From the Italian word, "sonetto," meaning "little song," the sonnet is among the oldest, strictest, and most easily recognizable inherited poetic forms. In this intermediate poetry workshop, students will read, closely study, and practice drafting and revising a variety of different sonnets-Shakespearean, Petrarchan, Spenserian, and variations thereof. As this workshop level is intermediate, participants will be expected to possess a working knowledge and practice of foundational techniques of poetry.

This course, building on a renaissance in game development, will use a variety of games to explore concepts from several fields of mathematics, nearly all of which are pertinent to the study and management of complex systems. We will play games. We will identify and analyze key concepts and structures within those games. We will use that analysis to improve our game playing. Then we will turn that same analytical lens onto the real world. Throughout the course, we will see that the dynamics and concepts that appear in our games (e.g.

With the dramatic increase in data availability, it is not uncommon to be working with a data set which has far more variables than samples. This is particularly true for ecological data sets, but examples can be found in all scientific fields. This course will teach various multivariate analysis methods designed for exploring high-dimensional data sets and testing related hypotheses. Many of the techniques will use non-parametric, permutation-based algorithms which are simultaneously simple and effective. All skills learned in the course will be applied to real data sets.

Music, art and mathematics share a deeply creative and aesthetic core. They all involve exploring reality within the confines of a created set of rules, and they all hold the potential to reveal powerful truths about the nature of the world, the universe, and human consciousness. The book Godel, Escher, Bach is an intellectual tour-de-force that explores the relationships between these three areas while at the same time drawing connections to many other fascinating topics such as genetics, Zen Buddhism, and artificial intelligence.

"Listening" occupies a special place in Japanese cultures. Whether it be in the haiku poetry, religious ceremonies, political protests, or mundane activities, listening enables people to transcend spatiotemporal boundaries, connect with the invisible and intangible, and engage in the world and the self in a deeper philosophical consciousness.

In this course, students will learn the fundamental principles of digital photography, encompassing the art of capturing, processing, and digitally printing images. The class integrates hands-on labs to gain a comprehensive understanding of digital photographic equipment, materials, and techniques. Through engaging discussions and in-depth critique sessions, students will cultivate their ability to analyze and articulate their thoughts on the creative process of image-making.

Animal migrations are a core component of ecosystem functioning and connectivity. Movement of animals across different habitats transfers nutrients, modulates disease processes, and supports dynamic food webs. In this course, we will review and discuss current literature describing animal migrations across terrestrial, marine, and aquatic habitats. Students will learn about the role of animal migration in local and regional ecology and the behaviors that contribute to coordinated movements of populations.

Coasts are on the front lines of climate change, experiencing firsthand the effects of increasing sea level, storm severity and frequency, and ocean temperature and acidification. Human and animal communities that occupy coastal habitats are almost certainly or soon-to-be affected by climate change. ??In this course, students will examine coastal change through a transdisciplinary lens. We will review examples of successful and unsuccessful mitigation strategies and the co-development of climate action plans, with a focus on partnering with Indigenous peoples.

The maple syrup industry is a cornerstone of New England's agricultural heritage and economy: connecting ecology, climate, and culture through one of the region's most iconic forest products. The practice of maple harvest has even deeper and earlier roots in Indigenous cultures of the Northeast. In Agricultural Practicum: Maple Sugaring, students will participate in reviving the campus maple enterprise, including assessment of the existing sugarbush, identifying and tapping trees, collecting sap and managing the boil in final syrup production.

Many people think of history as an authoritative account of the past, based on indisputable facts. Historians, however, understand it as an evolving interpretation: debate. They argue not just over the interpretation of facts, but even over what constitutes a fact. What happens in the age of "fake news" and "alternative facts"? What is the difference between debating why the Holocaust happened vs. claiming it never happened? Whether Vikings came to America vs. extraterrestrials built the pyramids? Did women have a Renaissance? How did French peasants understand identity?