Natural Science 0124 - HIV/AIDS: 30 Years Later

When the HIV virus was first identified as the cause of AIDS, people never imagined there would still be no cure 30 years later. In this seminar, we will read about the milestones of HIV research and discuss why finding a cure or vaccine has proven to be very difficult. Students can expect to learn about the life cycle of the HIV virus, methods of transmission, current tools for research, and social and political issues associated with the epidemic. We will examine different approaches to studying HIV and assess what is still unknown about its biology. At the end of the course, students will use what they have learned to develop their own ideas for curing AIDS.

Physical and Biological Sciences Writing and Research Independent Work Multiple Cultural Perspectives In this course students are generally expected to spend at least 6 to 8 hours a week of preparation and work outside of class time.