From an anthropological, cross-cultural perspective this course will focus on the ways genders are distinguished, constructed, and valued in different societies. Although gender categories often draw on perceptions of anatomical and physiological differences among bodies, these perceptions are mediated by cultural categories, meanings, and beliefs. We will consider the notion of gender as a multidimensional category of personhood that encompasses distinct patterns of social differences, such as the Zuni berdache and the treatment of intersexed people. In terms of gender diversity and social change across the globe, we will explore beliefs and practices linked to the formulation of genders in various societies and address the question of what it means to be human. The course consists of lectures, class discussions of the readings, and films. Requirements include several short analytical papers, two short essay quizzes, and a final project.

The art and architecture of ancient Mexico as well as that of selected neighboring areas, will be examined against the background of the growth of complex cultural systems. The course will consist of readings and lectures including the presentation of visual materials dealing with ancient Mesoamerica (a culture area), and the archaeological and historical research which sheds light on its development. Museum visits to RISD and Brown will allow us to become familiar with real pre-Columbian art and artifacts for a closer association to ancient cultures that produced them.
Also offered as HAVC C735. Register in the course for which credit is desired

The history of Western classical music lives on through concerts in public venues and recorded performances, enjoyed at home or anywhere on our mp3 players. While the templates for creating new works were discarded over time, the music of Middles Ages, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern periods is still with us. This course aims to foster listening imaginatively to feel the music in its historical setting not just by learning what to listen for, but also in understanding its internal organization and how it related to the cultures in which it flourished. Class will involve some group singing, performances, listening, lecture and discussion. The course uses quizzes and exams to test your grasp of the material and requires several short papers. No prior musical experience or training is required.

This course moving rapidly through time and frequently shifting geographical foci, offers an opportunity to consider the historical process on its most general and dynamic level. The course begins with the earliest human societies and ends with the age of the scientific revolution. We move from the urban cultures of the ancient Near East to those of France in the reign of Louis XIV. We will consider larger historical themes and questions (e.g., the impact of disease, shifting views of the natural and supernatural worlds) along with a selection of more specific topics (e.g., the Olympic games, the Crusades). And, through readings in primary sources, we will attempt to view the events of history through the eyes of participants.

What do we know about the environment, and how do we know it? This course will combine field trips and ecology experiments with lectures and readings to explore the natural world and humanity's interaction with it. We will study the principles of ecology and how natural systems work, and look critically at pressing environmental problems such as climate change, global loss of biodiversity, and explosive human population growth.

Has the unfathomable diversity of insects ever fascinated you, but left you wondering where to begin? This is a basic course in entomology for the natural historian and artist. All orders of Class Insecta will be introduced, with both field and lab components. Basic insect morphology and ecology will be covered for most orders, with ample opportunities for artistic rendition and use of both live and dead specimens as models. Students will learn basic insect taxonomy for the identification of insects to order-level. Emphasis will be placed on the major orders (beetles, flies, butterflies/moths, etc.); the minor orders will be covered to varying degrees, but this can be adjusted according to the class consensus. Coursework will include extensive observation and drawing of specimens using a microscope, identification quizzes, field collecting trips and a course project that will emphasize the creation of materials for educational outreach. Additionally, students will finish with their own curated insect collection identified to order-level (or beyond, if student desires). We will also take a behind-the-scenes field trip to a New England-area museum with extensive, well-curated insect collections. Students will have to purchase at least one book, a personal field/lab notebook, and a variety of other equipment (more if they choose to keep their own curated collection).

In our daily life we assume many things to be so obvious that we seldom reflect upon, let alone question, their validity. For example, we take for granted the continuation of self, the existence of the material world, the moral rightness (or wrongness) of certain acts, etc. Once we start wondering at the obvious, however, familiar things become strange, on the one hand, shaking the foundation of our comfortable life, while, on the other hand, inviting us to participate in an adventure/exploration called philosophizing. Such has been the experience of numerous thinkers from different ages and cultures. In this course, we shall join them in their philosophical journeys. Specifically, we will study and evaluate the various questions and answers different thinkers have offered as well as critically examine our own beliefs and assumptions in light of the alternative viewpoints offered by them.

What are the origins of modern industrial societies? What are their central contours? Has the rise of modernity lead to great freedom and emancipation, greater repression and exploitation or both? Where are modern societies heading? Over the last 200 years, social theorists from Karl Marx and Max Weber to Michel Foucault and Donna Haraway have sought to grapple with these central questions. The aim of this course is to introduce students in an accessible but rigorous fashion to the leading modernist and postmodern thinkers and traditions that have shaped contemporary sociology. This will be achieved by lecture, class discussion and by getting students to read social theorists through their original writings. Such an overview will somewhat inevitably be selective and partial. However, students should finish this course familiar with the central questions social theorists have sought to grapple with. They will have a sense of the central methodological disputes that underpin the discipline of sociology and the social sciences more generally. Finally, they will have a sense of what is political, cultural and aesthetically at stake in debates occurring within social theory. Grappling with these issues will ensure that you will be able to make your way through contemporary sociological arguments and begin to position yourself in the debate.

In this course we will examine many of the ethical, social and philosophical issues raised by ongoing developments in the brain sciences. With improved understanding of how the brain works comes new powers for understanding, monitoring, and manipulating human cognitive, emotional and behavioral functioning; such new powers have potentially profound implications for the law, social policy, clinical practice, and personal experience. Topics to be covered will include: moral judgment and decision making, freedom of the will, moral and legal responsibility, use of psychopharmacology for enhancement of mood and cognition, the neural basis of pro-social and anti-social behavior, neuroimaging and privacy, the use of neuroimaging data in courts of law (e.g., to assess truth-telling and the accuracy of memory), brain injury and brain death, the development of neurotechnologies, and the importance of ethical and social guidelines.

The course will examine ways that many media, especially film, respond to the great social forces of their time and their culture. Some films, and other creative expressions, reflect an inherent endorsement or criticism of the politics contemporary to them. We will examine social critics' roles in some of the influential movements of the West in the 20th century--the Russian Revolution, German Nazism, the New Deal, World War Two, the Cold War and Third World Liberation movements. Requirements include readings and screenings from each of the eras covered, written assignments and exams, and participation in class discussions. In addition to three hours of class each week, there will be evening film screenings.

As over half the world's population has come to live in cities, urbanization has moved to the center of the environmental debate. This course will provide an interdisciplinary reflection on the past, present and future of ecological urbanism. Co-taught between a liberal arts and an architecture professor, (but open to all majors) the course will attempt to interrogate the ways in which green urban design has been conceptualized to date. It will interrogate the limits of present conceptions and it will explore cutting edge contemporary debates around the future of the green urban project.

Europe: 1750-1950. This is an introductory survey history course with special attention given to: the Enlightenment; the French Revolution; the Industrial Revolution; the bourgeoisification and masculinization of public culture; liberalism and Marxism; national unification; imperialism; total war; and fascist and communist dictatorships. Midterms, quizzes, and final. Lectures with discussions and student led topic discussions with papers.
Course Level: Sophomore and above

This course will examine the transition from the world of Late Antiquity to that of the Early Middle Ages. This occasionally dramatic but more often gradual process saw a world populated by imperial administrators, urban mobs, and a scholar-aristocracy replaced by one of warriors, serfs, and monks. We will assess the impact of change on social and intellectual life, political structures, and the life of the individual. The patterns of confrontation and accommodation which characterized relations between opposing communities, cultures, and traditions will provide a focal point.

Through readings in the field of global and American environmental history and in-class discussions, this course examines the relationship between human societies and the natural environment over time. We will examine how various societies incorporated the natural environment into their social, political, and religious systems and how those systems affected the environment. How did people of the past use, abuse and think about nature? How were their lives and aspirations affected by changes in the natural environment and by large-scale environmental events such as climate change.
Sophomore and above

The sandwich-railroads-Rhode Island-the Titanic-trial by jury-capitalism-imperialism-navalism-monarchy-TV-r ugby-Ascot ties-Jersey cows-tea-gin. In a profoundly significant sense, each of these was or is British. In many areas, a few islands off the coast of Europe known as the British Isles have managed to exert a powerful influence over much of European and Global history. So much so that one wag, paraphrasing Thomas Hobbes (an Englishman) claimed that life in a state of nature was "nasty, short, and British." We will pay close attention to the major currents of Modern British history including: industrialization, social customs, Anglo-Celtic interactions and the formation of a national British identity, overseas ventures, class conflict, sexual politics, and democratization. Midterm, quizzes, final.Lecture and discussion.

Socrates described philosophy as an intellectual preparation for death. He recognized that how we react to, think about, and cope with finality tells us a great deal of what we think about the core of our existence. Philosophers have been divided between a "bald scenario" that death is nothing but the end of our material existence to which we are limited, and the more reassuring view that death is a door to another personal plane of existence. Death is nothing vs. death is everything. We will examine these phenomena from philosophical points of view through reflection primarily on philosophical works but will include religious sources and literary works. While philosophers have primarily focused understandably on the individual confronting death, we will constantly place these questions and their answers within interpersonal and social spheres of consideration. We will focus on: What is Death? The role of death in the meaning of life; personal survival in various scenarios; ethical issues surrounding suicide, euthanasia, and other voluntary ending of life. We will look at a few of the social practices surrounding death and examine their meaning and functionality. Intensive reading, writing, and participation in seminar format.
Sophomore and above

This course looks at key issues relating to migration, displacement and refugeeism in the world today. It frames these issues in terms of the factors which force movements and restrict the movement of people across national boundaries. It considers both the causes and consequences of such movements in relation to legal, political, economic, social and cultural factors. It looks at the images of citizen, nation and state that are constructed through the regulation of national boundaries, and compares these with the goals, identities and cultural processes of the people who move or are across regulated borders. In working out how to think about people who live at the edge of conventional social science categories we will reconsider such basic concepts as ethnicity, identity, nation, culture and homeland.
Sophomore and above<

In this course, we will explore social psychological research on stereotypes and prejudice. We will begin by defining what these concepts are and why these processes exist, and then address the social and cognitive mechanisms associated with stereotypes and prejudice. Our focus will be quite broad and focus on stereotypes and prejudice directed at people not only on the basis of race and sex, but also qualities such as age, religion, physical appearance (e.g., weight, height, hair color, physical deformity), and sexual orientation. We will address questions, such as: When are we more or less likely to stereotype? Where do our stereotyped beliefs come from? Are stereotypes and prejudice automatic processes or can we avoid them if we try? Are we all prejudiced to some degree? Can we have prejudices for which we are not consciously aware? How do our stereotypes and prejudices affect our overt behavior? In addition to these questions, we will explore the experiences of the stereotyped, especially those who are members of widely socially stigmatized groups, and also discuss discrimination at both an interpersonal and institutional level. Most of the literature for this class will be journal articles reporting quantitatively based research studies from social psychology, thus the reading in this class will be different in nature from many other classes at RISD.

Loot? will study the history and analysis of the destruction of archaeological remains and cultural heritage by grave robbers, collectors, and museums. Why are the Elgin Marbles in London, and not on the Acropolis? Why do there seem to be as many mummies in France as there are in Egypt? asks Sharon Waxman in her book Loot (2008). This seminar will examine the changing role of antiquities in the post-imperialist world, and access the moral and ethical questions raised by archaeologists, curators, collectors and lawyers regarding the plunder of ancient sites to feed an international art market. We will also review legal standards regarding cultural properties (1970 UNESCO Convention, 1991 NAGPRA, and 1995 Unidroit Convention) and how they have impacted the protection of ancient archaeological sites, forced the return of many art treasures and lesser artifacts, and become big headaches for everyone involved in the preservation of cultural heritage.

Have you ever wondered how social situations guide how we think about and act toward others, what determines who we love and who we hate, how we form attitudes about our own and others behavior, what determines whether we will help or hurt others, or how we construct knowledge about the self? If so, social psychology addresses these questions and many more. Social psychology is the science of how others influence the way people think, feel, and act. The aim of this course is to familiarize you with current and classic research and theory in social psychology, help you to develop critical thinking skills about social-psychological phenomena, and stimulate you to think about the implications of social-psychological research for everyday living.

This 6-credit course invites undergraduate and graduate students to improve their skills in communicating and illustrating science. The general topic is changing biodiversity, how humans impact plants, animals, and their environment. Examples will be presented from around the world, as well as from Rhode Island. Through a series of exercises, students will practice analyzing and interpreting scientific information in order to both understand and present it. The science content will be delivered through lectures, visits to research labs, and to a nearby nature sanctuary. The course is designed to introduce students to relevant scientific concepts and challenge them to use their art to make these ideas more concrete and meaningful. In some cases, the goal may be to educate; in others, it may be to raise awareness, stimulate debate, or entertain. Students will explore the use of different media, including 2-D, 3-D animated, and interactive modes. They will also target different audiences and venues, including: general interest or editorial publications, art for public spaces including galleries, educational and peer- to-peer science materials. Class work includes assigned reading, several minor projects, an exam, and a comprehensive final project. Students will choose a recent research study on the topic of human impacts on biodiversity for the subject of their final project, which is a written paper combined with original artwork designed for a public space or public interaction. The Departments of Illustration and History, Philosophy, and Social Sciences will teach the course collaboratively.
Students must register for both LAEL 1513 and ILLUS 1513.

The issues related to food and eating have been receiving much attention lately in our society and beyond, in response to growing concerns over our health and the environment. However, until recently, Western philosophy did not include those food-related issues in its discourse. In this course we will address a number of philosophical issues related to food and eating. (1) Why were food-related issues neglected in Western philosophy? What are some of the consequences of such neglect? What is the role of food and eating in other philosophical traditions? (2) What are some of the moral, political, and environmental issues involved in the production, distribution, and consumption of food? For example, is there anything morally problematic about meat-eating? Do we have an ethical duty to feed the hungry in our society and other parts of the world? Is any form of the state's paternalistic intervention in people's eating habits an undue infringement on individual freedom? What are the environmental costs of today's industrial farming, fishing, and global trade, what are some of the alternatives to reduce such costs, and are the alternatives successful? Are there any problems regarding genetically modified organisms as a food source? (3) Some regard certain forms of cooking as art, but can food be art? What are the aesthetic dimensions of food and eating? Can there be a standard of taste regarding food, or is it simply "a matter of taste"? (4) Finally, what is the role of cooking and eating in a good life? Does food simply provide nourishment for our physical survival, or can it enrich our lives in other ways? Through studying a variety of materials and films, we will explore these and other issues related to food.

Advanced and basic topics in the physical sciences are explored in this class. An overview of space-time and the expanding universe is followed by topics in: light quantum, the atom, and quantum physics. Other topics include wave-particle duality, gravity, time, black holes, and the special and general theories of relativity. Then we examine the unification of physics through the emerging result of (super) string theory which in spite of the incompatibility between general relativity and quantum mechanics harmoniously unites (and also requires) these conflicting theories. The already non-intuitive dimensions of space-time beautifully expand in the quantum geometry of string theory.

Topics in History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences is an introductory course in which students are encouraged to develop the skills in critical thinking, reading, and writing that are common to the disciplines represented in the Department of History, Philosophy, and the Social Sciences (HPSS). Sections focus on topics typically addressed within the department's disciplines; through discussion about key texts and issues, students are introduced to important disciplinary methodologies and controversies. All sections have frequent writing assignments, which, combined with substantial feedback from HPSS faculty, afford students the opportunity to develop the strategies and techniques of effective writing.
Required for graduation for all undergraduates, including transfers. There are no waivers for HPSS-S101 except for transfer students who have taken an equivalent college course. Section 16 of this course in the spring is available ONLY for transfers and upperclassmen.

This course considers those commonalities of geography, history, economy, and culture that constitute Mainland Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Burma) as a distinct and meaningful world region. Beginning with a brief look at the physical geography of the area, we move on to consider the culture of peasant rice-growing societies, and the nature of traditional polities, with their intertwining of religion and state. Theravada Buddhism, the dominant religion of the region, is addressed as a cultural as well as a religious phenomenon, and the spirit cults of highland people are considered as well. We then take up the challenges of European colonial expansion, and the region's various colonial experiences and evasions. Different forms of resistance to foreign domination are considered, including millenarianism and socialist revolution. Some of the social and cultural consequences of these revolutions are then addressed. The course ends with a look at critical issues facing Mainland Southeast Asia today. Throughout the course we will be looking for both regional patterns and the distinctiveness of these five societies' response to similar challenges.

Anthropologists have used a number of techniques to document "other" cultures - the course will explore visual documentation techniques, from early explorers' drawing to contemporary filmmakers. Research tools and methods will be evaluated from several points of view, including the artistic, the anthropological and the ethical.

In this course we will examine some prominent psychological theories of color, form, depth, and motion perception. As much as possible, we will experience specific examples of visual processes through a number of in class experiments. The roles of learning, memory, imagination, and other cognitive processes will be explored.

Witness trees, as designated by the National Park Service, are long-standing trees that have "witnessed" key events, trends, and people in history. In this joint studio/liberal arts course, students have the unique opportunity to study and work with a fallen witness tree, shipped to RISD from a national historic site. The course will involve three components: 1) a field trip to the tree's site at the beginning of the semester; 2) classroom-based exploration of American history, memory, landscape, and material culture; and 3) studio-based building of a series of objects from the tree's wood, in response to both the site and students' classroom study. Overall, the course will explore both how material artifacts shape historical understanding and how historical knowledge can create meaningful design. The wood this year will come from the Thomas Edison National Historic Park in West Orange, New Jersey.
Must also register for FURN 2451.
Students will receive 3 credits in Furniture and 3 credits in HPSS, for a total of 6 credits.
A single fee of $100.00 will be charged for your concurrent registration
Permission of Instructor required

This course is an introduction to the histories and traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. All three religions lay claim to the patriarch Abraham, from whom Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad are said to have descended. We will investigate three main concerns I) The origins and histories of these traditions II) What they have in common and how they are distinct. III) The impact of modern developments (i.e. secularism, colonialism, democracy, political conflicts, governments, mass media)? This investigation will include discussions on the nature of religion, the law and religious liberties, origins of anti-Judaism, Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict, Christian apocalypticism, and the growth of Islam in America. The course will conclude with students engaging a panel of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim clergy.

Jerusalem has earned a special eminence among the famed ancient cities of the world. Its sanctity to Jews, Christians, and Moslems has made the city a focus of discussions and controversies regarding the evolving and changing identifies throughout its long urban history. Early and recent studies and discoveries, as well as old and new theories with a special emphasis on the Roman, Byzantine, and Early Islamic periods (ca. 63 BCE - 1099 CE) will be examined in the seminar. A particular focus will be placed on how to identify ethnicity, religious identity, and gender in the archaeological record. Though politics and religion have often biased related scholarship and the way excavations and their interpretations have been presented to the public, the goal of the seminar is to understand and examine various opinions and viewpoints. This seminar will consist of regular meetings, with illustrated lectures, student presentations, and discussions. In addition to the presentations, weekly reading assignments, a mid-term exam, and a final term paper will be required.
Also offered as HAVC C729. Register in the course for which credit is desired

Most young people have developed their perspectives on the Vietnam War primarily through the medium of film. We will examine several of the most popular movies about America's longest war, such as "Apocalypse Now," "Platoon," and "Full Metal Jacket." We will explore in particular the following questions. What is the relationship between the history presented in Vietnam War films and the history of the era as presented by professional historians? How might these films shape popular understandings of the war? How might these films act as cultural artifacts offering insight into American political discourse at the time of their production? Assignments will include reading, discussion, and written reactions to the films. You will need no particular background in history, film, or cultural studies to learn from and enjoy this course.

Natural and man-made environmental disasters dominate the news - flooding, earthquakes, climate change, water pollution and more. Some can be predicted, some can be avoided, and some can be mitigated. But how? In this course, we will explore how the natural world works, and how this working is evident in some of the most pressing environmental issues of today. Learn why you might not want to invest in that beachfront property, how the Burma cyclone was like hurricane Katrina, and whether it's wise to place a swimming pool on that scenic overlook. No prior science background is required.

This course is object-centered and will explore the theories and methodologies that have been adopted for the display of ethnographic materials in museums over time. Students will have the opportunity to visit a number of local and regional museums, exhibitions and private collections. We will talk to collectors and to curators, and engage in exercises that focus on the display of objects for general audiences. This will give students a general background on such questions as: how can 3D objects best be displayed? What information should objects be displayed with? What are the goals of an ethnographic exhibition? How are exhibitions organized? Is modern technology making museums obsolete? What are the repatriation regulations, and how have they impacted collectors and museums? The course will require a number of weekend visits to collections, as well as a final project that will be object-centered.
Also offered as ARTH-C578. Register in class for which credit is desired.

The feminist movement has changed the world in profound ways despite sometimes radical resistance against it. Through readings, film, and field trips, this course will examine the basic theories of feminism, some of the forms of feminist activism (including humor and art), and the methods by which feminist scholars and activists question, challenge, and reshape power structures.

This course will explore the evolution of the book from an inconvenient and fragile papyrus roll of the early Christian era to the emergence of the printed book in the early modern period. We will examine how form and function interact to produce dramatic transformations of the book, a process which correlates to major stages in the cultural history of Europe from the third to the sixteenth centuries. We will study the evolution of script forms as well as book design during this period, The course includes field trips to the John Hay and John Carter Brown Libraries at Brown, as well as to the Beinecke Library at Yale. The trip to Yale will take all day.

Humans have hunted and gathered the sea's living resources for millennia. In coastal areas worldwide, stories and the influence of fish are recorded in material and popular culture, community memory, diet, specialized technologies and distinctive marine architecture. Fish and fishing are also visible along many waterfronts, in our grocery stores, and restaurants. Regionally and globally, industrial fishing threatens the environment with iconic fish stocks such as the Atlantic Cod and the Bluefin tuna facing commercial extinction and with them the in the traditional fishing communities that they once supported. Through historical scholarship, nautical architecture and archaeology, creative literature, visual art, film, journalism, food, and material culture, this course will explore the significance of fish and fishing in the past and in the present. The course will also address the issue of the sustainability of commercial fishing as an industry and as distinct way of life.

Working with the basic ethnographic technique of oral history, this course considers the relationship between personal experience and the larger social, cultural, and historical processes within which life histories are embedded. The course will be organized around the collection and interpretation of individual life stories. Each student will be expected to collect, transcribe, edit, and present a life history or several different oral accounts in one of a number of formats. In the process we will consider such issues as narrative time and narrative process, subjectivity, individual and collective memory, the political erasure and/or appropriation of personal experience, and the politics of self-representation.

Philosophy, the quest for wisdom, seeks answers to life's deepest and most enduring questions. How should we live? What is the truth? What is real? What and who are we in a universe of things unlike ourselves? At its core, philosophy is a discursive, argumentative probing that pokes at our fundamental assumptions about the world. The philosophical mind, of course, welcomes the challenge. In addition to philosophers raising these questions, fiction has been a vehicle for raising these issues and challenging the status quo mindset of its readers. Science fiction in particular, has long been occupied with questions regarding man's place in the universe and the limits and potentials of science. While such philosophical probity rarely makes for great television viewing, there are a few shows, such as Star Trek, The X-Files and others, that are distinguished by their consistent philosophical texts in conjunction with the study and discussion of selected episodes from these extraordinary television series. Participation, several short papers and group presentations are required.

This course will address questions of how psychological and cognitive functions are produced by the brain. The field of cognitive neuroscience aims to link the mind, the brain and behavior by trying to understand the biological nature of human thought and behavior. In this introductory course we will discuss several topics including: How is the brain built and how well can it rewire itself? How can we measure the living brain? What functions do various parts of the brain support? In particular we will discuss the neural underpinnings of perception, attention, memory, language, executive function, emotion, social cognition, and decision-making.

This Wintersession seminar has a focus on making holograms with lasers and on understanding the physics that makes holograms and lasers work. Ideas from familiar phenomena help us see the connections between everyday life and the abstract ideas of physics. This non-mathematical presentation of optics leads us to an appreciation of the logic and beauty behind the behavior of light. Starting with the fundamental properties of light, we pass through the geometric optics of reflection and refraction, and the wave optics of interference and diffraction to the clarity of particle waves, lasers, holography, and special relativity.

In this course, we will focus on everyday people -- people considered part of the "dependent classes" and "lower sort"-and examine their role in the major events leading up to, in the midst of, and in the aftermath of the American Revolution. The story of the American Revolution is far more than just the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the dumping of tea into Boston Harbor, and Washington's defeat of Cornwallis at Yorktown. We will look at the meaning of the term revolution from the perspective of all those involved and highlight the contested notions of what the Revolution should accomplish.

In this course we will examine the institution of science and its relations to the social context in which it is embedded. The idea of "value free science" has been appropriately abandoned as a false ideal. In its wake there have arisen a number of questions concerning how social and moral values ought to play a role in determining the directions of scientific research, the conduct of such research, and the application of research findings to social problems. In addition to examining such topics as scientific objectivity, scientific authority, sources of bias in science, and the social accountability of scientists, we will discuss several case studies including controversies over race and IQ, the safety and efficacy of psychiatric medications, the human genome project, and research concerning gender differences. The course will consist of discussion of assigned readings, several short writing assignments, and a group research project and presentation.

Our tastes--culinary, sartorial, literary, aesthetic-are never simply personal or obviously natural; they are inextricably intertwined with larger political questions about class, gender, sexuality, race, and nation. This course will pay attention to what is at stake in the claims to "good taste," particularly to how assertions of superior taste are linked to notions of social and moral superiority. We will explore the complex relationship between taste and consumption; democracy and distinction; economic and cultural capital. We will be reading a mix of classic U.S. literary, theoretical, and historical texts, as well as seeing some films and considering other visual materials and cultural artifacts. Although we will concentrate on literary case studies, our goal is to think about the course concepts in relation to the arts and our own lives. Also offered as LAS-C502. Register in the course for which credit is desired.

Hand weaving and related yarn manipulations in Peru date back to the Cotton Pre-ceramic (3000 BC.) and the subsequent domestication of Andean camelids. The dry desert coast has preserved a record number of ancient textiles which richly document the development and evolution of a textile tradition which continues in isolated villages today. This course will examine techniques, styles, and iconography of Andean textiles over time and the important place of cloth in pre-Columbian and contemporary native culture. One day a week will be spent analyzing ancient textiles in the collection of the RISD Museum: some of the most beautiful and technically complex cloths you will ever see.

The question, "What is the meaning of life?" is unclear in large measure because the word "meaning" is ambiguous. The various ways "meaning" can be construed, both objectively and subjectively, in everyday life and in the philosophical arena will be explored. Literature, film, and philosophical texts will be used as vehicles to illuminate how reflection, experience, and transitions through life's stages influence assignment of value to one's existence.

Since the process of Westernization began in Japan during the mid-19th century, Japanese culture has been going through dramatic transformations. However, in the midst of high-tech industry, skyscrapers, and McDonald's, the traditional Japanese sensibilities which were formed before Westernization still dominate many aspects of people's lives. This course investigates those traditional Japanese aesthetic tastes which are considered "uniquely" or "truly" Japanese. Emphasis will be on classical literary texts, traditional art forms and Zen texts.

In this seminar we will approach the enigma of space from many different philosophical perspectives and thereby shed light not only on the question of space, but also on the halo of philosophical problems surrounding it, including 'perception', 'perspective', 'place', and 'movement', 'subjectivity' and 'objectivity'. Our philosophical investigation of the concept of space in such diverse philosophies as Henry More's, Reni Descartes' Immanuel Kant's, Ludwig Wittgenstein's and Maurice Merleau-Ponty's, will disclose the imagination as an important link in understanding the problems of space philosophically. While philosophers use examples from the arts metaphorically to make their abstract ideas more palpable, artists take recourse to philosophy to describe space as an intrinsic function of their embodied works of art. We will look at both sides of the picture, engaging not only with philosophical works, but also with visual and textual material by such artists as Char Davies, Daniel Libeskind, Ludwig Wittgenstein (as architect), and Irene Rice Pereira. This will not be a course about philosophy but a course in philosophy -- an experience of practicing philosophical thinking.

The course offers an introduction to the arts of several sub-Saharan African communities. We will explore the creative process and the context of specific African traditions as well as the impact of the African diaspora on the arts of other communities, particularly in the Caribbean.
Also offered as HAVC C519. Register in the course for which credit is desired.

Science is a major force that shapes ideas, beliefs, and behavior patterns in contemporary society. Its exponential growth in today's world warrants examination of the interaction of science with culture and society. In this course we will approach science and technology as an expression of science, as a human activity rather than a disembodied intellectual pursuit. We will consider how the sciences can be studied ethnographically, how they vary culturally one from another, and how scientific knowledge is generated in culture. Throughout we will attend to the implications of scientific knowledge for social and cultural hierarchies. Theoretical issues that will concern us include the relationship between culture and technology and the production of new forms of subjectivity in relation to scientific technologies. Course topics include anthropological studies of western scientific practice, science in non-western traditions, critiques of science from various viewpoints, and science in popular culture.

We will examine the art styles and technologies, as well as the architectural forms and implied social organization found in the archaeological record of ancient Peru. Our goal will be to trace the history of cultural development, in this isolated setting, from the earliest hunter/gatherers to the complex civilization of the Incas. This semester there will be special attention given to three media: architecture, ceramics, and textiles.
Also offered as HAVC-C736. Register in the course for which credit is desired.

We will examine the art styles and technologies, as well as the architectural forms and implied social organization found in the archaeological record of ancient Peru. Our goal will be to trace the history of cultural development, in this isolated setting, from the earliest hunter/gatherers to the complex civilization of the Incas. This semester there will be special attention given to three media: architecture, ceramics, and textiles.
Also offered as HPSS-C736. Register in the course for which credit is desired.

This course is designed to acquaint students with a variety of non-Western aesthetic expressions in the Americas and the Pacific. The course will explore the indigenous contexts, both contemporary and historical, in which these art forms are or were created and function. We will look at the art and its context in selected communities of the American northwest coast such as the Inuit, Kwakiutl and Haida, the Southwest of the US, such as the Hopi and Navajo, and parts of Australia, Papua-New Guinea and some of the Pacific islands.
Also offered at HAVC C726. Register in the course for which credit is desired

This course examines how human activity impacts the animal world, how animals impact us, and how both are affected by the health of the environment. We may find it convenient to think of humans as living in one sphere while plants and animals occupy another, but it's not that simple. All creatures share the same basic needs for air, water, shelter, food, space, and companionship - and we compete for these resources. In order to maintain the balance necessary for healthy ecosystems, it's essential that we understand how one species impacts another. Using a series of examples, we'll explore these connections, beginning with simpler animals and ecosystems, and moving up to more complex ones. Topics covered include coral bleaching, the extinction of frogs, the use of DDT to control malaria, why dolphins strand, the future of polar bears - and more. We'll also study the potential solutions to these problems.

Mathematicians are artists of the imagination. This course is an exploration of their abstract conceptual systems which have almost inadvertently yielded spectacularly successful real world results. It also looks at suggested artistic modes of thought and strategies of artistic exploration. Discussions will include imagination as a valid perception of the world (a sixth sense); high orders of infinity; abstraction, idealization and reality; the geometry of vision, other non-Euclidean geometries and the relation of these geometries to our universe. Regular attendance, some assignments and outside reading are required.

We will investigate how power, culture, and social institutions affect such crucial components of economic performance as supply, demand, and economic growth. We will also study social aspects of wealth creation and innovation. Issues of social inequality, related but not identical to unequal distribution of resources, will be studied both in the context of social class and cross-national comparisons. The latter will try to answer the riddle of globalization: why the increasing volume of international trade in all factors of production (commodities, capital, and labor) makes some countries rich while others remain poor. History of social and economic development will be an essential aspect of the course. Students are expected to participate in discussion and write one term paper. There will be a final exam.

Beginning in the mid-fifteenth century, Europeans created a series of transoceanic empires that eventually embraced the entire world, forming the basis of the European domination of the modern world. The first stage of this development was the creation of an Atlantic world, a network of competing European overseas empires that brought together the peoples of Europe, Africa, and the Americas in a series of economic, political, and cultural networks. This course will examine the motives for creating these empires, the ways in which they transformed both Europe and the Americas, and how Europeans came to dominate the modern world.

Most scientists agree that Earth is a place of constant environmental change. Much less obvious is what the changes we see around us mean in terms of human impacts and future conditions. This is partly because Earth's changes are viewed through the varying lenses of biology, ecology, evolution, oceanography, climatology, and geology. This course surveys the scientific methods and knowledge that underlie and unify these disciplinary perspectives on environmental change. Emphasis is on changes in Earth's climate and oceans, with ecology providing the primary point of reference. Course time is divided between lectures and group discussions, the latter being motivated by readings, observational exercises, and field trips. Scientific background is not required but critical thinking and participation are essential.

Plants shape much of the natural world around us. They influence climate and provide organisms with food, shelter and housing. This course will be an introduction to the vascular plant kingdom; its variety, classification, biology, and ecology. Through careful observation and illustration of live and herbarium specimens, students will gain an understanding of plant forms, structure, and reproduction. Field trips will facilitate the observation of plants in natural community assemblages, and will aid in students? understanding of similarities among plant families, as well as their adaptations to environmental conditions. Students will learn the Latin and English names of common species and learn to identify these plants through recognition of their unique morphological traits, as well as through the use of dichotomous keys. Students will learn the importance of documentation for study and scientific record keeping and will create mounted specimens of plant species for the use of all students at the RISD Nature Lab.

The scientific study of emotion has been subject to tremendous debate for over 100 years. In this course we will review the psychological science of emotion, particularly regarding the use of objective physiological and neural measurements. Topics will include historical and evolutionary perspectives, the latest findings in the neuroscience of emotion, the physiology of stress, how emotion affects decision making, disorders of emotion, and more. Weekly reading assignments will be assigned. Classes will begin with a lecture, followed by group discussions as informed by the reading assignment. Prior coursework in biology will be useful, but not necessary.
Sophomore and Above

Representations of gender in film, television, music, print media, and advertisements serve to inform us about the gendered system in which we live. In addition to serving as a reflection of a given society's traditional gender roles and norms, mainstream media forms also shape the gender system by actively promoting specific gender stereotypes and ideals. By discussing scholarly literature and analyzing media representations of gender, we will try to understand how these media representations play a role in gender socialization, the political and economic status of men and women, our day to day interactions with others, and even our self-views. In addition to media that edifies traditional views of gender, we will also consider media that attempts to subvert the traditional gender system and promote alternative views of gender and sexuality.

"The past is not dead," to quote William Faulkner, "it isn't even past." The past lives in our collective memory and, so this course assumes, affects how we think about the present and determine the future. This history course investigates representations of the past, chiefly in popular culture, and especially in visual media such as film. It acknowledges the likelihood that images conveyed through film and other popular media have had a profound impact on our collective understanding of the past. Incorporating the viewpoint of postmodern criticism, the course also assumes that all interpretations of the past are provisional and weighted with the agendas of those who construct them. That history does not teach us how things actually were, but rather how some of us wish they had been, makes it all the more important to study how the histories constructed by filmmakers and other creators of visual media may have formed or influenced our collective understanding of the past.

This experimental course offers students the opportunity to seriously explore some topic or question in history, philosophy, or one of the social sciences, which has a bearing on their degree project. Students will be guided through the process of formulating a research project, identifying the relevant literature, critically reading that literature, and working out how the HPSS material (content and/or methodology) can deepen and enrich their studio practice. We'll look at some artists and designers who have made these sorts of connections and but spend most of the time in discussion of student work. Coursework will be tailored to the needs of individual participants. To obtain permission to register for the course, send an email to the instructor with the following information: your name, major, year in school (junior, senior, graduate student), and a description of (a) your studio degree project, as you currently conceive of it, and (b) the area, topic, or question in history, philosophy, or the social sciences that you want to explore.
Open to juniors, seniors, 5th year, and graduate students.

In this seminar, we will take a social geographical approach to investigating a growing trend toward the merging of art and design - and the aestheticization of everyday life - with the social, economic, political and environmental interests of global capitalism. Additionally, we will explore forces within contemporary art, design and community practice that are resisting these trends; examples include a collaborative project involving artists, scientists, landscape designers and many thousands of citizens in "the production of capital" for soil remediation; the design of gaming that specifically draws on measured and predicted effects of climate change; a performance piece that draws equally from local knowledge, public health and medical expertise; and several art and/or design works, focused on justice, that take place on local/regional levels but intervene in larger global processes. Learning and applying concepts and methodologies of social geography (the study of social relations within specific spaces and places) to these conditions will help us gain the insight and understanding needed to evaluate the roles that art, design and community practice have and will continue to play in contemporary societies.

This course is an anthropological consideration of Buddhism in its social and cultural contexts. Beginning with an introduction to the historical Buddha and the basic principles of his teaching, the course will briefly examine the main branches of Buddhism that were established after the Buddha's death. With this as our foundation, we will then look at how Buddhist principles are put into practice in different societies. The course will focus on how Buddhism (like all religions) is part of a cultural system, with distinctive characteristics and significance in different societies. The course will be run as a seminar and will require a research paper as well as in-class presentations.
Open to sophomore and above

This course explores Italian art from ca. 1350 to 1600 within a ritual framework. A ritual can be defined as a codified, solemn, event that occurs within specific temporal and spatial cadres upon occasions such as marriage, birth, death, a ruler's visit to a city ('entry'), a calamity, or a feast day. Rituals work through the display of symbolic objects [here understood as 'images'] such as statues, reliquaries, paintings, elaborate costumes, or flags for which the role of artists was primordial. The power of images resides in their ritual use: colorful paraphernalia and sacred objects flaunted in city-wide processions could ward off the plague, honor a local saint, and turn princely entries or funerals into successful events. Through their symbolic and artistic components, rituals create authority, assert identity, define social status, and maintain order in society. We will study the extant objects themselves as visual evidence for such phenomena as well as representations (in the form of paintings and prints) of ceremonies, spectacles, processions, or ritual domestic settings. We will analyze art through inter-disciplinary methodologies: material culture, anthropology, social history, and iconography. Learning about artistic conventions and traditions will guide us to evaluate to what extent works of art manipulate reality in a 're-presentation' - rather than provide a mere illustration.
Also offered as HAVC C503. Register in the course for which credit is desired.

Topics in History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences is an introductory course in which students are encouraged to develop the skills in critical thinking, reading, and writing that are common to the disciplines represented in the Department of History, Philosophy, and the Social Sciences (HPSS). Sections focus on topics typically addressed within the department's disciplines; through discussion about key texts and issues, students are introduced to important disciplinary methodologies and controversies. All sections have frequent writing assignments, which, combined with substantial feedback from HPSS faculty, afford students the opportunity to develop the strategies and techniques of effective writing.
Required for graduation for all undergraduates, including transfers. There are no waivers for HPSS-S101 except for transfer students who have taken an equivalent college course. Section 16 of this course in the spring is available ONLY for transfers and upperclassmen.