GABA receptors are the most common inhibitory neurotransmitters in the vertebrate nervous system. They are bound by a variety of drugs, including alcohol and benzodiazepines. How GABA receptors are expressed and regulated continues to be of great interest to the medical and scientific community. Additionally, identifying and designing new drugs that bind GABA receptors could be very useful in treating psychiatric illness. This course will include an introduction to scientific literature and writing. We will focus on reading and discussing the GABA receptor literature.

Video is one of the most powerful mediums today for educating, inspiring, and influencing others. In this project-based learning class, students will learn how to use the free equipment available at the UMass Amherst Library Digital Media Lab to create professional quality videos about a social issue of interest (e.g., fake news, homelessness, school to prison pipeline, student debt, public health, air pollution, deforestation).

Water is one of the basic elements needed for life systems to exist and survive. While it is abundant in supply, it is not always available where it is needed. This course will cover concepts and issues related to water resources through regional and global ecosystem perspectives.

There are many pathways to success in college and we encourage students to map out their own way to get there. This class will help incoming students define their individual goals and connect them to the resources needed to achieve them. It will also help students understand the vital nature of the fields within social and behavioral sciences and how SBS majors, and a range of other options at UMass, can open many doors.

There are many pathways to success in college and we encourage students to map out their own way to get there. This class will help incoming students define their individual goals and connect them to the resources needed to achieve them. It will also help students understand the vital nature of the fields within social and behavioral sciences and how SBS majors, and a range of other options at UMass, can open many doors.

Contemporary short fiction provides a striking opportunity for readers to reflect upon, deepen, and see in prismatic clarity ourselves and our time. It also has the potential to haunt, inspire, challenge, and amuse us. In this class, we will critically analyze a broad scope of short stories from a diversity of perspectives. We will discuss such concepts as character, setting, plot, irreality, estrangement, mood, difficulty, and the politics of representation.

Hip Hop is a cultural form cultivated from evolving Black and African aesthetics drawn from ancestral expressions of culture and spirituality. For many in the United States, Hip Hop appears to be simply a pop culture phenomenon with limited representations associated with the culture and often consumed through corporate mass media. Despite its contemporary role in modern pop culture in the United States and beyond, the roots of Hip Hop connect to a profound history of struggle and resistance to oppression.

The 21st century is known as the Century of the City, with more than 70% of the world?s population expected to be urban by mid-century. This trend towards global urban living is unprecedented in human history and presents profound challenges to meet sustainability goals. This seminar will consider the implications of meeting human needs in cities from an urban planning and design perspective. The seminar will involve weekly readings, in-class discussions, brief instructor presentations, and optional papers for a letter grade.

Fifty percent of Americans believe it is at least somewhat important for food to be produced in a sustainable way. What exactly does this mean? How can specific agricultural practices and food production/processing methods impact the sustainability of our food? What are the different components of a sustainable diet? These are just a few of the questions we will address in this course as we explore the controversies and solutions associated with sustainable diets and food production.