Online Winter 2013 Course Descriptions

All winter session 2013 courses, which are 4 credits each and 100% online, begin January 2 and end January 22.

Art History
Culture/Language
Film/Video
History
Literature
Mathematics
Music
Natural Science
Philosophy/Religion
Psychology
Social Science

Art History

Impressionism
The simultaneous development of various painters associated with Impressionism (e.g., Monet, Renoir, Morisot, Pissarro, Manet, Degas, Cassatt) is presented. This radical new art movement is traced from the first Impressionist exhibition of 1874 to the last exhibition of 1886 and the appearance of the post-Impressionists. Students explore the shared relationships of the Impressionist artists.
AAR3400.60 / 4 credits
Beth Gersh-Nesic

Culture/Language

Basic Spanish I
Designed for students with little or no previous exposure to the language. Attention is given to listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. Emphasis is placed on oral work, using material from students’ everyday experiences and activities.
ASP1030.60 / 4 credits
Deborah Symons

Global Media, Local Cultures
See description below under Social Science

Film/Video

**CANCELLED** Digital Video Exercises
Students plan, shoot, and edit several short digital video pieces. A range of genres are explored, including documentary, narrative, and experimental work, while developing skills in the basic elements of moving image expression, including visual composition, scene/shot breakdown, camera movement, and basic editing techniques. Students must have access to an HD digital video camera, a personal computer, and basic editing software.
Note: HD digital video cameras must have a minimum 720P capability; iMovie (Mac) or Windows Movie Maker (PC) strongly recommended; 250–500 gigabytes of storage space needed, which may necessitate purchase of an external hard drive.
FTF2600.60 / 4 credits
Sarah Sharpe

Sports Films: Underdogs, Champions, and Gutter Balls
Examines the elements and messages in sports films that make people cheer for the underdog and care about teams, players, and sports. Using both big-budget Hollywood films and documentaries with a small scope, this course explores the ideas of team, sport, and athletics and investigates the grip that sports have on American culture. Also offered as CSS 3265.
FTF3265.70 / 4 credits
Rachel Simon

History

American History and Society Through Music
A narrative survey of U.S. history from the colonial period to the present through an exploration of its musical history. The course investigates America’s fundamental principles of politics, its primary social issues, and its wealth of aesthetic musical initiatives. Students examine the unity, diversity, originality, and adaptability of significant political, social, and musical institutions. Also offered as EMT 3115.
AHI3115.70 / 4 credits
Leandro Benmergui 

The Rise and Fall of Nazi Germany
Examines the political culture of Germany after World War I. Topics include culture and ideology during the Weimar Republic, the lives of Hitler and other leading Nazis, racial policies, the structure of the Nazi regime, and the creation of a “New Order” in Europe. The course explores changing historical interpretations of the Third Reich and recent scholarly controversies, including debate about the relationship between memory and history.
AHI3435.60 / 4 credits
Samara Heifetz

Literature

Short Fiction
An examination of the “middle genre,” encompassing the novella and the short novel. Readings provide ample opportunity to sample works embodying the intensity of short fiction and some of the expanded characterization and plot development of the novel. Readings include works by several significant 19th- and 20th-century authors from many countries.
ALI3400.60 / 4 credits
Melissa Febos

Mathematics

Mathematics for Contemporary Life
Students learn basic concepts in quantitative reasoning (number systems, data manipulation, basic statistics), with emphasis on problem solving using computational methods. This course uses a textbook and focuses on applications related to consumer issues to develop computational and problem-solving skills. Students learn to transform data into information and apply quantitative methods to evaluate information and solve real-world problems.
BMA1060.60 / 4 credits
Barbara McMullen

Music

American History and Society Through Music
A narrative survey of U.S. history from the colonial period to the present through an exploration of its musical history. The course investigates America’s fundamental principles of politics, its primary social issues, and its wealth of aesthetic musical initiatives. Students examine the unity, diversity, originality, and adaptability of significant political, social, and musical institutions. Also offered as AHI 3115.
EMT3115.70 / 4 credits
Leandro Benmergui

Natural Science

Should I Eat That?: The Science of Food Safety
People deal with food safety on a daily basis; it affects how long they cook meat, whether they eat raw cookie batter, and if they eat food that has fallen on the floor. Students examine microbial and chemical agents that contaminate the food supply, learn practical considerations for preventing food contamination, and explore the politics of food regulation.
BNS1300.60 / 4 credits
Elizabeth Middleton

Philosophy/Religion

Understanding Moral Problems
Representative problems of business, legal, medical, environmental, and personal ethics (e.g., violence, discrimination, capital punishment, abortion, euthanasia, conservation, sexual morality) are covered. Emphasis is placed on learning to think about and discuss these issues clearly and objectively, rather than on abstract ethical theories.
APH3350.60 / 4 credits
Jared Russell

Psychology

Introduction to Psychology
Empirical and theoretical approaches to the basic physiological, cognitive, and social mechanisms underlying behavior. Topics include learning and conditioning; sensation and perception; memory, thinking, and language; psychological development; social processes; and personality and psychopathology.
BPS1530.60 / 4 credits
Laura Moore

Behavioral Statistics
An introduction to data analysis, with coverage of both descriptive and inferential statistics, and an introduction to probability. Class discussions focus on the use of sample, sampling, and population distributions as they are employed in hypothesis testing. Inferential tests include t-tests, ANOVAs, chi square, regression, and nonparametric tests.
Note: It is intended to fulfill the statistics requirement for psychology majors. It may also be used to satisfy the statistics requirement for economics and environmental studies majors, and it counts as a basic science support course for biology majors.
BPS2320.60 / 4 credits
Peggy De Cooke

Developmental Psychology
A study of human development from infancy through childhood, with particular emphasis on social interaction, cognition, language, play, and representational activity. Because of their interchangeability, credit is not given for both BPS 3350 and PSY 2650/Child Development (offered by the School of Natural and Social Sciences).
BPS3350.60 / 4 credits
Kenneth Mann

Social Science

Global Media, Local Cultures
Explores how media technologies and genres are produced, used, and interpreted in different cultural contexts around the world. Emphasis is placed on the effect of different media on people’s social identities and communities, including families, nations, and religions. Anthropological theories of media and performance are applied to ethnographic research projects in and around the Purchase College community.
Recommended: Prior background in anthropology
CAN3185.60 / 4 credits
Ahmed Afzal

Racial Inequalities
Given the ethnic complexity of society, major social institutions—including education, criminal justice, health care, social services, and business—face many challenges. This course explores the past, present, and future of race and ethnicity in American society, and how immigration, culture, religion, education, and income play parts in prejudice, discrimination, and racial inequalities.
CSO3430.60 / 4 credits
Richard Gioioso

Sports Films: Underdogs, Champions, and Gutter Balls
Examines the elements and messages in sports films that make people cheer for the underdog and care about teams, players, and sports. Using both big-budget Hollywood films and documentaries with a small scope, this course explores the ideas of team, sport, and athletics and investigates the grip that sports have on American culture. Also offered as FTF 3265.
CSS3265.70 / 4 credits
Rachel Simon

Updated Dec. 18, 2012