Science in the modern world from the Enlightenment to the Cold War. Key scientific issues of the modern age, the social organization of science, the place of the scientific community in larger social and cultural context, and the expanding relationship between science and modern technology. (Gen.Ed. HS)

Survey of social, political and cultural change in the Middle East from the rise of the Ottoman Empire around 1300 to the present. Topics include the impact on the Middle East of the shift in world trade from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic; social, political, and cultural change; Ottoman and European relations; imperialism and revolution; World War I and the peace settlement; state formation; and the rise of nationalism and religious fundamentalism. (Gen.Ed. HS, DG)

An historical, cross-cultural, and interdisciplinary approach to the study of families in America. We will examine the histories of various groups, exploring how these experiences have resulted in different family dynamics. We will then take up the question of the continuing relevance of race, ethnicity, and social class to families in America today and to the discussion of family in American politics. (Gen.Ed. HS, DU)

In this course we search for the structure and enduring organization of college sports. We look for the development of college athletics that produced yesterday and today highly paid coaches, great fan enthusiasm, endless national media attention, and the opportunity for scandal and corruption. We search for the organic link that has bound intercollegiate sports to American higher education for over a century. This requires knowledge about what we were and what we have become. It is much easier to learn about what we have become than it is to learn about what we were.

We are now living in the throes of the "Arab Spring" and the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression. This General Education IE course seeks to integrate students' contemporary understanding of these events against the backdrop of analogous moments in world history over the past three centuries. The core mission of the course is to examine why economic underdevelopment, in combination with weak or dependent state formations, often induces popular instances of rebellion and revolution in the modern era.

This workshop provides students with a foundation on emerging methods in digital and public history -- such as geo-mapping and the online exhibition of historical source materials. Class activities and assignments will include both digital components and field experiences around Amherst and the surrounding area.

This course traces the history of Mexican society, politics, and culture from the late 18th century to the present. The first half analyzes the turbulent formation of Mexico, the legacies of Spanish colonialism, peasant uprisings of the 19th century, and the origins and course of the famous Revolution of 1910.

This class is designed to help students prepare for life after the BA by acquiring important professional skills and perspectives. The class will explore a variety of subjects, including what qualifications history majors bring to the job market, the importance of internships and networking, customizing resumes and cover letters, job and internship search strategies, and interviewing skills.

This class explores the long and contentious relationships between the United States and the Latin American nations. It focuses on the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, analyzing the Spanish-American war, upheaval in Central America in the 1920s, the place of Cuba within the growing informal U.S. empire, trade relations with the South American nations, the impact of the Cold War on the hemisphere, the role of the CIA in destabilizing and overthrowing popularly elected government, and the U.S.

This course examines the history of the interaction of humans with the natural environment of North America since European settlement. We will examine how Americans acted to shape their environment over the past four centuries, as well as how they perceived the environment. The fundamental premise of the course is that how Americans have acted to shape their environment has been a consequence of their perceptions.