitely.
Become familiar with bio-engineered technologies for age-,
disease-, sports-, and accident-related injuries. Learn why weight
bearing exercise strengthens bones, the difference between MRI, CAT
scan, and X-Ray, and what the folks at the Food and Drug
Administration do. By the time you finish this course, you'll know
how a pig heart could save your life, how stem cell research could
affect your future, the purpose of animal testing, and why walking
through airport security could be a problem if you have had your
hip replaced.
Psychology 0817
One of the last frontiers in science is the
brain. We know a great deal about the structure and function of the
brain and nervous system, but it is challenging to comprehend fully
the complexity of a system made up of 100 billion components that
are interacting with one another using tens of trillions of
connections that can change and rewire during development and
aging. Neuroscience is the multidisciplinary field in which brain
research falls. Neuroscience is one of the fastest growing domains
in all of science--and good bet for a future career path.
Neuroscientists investigate brain function from the level of
molecular genetics, to cellular dynamics, to brain anatomy and
physiology, to relations between brain, behavior, and cognition, to
brain development and aging, to diseases of the brain. In this
course, we will touch on knowledge about the brain at all these
levels, and more. We will also discuss case studies of brain
impairment.
Chemistry of
Wine
Chemistry 0821
Wine has occupied a central role in human culture
since the beginning of recorded history. In our exploration of the
science of wine we will learn why wine was the beverage of choice
through the ages, why a bottle of wine can range from $2 to $2,000,
how wine is made, what makes a good/bad wine, how is white
different from red, and how do we know what is in a bottle of wine.
The course begins with a large scale fermentation of red and white
wine and will continue with team based analysis of the two month
process of turning grape juice into wine.
Computer & Information Sciences 0835
Cyberspace technology empowers us to do more, but
it also has a societal impact. It raises new questions regarding
the use and misuse of information obtained from the Internet. For
example, what is the impact of the Internet on intellectual
property? How far can computer surveillance go to detect criminal
behavior without reducing our civil liberties? How can vulnerable
groups be protected from predators, scam artists, and identity
theft? Does privacy even exist anymore? You will develop an
understanding of the technologies behind the Internet, the web and
your computer, and then use this knowledge to evaluate the social
and ethical implications of this technology.
Earth & Environmental Studies 0836
Clips from Hollywood disaster movies will drive
our inquiry into geologic phenomena. Can you really drive over a
lava flow in a jeep? (Dante's Peak) Are we foolish not to
prepare for a major earthquake in New York City?
(Aftershock) Could global warming melt the polar ice caps
turning "dry land" into a myth? (Waterworld) Would the
impact of an asteroid the "size of Texas" kill half the Earth by
heat and freeze the remainder in a nuclear winter?
(Armageddon) Learn the fundamentals of plate tectonics,
how petrologic properties control volcanic explosivity, how to
calculate earthquake locations from seismic data, and prepare a
disaster readiness plan for a major U.S. city.
DNA: Friend or Foe?
Through the study of basic biological concepts,
think critically about modern biotechnology. Consider questions
like: What are the ethical and legal implications involving the
gathering and analysis of DNA samples for forensic analysis and DNA
fingerprinting?Are there potential discriminatory implications that
might result from the human genome project? What are embryonic stem
cells, and why has this topic become an important social and
political issue? Will advances in medicine allow humans to live
considerably longer, and how will a longer human life span affect
life on earth? We will learn through lectures, lecture
demonstrations, problem solving in small groups and classroom
discussion, and make vivid use of technology, including short
videos from Internet sources such as YouTube, electronic quizzes,
imaging and video microscopy.
Civil Engineering 0845, Environmental Engineering Technology
0845
You can extend your longevity and improve your
health by identifying and avoiding the top 10 environmental toxins
that enter and persistently stay in your body. Develop connections
between the environment and everyday life. Enhance your awareness
of current environmental issues by taking part in discussion and
debate: Is Global Warming for real? Should the US sign the Kyoto
protocol? Are we running out of oil? Learn as you go on campus
field trips, try hands-on experiments and hear presentations from
experts on the energy crisis, global climate change, acid rain,
ozone depletion, resource sustainability, biodiversity and the
environmental impact of natural phenomenon. Sharpen your strategies
and leave a better environment for future generations.
Earth & Environmental Sciences 0847
Did an asteroid impact wipe out the dinosaurs?
Can "natural" Earth-based processes also cause mass extinctions?
Long before the dinosaurs, another mass extinction destroyed 90
percent of life on Earth, without an impact. Should we be less
worried about rocks from space, and more about "down to Earth"
phenomena such as climate change, volcanism, or disease? Basic
geologic principles and the fundamentals of evolutionary thought
combine to bring to life the 4.6 billion year story of our planet
and its creatures. Through hands-on experience with fossils and
rocks, students investigate changes in life through time, and
discover how to decipher past environments from the geologic
record.
Gender Issues in Science &
Technology
Computer Information & Sciences 0853
Learn about science and technology through the
lens of gender studies. As you are introduced to basic scientific
principles and study the contributions of women to advances in
science and technology, we will reflect on the many ways in which
gender relations affect and have been affected by these advances.
What contributions have women made to key aspects of science and
technology? How do social spaces, such as Facebook and MySpace,
facilitate changing gender identities and interactions? What are
the gender implications of the digital divide? Through discussion,
reading and with the guidance of guest speakers, we will gain
insight into the gendered nature of science and technology and the
effects on us all--men and women.
How Things Work: The Physics of Everyday
Life
Physics 0847
As you observe films, demonstrations and
photographic techniques both real and computer-simulated, and as
you perform several simple in-home experiments you will gain a
basic understanding the laws of nature as they play out in everyday
life. In a special project you will compare the science in
different science fiction films
Nature Has No
Reverse
Chemistry 0838
Rapid advances in modern science often tend to
"conceal the forest in the trees," but we all need enough
familiarity with the "scientific method" to make informed judgments
as citizens and voters. This course will take you on a journey
through the history of science, with stops at the Second Law of
Thermodynamics, the "revolution" of fire, the rational basis of
life, energy as the universal currency and changes in the universe
around us. We will end with that most disturbing of paradoxes: the
certainty of uncertainty. Each week includes both lecture and
hands-on demonstration/practicum.
Physics 0839
How can we provide inexpensive, safe,
environmentally clean energy supplies for the United States and the
world as a whole despite rising population and increasing
affluence? Study problems of our conventional fossil and nuclear
fuel use, and how they might be relieved; explore the physical and
technological possibilities for using energy much more efficiently;
investigate various renewable-energy sources (such as solar,
hydrogen cells, hydropower, and biofuels) that significantly reduce
effects on the environment. In the course lab projects, you will
research and develop a sustainable energy proposal for your own
home, campus, or community.
Physics 0872
For living things the ability to hear sounds is
an essential tool for survival, and sound is central to speech and
languages. In the arts sound also plays a fundamental role, above
all in music. The close connection between music, mathematics, and
physics has long fascinated scientists. Advances in electronics and
computing are revolutionizing the composition, production, and
recording of sound. Science of Sound is an interdisciplinary course
involving elements of physics, physiology, psychology, music, and
engineering. After a four-week introduction to the fundamental
physics of sound waves, we will consider human hearing and the
human voice; scales, harmony, and sound production by musical
instruments; architectural acoustics; and the electronic
reproduction of sound. The course includes many in-class
demonstrations.
Landscape Architecture 0841
What's the big deal about global warming and how
should we respond to it? Explore the issues and underlying causes.
See how contemporary designers from Germany, Netherlands, UK and
Japan are responding to scientific knowledge with sustainable
designs for buildings, cars, towns and parks. Develop your own
creative project to reduce the greenhouse effect. Have you ever
wondered about what happens to local abandoned factories and
degraded streams and rivers? Philadelphia is a national hotbed for
sustainable design. Visit local restoration sites, modern "green"
buildings, parks that reclaim waste water and transformed
industrial parks to see firsthand what is happening in our area.
Learn how design is transforming to propel us toward a low waste,
energy conserving society in the 21st century.
Earth & Environmental Sciences 0842, Geography & Urban
Studies 0842
Americans account for over a quarter of all
fossil fuel consumption, own more cars than there are licensed
drivers, and build new homes 40 percent larger than they did in
1975, despite shrinking household size. We feel for the pandas and
polar bears, while contributing mightily to global climate change,
resource inequity, and ecosystem destruction. How do we reckon with
environmental crises at multiple scales, from the neighborhood to
the atmosphere and oceans? "Think globally, act locally"
environmentalists admonish us! Direct our vast human ingenuity and
collective spirit toward technologies and behaviors that bring
peace with the planet. Course mission: enhance your capability to
make informed choices, based on a sound understanding of the
ecological, technological, economic, political, and ethical
dimensions of environmental sustainability.
Mechanical Engineering 0843
Expand your knowledge by looking at how various
technologies such as electricity, automobiles, airplanes,
telephones, bridges, highways, electronics, computers, and
information technology have transformed the world around us. What
would we do without them? Where do they come from? How do they
work? Technology is developed by people who have the ideas, design
the machines and processes, and suffer the costs and benefits of
technological changes in our society. Learn about science and
technology through history of discovery, invention and innovation
through lectures and labs. We will also study several promising
fields which may lead us to the future of technology.
Universe As We Know
It
Physics 0846
Scientific thinking in the context of the
study of astronomy. This course includes the intersection of ethics
and science, for example: heroic individual resistance to
repressive authority (Galileo), the changing role of women in
science (from Pickering's Harem to Sally Ride), and the use of
science to further political agendas (Kennedy's moon landing
program). Extensive use of web resources, the planetarium theater,
and self-guided observing assignments.
