CORE 101 - Science, Technology and Society.

This interdisciplinary course explores the most significant ideas of physics, chemistry, geology and biology in an attempt to answer the questions: How does order emerge in nature? How does the human species fit into this natural order? In the laboratory, students learn hands-on to apply concepts such as Newton’s laws of motion, the laws of thermodynamics, the wave nature of light, photosynthesis and the carbon cycle, food chains and ecosystems, natural selection and evolution.

Using these concepts, we can critically examine key issues affecting our world today, such as global warming and genetic engineering. Discussion of these issues will shed light on the three Core questions: Who am I? What can I know? Given what I know, how should I act? (4 credits) Fall and Spring. Students must register for lecture and lab (With permission of the advisor, students may substitute two sequenced laboratory science course; Biology I and II : Biology II and Forensics; Biology II and Oceanography; Chemistry I and II; Physics I and II; Environmental Science I and Oceanography. In all other cases, students must complete the Core science course described above.)

CORE 102 - History and the Modern World.

This course investigates the roots of current democratic thought through the study of a selection of seminal texts from the Core History Canon, a collection including primary source material dating from classical Greece and Rome to the present. Faculty may enrich this exposition through a variety of multi-diciplinary sources such as scholarly analyses, films and documentaries, and works of the imagination including literature and art.

CORE 103 - Human Behavior in Perspective.

A study of "the individual in society," this course draws from areas such as literature, psychology, sociology, anthropology, and biology, first to demonstrate the idea that multiple perspectives and frames of reference broaden our understanding of the same behavior, and second, to propose a model for critical thinking about human behavior in general. Students explore the limitations of a single point of view and the benefits of information derived from multiple vantages as they consider key existential questions: Who am I? What can I know? And, based on what I know, how should I act? Readings include classic and contemporary works in the social sciences as well as literary works such as Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People. Requires essays, group projects, and encourages attendance at co-curricular events.

CORE 104 - Literature, Philosophy, and the Ascent of Ideas.

This course explores the examined life through three basic questions that shape human experience: Who am I? What can I know? What should I do? Readings, discussions, and questions foster critical reflection and emphasize connections not only between literature and philosophy but also among disciplines such as art, history, psychology, and in response to philosophical and literary works. Currently Plato’s Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito, are common readings.

CORE 105 - The Artistic Impulse.

This course examines a variety of masterworks and artists from the western traditions of art, dance, music, and theater. The course situates art and artists in historical perspective, emphasizes Classicism, Romanticism, Modernism and relates them to contemporary modes of expression. Works of art will be presented in context, so the impact of historical circumstance and cultural expectation on the creative artist will be apparent. Students will respond through oral and written analysis to masterworks studied in class and to works experienced at outside performances. While all sections of the course will include historic masterworks from the fields of art, theater, dance, and music, specific content of individual sections will reflect the interests and expertise of the professor. Throughout the semester, we also examine the work and ideas we study in order to explore the role, meaning and implications of questions that have shaped the human experience: Who am I? What can I know? How should I act?