Why do we sleep? We spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping, yet we still don't fully know the answer to this question. This course will cover topics including the functions of sleep, sleep stages and dreaming, consequences of sleep loss, how sleep changes across the lifespan, and more! Students will learn how sleep is studied scientifically and how healthy sleep habits can benefit them throughout college.

We are all surrounded by plants every day, the food we eat from our plates, the flowers in backyard and fruits in orchids. Let us look at plants in a revolutionary way and understand how they get nutrients, trap insects, compete with each other and have sex. In this seminar course, we will look into photosynthesis, plant toxins, carnivorous plants, flower colors and other plant related topics from a more scientific perspective. You will enjoy cool photos and videos, exciting research paper and a field trip to Durfee Conservatory in our learning journey!

From the beginning of agriculture to hotdogs and Oreos, what are we actually eating and why? Grocery stores and restaurants provide us with an abundance of options, but should we be eating what they provide? In this class, we will go over how the human diet has changed over the past 10,000 years and how this has impacted science, society, and technology. We will mostly focus on modern food topics including food myths, GMOs, food policy, and the environmental impacts of agriculture. To accomplish learning goals, we will have a variety of interactive in-class and take home assignments.

There is extreme controversy surrounding the subject of climate change. The topic is presented in the media as either a 'hoax' or as the most important issue humanity will face in the coming years. This course will explore aspects of past, present, and future climate change across a range of timescales. First, we will discuss Earth's climate as an interconnected system. We will examine how the climate has responded to natural variability in the past and delve into some of the most extreme climate fluctuations in Earth's history.

Have you ever wondered how the universe came into being, what kind of stuff is it made of, where did that stuff come from, and how does it change over time? In this course, we will explore these and many other profound and mind-expanding questions by examining cosmology as a science and exploring topics such as the Big Bang, the expansion of the Universe, Dark Matter, and Dark Energy.

Wildfire is a hot topic that has gained a lot of negative press, but did you know that fire is a vital component in many of Earth's ecosystems? In this seminar we will explore the fundamentals of fire ecology as well as people's perception of and influence on wildfire. As a class we will discuss the past, present, and future of fire on Earth. Students will debate topics related to wildfire and will be encouraged to sharpen their critical thinking skills by investigating an area of wildfire research that they find most interesting.

Population ecology, the dynamic study of how and when species populations grow and shrink, informs our interpretation of our social and ecological world. In this discussion-based seminar, we will explore classic, quirky, and current examples of population ecology and the stories behind them. Can we eat invasive species to control them? Have Texan panthers helped Florida's panthers? Why exactly did the mammoth go extinct? Will human populations continue to skyrocket? Observation, analysis, inference, and curiosity are all central to scientific inquiry.

In this seminar, students will examine texts and works of art that have profoundly shaped the world we live in. The course is divided into four units: Models of Inquiry; the Impact of Science and Technology; Social Philosophy and Civic Engagement; and Art in the World. The course is supplemented with a plenary lecture by a distinguished honors faculty speaker.

In this seminar, students will examine texts and works of art that have profoundly shaped the world we live in. The course is divided into four units: Models of Inquiry; the Impact of Science and Technology; Social Philosophy and Civic Engagement; and Art in the World. The course is supplemented with a plenary lecture by a distinguished honors faculty speaker.

In this seminar, students will examine texts and works of art that have profoundly shaped the world we live in. The course is divided into four units: Models of Inquiry; the Impact of Science and Technology; Social Philosophy and Civic Engagement; and Art in the World. The course is supplemented with a plenary lecture by a distinguished honors faculty speaker.