Instructor: Brian Loh

This religious studies and philosophy course is an exploration of the way in which our minds shape the realities in which we live, love, and pursue happiness. After examining why our knowledge of reality might not be reliable or complete, we will explore the ways in which personal and social imagination fill in the gaps in our knowledge.  This is sometimes to our benefit and sometimes to our detriment, so we will also examine how to choose our lenses of perception so that we can steer our lives towards coherence, meaning, and flourishing.  In this process, we may explore several types of games, parasocial relationships, fandom “head canon,” religious realities, the nature of empathy, the self, and our concepts of sameness and difference. Students in this class will be invited to participate in varied forms of experiential learning, including games and storytelling.

Instructor: Kristian Sheeley

Philosophy focuses on the most fundamental and important questions that humans can ask. Film, just like other kinds of art, often deals with the same questions as philosophy, but in a different way. We will examine basic philosophical questions by putting classic philosophical texts into dialogue with films that deal with the same questions raised by those texts. In other words, we will explore, question, and discuss philosophical ideas as they are expressed in films. Topics that we will confront include social and political critique, death, faith, authenticity, erotic love, friendship, happiness, beauty, the nature of evil, identity, and self-knowledge. 

Instructor: Laura Quijano

Who decides who we are? Why do some identities seem to "fit" while others challenge the boxes society creates? Through music, film, social media, literature, art, and everyday culture, we will investigate how race, gender, sexuality, nationality, and culture shape our sense of self and belonging. A special focus on Afro-Latinx experiences will challenge familiar ideas about what it means to be Black, Latino, American, or all three. Along the way, we'll ask a deceptively simple question: Who gets to belong? 

Instructor: Jeffrey Canino

This section of FYS will explore topics and tales of the paranormal. In reading, researching, and writing about subjects and stories that fall outside of scientific explanations of the natural world, students will be presented with the opportunity to encounter discourse communities outside of mainstream academia, evaluate questionable evidence, and determine the historical and cultural significance of our belief in things that go bump in the night. The first two-thirds of the semester will be dedicated to examining accounts, folktales, and critical histories of ghosts and hauntings throughout American culture (with a particular emphasis on New York and the Hudson Valley) and will culminate in projects that asks students to learn about and analyze local legends. The final third of the semester will find students engaged in a multi-part project that will allow them to research a paranormal or supernatural subject of their choice (Bigfoot or other cryptids, UFOs, ESP and associated psychic abilities, the Bermuda Triangle, etc.)

Instructor: Stephen Mercier

We will consider how a wide range of animals are represented in non-fiction essays, fictional short stories, fairy tales, films, and art. How do these forms of media shape our conceptions of animals? What cultural values are present as we engage with animals as pets (sometimes “exotic”), recreation (horse riding and goat yoga), and entertainment (aquariums and zoos)? How do humans utilize them for experimentation (rabbits and space monkeys), fashion (silkworms), and for food (factory farms)? How do we develop meaningful inter-species relationships? What are we learning about animal communication, such as chimpanzees’ vocalizations and birds’ and whales’ songs? What species demonstrate special intelligence in their behaviors on National Geographic and Disney Nature? What does the public glean about animals from famous figures, such as David Attenborough and Jane Goodall? How do elephants experience and display emotions? Why do more “beautiful” animals such as giant and red pandas become more cherished than the cephalopod vampire squid? What animals’ furs, feathers, and oil have we historically depended upon to supply the United States’ economy? Thus, the course will also confront animal rights and liberation. The texts we will analyze directly consider the relationship between human beings and animals over diverse habitats and places. In this skills-based class, you will perform research, give speeches, and construct essays based upon course materials and your classmates’ presentations.

Instructor: Nicoline Kiwiet

What makes an idea revolutionary? Why do some inventions transform our lives while others disappear? From the printing press and refrigeration to Google Glass and artificial intelligence, innovation has continually reshaped how we live, work, and understand the world. In this course, we will explore the stories behind great inventions and forgotten blunders, investigate the roles of curiosity, creativity, and chance, and examine why some ideas succeed while others fail. Through readings, case studies, discussions, and research, students will explore the ideas that have changed our world.

Instructor: Nelson Sivers

On December 16, 2027, the New York Times published an article titled “Glowing Auras and ‘Black Money’: The Pentagon’s Mysterious U.F.O. Program." This was the first admission by the US government of an official Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) investigation since Project Blue Book was terminated on December 17, 1969.  What happened in the intervening 58 years?  Did the government continue to secretly investigate UFOs and Unexplained Anomalous Phenomena (UAP)?  Is there a real possibility that Non-Human Intelligences (NHI) are present in our atmosphere and oceans?  We will investigate these possibilities and discuss some of the evidence through research projects that will culminate in reports and presentations and will hopefully help develop a new-found curiosity about what is fact, what is fiction, and how the distinction between the two has been manipulated over the past 80 years.

Instructor: Sergio Pinto-Handler

The magazine Popular Science recently declared that “the bright bananas dotting your fruit bowl are in serious trouble” from a fungal pathogen called Panama Disease. In fact, the battle between the type of banana we all know – the Cavendish varietal – and fusarium oxysporum has long shaped work, society and the environment along the coast of Central America. Moreover, the Cavendish banana is only one of many types of bananas that people across the world eat and enjoy. This class examines the history of bananas in Latin America, using the history of this simple tropical commodity to unpeel the layered histories of work, society, environment and empire which have shaped the trajectory of the banana from a diverse set of hardy, nutritious – and under circumstances, sustainable and easily grown – foodstuffs, into the industrial banana that is (for now) a staple of modern diets.

Instructor: Jacqueline Reich

What is a star? What is a celebrity? We may not know how to define them exactly, but we can agree that we live in a world dominated by them, from media to fashion to sports to politics and beyond. In this course we will learn how stardom and celebrity developed, shaped, and altered American and Global culture from an interdisciplinary perspective. We will explore these issues through case studies of various stars and celebrities in cinema, television, digital media, sports, music, and more. Our objects of analysis (which we will choose collectively) will range from films (fiction and documentary), TV series, social media, and critical essays to examine the role of stardom and celebrity today.

Instructor: Ramesh Laungani

Climate change is often presented as an inevitable catastrophe that can leave many of us feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and powerless. But what if the future isn’t already written? In We Can Fix This: Rethinking Climate Change, we’ll challenge narratives of climate doom and explore how science, evidence, and human ingenuity can help us build a more sustainable future. Changing the frame from crisis to opportunity. Using Hannah Ritchie’s Clearing the Air as our guide, we’ll examine what the data actually tell us about climate change, investigate solutions already making a difference, and consider the choices that will shape our future. Along the way, we’ll develop the critical thinking, writing, and communication skills essential to navigating college and making sense of a complex world. At its heart, this course is about moving from helplessness to agency: recognizing that while the challenges we face are real and the need for solutions is urgent, the future is not inevitable, and we all have a role in building the world we want to live in.

Instructor: Ryan Kinlaw

This course will address multiple aspects of the issue of intelligence. First, we will explore differing definitions/descriptions of the nature of intelligence, both historical and contemporary, with consideration of how socio-historical and cultural factors influence such definitions. Both "expert" and "lay" definitions of intelligence will be considered, and ideas about inclusion of mental, social, and emotional abilities will be highlighted. We will discuss whether intelligence is something fixed or changeable, and controversies in the field of intelligence testing (e.g., culture free/fair testing, "labeling")  will be addressed. We will also examine research findings and opinions regarding different types of intelligence, including its presence/absence in other living and non-living things. 

Instructor: Cathy Martensen

In this class, we will examine the history, environment, natural resources, and arts that make the Hudson Valley a unique and special place. Students will create essays, presentations, and a comprehensive term paper based on the information gathered from online resources, archives, videos, guest speakers, and at least one field trip (and possibly more). 

Instructor: Kate Chaterdon

Finding your “people” is an important part of surviving (and thriving!), both in college and beyond. Being part of a community not only gives you a sense of belonging, it also guides your actions, goals, interests, and values. Think about the communities you already belong to: are you a gamer? a runner? a knitter? a democrat/republican? a member of a religion? In this seminar, we will explore and research the different communities you belong to (or aspire to belong to), in order to better understand how those communities use language and writing to define themselves, create shared goals, and initiate new members. After thoroughly researching your community(ies), students will present their research to the class and create a public-facing document (e.g., op eds, letters to elected officials, codes of conduct, how-to guides, etc.) meant to inform others about your community or encourage them to join.

Instructor: Michael Craven

What can games teach us about human interaction? Games are fundamental to the human condition, and we use them as recreation, for education, and to facilitate social interactions. In this course, we will discuss the history and theory of games, and students will gain experience in game design by developing and playing their own games. Using these design skills, we will explore what tabletop games can teach us about the systems governing interpersonal interactions between individuals and in organizations, and we will explore what video games can teach us about human-computer interactions from algorithms to artificial intelligence.

Instructor: Jeffrey Canino

This section of FYS will explore topics and tales of the paranormal. In reading, researching, and writing about subjects and stories that fall outside of scientific explanations of the natural world, students will be presented with the opportunity to encounter discourse communities outside of mainstream academia, evaluate questionable evidence, and determine the historical and cultural significance of our belief in things that go bump in the night. The first two-thirds of the semester will be dedicated to examining accounts, folktales, and critical histories of ghosts and hauntings throughout American culture (with a particular emphasis on New York and the Hudson Valley) and will culminate in projects that asks students to learn about and analyze local legends. The final third of the semester will find students engaged in a multi-part project that will allow them to research a paranormal or supernatural subject of their choice (Bigfoot or other cryptids, UFOs, ESP and associated psychic abilities, the Bermuda Triangle, etc.)

Instructor: Brian Loh

This religious studies and philosophy course is an exploration of the way in which our minds shape the realities in which we live, love, and pursue happiness. After examining why our knowledge of reality might not be reliable or complete, we will explore the ways in which personal and social imagination fill in the gaps in our knowledge.  This is sometimes to our benefit and sometimes to our detriment, so we will also examine how to choose our lenses of perception so that we can steer our lives towards coherence, meaning, and flourishing.  In this process, we may explore several types of games, parasocial relationships, fandom “head canon,” religious realities, the nature of empathy, the self, and our concepts of sameness and difference. Students in this class will be invited to participate in varied forms of experiential learning, including games and storytelling.

Instructor: Stephen Mercier

We will consider how a wide range of animals are represented in non-fiction essays, fictional short stories, fairy tales, films, and art. How do these forms of media shape our conceptions of animals? What cultural values are present as we engage with animals as pets (sometimes “exotic”), recreation (horse riding and goat yoga), and entertainment (aquariums and zoos)? How do humans utilize them for experimentation (rabbits and space monkeys), fashion (silkworms), and for food (factory farms)? How do we develop meaningful inter-species relationships? What are we learning about animal communication, such as chimpanzees’ vocalizations and birds’ and whales’ songs? What species demonstrate special intelligence in their behaviors on National Geographic and Disney Nature? What does the public glean about animals from famous figures, such as David Attenborough and Jane Goodall? How do elephants experience and display emotions? Why do more “beautiful” animals such as giant and red pandas become more cherished than the cephalopod vampire squid? What animals’ furs, feathers, and oil have we historically depended upon to supply the United States’ economy? Thus, the course will also confront animal rights and liberation. The texts we will analyze directly consider the relationship between human beings and animals over diverse habitats and places. In this skills-based class, you will perform research, give speeches, and construct essays based upon course materials and your classmates’ presentations.

Instructor: Kate Chaterdon

Finding your “people” is an important part of surviving (and thriving!), both in college and beyond. Being part of a community not only gives you a sense of belonging, it also guides your actions, goals, interests, and values. Think about the communities you already belong to: are you a gamer? a runner? a knitter? a democrat/republican? a member of a religion? In this seminar, we will explore and research the different communities you belong to (or aspire to belong to), in order to better understand how those communities use language and writing to define themselves, create shared goals, and initiate new members. After thoroughly researching your community(ies), students will present their research to the class and create a public-facing document (e.g., op eds, letters to elected officials, codes of conduct, how-to guides, etc.) meant to inform others about your community or encourage them to join.