This course is designed as an introduction to the immune system. Our goal is to understand the basic elements of the immune system and the mechanisms by which these elements protect us from infectious agents, growth of tumors and other pathologic conditions. The overview design of the course will not preclude us from exploring a few areas in depth and students will also have an opportunity to dig deeply into an area of their choosing when writing papers and doing group presentations. We will stress the experimental basis of each concept we discuss.

NS 248 is an introduction to the principles and practice of epidemiology and the use of data in program planning and policy development. The course covers the major concepts usually found in a graduate-level introductory course in epidemiology: outbreak investigations, study design, measures of effect, internal and external validity, reliability, and causal inference. Assigned readings are drawn from a standard textbook and the primary literature.

With humans as our primary model system, we will cover cellular and general tissue physiology and the endocrine, nervous, cardiovascular, digestive, respiratory, and renal organ systems. Primary emphasis is on functional processes in these systems and on cellular and molecular mechanisms common across systems. Students will engage in class problems, lectures, and reading of secondary science literature. Basic knowledge of and comfort with biology, chemistry, and math is necessary.

This course is an introduction to the structure, properties, reactivity, and spectroscopy of organic molecules, as well as their significance in our daily lives. We will first lay down the groundwork for the course, covering bonding, physical properties of organic compounds, stereochemistry, and kinetics and thermodynamics of organic reactions. We will then move on to the reactions of alkanes, alkyl halides, alcohols and ethers, alkenes, and alkynes, emphasizing the molecular mechanisms that allow us to predict and understand chemical behavior.

Physics II is a calculus-based physics course that covers thermodynamics, statistical mechanics and electromagnetism at a basic level. Project-like labs look at the thermodynamics of Nitinol, building circuits with operational amplifiers and measuring environmental electric fields.

This is a continuation of Chemistry I: the principles and concepts examined during the previous term will be expanded and applied to more sophisticated systems. Topics will include chemical thermodynamics, nuclear chemistry, chemical equilibrium, acid-base equilibria and their applications, complex ion equilibria, and solubility, oxidation-reduction reactions, electrochemistry, and reaction rates. We will also emphasize application of those chemical principles to environmental, biological, industrial and day-to-day real-life situations. Problem sets will be assigned throughout the semester.

All life requires water to survive. Where do we get our water? Where does it go? Will there always be enough? How can we manage our water resources to ensure there is enough? What policies affect these decisions? This course explores these topics using a systems approach to gain an understanding of how our water resources are intimately tied with the surrounding ecosystem. Topics include the water cycle, hydrologic budgets, urban stormwater management and low impact development.

Stress is a daily part of our lives that has become an intense subject of interest among scientists and the medical community. The body's responses to stress are linked to multiple health problems, but stress can also be overused as an explanation. In this course, we will examine the scientific evidence for the links between stress and human health issues such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and depression. This will include readings of primary scientific research papers and coverage of basic physiological mechanisms in humans and other animals.

Environmental conflict in the Anthropocene How do you respond when someone asks you, "Is climate change real?" "Is sea-level rise real?" "Is 'fracking' really that bad?" The past century has been marked by a myriad of environmental changes. Understanding the causes and consequences of these changes within a scientific framework is important to being part of an engaged global citizenry.

It is estimated that greater than 99% of the approximately one billion different species of microorganisms on Earth remain uncultivated in the laboratory and therefore mostly unknown. This vast bacterial diversity poses a major challenge for microbiologists to understand their ecological significance and role in the biosphere. Although these organisms are sometimes referred to as "unculturable" recent advances in biotechnology and creative thinking about culturing techniques has begun to shed light on this mysterious majority.