Fiat Lux Freshman Seminars
Spring
Quarter 2006
Art History 19, Seminar 1
St. Frida/Santa
Frida: The Art and Life of Frida Kahlo
Charlene Black
This seminar examines the art and life of Frida Kahlo (1907-1957), the
iconoclastic self-portraitist, radical political activist, feminist icon, and
suffering artist. Famous for her disquieting self-portraits, Kahlo is today the
most well-known artist of
Charlene Villaseńor Black combines her commitment to teaching with a
desire to challenge students intellectually in courses on early modern
Classics 19, Seminar 1
The
Emperor and the Slave
David Blank
How should I live? How can I
control my life in a world, which often seems to be against me? Two men of very
different backgrounds, the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius and the Roman slave
Epictetus, shared the same Stoic philosophy, and their answers to these
questions have been the subject of much interest recently. Their books are
reported to be on the bedside tables of magnates and politicians. Their
philosophy
of Stoicism has also been revived as a respectable option for the modern
philosopher. This seminar will examine the Stoicism of Marcus and Epictetus to
understand its principles and to see how satisfactory it would be as a way to
govern one's life today. Topics of particular interest will be: knowing what is
up to us and what
is not; the place of the individual and of moral responsibility in a world
ruled by fate; moral virtue
as the sole good; ethical writing and spiritual exercise.
Professor David Blank has taught at UCLA since 1980. His work focuses on
ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy, papyrology and the study of language in
Classical Antiquity.
Comparative Literature 19, Seminar 1
The Short Works
of Franz Kafka--or How the Modern World Works
Kathleen Komar
The seminar will examine the short works of one of the world's most
famous and puzzling authors, Franz Kafka. Kafka has been labeled everything
from existentialist to realist, from a mystic to a comic. Implications that
Kafka's unique perspective has for our own times. For each class, students
write three questions based on readings to help shape discussion. Reading of
several of Kafka's short fictions, including The Country Doctor, The
Metamorphosis, In the Penal Colony, An Old Manuscript, An Empirial Messenger,
Report to An Academy, and The Hunger Artist.
Kathleen L. Komar earned her BA from the
Comparative Literature 19, Seminar 2
Poets and Desire
Ross Shideler
Representations of desire in
poetry take many forms and the object of desire ranges from standard love poems
to the “ideal” that haunts Mallarmé or Yeats and Wallace Stevens. We will read
poems by 19th and 20th-century European and American poets such as: Baudelaire,
Valéry, Södergran, Ekelöf, Tranströmer, Cavafy, Eliot, H.D., and Rilke as well
as other more contemporary poets ranging from Rukeyser to Gluck and Fulton.
While, there will be an emphasis on close reading of poetry, we may read essays
that will illuminate the problem of “desire.”
Ross Shideler is a professor
of Comparative Literature who works on 19th-20th-century Swedish, French,
English and American literature. He has
published many articles, translations of plays by the Swedish author Per Olov
Enquist and of Swedish poets as well as poems of his own. His books include: Voices Under the Ground: Themes and Images
in the Early Poetry of Gunnar Ekelöf, Per
Olov Enquist: A Critical Study; and Questioning
the Father: From Darwin to Zola, Ibsen, Strindberg, and Hardy as well as
having written and edited with Kathleen Komar, Lyrical Symbols and Narrative Transformation.
Comparative Literature 19, Seminar 3
Women Warriors:
Amazons and Others from
Ancient
Katherine C. King
Using art as well as literature to look at society of Amazons as imagined
by ancient Greek cultures. Comparison examination of women warrior figures from
some other cultures, mainly through literature. Analysis of women warriors in
modern American culture through literature, film, and television.
Katherine Callen King is a professor of Comparative Literature and
Classics. She also teaches in the Women's Studies program and the Honors
Collegium. She received a Distinguished Teaching Award in 1992.
English 19, Seminar 1
Word Up: The Oral Tradition in African
American Poetry
For decades,
the oral tradition was the primary mode of literary expression for blacks in
the
Richard
Yarborough is an Associate Professor of English and a Faculty Research
Associate in the Center for African American Studies. Associate general editor
of the Heath Anthology of American
Literature, he is also the director of Northeastern University Press's Library of Black Literature reprint
series. He received UCLA's Distinguished Teaching Award in 1987, and from 1997
through 2001 he served as Director of the Center for African American Studies.
English 19, Seminar 2
Supernatural as Psychological Case Study:
Tales of Le Fanu
Frederick Burwick
Five short
stories that Sheridan Le Fanu published as In a Glass Darkly (1872) are
presented as case studies from records of Dr. Hesselius, specialist in mental
pathology. In discussing these five tales, attention is given to developments
in aberrational psychology during generations prior to Sigmund Freud, to
presumed relationship between occult phenomena and mental derangement, and to
ways in which supernatural tales mirrored psychological case study.
Frederick Burwick is an
Emeritus Professor in the Department of English. He is the author of The Haunted Eye, Illusion and the Drama, Madness and Romantic
Imagination. Professor Burwick is
currently at work on a study of cognitive psychology and the literary accounts
of apparitions and hallucinatory experience.
English 19, Seminar 3
Was Huck Gay?
Christopher Looby
Huckleberry Finn has long been recognized as one of most charismatic
figures in American literature, and his charm has seemed to many readers to be
due largely to his outsider status—the fact that he lives outside moral rules
and norms of his society. In 1993, a scholar named Shelley Fisher Fishkin published
a book called Was Huck Black?, which
proposed that Mark Twain based the character of Huck in part on a young black
boy he had known in his youth, whose verbal wit became part of Huck's appeal.
Scholar and critic Leslie Fiedler, in a famous essay entitled "Come Back
to the Raft Ag'in, Huck Honey!" (1948), argued that Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn as well as other classic American novels created "national
myth of masculine love," myth of "innocent homosexuality," and
myth of interracial male homoeroticism. This course asks the question, only
half facetiously, "Was Huck gay?"
Christopher Looby is a Professor in
the Department of English. His research and teaching is
principally in American literature of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,
as well as in gay and lesbian studies. He has a particular interest in the
historical emergence of gay and lesbian identity, and the role that imaginative
literature has played in that process. He taught at the
English 19, Seminar 4
The Queer
Frontier
Blake Allmendinger
In this course we will study films, short stories, and plays that address
the difficulties of living as a gay man or lesbian in the rural American West.
Blake Allmendinger is a full professor in the English Department who
specializes in the literature of the American West. His books include The Cowboy, Ten Most Wanted, Over the Edge,
and Imagining the African American West.
English 19, Seminar 5
Medieval Trial
by Combat: Law, Chivalry,
Theology, and
Spectacle
Eric Jager
In this seminar we will read one short historical book about a notorious
case of trial by combat in medieval
Professor Jager taught at
English 19, Seminar 6
National Poetry
Month--and Beyond!
Reed
In 1996, the
Reed Wilson teaches in the English Department and directs the
English 19, Seminar 7
The Postcolonial City
Yogita Goyal
This course examines the postcolonial city in the context of increasing
globalization and political conflict. Looking at literary and cinematic
representations of cities like
Yogita Goyal is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English. Her
research and teaching focus on African-American, postcolonial, and black
diaspora literature.
Ethnomusicology 19,
Seminar 1
Magical Sounds
from Roof of World: Music of
Helen Rees
Familiar from SUV commercials and soundtracks to films such as Kundun and
Seven Years in
Helen Rees is a specialist in the music of
Ethnomusicology 19,
Seminar 2
After the Storm:
Celebrating
Musical Heritage
Cheryl Keyes
New Orleans,
also called the Crescent City, is popularly known for its
diverse cultural blend, Mardi Gras parades, jazz funerals, just to name a few.
Unfortunately, a disastrous flood induced by Hurricane Katrina in late August 2005
disrupted the cultural flow of the
Professor Cheryl Keyes, hails from
Film
and Television 19, Seminar 1
Introduction to
Non-Fiction Film
Marina Goldovskaya
This course will introduce the students to the rapidly-developing
contemporary documentary cinema with special focus on social issues. Do films
matter? Can they make a difference? And if they can, in what way? These
questions are essential for screenings and discussions. Five films recently
created in the
Marina Goldovskaya is an award-winning documentary filmmaker
internationally renown for risk-taking films of artistic achievement and
historical significance (Solovky Power, Shattered Mirror, The Prince Is Back,
L.A. Diary with Peter Sellars, etc.). Born in
Film
and Television 19, Seminar 2
Historical
Memory: The Archaeology of
Moving Image
Archives
Steven Ricci
This course will provide an overview of the rare collections of major
moving image archives throughout the world. We will examine how to gain access
to the rarest of films and television programs; what archives do with their
collections, and how films and TV programs are either preserved or restored.
Steven Ricci maintains a joint appointment as Assistant Professor in the
Department of Film, Television, and Digital Media and the Department of
Information Studies. In 2002 he was named the founding Director of UCLA's new
graduate program in Moving Image Archive Studies. As Head of Research and Study
at the UCLA Film and Television Archive for fifteen years, he was responsible
for developing programs that widen access to the Archive's collections and
oversaw its educational publications, workshops, seminars and film
retrospectives. Professor Ricci was a member of the Executive Board of the
International Federation of Film Archives for ten years and became its
Secretary General in 2001.
Film
and Television 19, Seminar 3
Writing Exercises for Fit
Screenwriter
Harold Ackerman
In this seminar
we will study writing workouts at "screenwriters gym" designed to
stretch and develop writing and screenwriting skills.
Dr. Ackerman is Screenwriting and co area head
French 19,
Seminar 1
How Tasty Was My
Little Frenchman
Jean-Claude Carron
Title tie is borrowed from the Cannes Festival Award-Winning 1971 film by
Brazilian author Nelson Pereira dos
Jean-Claude Carron is Professor in the Department of French and
Francophone Studies. He has published books on French Renaissance poetry and on
François Rabelais, as well as articles on history of ideas, philosophy and
literature, rhetoric, poetry, dialogues, theater, Montaigne, Mallarmé, etc. He
is currently working on the history of gastronomy. The Fiat Lux seminar is
related to his interest in 16th-century philosophy and the birth of skepticism
in
Italian 19,
Seminar 1
Literary
Perspectives of the Romantic Era
Franco Betti
Against the background of European culture of the 19th century, this
seminar will focus on the origin and development of Italian Romanticism and its
bearing on the intellectual climate of the 20th century. The discussion will
center on theme of alienation of the individual from society. The authors to be
read will be Foscolo, Manzoni, Leopardi, and Verga (and time permitting,
Pirandello).
Franco Betti is a Professor in the Italian Department. A native of
Music History
19, Seminar 1
Spanish
Traditional Dances
Elisabeth Le Guin
Jotas, tirana, seguidillas, fandangos, and boleros…a survey of
traditional dance types of
Elisabeth Le Guin is Associate Professor of Musicology, and has been at
UCLA since 1997. She came to academia after an international career as a
free-lance baroque cellist, a career she continues as her teaching schedule
permits. As a scholar she is becoming increasingly interested in the history
and culture of
Anthropology 19, Seminar 1
Endangered Languages and You
This seminar treats the topic
of language endangerment by identifying a worldwide problem and examining the
possible responses which might partially rectify the situation. By some estimates, less than 10% of the world's
languages will survive beyond the present century. Global economic forces and other political
economic factors are clearly responsible for a pattern of language shift which
threatens most of the world's indigenous and sub-national languages which are
not identified with particular nation-states or which lack international
currency. But what is the human cost of
such language death both to the speakers of these languages and to us as
thoughtful world citizens? In this
seminar we will discuss what the consequences of language death are and what
can be done to provide alternatives for those communities who seek to preserve
their distinctive linguistic resources.
By examining case studies of language death and language renewal we obtain
a ground level view of the processes which lead to language death and those
that are involved with language revitalization.
This seminar will examine several different responses to the need for
revitalization including the use of so-called master-apprentice programs and
the application of media technology.
Professor Paul Kroskrity has
conducted long-term field work in two Native American communities--the Western
Mono of
Anthropology 19, Seminar 2
Why People
Believe Weird Things
Daniel Fessler
Despite the fact that more is now understood about the natural and social
worlds than ever before in the history of humanity, recent years have seen a dramatic
increase in the number of people who subscribe to beliefs that have no
scientific support, beliefs that are often structured to be antithetical to
scientific investigation. From testimonials regarding alien abductions, to
creationist accounts of life on Earth, to claims that the Holocaust never
occurred, modern society is rife with notions that fly in the face of mountains
of evidence. Why do people subscribe to such ideas? How do they structure their
understanding of facts in order to preserve their beliefs? This seminar will address
these and related questions, with an eye toward both explaining the prevalence
of anti-science in an age of science and developing the intellectual skepticism
that is the foundation for scientific inquiry.
Anthropology 19, Seminar 3
Animal
Experience: What Is It Like to Be Nonhuman?
Daniel Fessler
When people pause to reflect on thoughts, feelings, or perspectives of
animals, they typically anthropomorphize creatures, presuming that animals'
experiences are akin to their own. Importantly, although we take our experience
of the world largely at face value and assume that other people have similar
experiences, cultural anthropology has taught us that human experience is
filtered through, and shaped by, lens of one's own culture. Following the same
reasoning, we can ask to what extent our view of animals' experience is an
anthropocentric one that inaccurately maps human attributes onto animal minds.
We will be reading an autistic scholar's speculations on how animals think,
feel, and experience the world around them.
Daniel Fessler is an Associate Professor of Biological Anthropology at
UCLA. Fessler is the Director of the
Asian 19, Seminar 1
How
Jennifer Jung-Kim
Contemporary North-South relations are particularly complex because while
political tensions run high, there are numerous cultural and economic exchanges
between the two countries. Films also depict the contradictions of the
political situation and the overarching spirit of reconciliation between the
two
Jennifer Jung-Kim has a Ph.D. in Korean cultural history from UCLA. Her
dissertation examined gendered identities in the print culture of colonial
Asian 19, Seminar 2
The Korean Wave
(Hallyu) in
Namhee Lee
The Korean Wave, or hallyu, refers to the popularity and consumption of
Korean popular cultural products in East Asia, which has generated explosive
debates in academia and public cultural sphere both in and out of
Namhee Lee is an Assistant Professor of Modern Korean History in the Department
of Asian Languages & Cultures. She has completed her book manuscript on the
South Korean democratization movement and is currently working on a new
research project on public production of historical knowledge in
Community Health 19, Seminar 1
So Cosmo Says You are Fat? Well, I Ain't Down
with That: Nutrition & Body Image
Pamela Viele,
Karen Minero and Jill DeJager
This course
will examine the personal, social, and environmental factors that influence
college students' eating behaviors and body image through the lens of social
learning theory and PRECEDE model. Students learn to apply these theories in
developing an individualized plan to eat well, be active, and feel good about
their bodies. Students will also learn practical skills with application to
stress management, positive body image, and nutrition as they participate in
critical evaluation of popular diets, healthy body weights, sports nutrition,
fitness, supplements, muscle builders, media body ideals, and self-destructive
thoughts. Presentation of subject matter in academically rigorous manner, while
simultaneously promoting positive developmental outcomes.
Pamela Viele,
Ph.D., MPH, holds dual appointments at UCLA as the Director of Health Education
in the
Karen Minero,
Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist and the Assistant Director of the
Jill DeJager,
MPH, RD, is a Registered Dietitian with a background in exercise physiology and
public health. In addition to her current role as UCLA's Nutrition Education
Coordinator, she is an Adjunct Professor of nutrition at
Economics 19, Seminar 1
Napster, AIDS and Intellectual Property
David K. Levine
Controversy surrounds the
downloading of music over the internet, and the aggressive response of the RIAA
to protect their copyrights. Included in this is the lawsuit against Napster,
and more recently the bringing of lawsuits against individual music lovers.
Also controversial is the patent protection afforded AIDS drugs, resulting in
such high prices that they are unavailable in
to examine from an economic perspective to what extent modern intellectual
property law does in fact promote “the Progress of Science and useful Arts.” To
colonial conquest and the slave trade; the Africans' fight against ecological
degradation; their battle for economic, social and political justice; and the
war against AIDS.
David K. Levine is the Armen
Alchian Professor
of Economic Theory at UCLA. He is co-director
of CASSEL, co-editor of
Econometrica, co-editor
of NAJ Economics, a fellow of the Econometric Society, member of the American
Economic Association Honors and Awards Committee and member of the Sloan
Research Fellowship Program Committee. Professor Levine's current research
interests include the study of intellectual property and endogenous growth in
dynamic general equilibrium models, the endogenous formation of preferences,
institutions and social norms, learning
in games, and the application of game theory to experimental economics.
Economics 19,
Seminar
2
Winner's Curse in Common Value Auctions
Vasiliki Skreta
Exploration of
the well-known phenomenon of "winner’s curse" when people bid in
certain kinds of auctions. Winners curse occurs when a person who won at an
auction wishes he had not won. Since many other interesting phenomena have the
same basic structure as common value auctions, insights learned about auctions
in the laboratory have significance for other areas where unhappy winners are
important, such as in political contests and voting behavior, jury decisions,
and companies racing to discover and patent an invention.
Vasiliki Skreta is an Assistant Professor, University of California, Los
Angeles, PH.D., University of Pittsburgh, December 2001, MA, University of
Pittsburgh, 1999, BA, Athens University of Economics and Business, Greece,
1995; Essays in Mechanism and Market Design; Microeconomics Theory, Mechanism
Design, Auction Theory and Applications to Telecommunications and
Privatization, Microeconomic Theory, Game Theory, Contract Theory, Industrial
Organization Theory; Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota (2004)
Adjunct Consultant Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, Visiting Scholar, GKSM,
Northwestern Univ. (2001)
Economics 19,
Seminar
3
Recession,
Depression and Coordination Failure
Christian Hellwig
This course examines the problem of coordination failure by getting
students to play coordination games in the laboratory. Coordination failures in
the macro economy have long been seen as a prime cause of recessions and even
depression. Laboratory experiments now provide a valuable tool with which to
study the problem of expectational convergence that has long been suspected by
economists as underlying the ups and downs of the business cycle.
Christian Hellwig received his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics
and joined the Department of Economics at UCLA in 2002.
Economics 19,
Seminar
4
Bargaining,
Haggling and Fairness across Cultures
Naomi Lamoreaux
This course gets students to explore the nature of trust and fairness in
bargaining situations via the simple ‘ultimatum’ bargaining game. This game is
useful for exploring how self-interested individuals are in bargaining
situations (and many others). It has been conducted in many countries (rich and
poor) over the last decade with the discovery that most cultures appear to have
strong norms of fairness (the only exception are certain very primitive
cultures). That is, rigorous self-interest, even in an obviously commercial
setting like haggling, is rare.
Professor Lamoreaux holds a joint professorship with the departments of
History and Economics at UCLA, where she has been professor since 1994.
Education 19,
Seminar 1
Elementary
School Education Practicum:
Teaching in
Public Schools
Jeffrey Wood
In this seminar we will learn basic teaching techniques for working with
elementary school students. Students will get direct practical experience
applying these techniques by volunteering as teaching assistant for 1-1/2 hours
per week in a local public elementary school. Class discussions focus on
students' experiences as volunteers in classroom, educational approaches to
working with small groups of school-aged children, and general issues
pertaining to professions in the field of education. Students must get a TB
test from UCLA Arthur Ashe center a week before OR during the first week of
class. Students must reserve a 1-1/2 hour block one weekday morning per week
from 8-9:30 or 9-10:30 a.m. for a teaching practicum. Students will need to
factor in travel time to and from the school site in Westwood (1 mile from
UCLA) when planning their course schedules. Do not schedule class immediately
after volunteer tutoring times.
Jeffrey Wood is an assistant professor in the
Geography 19,
Seminar
1
Space Imaging of
Earth's Environment
Laurence Smith
Exciting new satellite technologies are now being used to study Amazon
deforestation, hurricanes, climate change, natural disasters, melting of polar
ice caps, and other dynamic phenomena. Digital images obtained by satellites
represent one of fastest growing applications in environmental science. This
seminar is an introduction to an exciting field of the space technology and its
applications for the study of Earth. Following an introductory lecture and
slide show at UCLA, we will visit NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in
Laurence Smith joined the faculty of UCLA's Department of Geography in
1996, upon completion of the Ph.D. in Earth & Atmospheric Sciences at
Geography 19, Seminar 2
Does Soccer
(Football) Explain the World?
John A. Agnew
The idea of globalization is often poorly explained and difficult to
grasp. Use of a seemingly global phenomenon, soccer, to investigate extent and
limits of globalization as involving either cultural homogenization or
increased awareness of cultural differences in the face of growing global
interconnectedness.
John Agnew is a Professor of Geography. He is English but has lived in
the
Geography 19, Seminar 3
Natural
Disaster, Place Destruction, and
Cultural Trauma
J.
Nicholas Entrikin
Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in December 2004, Hurricane Katrina
in late August 2005, and 7.6 earthquake in
J. Nicholas Entrikin is a Professor of Geography. He is the former Chair
of the UCLA Department of Geography and current Chair of the Global Studies IDP
in the International Institute. He has published articles and monographs on the
role of place and place identity on modern societies. He has been a Guggenheim
Fellow, and a Visiting Director of Research for the Centre National de la
Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in
History 19, Seminar 2
The European
Union - New Superpower?
Ivan Berend
This seminar will analyze the causes of the emergence of the European
integration after World War II; its progress from customs union via a single
market and common currency towards joint military forces. The present crisis of
overstretching and the failure of the constitution.
Ivan Berend is a distinguished Professor of History at UCLA since 1990
and Director of the Center for European and Eurasian Studies from 1993-2005. He is president of the International
Committee of Historical Sciences 1995-2000. He is also a member of the British
and five other
History 19, Seminar 3
The Romanovs:
Stephen Frank
Examination of Russian Empire's 300-year-old dynasty, focusing in
particular on the reigns of Emperors and Empresses from Peter I (the great) to
Nicholas II and collapse of the monarchy in 1917. One ruler is discussed at
each class session, with student presentations initiating discussions.
Stephen Frank is an Associate Professor of History. He received his M.A.,
Ph.D.,
B.A., State
History 19, Seminar 4
Janice Reiff
This seminar will look at how
Jan Reiff specializes in urban and social history, particularly the
history of the past century. This Fiat Lux grows out of a previous Fiat Lux
that looked at film and cities around the world and anticipates future teaching
and research interests in
Honors Collegium 19, Seminar 1
Ronni Sanlo and Suzanne L.
Seplow
The course explores the ways in which American culture is affected by
sexual orientation and gender identity issues. Topics include overview of
historical perspective, legal and political issues specifically relating to
education, sexual identity development, impact of bullying and harassment in
schools and colleges, relationship between sexual orientation discrimination
and all other forms of discrimination, how to be an ally, and impact of sexual
orientation issues on all people regardless of their sexual orientation.
Ronni Sanlo is the director
of the
Suzanne L. Seplow, Ed.D., is
a graduate of the GSEIS Educational Leadership program at UCLA. Her focus is on
maintaining living/learning communities that foster positive impacts on student
learning. She specializes in learning
communities, environmental influences and student development theory.
Honors Collegium 19, Seminar 2
How I Learned to
Stop Just Googling... and
Find the Really
Good Stuff!
Esther Grassian
Google: 42,900,000 results. This is what you get when you search HUMAN
AGING in popular Web search tool. Search on "HUMAN AGING" brings
results down to 221,000. Even with just hundreds of results, important
questions remain: Are these items accurate, complete, authoritative, and up to
date? What is their purpose and point of view? Who is the intended audience?
General web search tools find sites in "visible web." Hiding in
"invisible web" are important databases like PsycINFO
(licensed/subscription) , MLA Bibliography (licensed/subscription), and PubMed
(free), listing scholarly research materials which may support or refute what
is found through general Web search tools. Research secrets, tips, and tricks
to identify, locate, evaluate, and use quality research materials effectively
and responsibly. Supports GE cluster research papers.
Esther Grassian, MLS (UCLA, 1969), teaches Information Literacy &
Research Skills (EC 123) in the UCLA Writing Programs, as well as a graduate
course, Information Literacy Instruction: Theory and Technique (IS 448) in the
UCLA Department of Information Studies. She is also the Information Literacy
Outreach Coordinator and a reference/instruction librarian in the UCLA College
Library, where she has held various positions since 1969. Her publications
include a co-authored book, Information
Literacy Instruction:
Theory and Practice (2001), an article entitled Do They Really Do That? Librarians Teaching Outside the Classroom,
and a forthcoming co-authored book, Learning
to Lead and Manage for Information Literacy Instruction
Honors Collegium 19, Seminar 4
Black Student
Experience at UCLA
La'Tonya Rease-Miles
What are the concerns facing black students at UCLA? This course will be
a weekly, spirited discussion about social, academic, and political issues
facing black students since Proposition 209. Features invited guest speakers
from ORL, campus administration, and alumni.
Dr. La'Tonya Rease Miles received her Ph.D. in English from UCLA, where
she specialized in cultural studies and multi-ethnic literature. Her research
interests include post Civil Rights culture; the representations of black
masculinity in visual culture; and how sport and sporting institutions shape
race and gender identity. As the Director of the UCLA McNair Research Scholars
Program and AAP Mentoring Programs, she serves as an advocate for undergraduate
research. She is the first person in her family to attend a four-year
university and feels strongly connected to students with similar backgrounds.
Currently she is a Faculty In Residence for Rieber Hall.
Human
Complex Systems 19, Seminar 2
Cultural
Complexity: Espionage, Cryptology, and Psychological Operations
Nicholas Gessler
What we might more benignly call
"Intelligence, Secure Communications and Propaganda" are the senses,
thoughts, and actions of state, complex macrocosm of individuals who seek to
decipher their adversaries' will while concealing their own and imposing their
own will on target populations. So secret is this work that only now are we
beginning to see how these operations were carried out in World War II, and how
their complexity led to origins of computing. Classified dealings among nations
today will probably only become known several decades from now, when those in
power today have retired or died, when information (or disinformation) is no
longer strategic, and when details have become irrelevant to invasive
technologies of the future. We will explore the “intel,” “codes,” and “psyops”
of the “dark world” from a variety of sources. We will examine actual
cryptographic machines and related artifacts; observation and decryption of
some enciphered messages; reading reports, declassified, and captured
government documents; and study private accounts in print and on the web. We will
focus on the 20th and 21st centuries and discuss the
implications of these activities for today’s social scientists and informed
citizens.
With a
background in applied sciences and anthropology, Gessler began his theoretical
research with two decades of fieldwork in archaeology, ethno history and
culture change on the
Culture."
Management 19,
Seminar
2
Emerging Technologies
Bennet Lientz
This seminar addresses the business and managerial aspects of emerging
technologies. Examples today are 64-bit computing and RFID (Radio Frequency
Identification). Examination of topics such as development of new technology,
how a market for technology is created, barriers to entry of new technology,
development of supporting technologies, and process of implementing new
technologies. Requirements include a paper on a specific technology.
Bennet P. Lientz is the editor for the E-Business series, Academic Press.
Prior to joining UCLA in 1974, he was associate professor of engineering at the
B.A. Mathematics.
Management 19,
Seminar
3
Jing Liu
This seminar explores the implications of
Jing Liu has been an Assistant Professor of Accounting at the
Management 19,
Seminar
5 & 6
Psychology of
Investing
Shlomo Benartzi
Application of basic concepts in behavioral decision making to individual
investors in attempt to understand how individual investors make financial
decisions, what mistakes they make, and how we can apply principles of
behavioral decision making to help people make better decisions.
Dr. Shlomo Benartzi is an Associate Professor at UCLA’s Anderson Graduate
School of Management. He received his Ph.D. from
Management 19, Seminar 7
Avanidhar Subrahmanyam
This seminar seeks to familiarize students with the paradigms of modern
finance which are relevant for understanding how financial markets (such as
stocks and bonds) function. Broad topics include discounting and present
values, bond and stock valuation, corporate investment decisions, risk and
return, constructing optimal portfolios, and introduction to options and futures
markets. Balance between theoretical paradigms, empirical literature, and their
applicability to real world. Emphasis is on principles and problem solving.
Lectures concentrate on quantitative and conceptual foundations.
Dr. Subrahmanyam is an expert in behavioral finance and economics, who is
known for his path-breaking research in the use of psychological principles to
explain stock price movements. Dr. Subrahmanyam's current research interests
range from the relationship between the trading environment of a firm's stock
and the firm's cost of capital, to behavioral theories for asset price behavior
and empirical determinants of the cross-section of equity returns. Co-editor of
the Journal of Financial Markets, Dr. Subrahmanyam is the author or co-author
of numerous refereed journal articles in leading finance and economics
journals. He previously served as associate editor of Review of Financial
Studies. He is a member of the Working Research Group on Market Microstructure,
recently established by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). For
his scholarly efforts, he has received best paper awards at the Western Finance
Association meetings and was honored with the Fama-DFA prize in investments at
the Journal of Financial Economics.
Management 19, Seminar 8
Entrepreneurial
Process
Hans Schollhammer
This seminar focuses on the important aspects of starting a new business
venture with emphasis on identification of entrepreneurial opportunities as
well as challenges faced by the entrepreneur in initiating a business venture
and directing its early development. Sessions deal with the nature of
entrepreneurship, common characteristics of successful and failing
entrepreneurial ventures, the identification and validation of venture
opportunities, the development of business concept and the roles of a business
plan, new venture financing and use of alternative sources of funding,
teambuilding and staffing considerations, and marketing task in a new venture
context.
Hans Schollhammer is a professor in the Anderson School of Management at
UCLA. Besides UCLA, he has held faculty positions at the European Institute of
Business Administration [INSEAD] in
Political Science 19, Seminar 1
Media Bias
Timothy Groseclose
The course examines the extent to which
Tim Groseclose is a Professor of Political Science at UCLA. Most of his
research involves mathematical models of politics. The areas to which he most
commonly applies these models are Congress and the media.
Political Science 19, Seminar 2
Can't We Make
Moral Judgments?
Susanne Lohmann
Exploration of normative ethics (how we should reason about right and
wrong), empirical ethics (how we actually reason), and meta-ethics (how we can
ground ethics). Normative ethics includes standard ethical principles:
utilitarianism, rights, and justice-fairness. Empirical ethics relies on
evolutionary psychology (just-so stories), social psychology (experiments),
anthropology (cross-cultural differences), and history (cultural change over
time). Meta-ethics splits into two camps, realist (there are objective values)
and anti-realist (there are no objective values). The latter includes moral or
cultural relativism. Special emphasis will be placed on relationship between
religion and ethics (e.g., “if God is dead, is everything permitted?”).
Susanne Lohmann is a professor of political science and public policy,
director of the Center for Governance, and founding faculty member of the
Interdisciplinary Degree Program on Human Complex Systems at UCLA. Professor
Lohmann received her Ph.D. in economics and political economy from
Social
Welfare 19, Seminar 1
Intergenerational Communication
Across Life Span
Lené
Levy-Storms
What do you say
to engage your parents in conversation? How do you talk to your grandparents?
Does your family talk to one another well as a group? Individuals of all ages
interact with one another, and their interactions have significance throughout
their lives. This seminar aids in the understanding of nuances of interpersonal
communication as it applies across various age groups.
Lené
Levy-Storms' core research concerns communication issues between health care
providers and older adults in long-term care settings. Dr. Levy-Storms has a B.S.
degree in psychology from UC Davis, a MPH in biostatistics and PhD in public
health. From 1998-2000, she was an assistant professor in the Department of
Health Promotion and Gerontology and a fellow of the Sealy Center on Aging at
the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, TX. In 2000, she joined
the UCLA Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatrics as an assistant
professor. At that time, she also became an associate director of the
UCLA/Borun Center for Gerontological Research. She now holds a joint
appointment with Medicine and Social Welfare.
Social
Welfare 19, Seminar 2
Controversial Issues in American
Welfare State: Democracy on Trial
Ailee Moon
This course
introduces students to the issues and debates in major subject areas of
contemporary social welfare policies in the
Ailee Moon is an
Associate Professor of Social Welfare in the
Zen and the Art of Cooperation: Buddhist
Approaches to Peacemaking
This seminar examines Zen
Buddhism, not in the context of religion, but as a system of social psychology
that has evolved over 2600 years. We
will examine Zen Buddhist practices for developing cooperation and peace in
one’s self, one’s relationships, and the larger society. A key element of the seminar will be a
weekend retreat at a Zen Buddhist monastery in
The retreat will take place
in April.
Peter Kollock is a Professor
of Sociology at UCLA. His research
focuses on cooperation, trust, and risk in groups. He studies a wide range of
situations in which group members gain by cooperating but where a temptation to
behave selfishly exists, examining the factors that encourage or discourage the
emergence of cooperation, community, and trade. His recent work has
concentrated on studies of online communities and markets. He received UCLA's Distinguished Teaching
Award in 1992.
Integration and
Segregation in Baseball
in the
César Ayala
This seminar explores
baseball during 1930 to 1948, when it was segregated in the
César Ayala is an
Associate Professor of Sociology at UCLA. He is in the field of development
studies and has a regional interest in the societies of the Spanish Caribbean--
Mexican Diaspora
in the
Ruben Hernandez-Leon
This seminar will examine the dispersal of Mexican immigrant population
to uncharted destinations in the
Ruben Hernandez-Leon's research focuses on new developments of
Mexico-U.S. migration. He currently conducts work on two projects: (1) the rise
of new destinations in the
Sociology of
Cinema: Hit Movies, 1920 to 2005
David Halle
This course focuses on hit movies from 1920 to 2005. The aim is to analyze the ingredients of a
hit movie and to consider the relation between movies and the socio-political
world.
David Halle studies popular culture. His most recent book is
Making
Societies: Historical Construction of Our World
William G. Roy
The theme of this course is things that we take for granted as natural,
but which are actually historically constructed. These include perception (time
and space) and hierarchy (race and gender). The way we experience time and space,
relate to each other in terms of social characteristics, and organize our
affairs is often assumed to lie outside of social explanation, either in
physical nature, biological foundations, or human nature. This course will try
to find the social explanations for these things by probing the variation among
different societies. In doing so, it is hoped to lay bare our own society's
assumptions and learn more about ourselves.
William Roy is professor of sociology, specializing in
comparative-historical sociology. He has won teaching awards from UCLA and the
American Sociological Association and is the author of two books and numerous
articles. His current research concerns how social movements have used American
folk music to bridge racial boundaries. Past research has studied the rise of
American industrial corporations.
The Sociology of
Fatness
Abigail C. Saguy
This class will explore body fat through a sociological and
anthropological lens. Examination of the meaning of fatness in mainstream
modern American, foreign societies, and marginal subcultures.
Professor Abigail Saguy is an Assistant Professor in the Department of
Sociology. She has research interests in sociology of gender, sociology of
culture, sociology of law, and comparative sociology. She has published a book
and several articles on how sexual harassment is defined differently in the
Astronomy 19,
Seminar 2
Dark Side of the
Universe
Edward Wright
The evidence for the dark energy which dominates the total density of the
Universe will be studied by reading recent popular books about cosmology. The dark
energy causes accelerating expansion of the universe, and it could be the cosmological
constant first proposed by Einstein but later described as his “greatest
blunder”.
Edward ("Ned") Wright has been a professor at UCLA for 25
years. He has worked on the COsmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite, the
Wilkinson Microwave Anistropy Probe (WMAP), the Spitzer Space Telescope, and is
leading the development of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE).
Atmospheric
and Oceanic Sciences 19, Seminar 1
Chef of Fresh
Air: Cooking up Eco-Friendly
Personal and
Household Products
Jeffrey Lew
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reported that indoor
air pollution is much more concentrated than outdoor air pollution. This is
partly a result of various personal hygiene products, cosmetics, and household
chemicals that are used every day. Further, personal and household products can
contribute to production of smog in cities. Researching of recipes to make
inexpensive personal and household products that are easy to mix and use, and
also create less environmental pollution than their commercial counterparts.
Filming of final project: fun, hip television program in the Studio @ De Neve.
Class team writes and produces show entitled "The Chef of Fresh Air,"
and demonstrates how to make and use less-polluting products they researched.
Each student gets screen credit and copies of final program. Filming takes
place May 20, 7 p.m.-midnight.
In September 2005, Dr. Jeffrey Lew was one of four UCLA professors
profiled in the Saturday Night Magazine article, "UCLA's Can't Miss
Classes and Professors." He and his Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (AOS)
Air Pollution course were listed among the créme de la créme of UCLA's academic
scene. Dr. Lew earned his BS ('81), MS ('83), and Ph.D. ('85) in Atmospheric
Sciences from UCLA. In January 1988, he returned to UCLA to conduct research
and teach meteorology.
Dr. Lew was one of the first educators at UCLA to integrate computer technology
with instruction in order to improve general physical science education. He
currently teaches hundreds of undergraduates each year in his AOS courses. Dr.
Lew's life, as an award-winning Faculty-in-Residence (FIR) living on campus, was
profiled in UCLA Today (1/19/05).As the faculty advisor for the Video
Production Committee, a student group that produces original scripts, Dr. Lew
is involved with many aspects of student programming for resTV, the UCLA Office
of Residential Life (ORL) television station, Channel 22.
Atmospheric
and Oceanic Sciences 19, Seminar 2
Predicting the
Future:
Weather
Forecasting
Robert G. Fovell
This course will provide insight into what influences the weather at a given
place, with emphasis on how the atmosphere flows and evolves, and factors that
permit--or frustrate--our ability to anticipate changes in weather. Web-based
sources of information are used to illustrate basic guidelines involved in
weather forecasting.
Robert Fovell studies how thunderstorms are initiated and evolve using
numerical models like those employed in modern weather prediction. His hobbies
include photography and visiting national parks. He is a recent recipient of a
UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award.
Civil & Environmental Engineering 19, Seminar 1
(Seminar Canceled)
Learning from
our Mistakes: Catastrophic Failure
of Structures
through the Ages
Ertugrul Taciroglu
Engineers constantly strive to perfect their designs by careful analysis
and experimentation, and to reach new frontiers in a constant battle with the
elements of nature. This constant push, and the ever-present limitations in our
understanding of the physical world, occasionally leads to unfortunate and
catastrophic failures.
Dr. Taciroglu received a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the
in 1998. Prior to joining UCLA in 2001, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the
Center for Simulation of Advanced Rockets at the
Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology 19, Seminar 1
Parallel
Universes: Evolutionary Theory and
A Jewish
Perspective of Genesis
Eduardo Zeiger
Evolutionary theory postulates that life as we know it arose from random
mutations and natural selection over long periods of time. Judaism teaches that
God created the entire universe. Two viewpoints appear irreconcilable; in fact
it has been said that we should deal with evolutionary theory during the week
and with religion on the weekend. Surprisingly, when one looks at Genesis from a
Jewish standpoint, particularly using Kabbalistic analysis, one discovers that the
concept of evolution is central to Genesis, and that evolutionary theory and the
study of Genesis illuminate each other. In this seminar, we will explore the interpretation
of Genesis using rigorous Kabbalistic analysis, with an emphasis on
evolutionary processes.
Eduardo Zeiger is a plant biologist that studies sensory transduction in
guard cells and is the co-author of a textbook in plant physiology that has
been translated to ten languages. As an observant Jew, he is interested in the
interface between science and Judaism (see www.torahscience.org)
Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology 19, Seminar 3
Can We Save
Biosphere, or at Least Some of It?
Malcolm Gordon
Discussion of possible strategies and tactics that we, as individuals and
as members of society, may be able to use sustainably to protect, preserve, and
use what remains of the Earth's biosphere. Background readings and recent
current events are used as springboards for discussions. Issues may include
environmental, socio-political, and economic impacts of increasing human
populations, habitat destruction (planned and unplanned), management of
non-renewable and renewable resources, exotic and invasive species, threatened
and endangered species, and other relevant issues of interest.
Professor Gordon is a marine biologist, fish physiologist, and
environmentalist. He is actively concerned with the future of life on earth. He
tries to contribute to possible improvements, if not solutions, to
environmental issues through his teaching, his research, and his involvement
with both governmental and non-governmental programs and projects. He is a
co-founder and faculty member in two UCLA environmental programs: the
Environmental Science and Engineering doctoral program (
Honors Collegium 19, Seminar 3
How I Learned to
Stop Just Googling... and
Find the Really
Good Stuff! (Sciences
Focus)
Dominique Turnbow
Google: 42,900,000 results. This is what you get when you search HUMAN
AGING in popular Web search tool. Search on "HUMAN AGING" brings
results down to 221,000. Even with just hundreds of results, important
questions remain: Are these items accurate, complete, authoritative, and up to
date? What is their purpose and point of view? Who is the intended audience?
General web search tools find sites in "visible web." Hiding in
"invisible web" are important databases like PsycINFO
(licensed/subscription) and PubMed (free), listing scholarly research materials
which may support or refute what is found through general Web search tools.
Research secrets, tips, and tricks to identify, locate, evaluate, and use
quality research materials effectively and responsibly. Supports GE cluster
sciences-oriented research papers.
Dominique Turnbow, MLIS, is the Reference & Instruction Coordinator
at the UCLA Biomedical Library. She teaches various library classes in the
health and life sciences. Her research interests include Information
Architecture and Information Literacy assessment. She has presented her
research at various events such as the Learning Conference (an international
educator's conference), The American Society for Information Science &
Technology, and SCIL (Southern California Instruction Librarians, a subdivision
of the American Library Association).
Mechanical
& Aerospace Engineering 19, Seminar 1
Energy and the
Environment
Anthony Mills
This seminar will address one of the most critical problems facing state,
nation, and world in the 21st century--that is, conflicting demand of adequate
energy supply and protection of the environment. Students will be given opportunities
to investigate and discuss a broad range of current and potential energy
sources, as well as their impact on the environment and potential methods for
mitigating degradation of the environment. Students will discuss quantitative
assessments of various issues that have potentially different
viewpoints/conclusions, allowing students to gain accurate and practical
viewpoints. In addition, career opportunities and required education will be discussed.
Anthony Mills is a Professor in the department of Mechanical and
Aerospace Engineering. He earned his Ph.D. at UC Berkeley, 1965. He has been at UCLA from 1966 – present.
Medicine 19,
Seminar
1
Doing Better and
Feeling Worse? Issues in
David Schriger
The paradox of the
David Schriger, MD, MPH, is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at UCLA
where he has taught and practiced since 1989. He is an editor of Annals of
Emergency Medicine. His research interests include the biased reporting of
medical research and the understanding of how patients and physicians understand
risk.
Microbiology,
Immunology, & Molecular Genetics 19, Seminar 1
Bacterial
Superbugs: What They Are and
Why They Are So
Scary!
Robert Simons
We have all heard and read about flesh-eating, antibiotic-resistant
strains of bacteria that seem to defy modern medical treatment and threaten our
lives. But what are these little beasts? Where do they come from, how common
are they, and how much should we be worried about them? In this seminar we will
try to answer these and related questions; separation of fact from fiction, and
genuine concern from hysteria.
Robert Simons is a faculty member in Microbiology, Immunology and
Molecular Genetics (within the
Microbiology,
Immunology, & Molecular Genetics 19, Seminar 2
Bird Flu: What
Is It? Is It Dangerous?
A brief description of what a virus is, followed by how human influenza virus
infects our cells. How human influenza and avian influenza differ in their
attachment to cells, and what this means for potential human infection.
Lawrence Feldman is a faculty member in Microbiology, and a co-chair of
Foundations of Medicine II, for second year medical students. He teaches half
of MIMG 102, a class of some 250 juniors in his department. His research
focuses on herpes viruses and on influenza virus.
Nursing 19,
Seminar 1
Who Wants to
Live to 100? Aging in the 21st Century
Janet Mentes
This seminar will explore what is currently known about human aging and
longevity and put it in the context of personal and family aging concerns. We
will tackle questions such as, when are we old? It is fine to grow old, but do
I have to get sick? What about antiaging medicine? How can I plan for my
parents or my own aging? By the end of the quarter, students will have an
appreciation of aging trends, stereotypes, common illnesses and strategies for
healthy aging.
Dr. Mentes is a nurse researcher and practitioner specializing in
gerontology. She has taught aging coursework to nursing and social science
students for 20 years. Her exploration of and personal experience with aging
have led her to the belief that healthy aging begins much earlier than age 65.
Health and personal habits that are developed over a lifetime can affect
personal aging and it is never too early to plan for a healthy old age.
Nursing 19,
Seminar 2
Heart Disease:
It's All in Your Mind
Mary A. Woo
Overview of mind/brain-heart interactions in the development and
progression of heart disease. Discussions emphasize both the psychological and
physiological relations between the brain and the heart, and pharmacologic and
non-pharmacologic interventions. Brief presentations by instructor and other
investigators of UCLA research on brain-heart interactions (immune function,
brain imaging studies, and psychosocial evaluations) in patient populations
with, or at high risk for, cardiac disease.
Mary Woo is an Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Research at the
UCLA School of Nursing. Her research emphasis is on brain-heart interactions in
sudden death in heart failure. Data collection techniques include heart rate
variability, sleep, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and autonomic
nervous system testing in cardiac disease. She also performs psychosocial
evaluations (depression, anxiety, and cognition) in her research. She is
currently funded to evaluate the relationship between gray matter loss on brain
MRI and autonomic nervous system function in heart failure.
Physiological
Science 19, Seminar 1
On Human Nature:
The Evolution and
Future of Human
Animal
Alan D. Grinnell
This course will be based on careful reading and discussion of seminal
books by two of the most profound thinkers in the field of human evolution and
behavior: The Third Chimpanzee, by Jared Diamond, and On Human Nature, by E. O.
Wilson. Topics to be covered will include methods of tracing evolutionary
relationships between animals; the “giant leap forward” that separated man from
other animals; strangeness of human sexuality and life cycles; development of
language, art and religion; the explanations for dramatically different rates
of cultural development on different continents; the collapse of human societies;
and the degree to which human behavior is genetically determined.
Dr. Alan Grinnell, is a Professor of Physiology and Physiological
Science, and a neurobiologist with interest in the neurobiological bases of
behavior and mechanisms of evolution.
Physiological
Science 19, Seminar 2
Shall We Dance?
How Brain Controls Movement in Health and Disease
Scott Chandler
When we get up to dance, shake someone's hand, or perform most movements,
our brain performs flawlessly allowing us to perform our task. However, as
result of injury to the brain or spinal cord, or genetic defect, such movements
are difficult or impossible to perform. In this seminar, we will investigate how
the brain controls movements during health, and disease states.
Dr. Chandler is a professor of Neuroscience in the department of
Physiological Science. He is current Chair of the Undergraduate Neuroscience
Interdisciplinary Program. He has received a number of distinguished teaching
awards. His current research focuses on how the nervous system is organized to
produce rhythmical movements such as mastication, locomotion or breathing. He
is an avid sports and nature photographer.
Physics 19,
Seminar 2
Energy in Modern
Society: Now and in the Future
Michael Jura, Jim McWilliams and Ben Zuckerman
This seminar will examine the central role of energy in modern society
for such purposes as transportation, communications, heating and cooling, and
generation of electricity. We will characterize the basic sources of energy
including fossil fuels. We will address the impact of energy use on the environment
and discuss global warming. We will discuss future strategies for obtaining
energy as we deplete our fossil fuels and/or overheat the planet.
Professor Jura has been at UCLA since 1974. His current research is
directed toward understanding other solar systems with the long-term goal of
learning whether there is life on other planets.
Professor McWilliams focuses his research on the fluid dynamics of the
Earth's ocean and atmosphere, but he also investigates stars and galaxies. He
is active in scientific assessments of human modifications of climate and the
biosphere.
Professor Zuckerman has developed and taught courses on "Life in the
Universe" and "The 21st Century: Society, Environment, Ethics".
He has co-edited six books including, Extraterrestrials,
Where Are They?, The Origin and
Evolution of the Universe and Human
Population and the Environmental Crisis.
Psychology 19, Seminar 1
Psychological Trauma and its Effects on
Mental and Physical Health
Thomas
Minor
Unexpected, uncontrollable
aversive life events can have serious emotional side-effects that adversely
impact our interactions with others, as well as our physical health. This seminar provides an overview of psychological
and biological reactions to trauma, including changes in brain, endocrine, and
immunological function. Psychological
interventions that mitigate the impact of and facilitate recovery from trauma
will also be discussed.
Thomas
Minor is a Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience. .His research is in the field of biological
psychiatry with a focus on psychological, neurobiological, and neuroendocrine
reactions to traumatic life events and how to alleviate related behavioral
disorders. He has published numerous
research articles on the psychobiology of helplessness, anxiety, and
depression.
Psychology 19, Seminar 2
Carlos V. Grijalva
We all have our perceptions
and misperceptions of what “stress” is and the impact that different
experiences have on our lives. This
seminar is intended to gain a better understanding of “stressors” in our lives
and the impact they can have on mental and physical health. The causes and
symptoms of stress will be examined and stress management techniques will be
highlighted.
Carlos
V. Grijalva is a professor of behavioral neuroscience in the Department of
Psychology. He
has been on the faculty since 1982, and has taught both undergraduate and
graduate courses in behavioral neuroscience, and on the psychobiology of
emotion
and stress. He served as Associate Dean in the Division of Honors and
Undergraduate Program,
Psychology 19, Seminar 3
What Children
Know About Gender and
Racial
Stereotypes
Christia Brown
Although we often assume children are "color-blind" and treat
everyone equally regardless of race, ethnicity, or gender, that is far from the
truth. In this seminar, we will discuss psychological research on what children
actually think about these important social groups. We will also discuss how
stereotypes can negatively affect children's academic performance (and what
college students can do to ensure their own performance is not negatively
affected by stereotypes). Finally, we will evaluate the effectiveness of
interventions aimed at reducing prejudices in children.
Professor Brown is an Assistant Professor in the Department of
Psychology. She earned her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at The University
of Texas at
Psychiatry
& Biobehavioral Sciences 19, Seminar 1
I'm All In!
Timothy Fong
The rise in popularity and acceptance of legalized gambling has made it the
most profitable form of entertainment in
Dr. Fong is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the UCLA
Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital. Dr. Fong completed his undergraduate
and medical schooling at
Psychiatry
& Biobehavioral Sciences 19, Seminar 2
Drug Abuse and
Addiction: Why Things
That Feel So
Good Can Be So Bad
Thomas Newton
Addiction is a complex social, psychological, and biological phenomena. In
this course we will examine briefly what is meant by the term addiction, how
addiction is studied using animal models, and how these models may be relevant
to understanding clinical aspects of addiction.
Dr. Newton is a professor and psychiatrist specializing in research into
the neurobiological basis of addiction and its treatment. He has extensive
experience conducting research using animals, and is currently applying
insights learned from animal studies to research involving humans.
Statistics 19, Seminar 1
Data
Mining: Finding Knowledge in a
Hongquan Xu
Data mining is an
emerging field on the interface between artificial intelligence (machine
learning) and statistics. The goal is to discover hidden facts contained in
large databases. Application areas include marketing and sales, finance and
credit industry, pharmaceutical research and development, manufacturing, and
scientific research. In this seminar, we will study the introduction to data
mining concepts, methods, and applications. Data mining techniques such as
classification, clustering, association rules, decision trees, and statistical
modeling are also introduced.
Hongquan Xu
joined the UCLA Department of Statistics as an Assistant Professor in July
2001, after getting his Ph.D. in Statistics from
Statistics 19, Seminar 2
Hold'em
or Fold'em: Poker and Probability
Frederic Paik Schoenberg
Fundamental concepts of elementary
probability theory and statistics, which are useful in a very wide variety of
scientific applications. Students learn basic foundations of probability,
including axioms of probability, addition and multiplication rules, conditional
probability, expected values, and combinatorics. Discussion of important
statistical concepts such as standard deviation, law of large numbers, central
limit theorem, simulation, standard errors, and confidence intervals. All of
these topics, which are broadly applicable in the sciences, are motivated by
examples of situations and concepts that arise naturally when playing Texas
Hold'em, a game of strategy and chance whose complexity is surprising and whose
popularity is rapidly increasing.
Frederic Paik Schoenberg is an Associate
Professor of Statistics at UCLA. He earned his Ph.D. from UC Berkeley in 1997
and specializes in point processes and their applications in the environmental
sciences.