Students have yet to recover from midterms, and academic advisers have already begun sending out emails reminding them to register for classes for next semester. As students aim to make the perfect schedule — i.e., avoid Friday classes — they may overlook some courses that get lost in the shuffle. Here are some classes worth throwing in your shopping cart for the time being:
1. GWS 260 — Sex, Gender and Technology
This may be the only class on-campus where one can hear about robots and sex toys during the same lecture. Exploring the ever-changing boundaries between humans and machines, this course discusses various topics such as reconstructive surgery and assisted reproductive technology. The instructor, Eva Hayward, specializes in marine ecology research and studies how humans project their attitudes toward sex onto animals. This course may make it difficult determining who or what is leading the next sexual revolution.
2. GEOG 270 — Sports Geographies
The placement of McKale Center may never have been thought of as being socio-economically strategic. This class aims to reveal how the geographical sites of sports stadiums convey the individual and national identities of a given country. Using the Olympic Games and World Cup as examples, the course’s objective is to analyze the political and economical factors being calculated behind the game.
3. HIST 278 — Medieval Answers to Modern Problems
Joan of Arc is no Jennifer Lawrence in terms of cultural relevancy for millennials, but this course attempts to highlight how figures of the Middle Ages are capable of solving the ethical debates facing us today. Using texts such as “The Divine Comedy” as examples, the instructor, Albrecht Classen, tries to teach his students how the time of the Dark Ages was actually one of great enlightenment. The recipient of the Arizona Professor of the Year award in 2012, Classen is at least worth a try.
4. OPTI 200 — Light, Color and Vision
For all liberal arts students who dread having to complete their Tier Two Natural Sciences requirement, this course is specifically designed for non-science majors. Requiring only basic math skills, this class gives students plenty of hands-on learning with lasers, telescopes and cameras. It also helps that the instructor, Michael Nofziger, leads many K-12 outreach programs outside the UA, so there should be a good amount of coddling for those fearful of science.
5. DVP 611 — Global Health Case Studies and Community Responses
With all the media coverage about disease outbreaks in West Africa, this graduate-level class is appropriate for those not afraid of venturing into developing countries to help those in dire need. Mark Nichter, the course instructor, has been conducting research around the world for over 30 years, and is currently working on a project helping people with Buruli ulcers in West Africa. Nichter will have students spend the semester researching various problems plaguing children in developing countries and then coming up with solutions to combat them. This seems like a great class to preface those interested in joining the Peace Corps after college.
_______________
Follow Kevin C. Reagan on Twitter.