Problems in human experience and behavior in the social context; theories and current methodology in research on the influences of the group on cognitive processes, motivation, personality structure and the self; attitudes and prejudice; leadership; grouped processes.

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the mental changes that take place from birth across the lifespan. Major themes will include theories of cognitive development and research in the development of perception, memory, problem solving and reasoning, language, social cognition, intelligence, and the role of culture and context in cognitive development.

The aim of this course is to introduce you to the biological and physiological aspect of the science of Psychology. Biopsychology is the subarea of Psychology that takes a biological approach to understanding behavior. Biopsychologists study the biological events- genetic, neural, endocrine- that underlie each and every one of our thoughts, feelings, and actions. This course will explore what is currently known about the biological basis of emotional responses, mental illness, sexual behavior, memory, states of consciousness, sensory perception, thought and language, and several neurological disorders.

This course will provide an introduction to the principles of psychological assessment, major methods of measuring general ability, aptitude, achievement, interest, and personality and appraisal of psychological tests.

A survey of theoretical issues and empirical research on human cognition including attention, perception, memory, representation of knowledge, language, and problem solving.

Apply and extend statistical knowledge and data analytic skills by tutoring students in PSYCH 24800 and serving as a teaching assistant forthe course. Weekly seminar meetings provide training and support. Students prepare and give statistical presentations, write homework problems, help in computer labs, and evaluate homework problems or lab assignments.

Research and general experimental techniques in study of behavior. Introduction to the principles of research methodology and experimental techniques. Required research reports involve a variety of laboratory exercises related to the study of basic behavioral processes.

Analysis and interpretation of quantified data. Descriptive and inferential statistics applied to psychological research.

This course reviews theory and research on personality- the unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behavior that come together to form an individual. We will explore the different perspectives psychologists have used to understand personality, examine how personality is measured, and discuss the usefulness of different perspectives on personality for understanding our everyday lives.

Consideration of psychological abnormalities; symptoms, etiology, diagnostic procedures and therapy.

Psychological foundations, sexual development and response patterns; male and female roles; individual and social attitudes, legal issues.

How does light energy falling on the back of our eye get interpreted as a particular image of our friend or a painting or a leaf? How does a cockroach escape imminent predation by a toad? How does a slug remember that a recent poke wasn't dangerous? How do we remember? A rigorous consideration of general principles of neural integration at the cellular, sensory, central, and motor levels of organization serves as the groundwork for an examination of such questions of integration. Then we apply those principles to particular systems including: locust flight, cockroach escape, the role of giant fibers in crayfish behavior, memory and learning in invertebrates and vertebrates, and vertebrate visual systems (from light transduction in the retina through integration in the visual cortex). Students read appropriate primary literature and conduct their own research projects.

Biochemistry is an intermediate chemistry course in which students apply principles from general and organic chemistry, as well as general biology, to understand the molecular processes that characterize life. Biochemistry is a broad discipline that is growing rapidly in its scope - new developments and discoveries are being made daily. The goal of this class will be to give students a solid background with which they can appreciate the latest developments and research reports. We will begin with fundamental principles, but quickly move into a detailed look at metabolism - the specific means by which organisms use chemical energy to drive cell functions and how they convert simple molecules to complex biological molecules. This approach will provide a context to illustrate many of the core ideas we will cover. Students will also have the opportunity for independent work which will allow them to apply these ideas to topics of their own specific interests. Students will have weekly review assignments and at least two independent projects, including an oral presentation of a final project.

This course is an introduction to creative practices within digital technologies specifically focused on Internet based fine art projects. A broad survey of web-based digital arts is examined in tandem with an overview of tools necessary to create your own work. These include HTML, CSS, Photoshop, content management systems, and a basic introduction to JavaScript. Students apply knowledge and skills to web-based creative projects throughout the term. There are lectures, reading assignments, studio projects, and critiques during the course designed to aid the student in developing visual literacy and critical thinking skills in relation to the digital arts.

This group tutorial will focus on the writing -editing-rewriting process as a reliable method for developing, analyzing, and illustrating scientific concepts within the logical structure of the analytical essay as intended for a general audience. Students will concentrate on writing with clarity, fluidity, economy and precision. We will also practice rhetorical patterns. such as definition and cause and effect, for developing lucid lines of critical reasoning. The group will meet for weekly collaborative editing workshops and also develop analytical reading skills through discussion of and written responses to various science essays.

Physiological processes of vertebrates and invertebrates are studied at the cellular, organ, organ system, and whole animal levels of organization. The unifying themes of the course are the phenomenon of homeostasis (whereby an animal maintains its organization in the face of environmental perturbations) and the relationship between structure and function. The student will examine these phenomena in the laboratory by dissection and physiological experimentation. Topics include digestion and nutrition, metabolism, gas exchange, circulation, excretion, neurophysiology.

To say the media play an important role in peoples live is both a commonplace and an understatement. Just try to find someone who doesn't e-mail, surf, tweet, blog, text, chat, IM, download, burn, scan, stream, watch, listen, or read on a daily basis. As symbol making and symbol using animals this is what we do. Many cling to older media forms. Others are totally immersed in emerging digital worlds. But being "immune" from or existing "outside" of media is virtually impossible. What then should every citizen know about media and their relation to contemporary society? What approaches can best prepare us to function effectively as critics, activists, scholars, teachers, artists, managers, and producers in an increasingly global, digital, and technological complex landscape? Required readings will frame the discussion of these questions. Students will complete a project involving contemporary media and social and political concerns. Four course sessions that focus on the stakes of media in everyday life will be open to the entire community.

The notion of an "all-taxon biological inventory" -- a complete list of species of all groups occurring in a particular area -- is comparatively recent but compelling. The value of such inventories is recognized widely, and many have been initiated, but none has ever approached completion. Ours will be no exception; it is a permanently on-going project. Each offering of this advanced class will focus on a selected taxonomic or ecological group (moths, mosses, millipedes, mites, microplankton....) for intensive study. The objective is documentation (quantitative, qualitative, photographic, etc.) of selected groups on campus (and immediate environs), with results compiled towards an ongoing, cumulative "Bennington Biota" website and wiki. The experience of becoming intimately familiar with a particular group of organisms, and the approaches and tools for study and identification are generally readily transferable to other groups. Candidate groups for fall 2011 include fungi, lichens, and selected plant families. Students may take the class for credit more than once. Prerequisites: Open to students with appropriate background in biology (college-level course work) and the permission of the instructor. Students must be willing and able to work independently.

Defined as a "place for writing," our scriptorium will function as a class for beginning writers and for those who want to brush-up on their essay-writing skills. Essai means a trial or attempt, so much of our time will be occupied with writing in class probatively; responding to masterful examples of the essay form critically and creatively; and editing and revising collaboratively. We will read to write and write to read, starting with the inventor of the essai, Montaigne; other readings may include work by Arendt, Barthes, Darwin, Douglass, DuBois, Emerson, Freud, Kafka, Keats, Nietzsche, Plato, Sedgwick, Shakespeare, Shonagon, Sontag, Thoreau, Woolf. Most importantly, in our writing we will practice how to formulate a thesis, develop an argument, and provide supporting evidence. Every week, students can expect to study a text, write a short response, and write and revise in class; during the term, we will rework several pieces into longer essays. Our schedule includes library lessons, grammar review, and individual conferences.

This is an introductory course on the theory and practice of analyzing and displaying quantitative and spatial information. The methods covered have a wide range of applications in the natural and social sciences. Students will learn how to utilize software to analyze large datasets, and how to plot information on graphs and maps using spreadsheet programs, graphing programs, computerized algebra systems, and geographic information systems (GIS). Students will be expected to develop their own work and are encouraged to use data from other classes or projects.

The viability of a cell, and therefore an organism, depends upon the proper synthesis, and ultimately the destruction, of the proteins therein. This course will focus on understanding how proteins are made and degraded in the cell, and will emphasize what happens in-between -- how proteins fold, function, and localize to their proper cellular compartment(s). We will delve into the fundamental primary papers that mark initial as well as recent progress in these areas, focusing on critical reading and discussion of the experimental design and conclusions. The role that molecular chaperones, the guardians of the cell, play in each important phase of the life of a protein will feature prominently in this course. Sample topics to be explored include: How do proteins fold? How do chaperones contribute to protein folding? How do proteins get to the proper cellular location? How are proteins degraded? We will also discuss the relevance of these topics to human diseases linked to protein misfolding, mislocalization, and/or aggregation including cystic fibrosis and Huntington's disease.

Evolutionary theory provides conceptual unity for biology; Darwin's concept and its derivatives inform every area of life science, from paleontology to molecular biology to physiology to plant and animal behavior to human nature. This course will establish deep grounding in basic selective theory (including some exploration of population genetics) and explore selected current questions through readings in the primary literature. Particular topics may include: evolution of reproductive systems and behaviors, evolutionarily stable strategies and game theory; competing models of sexual selection; inclusive fitness and the evolution of sociality and altruistic behavior; coevolution in mutualistic and predator-prey (parasite-host) systems; evolution of disease and evolutionary medicine; and the (multiple) origin and loss of sex. There will be extensive reading in primary literature as well as both critical and synthetic writing. Prerequisites: Prior college-level work in biology or permission of instructor; basic familiarity with essential concepts of genetics, cell function, physiology will be assumed. Solid quantitative skills important.

This course represents the culmination of the two-year integrated general/organic chemistry sequence and will introduce special topics that go beyond those traditionally covered in those courses. Material presented will focus on functional materials such as semiconductors and structures involved in energy transfer and storage. Topics such as electrochemistry, molecular orbital theory, and transition metal chemistry will be introduced to provide a solid theoretical foundation for the applications we will cover. Students will write several papers related to the material; there will also be review assignments and exams.

In this class, we will explore the writing process by considering the work of three writers who had plenty to say about it. We'll read Virginia Woolf's A Writer's Diary, Eudora Welty's One Writer's Beginnings, and selections from Flannery O'Connor's A Habit of Being and Mystery and Manners, along with novels and short fiction by these prolific writers, including To the Lighthouse, The Optimist's Daughter, The Complete Stories of O'Connor, and others. In addition to critical papers, students keep their own writing journals. Come prepared to read, write, and discuss with vigor and rigor.

Chemistry 3 focuses on how reactions happen: what are the steps, how do we discover them, and how we use this to look at some practical systems: the synthesis of a drug, the kinetics of substitution. Emphasis will be using the general principles such as nucleophiles and electrophiles, to guide an understanding of specific reactions. Lab will focus on several clusters of experiments designed for students to extend what they know to answer questions of their own. A major project will be the development of a research proposal based on the student's own question. Background from the literature will motivate the proposal and initial experiments will be proposed.

This two-credit seminar is required for all fall-term juniors whose Plan significantly involves mathematics or science (other students may register with permission of instructors if background is appropriate and space permits). The seminar is a forum for reading and discussion of primary and secondary literature with the goal of gaining a broad sense of the work of scientists and mathematicians across a wide range of disciplines. Students will read deeply in order to gain greater sophistication in science: why was this question asked? Where does it fit into the larger picture? What is the next step? This "conversation in science" will inform and encourage students as they begin to articulate their own ideas for advanced projects.

Many problems facing the U.S. and the world today are the direct or indirect result of our need for energy to power industrial society. Our most urgent environmental issues, many foreign wars and conflicts, and an array of economic problems would cease to exist if we suddenly discovered an endless supply of cheap clean energy. Unfortunately, such a simple solution is not likely to emerge soon enough to save us from the tough choices and possible sacrifices that will be required to preserve a world in which humanity can thrive. This course will examine both the scientific principles and societal implications of energy exploration, production, and consumption. We will analyze the history of energy use and industrial development that built modern American society, assess the current state of energy supply and production impacts, and evaluate the array of energy options before us to continue development into the future. Students will be expected to perform independent research in addition to completing readings on technical and non-technical topics.

From the print revolution to the birth of photography, from moving images to social networking, we find that new media technologies are continually adapting to us, as we simultaneously, and more subtly, adapt to them. Every wave of technological innovation leaves media and human existence more closely intertwined. A central question forms this course's premise : How has media technology changed the way we interact, the way we think, and the way we live, historically, and in the modern moment ? Reading Benjamin, McLuhan, Postman, Baudrillard, Sontag, etc. Screenings from Metropolis and Modern Times, from classic film documentaries to web projects, YouTube, video art, etc.

Students will explore stoichiometric relationships in solution and gas systems which are the basis of quantifying results of chemical reactions. Understanding chemical reactivity leads directly into discussion of equilibrium and thermodynamics, two of the most important ideas in chemistry. Equilibrium, especially acid/base applications, explores the extent of reactions while thermodynamics helps us understand if a reaction will happen. Students will be introduced to new lab techniques and ways to measure progress of reactions. They will also devise their own questions and experiments. Kinetics (rates of reaction) provides information about how reactions work and, along with thermodynamics, provides the basis for evaluating the viability of a reaction. This concept will be explored particularly with respect to substitution reactions. Research articles will relate these ideas to current topics in the literature such as solar-enhanced fuels, rates of atmospheric reactions, and using chemistry for remediation.

The uniquely difficult task of capturing and expressing human movement in writing or drawing has given rise to an amazing range of approaches. This course will provide a look at graphic methods for recording motion from the late 19th century to the present. Starting with examples from dance, we will unfold a history of non-figurative drawings that were created through a wide range of inquiries into the human form and locomotion. Our investigations will consider pivotal works in physiology, theater, dance, visual arts, performance art, and digital performance. Readings, images, film and video as well as physical experimentation will all be put to use.

Before even going to school, we work to make sense of the world in which we live and, as a result, develop conceptions as to how our world works. In schools, we broaden that process by developing conceptual frameworks based on learning beyond our everyday experiences. During these processes, we develop both adequate and inadequate conceptual frameworks, with the inadequate ones often resulting in misconceptions. In this course, we will explore the process of developing conceptions, misconceptions, and conceptual change through the study of some common misconceptions, particularly in the areas of history, mathematics, and science.

American writers have long given voice to environmental causes, and created for readers ways of thinking about issues of tremendous concern and urgency. In this course, we will read and discuss the work of contemporary writers, poets, writers of fiction, nonfiction and journalism and discuss the role literature plays in helping us understanding the natural world. Though we will attend to issues of ecology, as a literature course we will spend much of our time discussing style, rhetoric and narrative and poetic structure. The list of writers whose work we will study includes Annie Dillard, Gretel Ehrlich, Terry Tempest Williams, Barry Lopez, Alison Hawthorne Deming, Bill McKibben, Leslie Marmon Silko, and others.

In a trial, 35 out of 50 people get better when taking an experimental drug --- but 30 out of 50 get better with a placebo. Does the drug help, or was the apparent improvement just random? Students who take an expensive SAT prep course do better than those who don't --- but maybe that is just because the students taking the prep course have better resources overall and they would have done better anyway. Is there any way to tell? There will be two goals to this course: first, to learn to think critically about statistics in the everyday problems of politics and citizenship, and second, to learn to analyze datasets and design experiments in other disciplines such as psychology, ecology, economics or medicine. The emphasis will be practical; students are encouraged to discuss statistics in the news or to bring in their problems from their work in other disciplines.

How do we know what we know about the universe? Astronomy textbooks can tell us everything from the composition of stars to the history of neighboring galaxies, but how can astronomers tell us about these objects we cannot touch or places we will never visit? This course will explore how these theories are built, delving into the physics that drives the universe around us. We will recreate many classic astronomical experiments in the observatory and the physics laboratory.

Cells are the fundamental units that organize life. In this class we will investigate cell structure and function, learn about DNA replication and transcription, find out how proteins are made and transported, and come to understand how interfering with cell biological processes can result in disease. In the lab, students will gain experience with both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells and learn methods of cell biological research.

This class is the first of a four course sequence covering General and Organic Chemistry. Students do not need to take the entire sequence. This course will focus on introductory chemical principles, including atomic theory, classical and quantum bonding concepts, molecular structure, organic functional groups, and the relationship between structure and properties. The class will have lecture/discussion meetings at which we will critically examine the major concepts of reading assignments, discuss articles, and review some of the current developments of the field. The aim of the laboratory will be to develop your experimental skills, especially your ability to design meaningful experiments, analyze data, and interpret observations.

How did pre-modern culture understand the human body? How did it work? Where did it fit in the Great Chain of Being, and what differentiated men from women? Medicine has always been a hybrid of thinking, seeing, knowing, and doing. But what defined medicine in the past? Was it a science, an art, or a random assortment of practices? Between 1300 and 1800, medicine detached itself from philosophy and became more empirical and experimental. Using documents, art, and images, we follow patients and practitioners from Hippocrates to Harvey. As we trace the history of healing, we chart changing perceptions of the body in early modern culture.

Immerses students in the process of planning and designing web sites. The course is structured within the same methodology that is used by most Internet strategy and web design firms. Focuses on the tasks and deliverables associated with each phase of the process - from project definition to site structure to visual design. Throughout the course, we also discuss, review, and experience/learn the fundamentals of all the tools associated with the planning, designing, and launching of a web site including Adobe's Creative Suite, MindJet's MindManager and more. This class does not teach programming.

Fundamental problems, concepts, and research findings regarding effects of personal, interpersonal, and public utterance on human behavior. Practice of common forms of public speaking, small-group interaction, and decision making.

Explores writing style and formats, including readability, clarity, crispness, color, and flow, for news releases, editorials, speeches, features, profiles, and scripts. Lead writing, editing, and interviewing also covered. Weekly writing assignments and rewriting. Develops ability to write publishable copy for varied audiences using basic formats.

An examination of the biology of disease in developing countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. This course will explore the biology of infectious diseases and their influences on history and culture of these regions as well as the social and economic impact of disease for contemporary societies. Topics addressed will also include prospects for change through current scientific research on treatment and control.

Topics to be covered include thermodynamics and reaction spontaneity, chemical kinetics, chemical equilibrium, properties of acids and bases, aqueous solution equilibria, electrochemistry, molecular structure and bonding theories, transition metals and their coordination compounds, and chemical properties of selected elements.

Encourages critical thinking about fundamental problems that concern existence, knowledge, and value. As a means to this end, several philosophical works are read, discussed, and evaluated.

An introduction to the scientific study of behavior and cognitive processes. Topics include the biological basis of behavior, perception, learning, memory, thinking, human development, emotion, psychological disorders and social psychology.

This course will serve as an introduction to physical/biological anthropology, i.e. the study of humans as biological organisms. We will explore relevant theories and methodologies utilized in this field. Topics to be covered are human genetics, evolution, variation, and behavioral ecology, as well as primate evolution and behavioral ecology.

Students focus on experimental design and statistical analysis while experimenting with several different ecological systems.

An introduction to some of the fundamental principles of chemistry. Topics include introduction to chemistry, stoichiometric principles, atomic structure and nature of the periodic table, chemical bonding, reactions in solutions, solution stoichiometry, thermochemistry, and trends in the physical and chemical properties of elements and their compounds.

An introductory level examination of changing conditions in the Third World, using sociological concepts. Focus will be on one or more of the following areas: Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean. This course will emphasize social, economic and political changes that affect daily life and experiences of people in these societies.

Introduces the structure and sound of the target language. Develops the four language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Culture-based readings and collateral laboratory assignments.