The discussions that take place in my Honors classes force me to reanalyze my way of thinking. Sometimes, they even question my way of thinking or my beliefs. . . . I believe that analytical people are the ones who change the world. I will be one of them, thanks to my Honors class!"
Program Tracks
After some 45 years of successful service to exceptional UK students, the Honors Program was excited to be able to announce the addition of new tracks for incoming students in the fall of 2005. Most of our classes continue to allow students to explore the intellectual, social, and artistic history of the western world (the "Western Cultural Heritage" track). But for the first time, some students are be able to pursue tracks that explore other themes. There is a "Social Science" track, designed to give students a multi disciplinary perspective on social sciences. There is a "World Food Issues" track, where students take courses focusing on global aspects of the world food problem. There is a track on "Space, Place and Culture," which examines how cultural identity is shaped by human encounters with geographic place. And there is a track devoted to "Technological, Cultural, and Societal Impacts of Nanotechnology."
Students admitted into the Honors Program should register for the foundations course of one of these tracks (Honors 101, 111, 121, 131, or 141), typically in their first semester. They will continue to take one Honors colloquium per semester in that track until they have completed the core requirements. All the tracks are aimed at a wide student population, so students can match their interests, but should not necessarily match their prospective majors. Each track is made up of a coherent curriculum of interdisciplinary courses designed for and restricted to Honors students which will satisfy USP requirements. Students in all tracks will pursue independent projects in their upper division Honors work; completion of 15 credit hours in Honors, regardless of track, will lead to graduation with the Honors Program citation.
The Five Tracks
Entering students must complete for a letter grade the core colloquia (three or four courses, depending on chosen track) in their selected tracks, which emphasize a variety of disciplines:
The Western cultural heritage track offers four, small, interactive colloquia focusing on successive historical eras (the Ancient World, the Middle Ages & Renaissance, the Early Modern World, and Contemporary Civilization), which provide interdisciplinary investigations of the development of our heritage. The courses are designed to stimulate individual thought, to improve writing and critical thinking skills, and to explore the significant intellectual and cultural issues of our past and present. They concentrate on primary texts, especially the great works of western intellectual history, from philosophy and literature through art, architecture and music. Students will study and put into context diverse figures and works, from Plato to Freud, from a Greek temple or a Gothic cathedral to a postmodern skyscraper, from St. Augustine to Virginia Woolf, from Galileos discoveries to a symphony by Beethoven or a modern American film.
Honors 101 The Ancient World
From Greek and Roman antiquity to early Christian centuries: an interdisciplinary course in intellectual history. Readings vary at the discretion of the faculty. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 105) and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 105 The Medieval and Renaissance World
From the Middle Ages through the Renaissance: an interdisciplinary course in intellectual history. Readings vary at the discretion of the faculty. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 101) and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 201 The Early Modern World
From the development of the modern scientific method through mid-19th century industrialism: an interdisciplinary course in intellectual history. Readings vary at the discretion of the faculty. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 205 The Contemporary World
The contemporary world: an interdisciplinary course in intellectual history. Readings vary at the discretion of the faculty. (6 hour USP Electives satisfied and 1 humanities course credit.)
Human population is expected to reach 10 billion by the year 2050, and then level off and eventually decline. If humanity can collectively find ways by that time to adequately feed those 10 billion people, without destroying the earths natural resources in the process, perhaps we can do so for a significant period of time into the future. That is the central problem we wish to approach; however, this problem has many different aspects.
Your first course, directed by Ed Lee or Todd Pfeiffer, will serve as the foundation for the series, starting from early humans, hunter and gatherer cultures, food production and geography, then moving on to the origins of population growth, modern wealth and power, crowd diseases, literacy, and technology. Your second course, directed by other faculty, will take a direct look at what foods provide for humans, the relationships between food and poverty or affluence, and food safety. Your third course, directed by Larry Grabau or other faculty, will identify key natural resources essential for survival of human life, and examine the degree to which those natural resources are currently threatened in various parts of the globe.
Taken together, this sequence of courses will cover your first-year and 200-level writing requirements, as well as three hours of humanities, three hours of the USP natural sciences requirement, and three hours of social sciences in the USP requirement. We intend to help you think deeply and write thoughtfully about a wide range of issues with enduring relevance.
Honors 111: World Food Issues: Past and Present A Foundations Course
In this course we will begin by taking a brief look at evolution and the human past and exploring the role of the Agricultural Revolution 10,000 years ago in shaping world history. Using Diamonds Guns, Germs, and Steel, we will start with early humans, hunter and gatherer cultures, food production and geography, and then the origins of population growth, of modern wealth and power, crowd diseases, literacy, and technology. Then we will look at contemporary issues regarding food, focusing on three general areas: the geopolitics of hunger, including the threat of environmental deterioration, cultural attitudes toward food, and the psychology of hunger. Class activities will be organized to develop students abilities to read and think, and to learn both detail and the ability to synthesize and see the larger picture. There will be a special emphasis on writing. The course will draw on the Natural and Social Sciences, as well as the Humanities. The course will explore attitudes toward food around the globe. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 115) and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 115: World Food Issues: Changing food/food safety
This course will investigate how food sustains us, how poverty and affluence affect diet and the subsequent affect of that diet on us; examine threats to food safety and explore options for protection; and wrangle with the question Food changes, why might one accept or fear changing foods?
Topics include food and nutrition; food problems; food safety; altering food, risk assessment, fear and acceptance of changing foods; and your diet/the worlds diet. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 111) and 1 social science course credit.)
Honors 211: World Food Issues: Tradeoffs between Food and Natural Resources
In this course we will identify the key natural resources required for sustaining human life on the planet, and examine the threats these natural resources are currently facing. Well compare and contrast the susceptibility of natural resources in various global regions to degradation in the food production process. Well synthesize information about food and natural resource tradeoffs for specific global regions into compelling arguments for action. Well find how to effectively communicate natural resource concepts to a non-science audience. And well critically evaluate positions taken on food and natural resource trade-offs. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 natural science course credit.)
Nanotechnology is a highly interdisciplinary emerging field involving scientists from physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, information technology, metrology, and other fields. As defined by the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), the definition of nanotechnology includes three criteria: 1. Research and technology development at the atomic, molecular or macromolecular levels, in the length scale of approximately 1 - 100 nanometer range. 2. Creating and using structures, devices and systems that have novel properties and functions because of their small and/or intermediate size. 3. Ability to control or manipulate on the atomic scale. Revolutionary discoveries in this field are expected to impact every aspect of modern life. In addition to the scientific aspects, NNI supports investigation of a wide range of cultural, social, legal, ethical, and environmental concerns that accompany the development of the technology.
Honors 121: Scientific, Cultural and Social Impacts of Emerging Technologies: A Time Travel
As nanotechnology is expected to impact every aspect of the future, this course will begin with an examination of prior scientific developments that had a significant impact on society such as Roman waterways, maritime navigation systems, development of steam engines, and computers. The course will conclude with a scientific and speculative look at the future of nanotechnology. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 125) and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 125: The Science & Art of Small: An Introduction to Nanotechnology
This course will define the terminology, promise, and challenges of nanotechnology by exploring the development of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and examining the breadth of federal spending efforts. This course will establish the significance, depth and breadth of the technology and prepare students for successive courses with increased comprehension and complexity. It will follow the broader Foundation Course naturally, and will allow students to learn about the complex issues related to Nanotechnology and its applications. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 121) and 1 natural science course credit.)
Honors 221: The Other Broader Side of the Nanotechnology Revolution
This course will expand student perspectives on the scientific developments by exploring the implications of the technology in a legal, ethical, socioeconomic, and industrial context. This course will conclude with discussions regarding scientific reasoning, the challenges involved in moving from basic science to engineering applications, and the role of failure in the development process. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 USP social science course credit.)
A sequence of related courses that explores cultures of the Middle East, Western Europe, and the Americas by asking how cultural identity is grounded in and shaped by human encounters with geographic place.
Honors 131 Space, Place and Culture: An Introduction
Through analyses of literary texts, film, music, architecture, urban design, and other forms of cultural expression, students will explore how places develop meaning for those who inhabit them. Special attention will be given to the issue of belonging, the geographies of gender and race, the problem of nationalism in the era of globalization, the fate of the city, and the spatial politics of resistance. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 135) and 1 humanities course credit.)
Honors 135 Space and Politics: Beyond East and West
We live in a world of boundaries, both real and imagined. How are these lines of inclusion and exclusion created, from the officially policed borders of nation-states to the informal boundaries of urban segregation and the psychic divisions of us and them? In this course we will explore 1) the geopolitics of inequality and difference at the global scale; 2) the spatial practices of territoriality, migration, and nationalism; and 3) the production of everyday geographies of exclusion and inclusion. These themes will be given concrete reference with regard to the geopolitics of East and West, and with special reference to Islam and the Middle East (Turkey, Egypt, and Iran). (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 131) and 1 humanities course credit.)
AND one of the following:
Honors 231 Imagining the Metropolis in Spain and the Americas
One central aim of this course is to familiarize students with some of the issues facing the contemporary cities of the Hispanic world and the representation of these issues through several media: film, the novel, architecture, and more popular cultural forms such as the graphic arts, comics, and music. Special attention will be paid to Trans-Atlantic cultural influences and exchanges, immigration, and the artistic expression of U.S. Latino and Chicano spaces. A secondary goal of the course is to further develop students' ability to appreciate and critique urban visual, written, aural texts and other everyday processes through careful readings of some examples of cultural criticism and the writing (and rewriting) of four critical essays. While the initial writing process will not be collaborative, students will be involved in peer editing and will be required to articulate their ideas regularly in class. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 humanities course credit.)
OR
Honors 231 The Written World
How was Renaissance theater impacted by voyages of exploration to the New World? How was the rise of literary realism connected to the geo- politics of colonialism in the nineteenth century? How do electronic texts and the internet embody the reinvented spaces of the digital and global age? In this course, students will explore how the formal, visual characteristics of writing reflect the cultural conditions governing the perception and representation of geographic space at different moments in history. Special attention will be given to the heated debate surrounding the alleged end of the book, the related problem of authenticity, and the theme of postmodern disorientation in contemporary American literature. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 humanities course credit.)
This track is designed to give students a multidisciplinary perspective on the social sciences. Specifically, it will introduce students to representative disciplines, guiding themes and salient theory, and paradigmatic social science thinkers and researchers within the broad domain of the social sciences. All of the topics are examined from various Social Science disciplines including Anthropology, Communications, Education, Family Studies, Political Science, Psychology, Social Work, and Sociology. It provides its students an appreciation of the disciplined nature and empirical character of social inquiry; an understanding of the value and limitations of the various social science disciplines, as well as the distinctive perspectives each brings to the study of aspects of individual and social behavior. Students will critically examine the contemporary social sciences vis a vis the humanities and natural science. And they will gain a critical awareness of ethical and social issues generated by the practice of the social sciences in contemporary society.
Honors 141 The Self and Others
This course is designed to examine topics such as the individual/mind/ consciousness (identity/difference; normal/abnormal; race, gender, ethnicity), society/social relationships (family, kinship, groups, nationalities), organization (bureaucracy, management; economic, party), and economic life/work (gift, barter, market, command; work/labor, union/management). (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 145) and 1 social science credit.)
Honors 145 The Social Construction of Human Identity
Topics in this course include space/place (geographic, territorial, urban, social, interpersonal, civic, religious), conflict/cooperation (fights, games, debates; conflict resolution; race, gender, class conflict), power (elite/mass; leadership/followership; power, authority, violence, coercion; domination/ hegemony, social influence, persuasion, manipulation), class, and culture. (USP Writing Requirement (with HON 141) and 1 social science credit.)
The final course will be taken in year 2 (Honors 241 or 242). It will allow an in-depth exploration of a specific topic area from a multidisciplinary perspective. The courses that will fulfill this option will vary each semester. Examples of courses that will fulfill this option are as follows:
Honors 241 Violence: Interdisciplinary Perspectives from the Social Sciences
This course offers a topical survey of the issue of violence with special attention to the nature of violence, violence in various contexts, violence and economic concerns, violence and power, and alternatives to violence. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 social science course credit.)
OR
Honors 242 Fundamental Statistical Thought
Upon successful completion of this course a student will understand the role of statistical science in the world. In addition, he/she will be able to discuss the concepts and complications associated with sampling variability, confidence statements, experimental design, measurements and plots, averages and spreads, normal distributions, regression, and simple hypothesis testing. (Grad Writing Requirement and 1 social science and partial inference course credit.)