Intensive practice in writing and discussing philosophy and in applying philosophical methods to key problems raised in essays written by members of the philosophy department. The spring semester course must be taken by the end of the student's sophomore year unless the department grants a deferral or the student declares the major itself during the spring of their sophomore year. Minors are encouraged but not required to take the class. Prerequisite: Two college courses in philosophy, one of which may be taken concurrently, or equivalent. Enrollment limited to 20.

An introduction to the six classical schools of Indian philosophy. What are their views on the nature of self, mind and reality? What is knowledge and how is it acquired? What constitutes right action? Students read selections from the Upanishads, the Bhagavad-Gita, the Nyaya and Yoga Sutras, and the Samkhya-Karika, amongst others. At the end of the semester students briefly consider the relation of these ancient traditions to the views of some influential modern Indian thinkers like Aurobindo, Vivekananda and Krishnamurti.

A study of Western philosophy from Bacon through the 18th century, with emphasis on Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and especially Kant. Enrollment limited to 30.

In this class students learn two approaches for conducting neuroscience experiments in human subjects. Students first learn about ethical considerations for working in human subjects. Students then learn to collect and analyze neural data from human subjects performing behavioral tasks using functional near-infrared spectroscopy. In the second portion of the class students learn tools for processing and analyzing publicly available fMRI data. This class provides two opportunities to complete projects utilizing the tools learned to answer questions of student interest.

This course consists of laboratory investigations of neuroscience research questions linking brain and behavior. Each semester, students may take on different questions in behavioral neuroscience. Students spend the first portion of the semester learning techniques, discussing relevant articles and developing research proposals. This lays the foundation for open-ended research in the second part of the semester. Prerequisites: NSC 230 or PSY 202, and BIO 132 or a biopsychology course. Enrollment limited to 12.

In this course students journey into how sex (and where relevant, gender) can and should be considered as a variable in biomedical research, with a focus on brain function and health. The course covers how and why the sex of research subjects has historically been overlooked and how males have been considered the “default” model systems for whole species and beyond. The class discusses the dimensionality of sex as a variable, learning about sex-related factors (such as chromosomes and hormones) that impact humans dynamically.

Systems neurobiology is the study of how networks of neurons function and how these networks mediate sensation, movement and higher-order functions such as language. The development of new technologies to image the brain, measure and manipulate neural activity, and understand whole-brain patterns of gene expression means our knowledge of systems neurobiology is growing rapidly. Thus, the major goal of this class is to teach what types of questions to ask and what approaches to use to find their answers.

This course explores the pathological mechanisms and social determinants of stroke. It provides an overview of how different cells in the brain respond to ischemic injury and explores mechanisms underlying neurogenesis and repair following stroke. It takes a deep dive into the following fundamental question: can the brain be triggered to repair itself following injury? Prerequisites: NSC 210 and NSC 230. Enrollment limited to 12. Juniors and seniors only. Instructor permission required.

This course covers the current understanding of the impact of early life adversity on the brain and how this can lead to differences in cognitive and mental health outcomes. The course deeply examines different dimensions of early life adversity. Students focus mainly on studies in humans, but look to the animal literature for grounding in mechanisms.