NEXA
College of Humanities, College of Behavioral and Social Science, College of Science and Engineering, College of Creative Arts, and College of Business
(See NEXA for information on the minor program and Liberal Studies for information on the degree in the Academic Programs section)
Undergraduate Courses
200 Science and Culture (3)
Interrelationships between sciences and humanities with the evolution of western culture with contrasts and comparisons to eastern traditions. Features interdisciplinary readings, films, discussions, and guest lecturers. Recommended as an introduction to the NEXA program.
214 Second Year Written Composition: NEXA (3) [GE]
Prerequisite: ENG 114. Emphasis on the elements of composition, such as sentence structure and the organized development of paragraphs and of the whole essay. Interdisciplinary readings aimed at clarifying the interrelationships and differences among scientific and humanistic fields. Must be taken after student has completed 24 units and before completing 60 units. ABC/NC grading.
281 Mythic and Scientific Thought (3)
Ancient and modern myths are contrasted with scientific theories to investigate alternate modes of penetrating the mysteries of natural phenomena. Topics including human origin and migrations, drifting continents and purported catastrophic events are considered in the light of these divergent approaches.
327 Business and Culture (3) [GE]
Team-taught, cross-disciplinary exploration of the evolution of business theories and practices and the impact of business institutions on society and culture since the Middle Ages. Interaction between business and religion, philosophy, the arts, social institutions, and government practices.
330 The Marxian Revolution (3) [GE]
Explores relationships between nineteenth and twentieth century social and economic conditions, political theories, and literature. Readings investigate the influence of Marxian thought on representative works of poetry, drama and fiction.
331 The Feminist Revolution (3) [GE]
Prerequisite: ENG 114 or equivalent. An examination, through social science and literature, of the concept "feminist revolution," the development of feminist ideas and movements, and their impact on the public and private worlds of women and men of different races and classes in the U.S.
340 The Nuclear Revolution (3) [GE]
The physics of nuclear energy and weapons and its impact on recent experience. The nature of the nuclear danger to civilization; effects of ideology and spiritual values on nuclear policy East and West. Pacifism and humanism in the Nuclear Era.
350 Explorations of the Future (3) [GE]
Approaches include analysis of possible futures and their consequences for individuals and society. Analysis includes projected developments in physical and life sciences; utopian/dystopian literature depicting the future; brain research, artificial and extra-human intelligence; changing thought modes and world-views.
357 Science as Social Process (3)
Prerequisites: upper division standing and ENG 214 or equivalent. Effects of science on society and the ways in which scientists and their work are conditioned by social, cultural, and economic contexts; historical and contemporary controversies in science and social policy.
360 Visual World of Science and Art (3)
Visual phenomena in the natural and man-made worlds as explored through science and art. The visual mechanisms and creative processes whereby scientists and artists clarify and reconstruct reality. Impact of visual information on science, art, political and social institutions.
362 Computers in the Arts and Humanities (3) [GE]
F,S
An exploration of history of works created with, and about, computers; analysis of ways in which these works change traditional definitions of arts and humanities; and consideration of future possibilities. Class includes lecture, discussion, slide presentation, and film. No laboratory.
368 Dangerous Liaisons: The Don Juan Myth in Music and Literature (3)
Prerequisite: ENG 114. An examination of the Don Juan legend through literary, feminist, psychological, and musical representations. Included is an emphasis on female characters such as Carmen and Lulu and their dual lives in literature and music.
369 The Demonic Pact: The Faust Myth in Music and Literature (3) [GE]
An exploration of the Faust/Devil myth in music and literature from medieval times to the present emphasizing how musicians and writers converge and diverge in using the techniques of their respective disciplines to express the ideal of their age.
370 Animal Rights: A Multidisciplinary Exploration of the Issues (3)
Prerequisite: ENG 114 or equivalent. Examines the issues raised by the animal rights movement from the perspectives of the humanities and sciences. These issues include the use of animals in research, education, farming, hunting, sport, entertainment, and as pets, plus environmentalist concerns.
380 Cosmologies and Worldviews (3) [GE]
In every era, mankind has established correspondences between concepts of the universe and concepts of self and society: as above, so below. Examines the extent and implications of those correspondences in classical, renaissance, and modern cultures.
382 Time in Human Consciousness (3) [GE]
What is time? Something independent of human experience? Absolute? Relative to perspectives, change? Smoothly continuous or consisting of discrete instants? Cyclical? Linear? Does the concept of time change according to the kinds of events (geological, astronomical, biological, human, etc.) viewed?
383 The City in Civilization (3) [GE]
The idea of the city in historical and cross-cultural perspectives. The structure of ancient cities. Civitas and citizenship; specialization and innovation; art; culture; economics and government. The great cities of Renaissance Italy. The rise of the modern, industrialized city.
384 Words, Culture, and Change (3) [GE]
Interaction between language and culture is uniquely human. Explores preliterate cultures through a re-creation of their languages. Also looks at how culture (including technology, social organization, religion, etc.) shapes and is shaped by language across the ages.
386 The Freudian Revolution (3)
Emphasis on combining scientific and humanistic approaches to some of the more significant concepts of psychoanalytic thinking. Students read selections from the writings of Sigmund Freud and works of literature that mirror wide-ranging life conflicts.
387 Origins of Modern Science (3) [GE]
Revolutionary conceptual, psychological, and aesthetic changes accompanied the establishment of the heliocentric over the Ptolemaic cosmology. Study of these changes as they were reflected in religion, literature, and art as well as in philosophic and scientific thought and methodology.
389 The Darwinian Revolution (3) [GE]
Investigation of evolution as an idea in historical context. Darwin's Theory of Evolution and its impact on modern thought: science, religion, philosophy, literature, and politics. Contemporary speculations on the origins of life and their implications for biology and humanities.
390 The Einsteinian Revolution (3) [GE]
An exploration into relativity/quantum physics and literature to discover a new world of time, space, relationship, and models of observation. Relationships and convergences are sought among themes of writers and scientists.
391 Biological Sex and Cultural Gender (3) [GE]
Analysis of biological and cultural influences in the development of human gender behavior and values. Sex in individual development, biological evolution, society, and culture. Cross-cultural and historical variations in sex roles and in ideologies of sex.
392 Culture and Technology (3) [GE]
An exploration of the dialectic between technology and cultural patterns of belief, social behavior, artistic expression, and communication. Focus on the interaction between culture and technology, including current issues and future prospects.
393 Animal–Human Behavior (3)
An exploration of animal and human behavior from a biological and anthropological viewpoint. The question of continuities and gaps between animal and human behavior is stressed. Subjects include: communication, social behavior, aggression, cooperation, and competition.
394 Split Brain/Split Culture? (3) [GE]
Biological, psychological, conceptual, and cultural factors in the development of consciousness. How these are integrated in individuals and collectively within society. Examination and evaluation of dualisms such as right brain-left brain, animal-human, intuition-reason, art-science, and east-west.
397 Communication Between Humans and Other Animals (3) [GE]
Introduction to techniques used in attempting to establish communication between humans and other animals. Ethical considerations arising from evidence of "awareness" in animals are considered along with the complex semantic analyses and experimental paradigms required to demonstrate two-way communication.
398 John Steinbeck and "Doc" Ricketts: Literature and the Sea (3) [GE]
An examination of science in general, marine biology in particular, and the life and work of the pioneer environmentalist Edward F. Ricketts in relationship to the philosophical underpinnings, the literary technique, and the characters in the work of John Ernest Steinbeck.
456 Reality and the New Physics (3) [GE]
Prerequisites: ENG 114 or equivalent. Einstein believed that the physical universe should be completely describable, but he believed that quantum mechanics fails to do this. Examines changing conceptions of what physics is about and whether it can describe reality.
500 Advanced Composition and Literature about Science (3)
Reserved for students who have satisfied the upper division literacy requirement. Combines reading and discussion of outstanding literature about science with composition on these and allied subjects. Emphasis upon interpretation, research and clarity of expression.
698 Senior Project (3)
Required for and available to NEXA majors and minors only. Guided research, investigation, or scholarship, culminating in a substantial and rigorously prepared formal report or essay, to be evaluated by a three-person team of NEXA coordinators.
699 Special Study (1-3)
Prerequisites: approval of instructor and Program Steering Committee. Supervised study of a particular convergent topic selected by the student in consultation with an adviser. Prior or concurrent enrollment in a NEXA course is recommended.