This is a first year seminar designed to provide students with a faculty resource (that would be me) to help you navigate your first semester at UMass Amherst, as well as an opportunity to learn interesting human-health related molecular biology concepts in a low-stress environment. We will examine molecular and cell biology concepts related to human health and disease, and explore some ?current events? in molecular medicine.

In The Meaning of Life: Masterpieces of Russian Literature and Spiritual Inquiry, we will focus on some of the most famous short works of Russian fiction ever written ? by classic authors such as Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and Chekhov ? and discuss the ways in which each writer grapples with the Russian ?cursed questions?: Why are we here? What is a ?successful? life? What is the nature of true love? What is our moral responsibility to self and society?

Are you interested in fiction writing but don?t know where to start? In this course, students will participate in a professional-grade writer?s workshop geared for beginners. With the guidance of the instructor, an award-winning graphic novelist and ethnographic writer, they will read seminal short fiction and instructive texts and participate in group and individual writing exercises. Students will learn to talk about and analyze short fiction and will develop their own pieces through formal workshopping with peers and consultation with the instructor.

This first-year seminar offers you the opportunity to read and discuss some classic writing about human relationships with the natural world, and to make your own contribution to this literature. It also offers a chance for 50 minutes each week to improve your attention skills by turning off your cell phone, tablet, and laptop; by putting aside your personal concerns and the pressures of school; and to experience what is in front of you in the present moment.

Explore with weekly writing prompts and short creative writing assignments in journaling, memoir, short fiction, and poetry. Use personal experience, self-reflection, and observation to inform your creative expression.

Some people perceive sport fandom as a positive force for both individuals and society, while others view it as having predominately negative impact. The purpose of this FFY seminar is to gain a better understanding of sport fans, the meaning of sport in their lives, and the place of sport in contemporary society. We will compare and contrast sports fans, sport spectators, sport consumers and highly identified fans. In teams, students will have the opportunity to explore a sport fandom topic and facilitate a seminar discussion on their topic.

Have you ever wondered why people become teachers? In this class we?ll look at teachers? perspectives on what it means to be a teacher: Why they became teachers, what they view as good teaching, how they view learning and their expectations for students.

Students will understand guidelines for healthy eating and evaluate current issues and controversies in nutrition. Topics include dietary guidelines, weight loss diets, eating disorders, vegetarianism, sustainable foods, food insecurity, and other issues. Students will explore resources on campus to support healthy lifestyles along with resources for personal growth and academic development.

Art, Culture, and Literature @ UMass looks at the lively and vibrant arts and culture of UMass, including museums and galleries, rare books and manuscripts, one of America?s foremost literary magazines, innovative and historic architecture, a major international film archive, and other cultural resources on campus. The seminar will offer a history of the arts, writing, and design at UMass, and will include on-campus field trips to all the places and resources we learn about.