UCL: An academic powerhouse
UCL's strength across teaching and research has secured the university's place among the world's leading academic institutions. You'll find our Nobel Prize winners in the history books, UCL inventions in your home (Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone, was a UCL student) and our name at the top of league tables and research assessments. We even boast Olympic sports stars -- UCL Linguistics graduate Christine Ohuruogu clinched a gold medal at the Beijing games.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ab
Mini-lecture: London's Black history
October is Black History Month in the UK. Dr Caroline Bressey researches the history of the Black presence in London, trawling the archives to reveal forgotten everyday Black characters of Victorian Britain.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/equianocentre/People.html
Dr Bressey's Lunch Hour Lecture: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/lhl/streamed/lhlpub_spring09/07_100209
Upcoming LHL for Black History Month: http://events.ucl.ac.uk/event/event:r1c-gbjdju6x-9w3umg/
24.242 Logic II (MIT)
This course begins with an introduction to the theory of computability, then proceeds to a detailed study of its most illustrious result: Kurt Gödel's theorem that, for any system of true arithmetical statements we might propose as an axiomatic basis for proving truths of arithmetic, there will be some arithmetical statements that we can recognize as true even though they don't follow from the system of axioms. In my opinion, which is widely shared, this is the most important single result
21H.912 The World Since 1492 (MIT)
This class offers a look into the last five hundred years of world history. Rather than attempt an exhaustive chronology of everything that has occurred on the globe since 1492 - an impossible task for a lifetime, let alone a single semester - we will be focusing on certain geographic areas at specific times, in order to highlight a particular historical problem or to examine the roots of processes that have had an enormous impact on the contemporary world.
21H.447 Nazi Germany and the Holocaust (MIT)
The rise and fall of National Socialism is one of the most intensively-studied topics in European history. Nevertheless, after more than half a century, popular views of Nazism in the media and among the public remain simplistic-essentialized by equal parts fascination and horror. Adolf Hitler, for instance, is often portrayed as an evil genius of supernatural ability; while the Nazi state is similarly imagined to have held absolute power over every aspect of its subjects' lives. Such characteri
21F.402 German II (MIT)
In this course students are exposed to history and culture of German-speaking countries through audio, video, and Web materials. It focuses on the expansion of basic communication skills and further development of linguistic competency, and includes the review and completion of basic grammar, building of vocabulary, and practice in writing short essays. Students will also read short literary texts.
17.407 Chinese Foreign Policy (MIT)
This lecture course provides students with a comprehensive introduction to the international relations of the People’s Republic of China. China’s foreign relations during the Cold War as well as contemporary diplomatic, security and economic issues will be examined to identify and explain China’s foreign policy goals and their implementation since 1949. Throughout, this course will investigate the sources of conflict and cooperation in China’s behavior, assessing competin
12.453 Crosby Lectures in Geology: History of Africa (MIT)
This course is a series of presentations on an advanced topic in the field of geology by the visiting William Otis Crosby lecturer. The Crosby lectureship is awarded to a distinguished international scientist each year to introduce new scientific perspectives to the MIT community. This year's Crosby lecturer is Prof. Kevin Burke. His lecture is about African history. The basic theme is the distinctiveness of the African continent in both the way that it originated 600 million years ago and in th
21W.735 Writing and Reading the Essay (MIT)
This is a course focused on the literary genre of the essay, that wide-ranging, elastic, and currently very popular form that attracts not only nonfiction writers but also fiction writers, poets, scientists, physicians, and others to write in the form, and readers of every stripe to read it. Some say we are living in era in which the essay is enjoying a renaissance; certainly essays, both short and long, are at present easier to get published than are short stories or novels, and essays are feat
21L.015 Introduction to Media Studies (MIT)
Introduction to Media Studies is designed for students who have grown up in a rapidly changing global multimedia environment and want to become more literate and critical consumers and producers of media. Through an interdisciplinary comparative and historical lens, the course defines "media" broadly as including oral, print, performance, photographic, broadcast, cinematic, and digital cultural forms and practices. The course looks at the nature of mediated communication, the functions of media,
12.490 Advanced Igneous Petrology (MIT)
Advanced Igneous Petrology covers the history of and recent developments in the study of igneous rocks. Students review the chemistry and structure of igneous rock-forming minerals and proceed to study how these minerals occur and interact in igneous rocks. The course focuses on igneous processes and how we have learned about them through studying a number of significant sites worldwide.
24.00 Problems of Philosophy (MIT)
The course has two main goals: First, to give you a sense of what philosophers think about and why. This will be done through consideration of some perennial philosophical problems, e.g., the existence of God, reason and faith, personal identity and immortality, freewill, moral responsibility, and standards for moral conduct. We will draw on readings by important figures in the history of philosophy as well as contemporary authors. The second goal is to develop your philosophical skills, and you
12.114 Field Geology I (MIT)
The course provides students with (1) an introduction to the geologic history of western North America, with particular emphasis on our field camp location and (2) an introduction to both digital and traditional techniques of geological field study. The weather permitting, several weekend field exercises provide practical experience in preparation for Field Geology II (12.115). It presents introductory material on the regional geology of the locale of 12.115.
Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Using Us
What is Web 2.0? This is very informative video about the emergence of the Web. It discusses hypermedia anthropology and digital ethnography.
20.442 Molecular Structure of Biological Materials (BE.442) (MIT)
This course, intended for both graduate and upper level undergraduate students, will focus on understanding of the basic molecular structural principles of biological materials. It will address the molecular structures of various materials of biological origin, such as several types of collagen, silk, spider silk, wool, hair, bones, shells, protein adhesives, GFP, and self-assembling peptides. It will also address molecular design of new biological materials applying the molecular structural pri
21H.101 American History to 1865 (MIT)
This course focuses on a basic history of American social, economic, and political development from the colonial period through the Civil War. The colonial heritages of Spanish and British America; the American Revolution and its impact; the establishment and growth of the new nation; and the Civil War, its background, character, and impact are examined. Readings include writings of the period by Winthrop, Paine, Jefferson, Madison, W. H. Garrison, G. Fitzhugh, H. B. Stowe, and Lincoln.
21W.747-1 Rhetoric (MIT)
This course is an introduction to the history, the theory, the practice, and the implications (both social and ethical) of rhetoric, the art and craft of persuasion. By the end of the semester, you will have been exposed to several of the key concepts of rhetoric (e.g., ethos, pathos, logos, invention, style, arrangement, kairos, stasis, commonplaces) and to the over-riding importance of writing to your audience. You will have gotten a taste of rhetorical history and theory. You will explore and
14.731 Economic History (MIT)
This course offers a comprehensive survey of world economic history, designed to introduce economics graduate students to the subject matter and methodology of economic history. Topics are chosen to show a wide variety of historical experience and illuminate the process of industrialization. A final term paper is due at the end of the course.
21L.420 Literary Studies: The Legacy of England (MIT)
Topic: The English sense of humor. This course examines English literature across genre and historical periods. It is designed for students who want to study English literature or writing in some depth, or to know more about English literary culture and history. Students will also learn about the relationships between literary themes, forms, and conventions and the times in which they were produced. Materials include: Medieval tales, riddles, and character sketches; Renaissance lyrics and a play
21L.004 Major Poets (MIT)
This subject is an introduction to poetry as a genre; most of our texts are originally written in English. We read poems from the Renaissance through the 17th and 18th centuries, Romanticism, and Modernism. Focus will be on analytic reading, on literary history, and on the development of the genre and its forms; in writing we attend to techniques of persuasion and of honest evidenced sequential argumentation. Poets to be read will include William Shakespeare, Queen Elizabeth, William Wordsworth,
