A Few Courses to Explore
In this final week of THINK66, we have curated a sampling of courses to look into (with the hope that they will further lead you to discover interesting courses over the next few years of your Stanford education). These are just a few examples of classes that contribute to the "philosophical, artistic, and moral lenses that gives broader meaning and context in bridging one's discipline and domain"—as described in the Pi-Shaped Person from Artful Design. Over the arc of your Stanford education, there will be courses that find you (e.g., in your major, and courses that almost everyone considers taking, like CS106A); and there will be courses that you seek out for yourself. For a fuller exercise, consider completing the Design Etude U/You: Three Pathways at Stanford. In general, consider taking at least one course each term that isn't "useful" or "applicable", but is interesting to you. Note: some of these courses go in and out of offering, while others give preferences for first-year students (but you shouldn't be deterred if you aren't a frosh: ask the instructor if you can join. Don't underestimate the power of genuine interest). By the way, Stanford has an amazing Creative Writing Program; check out their course offerings throughout the year.
Autumn Quarter
Dance 1 | Prof. Aleta Hayes
"Liquid Flow"
Students in Liquid Flow will participate in a dance and movement class that 1) teaches the fundamentals of dance technique, and 2) addresses the way that you already dance in the world. Accompanied by contemporary and live music, Students will develop articulation, flexibility and "grace", learn contemporary and classic dance vocabulary, gain freedom dancing with others and mine dance's potential for social transformation and connection. Designed for beginners, we welcome student movers from diverse dance traditions, non-dancers, athletes, and more advanced dancers, who desire fluidity in their daily life, from thought to action.
MUSIC 14N / FEMGEN 13N | Prof. Heather Hadlock
“Women Making Music”
Women's musical activities across times and cultures; how ideas about gender influence the creation, performance, and perception of music.
INTLPOL 268 | Prof. Riana Pfefferkorn
“Hack Lab”
This course aims to give students a solid understanding of the most common types of attacks used in cybercrime and cyberwarfare. Taught by a long-time cybersecurity practitioner, a recovering cyberlaw litigator, and a group of hearty, motivated TAs, each session will begin with a lecture covering the basics of an area of technology and how that technology has been misused in the past. …
COMM 166 | Prof. Jermey Bailenson
“Virtual People”
The concept of virtual people or digital human representations; methods of constructing and using virtual people; methodological approaches to interactions with and among virtual people; and current applications. Viewpoints including popular culture, literature, film, engineering, behavioral science, computer science, and communication.
CS 476A / Music 256a | Prof. Ge Wang
“Music, Computing, and Design: The Art of Design”
The craft and practical philosophy of building artful software tools.
PHIL 21N / ETHICSOC 121N | Prof. Juliana Bidadanure
“Ethics of Sports”
We will focus on the moral and political issues that affect the world of sport and which athletes, coaches, sports commentators and fans are faced with. For instance, we will ask questions such as: what is a fair game (the ethics of effort, merit, success)? Is it ethical to train people to use violence (the ethics of martial arts)? Are divisions by gender categories justified and what should we think of gender testing? Is the use of animals in sport ever justified? …
HISTORY 98 | Prof. Tom Mullaney
"The History of Modern China"
This course charts major historical transformations in modern China, and will be of interest to those concerned with Chinese politics, culture, society, ethnicity, economy, gender, international relations, and the future of the world.
Winter Quarter
ARTSINST 142 / ARTSTUDI 163 | Prof. Camille Utterback
“Drawing with Code”
This studio course will engage coding practices as drawing tools.
ARTHIST 219 | Prof. Alex Nemerov
“Caravaggio, Vermeer, and the Life of Paintings”
this seminar will consider how and why artists these artists strove to overcome the boundary between representation and the real and make the world "present" to the viewer. Reading authors such as George Steiner and Jacques Derrida, we will develop a definition of the word "presence" and consider the various critiques of it. NOTE: This seminar is for undergraduates only.
COMM 1B / AMSTUD 1B | Prof. Fred Turner
“Media, Culture, and Society” (syllabus)
The institutions and practices of mass media, including television, film, radio, and digital media, and their role in shaping culture and social life. The media's shifting relationships to politics, commerce, and identity.
MUSIC 39B / Humbio 179B | Prof. Denise Gill
Music and Healing”
To what extent can sound or music heal? This interdisciplinary course asks questions about music and healing around the world, drawing on the fields of medical ethnomusicology, medical anthropology, sound studies, and music therapy.
MS&E 252 | Prof. Ross Shachter
Decision Analysis I: Foundations of Decision Analysis
Coherent approach to decision making, using the metaphor of developing a structured conversation having desirable properties, and producing actional thought that leads to clarity of action. Socratic instruction; computational problem sessions. Emphasis is on creation of distinctions, representation of uncertainty by probability, development of alternatives, specification of preference, and the role of these elements in creating a normative approach to decisions. Information gathering opportunities in terms of a value measure. Relevance and decision diagrams to represent inference and decision. Principles are applied to decisions in business, technology, law, and medicine.
PHIL 20N | Prof. John Etchemendy
“Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence”
Is it really possible for an artificial system to achieve genuine intelligence: thoughts, consciousness, emotions? What would that mean? How could we know if it had been achieved? Is there a chance that we ourselves are artificial intelligences? Would artificial intelligences, under certain conditions, actually be persons? If so, how would that affect how they ought to be treated and what ought to be expected of them?
PWR 91OID | Profs. Helen Chen, Holly Fulton, Margot Gilliland
Creating Your Digital Presence: The What, How, and Why of Building an Online Presence
Have you ever Googled yourself? If so, what information about you rises to the top? A picture of you in your band uniform from your high school? A poem you wrote and published on your Tumblr? Maybe your scores from a 5K you ran last year? nnIt might seem like you do not have much control over what you see about yourself in a Google search, but the fact is, you do. The more of your own content you create, the more that your self-created information will rise to the top. In this class, you will select content most significant to you, which could include research posters, photo essays, short stories, interviews, prototypes, and beyond.
Spring Quarter
COMM 120W / AMSTUD 120 | Prof. Fred Turner
“The Rise of Digital Culture”
From Snapchat to artificial intelligence, digital systems are reshaping our jobs, our democracies, our love lives, and even what it means to be human. But where did these media come from? And what kind of culture are they creating?
CSRE 230c / COMM 230C: | Prof. Lucy Bernholz
“Digital Civil Society”
Digital technologies have fundamentally changed how people come together to make change in the world, a sphere of action commonly called 'civil society'. How did this happen, what's being done about it, and what does it mean for democratic governance and collective action in the future?
HISTORY 40A | Prof. Jessica Riskin
“The Scientific Revolution”
What do people know and how do they know it? What counts as scientific knowledge? In the 16th and 17th centuries, understanding the nature of knowledge engaged the attention of individuals and institutions including Copernicus, Galileo, Descartes, Newton, the early Royal Society, and less well-known contemporaries. New meanings of observing, collecting, experimenting, and philosophizing, and political, religious, and cultural ramifications in early modern Europe.
CS 247G | Prof. Christina Wodtke
“Introduction to Game Design”
A project-based course that builds on the introduction to design in CS147 by focusing on advanced methods and tools for research, prototyping, and user interface design. Studio based format with intensive coaching and iteration to prepare students for tackling real world design problems. The focus of CS247g is an introduction to theory and practice of the design of games. We will make digital and paper games, do rapid iteration and run user research studies appropriate to game design. This class has multiple short projects, allowing us to cover a variety of genres, from narrative to pure strategy.
POLYSCI 20Q | Prof. Hakeem Jefferson
"Democracy in Crisis: Learning from the Past"
This January, an armed insurrection assaulted the U.S. Capital, trying to block the Electoral College affirmation of President Biden's election. For the past four years, American democracy has been in continual crisis. Bitter and differing views of what constitutes truth have resulted in a deeply polarized electoral process. The sharp increase in partisanship has crippled our ability as a nation to address and resolve the complex issues facing us. This Sophomore Seminar will focus on U.S. democracy and will use a series of case studies of major events in our national history to explore what happened and why to American democracy at key pressure points. This historical exploration will shed light on how the current challenges facing American democracy might best be handled.
MUSIC 128 / CS 170 | Profs. Ge Wang and Matt Wright
“Stanford Laptop Orchestra: Coding, Composition, Performance”
Come make instruments and music together—as an ensemble of computer musicians. (Due to COVID-19, Music 128 will return in Spring 2022. In Spring 2021 check out Music 220a and introductory course to the world of computer music.)
PHIL 2 / ETHICSOC 20 | Prof. Richie Kim
“Introduction to Moral Philosophy”
What should I do with my life? What kind of person should I be? How should we treat others? What makes actions right or wrong? What is good and what is bad? What should we value? How should we organize society? Is there any reason to be moral? Is morality relative or subjective? How, if at all, can such questions be answered? Intensive introduction to theories and techniques in contemporary moral philosophy.
COMPLIT 57 | Prof. David Palumbo-Liu
"Human Rights and World Literature"
Human rights may be universal, but each appeal comes from a specific location with its own historical, social, and cultural context. This course has two components. The first will be a set of readings on the history and ethos of modern human rights. These readings will come from philosophy, history, political theory. The second, and major component is comprised of novels and films that come from different locations in the world, each telling a compelling story. We will come away from this class with a good introduction to human rights history and philosophy and a set of insights into a variety of imaginative perspectives on human rights issues from different global locations.
PHIL 135 | Prof. Lanier Anderson
“Existentialism”
Focus is on the existentialist preoccupation with human freedom. What constitutes authentic individuality? What is one's relation to the divine? How can one live a meaningful life? What is the significance of death? A rethinking of the traditional problem of freedom and determinism in readings from Rousseau, Kierkegaard, and Nietzsche, and the extension of these ideas by Sartre, Beauvoir, and Camus, including their social and political consequences in light of 20th-century fascism and feminism. (Likely to be offered in AY 2022-23)
These are but a small sampling of courses—feel free to explore further for yourself!