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Art of Understanding (Prof. Juan Mah y Busch, English & Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies)
MW 9:55-11:35am (CRN 41266)
First to Go Program Only
To become familiar with the artistry of your understanding, in this course you learn to meditate. No prior experience is presumed or expected. Alongside regular meditation, you practice different forms of writing (such as simple description, contemplative writing, critical examination, research). Through the regular practice of meditation and writing, you settle into the interplay between words and wordlessness, drawing attention to the qualitative dimensions of lived experience, such as the wordless music of words or a spacious moment of time, the quiet release of an exhale or the cool breeze of an inhale. Grounded in meditation, writing, discussion and engaged participation, in the class you develop your own more artful understandings.
Meet the Professor:
Juan D. Mah y Busch is professor and chair of Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies (CLST) and professor of English. In addition to his academic training, for over two decades he was formally trained in meditation. He uses meditation and literary analysis as research methods in order to examine a range of questions in critical race and ethnic studies, ethical and aesthetic epistemologies, and contemplative pedagogy. He coordinates the CLST Learning Community and has worked with the First-To-Go Program since its inception. He lives in Northeast Los Angeles with his partner Irene, their three children, and their boxer Brooklyn.
Juan.MahyBusch@lmu.edu
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Black Los Angeles (Prof. Jae Williams, African American Studies)
TR 1:45-3:25pm (CRN 41255)
Honors Program Only
This course is an interdisciplinary examination of the presence and contributions of Africana people in Los Angeles from the founding of the city in 1781 to contemporary social movements. We will concentrate on the geography, history, and social norms that transformed Black life and made the basis for its popularized representations in music, film, and tv. We will approach the course both thematically and chronologically, by addressing how Los Angeles is a racialized space and how Black people contribute to its cosmopolitan identity.
Meet the Professor:
Jennifer Williams is an Assistant Professor of African American Studies; She is a Philadelphia native, and attended Temple University for her graduate work. Her research interests are Black women’s history, Afrofuturism, and Black introversion.
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On Life Well-Lived (Prof. Vandana Thadani, Psychology)
MW 1:45-3:25pm (CRN 41253)
Honors Program Only
This course’s theme is a “A Life Lived Well.” We will be exploring the topic of living well using various bodies of research in psychology—much of this from positive psychology. Positive Psychology is the scientific field of study that aims to understand how people, organizations, and society flourish, and how each can nurture happiness, strengths, self-esteem, and optimism. We are going to sample many areas of research to get varying perspectives on what it means to live well and how we might cultivate a life well lived. During this exploration, I’ll encourage you to reflect on and apply the work that most resonates with you: How can you flourish or live well in the future and in during your time in college over the next four years? Our work will involve critical thinking in that we will turn to empirical evidence to justify, uncover, and question our beliefs/assumptions/goals/desires. It will also be personal and reflective. Learning processes will include class discussions, experiential activities, lots of writing and peer editing/feedback, and (very rarely) short lectures.
Meet the Professor:
Professor Vandana Thadani is a professor in the Department of Psychological Science at LMU. She completed her Ph.D. in Developmental psychology at UCLA. Her research is in educational psychology and aims to understand what makes for powerful learning environments and how teachers can be supported to create these environments.
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On the Technological Sublime (Prof. Sue Scheibler, Film/TV Studies)
F 11:30am-2:50pm (CRN 41256)
Honors Program Only
The sublime invites us to, in the words of the poet Pierre Reverdy, “stroll elegantly along the edge of the abyss;” an abyss that, as we stare into it, fills us with wonder, curiosity, delight, terror, joy, and awe. In this course, we will explore the various ways that filmmakers, TV creators, video game developers, writers, poets, musicians, and others have produced works of art that, at least for a moment, in their sublimity, challenge our sense of self, experience, and perceptions by carrying us out of our “normal” ways of thinking, feeling, and perceiving, into a sublimely transcendent encounter with the other as well as ourselves that can leave us forever changed.
Meet the Professor:
Sue Scheibler (they/them) teaches courses such as Queer TV, Video Games, Science Fiction TV, Japanese Anime TV and time studies, in the School of Film and TV. Her scholarly interests include disability justice (with a focus on neuroqueer), video games, television studies, ethics, among others.
"I've been teaching On the Technological Sublime in Honors for about fourteen years now. I love teaching it because it allows me to bring all of my interests into the class: philosophy (I have graduate degrees in the Philosophy of Religion), theology (I have a seminary degree), Buddhist and Daoist philosophy; media studies (especially video games and TV studies); physics; and poetry." –Prof. Scheibler
Susan.Scheibler@lmu.edu
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Principles of Scientific Reasoning
TR 9:55-11:10am (CRN 41249)
ACCESS Program Only
Communication and critical thinking skills are developed with an emphasis on science, nature, technology, and mathematics in multiple contexts. Mathematical and scientific reasoning are investigated through inductive and deductive arguments, the scientific method, and the notions of definition, classification and conjecture. The course will also examine the role and purpose that scientists and scientific educators play in society, and how math and science inform movements for social justice and equity, as well as issues related to ethics and responsibility in the STEM profession. There will also be an emphasis on exploring the contributions to science and technology from diverse cultures and communities.
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Truth and Lies in Politics: Is U.S. Democracy Dying? (Prof. Richard Fox, Political Science)
TR 9:55-11:35am (CRN 41254)
Honors Program Only
U.S. politics is changing dramatically. Citizens increasingly rely on different sources of information and don’t believe the same facts. Political leaders appear incapable of working together to solve the problems facing the country. Accepted democratic norms are cast aside with alarming frequency. Is this a turning point? This course examines issues in law, politics, and society to assess whether the democratic principles that served as a guiding framework for American politics are dying out and being replaced by a new framework.
Meet the Professor:
Richard Fox teaches and researches in the areas of U.S. Congress, elections, media and politics and gender politics. He received a National Science Foundation Grant to study political interest and ambition among high school and college students and has published several books and numerous articles. He has also written op-ed articles, some of which have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. After graduating from Claremont McKenna College, he earned his M.A. and Ph.D from the University of California, Santa Barbara.