Byrne Seminars

Professors: Daniel Burbano (Electrical and Computer Engineering)

Description: Beneath the billions of neurons firing in our brains and the vast power grids illuminating our cities lies an intricate network orchestrating their function. While these systems may seem overwhelmingly complex, elegant mathematics can be used to begin unraveling their behavior and shed light on how the interactions of “simpler” units give rise to complex phenomena. This seminar introduces dynamical systems theory and network science as powerful tools to model, simulate, and analyze complex systems. We will explore how networks of dynamic units can be used to study disease transmission, ecosystem stability, robotic coordination, and traffic dynamics. Through hands-on simulations and discussions, students will delve into the mathematical foundations of complexity, gaining insight into the methods used to study and manage large interconnected systems across science, engineering, and society.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 24

Professors: Enrique Lopez and Cassie Porteus (Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences)

Description: This seminar provides a comprehensive overview of cultural humility in healthcare, emphasizing its role in improving patient outcomes, satisfaction, and equity. It explores the complexities of culture and identity including race, language, religion, and socioeconomic status, and how these factors influence health beliefs, practices, and patient-provider relationships. Students will examine the impact of bias, stereotypes, and communication barriers in clinical settings, while learning to approach care with openness, self-reflection, and a commitment to lifelong learning. The course also addresses health disparities, ethical challenges, and the influence of social determinants on healthcare access and outcomes. It concludes with strategies for implementing and sustaining cultural humility in clinical practice and healthcare policy through continuous self-evaluation, collaborative decision-making, and advocacy for inclusive, patient-centered care. Genetic counselors, Nicole Kasatkin and Enrique Lopez, will incorporate real-world experiences, patient stories, and current developments to highlight the importance of cultural humility in healthcare. Students will engage in discussions, watch reflective video content, and participate in activities that promote self-awareness and critical thinking. By the end of the course, students will be able to thoughtfully examine how cultural humility influences medical care, social interactions, and ethical decision-making, and will be equipped to approach diverse patient experiences with respect, openness, and a commitment to ongoing learning.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 36

Professor: Nicholas Bello (Animal Science)

Description: “Globesity” is the term used by some to describe the worldwide impact of obesity. Several treatments are available for obesity, but do any of them work? In this seminar, we will explore the causes and consequences of obesity and current treatment strategies. Through hands-on experiments, we will analyze neural pathways that control food intake and body weight and examine how obesity drugs work. We will explore obstacles to long-term treatment and efficacy standards of the FDA.

Course Number: 11:090:101 section 06

Professor: Ryan Rhodes (Center for Cognitive Science)

Description: Launched in 1977, the Voyager space probe is now beyond our solar system, over 15 billion miles from Earth. Voyager carries with it a golden record, inscribed with images of humans and symbols representing our planet and its location in space. It’s a message in a bottle recording our existence for any intelligent life that may one day find it. The question is—would an intelligent alien lifeform be able to understand it? Earth’s most intelligent creatures—humans—are defined by a universal capacity for complex language. Language has allowed us to coordinate our collective intelligence to build cities, harness the fundamental forces of nature, and even escape the bounds of our solar system. If intelligent life exists beyond the Earth, this raises the possibility that they too will have complex languages and may even be capable of interstellar communication! This is the goal of SETI—to intercept, identify, and decipher any signals from beyond Earth that may have been produced by alien intelligence. A new emerging field of linguistics is tackling big questions about language beyond humanity. What would an extraterrestrial language look like? Would it be comprehensible to us? Would we be able to communicate? Will our languages have anything in common? In this seminar, we’ll approach the exciting possibility of interstellar communication from the perspective of several fields—including linguistics, philosophy, psychology, and biology—to imagine what an extraterrestrial language might look like.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 17

Professors: Tracy Davis (Comparative Medicine Resources)

Description: This course provides a broad overview of the multidisciplinary field of gerontology with an emphasis on key sociological, biological, and psychological aspects of aging. A special focus will be placed on the increasing population of older adults, the diversity among older adults, and career opportunities within the aging field.  Students will be encouraged to explore their own attitudes and beliefs about aging, what it means to age successfully, and gerontology courses and programs at Rutgers University.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 04

Professors: Richard Lutz (Marine and Coastal Sciences) and Costantino Vetriani (Biochemistry and Microbiology)

Description: The seminar will focus on deep-sea exploration from the origins to present times, and discussions will be based on a mix of oral presentations and documentaries. The seminar will expose students to the deep-sea environment and its inhabitants, and it will include discussions on ongoing ecological and microbiological research conducted at Rutgers in the most extreme environments on the face of the planet (e.g., deep-sea hydrothermal vents with temperatures in excess of 700°F located at depths of 1 - 2 miles beneath the ocean surface). The biotechnological potential of the deep-sea - e.g., the discovery of chemical compounds isolated from deep-sea vent organisms that may have pharmaceutical potential for curing certain types of cancer - will also be discussed. "Hands on" activities will include interactive exchanges between students and the professors focused on historical videos of deep-sea exploration. Among others, these videos include an Oscar-winning film documenting the initial biological expedition to deep-sea vents in 1979 (led by the first Director of Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences) and a special, large-screen Blu-ray showing for the class of an IMAX film entitled "Volcanoes of the Deep Sea" that was co-produced by Rutgers University featuring Rutgers scientists and research efforts. Rutgers was recently ranked 4th in the world among oceanographic research institutions and this seminar will expose the enrolled students to not only the cutting edge, deep-sea exploration that played a critical role over the years in helping Rutgers achieve that prominent world stature, but also to the many opportunities available to them related to oceanography at the University.

Course Number: 11:090:101:01

Professor: Joseph Heckman (Plant Biology)

Description: Fresh Food from Fertile Soil – the Birthright of Humanity - is a foundational principle in the Organic Farming and Raw Milk Movements.  Fresh unprocessed whole milk from pastured animals provided essential nourishment for centuries and fostered a selective advantage for a dairy-based-culture. Students in this freshman seminar will learn about key events and players in the untold story of milk.  This will include Dr. Henry Coit, MD of Newark, NJ who established (1893) the American Association of Medical Milk Commissions for producing “Certified Milk”; the philanthropy of Nathan Strass who funded the pasteurization of milk in New York City; the FDA Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (1924); the world famous Elisie the cow of Walker Gordon Dairy of Plainsboro, NJ, the USDA Organic Food Production Act (1990); the Real Milk Campaign of the Weston A. Price Foundation (1999); the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund (2007); the publication of The Raw Milk Revolution (2009); and the Raw Milk Institute founded (2011) by Mark McAfee to establish high standards, safety and training for producers of fresh whole unpasteurized milk.  Currently the modern conception (2025) of a Raw Milk Ordinance has been proposed to be administered by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who has been nominated as US Secretary of Health and Human Services.  Students will learn from invited speakers from around the world.

Course Number: 11:090:101 section 08

Professor: Mark Robson (Plant Biology; Dean of the School of Graduate Studies

Description: This five-week seminar will discuss what we eat and the origin of foods and how we grow and prepare them. We will look at the two ends of the food supply, the one billion people who suffer from lack of calories and food insecurity and the one billion people who are now clinically obese and suffer from a series of non-communicable diseases. We will talk about how food is grown, shipped, and marketed. We will discuss personal choices and better eating.

Course Number: 11:090:101:04

Professor: George Stauffer (Music; Dean Emeritus, Mason Gross School of the Arts)

Description: If there is a uniquely American art form in music aside from jazz, it is the Broadway musical. From humble roots in variety shows, vaudeville, and operetta, the Broadway musical evolved into a fully staged production involving speech, song, and dance, united by a single plot, initially on humorous or satirical themes but increasingly on substantive literary topics as well as serious social issues. Its early development took place mainly in New York City, America’s cultural center, but in time the form spread to Europe, where it was warmly embraced at London’s West End, especially. The present seminar will look at key moments in the development of the American musical, examining the librettos, music, staging, and reception of such pivotal works as Babes in Toyland, Oklahoma!, Porgy and Bess, South Pacific, West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, Cats, Les Misérables, and Hamilton. It will look closely at the music of these works, but it will also explore how such pieces are conceived, composed, financed, produced, and franchised. The class will include a field trip to see a Broadway show.

Course Number: 01:090:101:28

Professor: Vaishali Singhal (School of Health Professions)

Description: Thinking of a career in healthcare? Then this is the Byrne Seminar for you. Follow a patient’s journey to health while learning about a variety of health professions. Experience what it is like to help someone learn to walk again, to detect diseases from a small speck of blood, and to look into the heart as it delivers oxygen to our vital organs. Join us for a ten-week tour around the body while learning about the exciting professions that restore wellness and health. Course Description: This course is designed to introduce the student to a wide spectrum of healthcare careers including Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant, Clinical Laboratory Services, Nutritional Sciences, Health Informatics, Psychiatric Counseling, Diagnostic Imaging, and Clinical Research. Utilizing a case-based approach, students will follow a patient through their journey of recovery while gaining introductory knowledge about the health professions and the patients that they serve. Additionally, students will be able to explore evaluation tools and treatment modalities and participate in simulated clinical experiences.

Course Number: 01:090:101:13

Professors: J.D. Bowers (Dean, Rutgers Honors College) and Andrea Rydel (Assistant Dean, Honors College)

Description: Learn from renowned experts in various fields who will provide valuable insights and knowledge as to the latest developments in thinking, technology, the law, climate changes, cancer research, music and the arts, ethics, international affairs, medicine, economics, philosophy, AI and engineering, history, and more.  Each week students will explore new fields and new ideas in preparation for a visit (virtual or in-person) with an expert who will help students position themselves, their thinking, and their knowledge in ways that will propel them forward into the future. Students will instantly build a network beyond their own fields of study, learn from professionals (current and retired) who will help hone and expand their knowledge, and unlock their potential by inspiring them to elevate their curiosity and expand their purpose. The class will conclude by asking the students to develop a “Special Report” (or guide) in which they will share information and aim to influence opinions and encourage action on an issue raised by one of the speakers. These will then be compiled into a collective work and made available to all students at Rutgers via our Sites web-based platform. 

*THIS SECTION IS ONLY OPEN TO HONORS COLLEGE STUDENTS

Course Number: 01:090:101:26

Professor: Julie Rajan (Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)

Description: The UN was established in 1945 to inaugurate a new global era in which the rights of each and every human being would be prioritized over any nation’s or region’s political/economic ambitions. This new era stresses all human beings as equal, especially in their access to inalienable human rights, including the right to life, dignity, hope, freedom from violence, etc. Since 1945, however, the majority of humans globally have been unable to access any of those rights due to the ambitions of nations with the largest political/economic clout in the UN. As a result, human beings the world over have been left to ‘survive’ a range of human rights violations through decades-long conflicts, genocide/gendercide, and mass trafficking. That a majority of human beings globally cannot access their human rights today---many are not even aware those rights----sharply brings into focus that the state of human rights is itself in crisis. In this course students will use a human rights lens to examine the problematic political/economic dynamics undermining the rights of all human beings in crises resulting from: Western-based, multi-national corporate exploitations of the Global South (Niger Delta); genocide/gendercide (China’s Uyghurs; Syrian Kurds); mass trafficking/enslavement (Gulf States); gender apartheid (Afghanistan/Iran); and Western imperial partitions (India/Pakistan).

Course Number: 01:090:101:16

Professor: Barbara Angeline (Dance)

Description: Get ready to dance! Authentic jazz dance lies in the freedom of its participants to enthusiastically express their individual spirits. The roots of the African-American-based, social dance form are embedded in the duality of individual and community contributions and benefits. Jazz dance, in this context, is both celebratory and defiant; inviting and mutinous; explosive and cool. The release of these powerful, communicative forces—united in the embodiment of Africanist dance elements—has been used throughout American history to address social injustices. This dance class explores jazz dances and their connections to social justice. Students will learn the power of dance as a physical communication, capable of addressing, shaping and changing societal concerns. Each dance’s social and cultural roots will be studied as essential to the movement.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:33

Professors: Evelyn Wang (Dance) and Paul Ocampo (Dance)

Description: This course will investigate various dances, traditional arts and culture of Taiwan, the Philippines, and neighboring countries. Through the language of dance, students will learn traditional arts and cultures using practices and modality that are fun, interactive and informative. This seminar is designed for students who want to expand their understanding of dance as an emblem of cultural identity and an expression of social order. Along with the practice of dance, we will experience how to prepare traditional foods associated with respective festivities. The food serves as a conduit for a holistic experience to deeper comprehension of Asian cultural arts and heritage. This seminar will include a field trip to New York City.

Course Number: 01:090:101:31

Professor: Dana Bernstein (Rutgers Division of Continuing Studies)

Description: How much time do we waste thinking about, avoiding, or worrying about conflict? What does that do to your work/school/learning environment?  The best way to manage conflict is to de-escalate yourself first. A cooler head will prevail when you need to de-escalate the situation. The course will help the student identify tangible ways to think through their thought process so they can understand why they are upset.  We start inside. We all have an external identity, but it is our “internal identity” that drives how we perceive conflict. That internal identity describes our most natural self and includes our Values, Pillars (best self), and Ideal Emotion. That identity gets stopped by our one Trigger thought. By pinpointing which thoughts were impacted, students can more clearly identify what Values are fighting, if the Trigger is taking over, or if their Pillars are hiding because “they” think the challenge is insurmountable. Identifying which thoughts were impacted breaks the single story that made us think something is a conflict by giving us a thought choice.   

Course Number: 01:090:101:32

Professor: Ronald Quincy (School of Social Work)

Description: In this seminar students will work on capacity building projects with the co-instructors to support several civil society and nonprofit organizations in Kenya. Students will engage with the Mandela Washington Leadership Fellowship Alumni on their Civil Society Organization Projects in Kenya through the use of electronic media (e.g. Skype). The seminar will engage students with Johnson & Johnson leaders based both in the U.S. and in sub-Saharan Africa about best practices in managing and leading African Civil Society Organizations. Students will take a trip to the U.N. to attend an international conference related to African Civil Society Organizations.

Course Number: 01:090:101:10

Professor: David Tulloch (Landscape Architecture)

Description: From Grand Canyon to Acadia to the Dry Tortugas, National Parks and Parklands are designed to send all sorts of messages to their visitors. This class will explore ways that national parks (focusing primarily on those in the US) communicate messages to visitors. Designers have also employed precisely aligned roads and buildings rich in symbolism to communicate with visitors at an experiential level. Published materials, such as the impressively consistent NPS brochures used at every park, and carefully designed signs provide an overt system of communication. The seminar will visit a NPS site to look for messages and learn more about this amazing network of natural treasures. 

Course Number: 11:090:101:05

Professors: Lauren Neitzke Adamo and Cathleen Doherty(Earth & Planetary Sciences)

Description: The goal of this seminar is to explore, examine, and discuss some of the most important and potentially life altering geoscience issues affecting our society.  Through a mixture of guest lectures, field trips, class discussions, and hands-on in class activities; students will learn about topics such as climate change, the search for oil and other natural resources, sea-level rise, the exploration of the moon and other extraterrestrial planets, and more!  This course will provide a space for students to discuss these topics with leading experts in the field, as well as examine how some of this science is communicated to the public with trips to local natural history museums and discussions with formal and informal educators.

Course Number: 01:090:101:06

Professor: Dan Swern (School of Communication and Information) 

Description: This Byrne Seminar will introduce students to participation in local government through detailed and thoughtful note taking at meetings, including City of New Brunswick and Middlesex County. A healthy information ecosystem ensures accountability of a community’s government and public institutions, and empowers citizens to participate in public life through advocacy, community service, and elected office. Local government bodies hold thousands of public meetings every day—but the vast majority receive no media coverage and produce minimal records. The Documenters Network makes local government more accountable and transparent by training community members to
attend these meetings and publish the results via news products, social media, and the custom Documenters web app, Documenters.org. The Documenters Network was founded by City Bureau in Chicago and has since expanded to Cleveland, Detroit, and diverse communities around the country. coLAB Arts, led by Dan Swern, is launching a New Brunswick, NJ Documenters program in collaboration with this collective effort.

Course Number: 01:090:101:19

Professor: Jonah Siegel (English) and English Department faculty 

Description: This workshop is designed to help you become a stronger reader—not a speed reader, or a quick summarizer, but a thoughtful, engaged, alert reader ready to take on even quite complex forms of writing. Whether you think you hate to read or you know you love to do it, this course aims to provide you the tools to bring your skills to a new level. Because this course is a workshop, all the reading will take place in class. Texts we work on will include the openings of novels and plays, as well as short essays, stories, and poems in their entirety. We will address how to deal with apparent difficulty (words you don’t know, arguments that seem contradictory, etc.) and also with apparent simplicity. Our discussion may also consider some material you might not (yet) think of as available for analysis, for example the covers of books, political speeches, music videos. The workshop will be joined from time to time by other members of the English Department. The class will include a session at the Department’s printing press and a visit to the Zimmerli art museum to look at original sources.

Course Number: 01:090:101:38

Professor: Aaron Mazzeo (Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering)

Description: Pulp-based paper has conveyed information with printed lettering, diagrams, and illustrations for hundreds of years. In these conventional formats, the flipping or turning of pages has required human manipulation. Recent research efforts are beginning to add life and active functionality to paperbased structures in the form of mechanical grippers, manipulators, and locomotors. In this hands-on seminar, students will review state-of-the-art research in paper-based robotics (i.e., paperbotics) and active origami, and then exercise creativity to build paper-based machines that will be capable of motion and interaction with humans. By also planning the aesthetics of their projects, participants in this seminar will go beyond building gadgets to craft functional pieces of art. 

Course Number: 01:090:101:37

Professor: Yalin Li (Civil and Environmental Engineering) 

Description: Are there limits to Earth’s environment? Have we reached “the point of no return”? What are the societal transitions needed for humanity to develop and thrive for generations to come and how can we make them happen? This course introduces students to the concept of “planetary boundaries”, which highlights nine critical and interdependent environmental thresholds that ensure Earth's stability. Two dive-in sessions on waste management and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) illustrate how these boundaries are connected and impact our lives. Through interactive discussions, real-world case studies, hands-on sessions, and collaborative projects, students will uncover how science, technology, policy, and social justice intersect to maintain a sustainable planet. Join us for an eye-opening journey into the future of our planet and discover how you can be part of the solution.

Course Number: 01:090:101:23

Professor: Gina Sideli (Plant Biology) 

Description: This seminar investigates the dynamic world of plant breeding, exploring how humans have harnessed the power of natural and artificial selection to shape our everyday plants. Through a combination of lectures, hands-on activities, and reflective discussions, students will gain a foundational understanding of scientific principles, techniques, and impacts of plant breeding on society. The course begins with an exploration of plant diversity, examining plant types, fruits, grains, seeds, and tubers to understand how selection drives variation. Students will then investigate the principles of artificial selection, by collaborating in groups to simulate controlled plant crossings. As the course progresses, students will discover the intricate relationship between floral structure and pollination, honing their skills in crossing techniques using zinnia flowers. A basic overview of genetics, genomics, and gene-editing will highlight the tools used to accelerate breeding efforts, complemented by a hands-on activity performing DNA extractions from strawberries. Finally, students will explore the role of sensory science in cultivar development, participating in a grape sensory evaluation to understand how consumer taste and preference influence breeding decisions. Students will engage in online discussions which reinforce lecture and lab topics.  Critical thinking and collaborative skill building will be at the forefront of each interactive lesson. By the end of the course, students will have a comprehensive overview of plant breeding's history, science, and potential to address global horticulture/agronomy challenges. No prior knowledge is required—just curiosity and a willingness to learn the fascinating science behind the plants we depend on every day!

Course Number: 11:090:101:09

Professors: Lauren Goodlad (English) and Matthew Stone (Computer Science)

Description: “Generative” artificial intelligence (AI) tools are now embedded in popular software, tempting you to regard these commercial applications as reliable “copilots” and tutors. While these tools generate content in seconds, they rely on immense troves of human-generated “training data” and the energy-intensive computing resources necessary to statistically “model” it. Generative AI is the product of humans’ work, including the centuries of writing used in training (often without consent); the work of technologists in fields like computer science and linguistics; and the poorly compensated labor of human annotators whose ongoing work is necessary to make such “AI” seem more reliable and human-like. The ethical, political, and social problems these technologies raise are both practical and immediate—and your first year in college is a perfect time to position yourself as an empowered and active decision-maker about whether and when to use them. In this co-taught interdisciplinary seminar, you will learn the basics of how generative AI works alongside the foundational principles of “design justice”—an approach that foregrounds the impact of a technology on affected communities. Along the way, we will explore the contexts for regarding these statistical technologies as something called “AI.” Why do today’s chatbots refer to themselves in the first person as if they were conscious entities? How (and with what effect) do these systems simulate human dialogue and generate outputs that resemble the products of human creativity? All levels of prior experience and perspectives on “AI” are welcome—enthusiastic, skeptical, and/or undecided.

Course Number: 01:090:101:21

Professor: Andrea Spaeth and Morgan Murray (Kinesiology and Health)

Description: Many young adults face challenges with attentional focus. This impacts academic performance as well as social interactions. The use of social media and stress related to recent global events has increased the prevalence and severity of this issue. This course will discuss attentional focus as a construct (class 1) and how it is impacted by social media use (class 2) and stress (class 3). In addition, we will learn and practice several evidence-based techniques that improve an individual’s ability to focus and sustain their attention (class 4: mindfulness, class 5: progressive relaxation, class 6: structured scheduling and minimizing distraction, class 7: slow reading, class 8: active listening). We will also conclude by exploring how several commonly-used substances impact attentional focus (class 9: caffeine and other stimulants and class 10: alcohol and cannabis). Concepts covered in the course will span neuroscience, physiology and psychology. The goal is to empower students with knowledge and tools to improve their ability to focus their attention in a variety of settings.

Course Number: 01:090:101:03

Professor: J.D. Bowers (Dean, Rutgers Honors College)

Description: This seminar explores the contemporary case studies of injustices, violence, atrocities, and catastrophes, as well as then, the responses to them by communities of victims, stakeholders, interventionists, and the many levels of society. Using your free subscriptions to both the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (available to you through the Rutgers University Library System) we will identify, read, explore, and research stories of violence and the responses to them. Through such a lens we will learn how to discern fact from opinion, how to read the news for long-term cycles (and avoid the trap of the short-term or headline-based cycles), and how to have productive conversations on the issues of the day. Our goal will be, each week, to read, dive deeper, discuss, and develop informed views and understandings so that we can sustain an appropriate and informed level of discourse throughout our lives as we encounter news stories and their impacts on ourselves and the world around us. At the end of the course, your objective will be to produce a brief OpEd piece addressing one story and issue that we have explored.

Course Number: 01:090:101:27

Professor: Kristen Dana (Electrical and Computer Engineering)

Description: Robotics and automation are increasingly becoming part of our everyday lives.  We are beginning to glimpse the future  with automated vehicles, robots in hospitals, telepresence robots, robots collecting trash and cooking food, rescue robots and farming robots. The traditional objective of robotics research has been to provide automated platforms that operate at high-speed, accurately and consistently, such as in the context of manufacturing systems. As robots are deployed in a wider variety of domains that are closer to humans, it becomes important to consider other aspects, such as safety, adaptability to human needs, and nuanced societal impacts. Robotics has the potential to improve the quality of  life both at the individual and societal level. To shape the  early stages of the robotics design process, we consider the following question addressing questions: How will these robots help people and society? What are the potential unintended consequences of this technology? How can robots serve critical individual and societal needs? How can costly mistakes be avoided in robotics technology development and adaptation? The course will discuss issues in an emerging field called socially cognizant robotics that considers robotics technologies and discusses how these technologies can impact society and individuals.  The course will give a tour of six underlying interconnected sub-disciplines of socially cognizant robotics:  (1) robot embodiment, (2) control, (3) computer vision, (4) language processing, (5) cognitive science,  (6) public policy.  These topics range from traditionally technical fields to those which support human interaction as well as policy issues to mediate robotics adaptation in society.  The course will also discuss a new research program at Rutgers called SOCRATES, socially cognizant robotics for a technology enhanced society.

Course Number: 01:090:101:29

Professors: Cara Cuite (Human Ecology) and Kathe Newman (Urban Planning) 

Description: Are you looking for opportunities to get engaged with the New Brunswick community? After eight weeks spent learning about community food security in this interactive Byrne Seminar, you’ll dive into community-based food projects during a weeklong Spring Break trip in New Brunswick. You will stay in a New Brunswick hotel with your peers and spend your days working with local organizations. While you continue to learn about food security and how non-profits and government address hunger in the community, you’ll participate in service-learning opportunities. 

*THIS COURSE HAS A MANDATORY SPRING BREAK TRIP and requires an application with a short personal statement. Admission is rolling, and students will start to be notified on November 14, 2025. Complete the BRIEF application here: https://go.rutgers.edu/ru_engaged_byrne_application 

Course Number: 11:090:101:02

Professor: Ioannis Androulakis

Description: This Byrne seminar examines the intricate relationship between social media and stress, exploring how the platforms that connect us can also challenge our mental, emotional, and physical well-being. By analyzing key stressors—such as comparison culture, cyberbullying, misinformation, and addictive design—we aim to uncover the mechanisms that contribute to heightened anxiety and burnout in the digital age. The Byrne seminar delves into how social media impacts specific populations, from teenagers navigating identity to professionals managing their online presence and marginalized communities facing online discrimination. Through a multidisciplinary lens, students will explore the psychological and physiological effects of social media-induced stress, strategies for digital well-being, and the societal implications of platform design and the attention economy. Ultimately, the Byrne seminar seeks to equip students with the knowledge and tools to use social media mindfully, foster positive digital environments, and mitigate its stress-inducing aspects.

Course Number: 01:090:101:01 

Professor: Ani Javian (Dance)

Description: As yoga, meditation, and other somatic techniques become popularized, the word “mindful” gets tossed around in our culture without truly considering its significance. What does it mean? This seminar works toward understanding and experiencing mindfulness via an introduction to general somatic principles such as self-reflection, sensory awareness, and body/mind integration. Through guided movement explorations and other opportunities for increased self-awareness, we may become more adept at tuning in to our interior selves, to the world around us, and to the earth that supports us. There will be some movement, some drawing, and some discussion as we practice listening to cultivate a holistic body/mind approach to our daily lives. No prior movement experience is necessary. 

Course Number: 01:090:101:35 

Professor: Carl Kirschner (Spanish and Portuguese)

Description: The world of intercollegiate athletics has changed dramatically from the days of regional competitions without media coverage to the present national stage with television and internet coverage. What were the factors underlying the change? What role have the universities played? What role has the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) played? This seminar will review the history of intercollegiate athletics with a special emphasis on the last ten years. Significant case studies of positive and negative behaviors by players, coaches, and universities and the reactions (sanctions) by the NCAA will be studied.

Course Number: 01:090:101:18 

Professor: Patricia Morton (Cell Biology and Neuroscience)

Description: Using present day examples from stem cell and spinal cord injury research and clinical trials, this course will enable students to look beyond the headlines to the underlying facts and issues in scientific research, to critically raise and examine ethical questions, and to understand that the purpose of science is to improve the lives of people. Students are encouraged to find and report on examples in movies, television, newspapers, magazines, journals, and other contemporary sources. The class includes tours of the W. M. Keck Center and Stem Cell Research laboratories. In addition, one session will feature a guest and family dealing with spinal cord injury who will share their experiences and answer questions.

Course Number: 01:090:101:09 

Professors: Anne Carr-Schmid (SAS Office of Undergraduate Instruction) and Mimi Phan (Cognitive Science) 

Description: Science communication involves sharing scientific information with the public to make science accessible, support informed decision-making, and inspire audience enthusiasm and participation in science. This course introduces strategies and techniques for effective science communication outreach, including science storytelling, to explain complex concepts and engage audiences. Students will explore different forms and approaches for communicating science and select a current scientific topic of interest (e.g., perception, AI, climate change) to create a science communication project to share. This course offers first-year students hands-on experience in science communication in a low-stakes and engaging course setting.

Course Number: 01:090:101:02 

Professor: Doyle Knight (Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering)

Description: Since the first piloted and powered flight by the Wright Brothers on December 17, 1903, humankind has sought to fly faster and farther. The first flight lasted twelve seconds and travelled 36 meters. Forty-four years later on October 14, 1947, Captain Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier reaching a speed of Mach 1. Another fourteen years later in April 1961, Major Yuri Gagarin became the first person to travel at hypersonic speed -- more than five times the speed of sound. This Byrne seminar will examine the unique aeronautical issues of hypersonic flight, the history of hypersonic aircraft and current hypersonic aircraft programs.

Course Number: 01:090:101:11

Professor: Arnold Glass (Psychology)

Description: Ask me to tell you the story of my life, and I will weave an answer based on what I best remember of my experiences. But are all of my memories true? Did they really happen? Thirty years ago human memory was believed to be the result of some sort of recording device in the brain. We now know that autobiographical memory is a narrative that is constantly being rewritten. So, some of our memories of past experiences are in fact false. In this seminar, we will examine the popular theories of memory of the past hundred years and the scientific evidence of today. We will consider the new view of memory as something malleable and its implications for society.  

Course Number: 01:090:101:

Professor: Trip McCrossin (Philosophy)

Description: The problem of evil, as Susan Neiman has described it, is the perniciously difficult to satisfy “need to find order within those appearances so unbearable that they threaten reason’s ability to go on,” as when (at times incomprehensibly) bad things happen to (at least relatively) good people, and (at least relatively) good things to (at times incomprehensibly) bad people. Central to her watershed perspective on the problem are two related propositions. She proposes, on the one hand, that midway through the Enlightenment, the problem of evil developed, in addition to the traditional theological version—according to which human reason strains, in the above “find order” spirit, to reconcile conspicuous human suffering with faith in divine wisdom, power, and benevolence, which either makes or allows it to happen—a more secular version as well. Here, while it’s no longer in response to suffering’s ostensibly divine origin, reason strains similarly nonetheless, so much so as to call into question, as the theological version does already, reason’s very ability to make the order it so fervently desires. She goes on to propose, on the other hand, that in response to both versions of the problem primarily two competing perspectives arise, which competition defines us still today, beginning with the public rivalry between Rousseau’s and Voltaire’s, the former insisting that “morality demands that we make evil intelligible,” the latter that “morality demands that we don’t.” The seminar is designed to have participants work together to identify and elaborate the various ways in which these competing perspectives endure in philosophy and popular culture.

Course Number: 01:090:101:05

Professor: Geeta Govindarajoo (Chemistry and Chemical Biology)

Description: Have you wondered about any of the following? How do different metals impact a particular shade of blue? Was the forgery technique used in an art heist movie plausible? What techniques do art conservators use to help conserve/restore museum pieces? Does the use of different chemicals in the process of photography affect the mood the photographer wishes to convey? How do tattoo inks work? Let us explore the way chemistry impacts how an artist manipulates the materials they use and how the works of art appear. We will examine how world/historical events and culture could impact the chemistry involved in a work of art. Depending on the topic, Chemistry demonstrations will be incorporated into the lectures. This seminar will also involve field trips to the Zimmerli Museum and the Rutgers Geology Museum – the field trips will be during class time.

Course Number: 01:090:101:14

Professor: Michael Shakarjian (Pharmacology and Toxicology)

Description: In this seminar we will examine potential weapons of biowarfare---including biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons---from several perspectives. Topics include their mechanism of action, biological impact, detection and recognition, epidemiology, and treatment. Using risk assessment and critical thinking we will evaluate the potential dangers and effectiveness of using these types of weapons. We will also investigate strategies for defense against attacks, and the bioethical challenges of anti-bioterror research.

Course Number: 01:090:101:07

Professor: Andrew Egan (Philosophy)

Description: What should we do? And why should we do one thing rather than another? These are often hard practical questions, and they’re also important philosophical questions. We will read and discuss examples of historical and (especially) contemporary philosophy addressing questions of agency, value, and rational decision. Some sample questions: are there some aims that can’t be pursued directly? (Maybe happiness, maybe a selfless character?) If so, how *can* they be pursued? Are values subject to rational criticism? If so, how? How is cooperation possible, if people’s actions are all fundamentally driven by self-interest? *Are* people’s actions all fundamentally driven by self-interest? Is it always better to have more information, or is it sometimes rational to avoid learning more about something? That’s a small sample - we will look quickly at a large selection of issues, and then collectively decide which ones to look at more carefully.

Course Number: 01:090:101:20

Professor: Sharon Stoerger (Assistant Dean for Programs and Assessment, SC&I)

Description: You're writing a paper at 2:00 AM when you hit writer's block. ChatGPT could help you brainstorm ideas or write the whole thing. Where's the line? Academic integrity has always been crucial to college success, but AI tools like ChatGPT and Grammarly are forcing us to reimagine what honest academic work looks like. This seminar introduces students to the values, decisions, and challenges surrounding academic integrity in the age of artificial intelligence. In this seminar, you will explore core academic integrity principles like honesty, trust, and ethical conduct, and examine how AI can support and threaten these values. You will review the Rutgers Academic Integrity Policy and discuss plagiarism and misconduct in the context of AI, while considering how student motivations like saving time or reducing stress can sometimes lead to ethical dilemmas. Through weekly reading, hands-on activities like experimenting with AI writing tools, and small-group discussions, you will analyze real-world scenarios and navigate common gray areas. You will also gain practical skills for using AI responsibly, distinguishing between legitimate support and shortcuts that violate academic integrity standards. By the end of the course, you will be able to make informed, ethical choices about your academic work and develop sustainable learning habits that align with your personal values and academic goals. These skills will support your success in college and prepare you to navigate future ethical challenges, no matter what new technologies emerge.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:30

Professor: Dake Zhang (Educational Psychology)

Description: Have you ever experienced any challenges or maladjustment during the first year at Rutgers? In what ways is the college experience in the United States different from your expectations? How do you look at the challenges that you will face? In this course, we will share our personal experiences, difficulties and our coping strategies.  Topics to be discussed in this course include:  academic opportunities and challenges, campus safety, harassment and assaults, employment opportunities, career development and planning. We will also talk about students’ identity under the current political climate.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:25

Professor: Philip Brown (Engineering)

Description: Whether you know it or not, Information Theory has changed your life. Information Theory is set of mathematical tools and principles for understanding how we store and communicate ideas. While this theory has its roots in electronic communications systems and the foundations of computer science and engineering, its concepts are far-reaching and can have profound implications for how we understand ourselves and the world around us. This seminar will use the principles of information theory as a jumping board for understanding the complicated world we live in. We will explore concepts from a wide variety of fields including computer science, engineering, psychology, education, neuroscience, philosophy and linguistics as we work towards better understanding ourselves and our place in the world.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:30

Professor: John Maerhofer (English) 

Description: Without exaggeration, we are on a speedy treadmill to mass extinction. With 419 parts per million in concentrated carbon dioxide in the air, ocean acidification and diminishing ice, pervasive drought and soil erosion, the intensification of wildfires, and accelerated extinction, one might expect to see a more vibrant movement that challenges the dominant paradigm of institutional change. And yet, the climate movement is mostly at a standstill in terms of pushing beyond symbolic gestures that fail to address the widening crisis. Where is the tipping point that will push people to fight against the harsh reality of biological instability that is unfolding right before us?  Considering the current situation, this seminar poses the following question: what does climate justice mean beyond bipartisan politics? With this main question in mind, we will explore how activists are building materialist struggles that challenge mainstream politics and the apathy that inhibits radical ecological change. Selected texts including Ashley Dawson's Extinction: A Radical History and films such as Myron Dewey's AWAKE: A Dream from Standing Rock will be used to spark class content. Students can anticipate doing projects based on collaborative field work and research. Guest speakers whose work addresses some of the central questions and concerns of the seminar will allows us to expand our discussions beyond the classroom walls as well.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:42

Professors: Philosophy Department Faculty

Description: Philosophy, among the oldest of disciplines, is naturally concerned with longstanding questions: To what extent is the world as it appears to us? Can we be free in a universe governed by natural laws? What does it take to know something is true, as opposed to merely believing it? Are their virtuous ways to pursue happiness, and are there better ways to organize societies in order to achieve this? And so on …. At the same time, Philosophy is alive with an ever-expanding array of novel variations — new questions that arise in light of new ways of understanding, for example, the structure of language, cognition, law, and probability. Rutgers has long been blessed with a top-tier Philosophy department, animated by renowned experts regularly contributing on both fronts. Led by a rotating cohort of them, seminar participants will explore, conversationally, not only what it’s like to do philosophy, generally speaking, but what it’s like to do so on the cutting edge.
 

Course Number: 01:090:101:41

Professor: Li Cai (Biomedical Engineering)

Description: Bioengineering and regenerative medicine seek to develop new therapies for patients with injuries and degenerative diseases. The source of cells for these therapies remains a hot topic of interest. The unlimited potential of stem cells has ignited the creativity and imagination of scientists across multiple disciplines. Future development of this technology depends on increased understanding and effective utilization of stem cells. This seminar will introduce students to the biological, biomedical, biomaterial, bioengineering of this new discipline, and the world of stem cells. We will discuss the definition, origin, and classification, as well as applications of the stem cells in regenerative medicine. Upon completion of this seminar, students will know the intellectual and conceptual vocabulary required to further pursue an interest in stem cell research and the regenerative medical profession. This course is a combination of lectures and discussion sessions focusing on stem cell and bioengineering related topics.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 02

Professor: Frederick Curry (Dance)

Description: In response to the dramatic increase in reported levels of anxiety in society, there is a deepened appreciation of embodied approaches to wellness.  In this seminar, students will embody Pilates Mat exercises originally developed by Joseph Pilates (1883-1967) and Clara Pilates (1882-1977) as evolved through the contemporary, student-centered, evidence-based approach of Polestar Pilates.  Physically, Pilates Mat exercises increase range of motion, strength, flexibility, coordination and alignment. Emotionally, Pilates Mat offers strategies for self-regulation and social-emotional wellness.  Both physical and emotional benefits will be addressed in the seminar.  Variations and modifications of exercises and integration of props will be used to help students address their individual needs.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 04

Professors: Charles Senteio and Tawfiq Ammari (Library and Information Science)

Description: Around the world, urban healthcare systems struggle to provide equitable care, and these disparities are often reflected in the language used in clinical documentation. This course introduces how applied machine learning can help address systemic inequities by uncovering biases in data and the computational methods used to analyze it. Using a current research project focusing on Brazilian Nursing Notes as a case study, students will examine how collaboration between researchers and healthcare providers across continents fosters impactful, community-engaged scholarship.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 05

Professor: Ceu Cirne-Neves (Planning and Public Policy)

Description: This course will leverage the instructor’s 25+ years of experience in C-suite healthcare roles to walk the students through the most challenging and rewarding roles in hospitals and healthcare systems. Whether you select the revenue cycle, service line development, human resources, strategic planning, operations, facilities, nutrition and food services, business development, or performance improvement, there may be a role for you in healthcare! Utilizing a case-based approach, the book “The Calling” by thought leader Quint Studer, and a series of classroom exercises,  the course invites you to come enjoy a 10-week tour of what’s it like to directly contribute to life-changing moments: from the birth of a new baby to the joy of receiving a new kidney and the thrill of walking again. Come learn how to leverage your values as a changemaker to develop a “Lifelong Learning Plan” that will anchor your career in Healthcare Administration.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 06

Professor: Trip McCrossin (Philosophy)

Description: The problem of evil, as Susan Neiman has described it, is the perniciously difficult to satisfy “need to find order within those appearances so unbearable that they threaten reason’s ability to go on,” as when (at times incomprehensibly) bad things happen to (at least relatively) good people, and (at least relatively) good things to (at times incomprehensibly) bad people. Central to her watershed perspective on the problem are two related propositions. She proposes, on the one hand, that midway through the Enlightenment, the problem of evil developed, in addition to the traditional theological version—according to which human reason strains, in the above “find order” spirit, to reconcile conspicuous human suffering with faith in divine wisdom, power, and benevolence, which either makes or allows it to happen—a more secular version as well. Here, while it’s no longer in response to suffering’s ostensibly divine origin, reason strains similarly nonetheless, so much so as to call into question, as the theological version does already, reason’s very ability to make the order it so fervently desires. She goes on to propose, on the other hand, that in response to both versions of the problem primarily two competing perspectives arise, which competition defines us still today, beginning with the public rivalry between Rousseau’s and Voltaire’s, the former insisting that “morality demands that we make evil intelligible,” the latter that “morality demands that we don’t.” The seminar is designed to have participants work together to identify and elaborate the various ways in which these competing perspectives endure in philosophy and popular culture.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 07

Professor: Arnold Glass (Psychology)

Description: Ask me to tell you the story of my life, and I will weave an answer based on what I best remember of my experiences. But are all of my memories true? Did they really happen? Thirty years ago human memory was believed to be the result of some sort of recording device in the brain. We now know that autobiographical memory is a narrative that is constantly being rewritten. So, some of our memories of past experiences are in fact false. In this seminar, we will examine the popular theories of memory of the past hundred years and the scientific evidence of today. We will consider the new view of memory as something malleable and its implications for society.  

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 08

Professors: Mary Curran (Graduate School of Education) and Nela Navarro (English)

Description: This seminar explores how public art can contribute to peacebuilding in local and global communities. Through a virtual exchange with students at the Universidad Juárez del Estado de Durango in Mexico, we will develop our intercultural competence and build relationships with peers focusing on the same topic. We will examine how creating a culture of peace requires development of intercultural skills, empathy, and critical thinking. Through fieldwork, expert discussions, and reflections on our local and global experiences, we will explore and analyze how public art can be used to foster more just and peaceful societies. Students do not need Spanish to join the class, as we are partnering with students who plan to teach English.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 10

Professor: Miriam Jaffe (English)

Description: This is a class that uses narrative activism to advance awareness of populations affected by disfigurement--including burn survivors, victims of violence, and people with congenital differences--particularly in terms of their lived experience.  We will begin with the concept of “Facial Justice” to explore internalized ableism and beauty standards in a neoliberal age. We will study screen and media representation of people with disfigurement, who are often cast as “evil” in movies, as well as the neuroscience behind human reactions to disfigurement. Our work will also investigate interventions in treatment and community building for people with visible differences. Guest lectures from people the disfigurement community with Q&A will be part of our class research.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 11

Professor: Doyle Knight (Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering)

Description: Since the first piloted and powered flight by the Wright Brothers on December 17, 1903, humankind has sought to fly faster and farther. The first flight lasted twelve seconds and travelled 36 meters. Forty-four years later on October 14, 1947, Captain Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier reaching a speed of Mach 1. Another fourteen years later in April 1961, Major Yuri Gagarin became the first person to travel at hypersonic speed -- more than five times the speed of sound. This Byrne seminar will examine the unique aeronautical issues of hypersonic flight, the history of hypersonic aircraft and current hypersonic aircraft programs.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 12

Professors: Alice Liu (Cell Biology and Neuroscience) and Samuel Gunderson (Molecular Biology and Biochemistry) 

Description: Neurodegenerative diseases occur when nervous system cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord begin to deteriorate. Changes in these cells cause them to function abnormally and eventually result in the cells' demise. As neurons deteriorate, an individual may first experience relatively mild symptoms — problems with coordination or remembering names. But as huge numbers of neurons die, symptoms progressively worsen. Ultimately, many of these diseases are fatal. Today, ~5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease (AD); 1 million from Parkinson's (PD); 400,000 from multiple sclerosis (MS); 30,000 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), and 30,000 from Huntington's disease (HD). Because neurodegenerative diseases strike primarily in mid- to late-life, the incidence is expected to soar as the population ages. If left unchecked 30 years from now, more than 12 million Americans will suffer from neurodegenerative diseases.  Finding treatments and cures for neurodegenerative diseases is a goal of increasing urgency. Huntington’s Disease is caused by a single gene mutation and transmitted by autosomal dominant mode.  This genetic background is much simpler than the common AD & PD.   HD can be a useful model to better understand the pathogenic mechanism in ND in general and in so doing help to chart therapeutics development. Part of the goal of this Byrne seminar is for you the student (1) to learn the basics of macromolecular structure and function, and (2) to have a better appreciation and understanding of how mutant proteins can drive disease pathogenesis using HD as a principal example.   

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 13

Professor: Xiangmin Liu (Labor Studies) and Jingang Yi (Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering)

Description: The widespread adoption of robots and automation in various industries has a transformative impact on the evolving nature of work and employment. On the one hand, these technologies enable businesses to automate many tasks currently performed by humans, leading to higher efficiency and productivity. On the other hand, the widespread adoption of these technologies has led to changes in the skill sets that are required for many jobs, as well as the creation of new job opportunities in the areas such as design, programming, and maintenance that did not previously exist. This course aims to introduce first-year college students to the fields of robotics and automation and stimulate their interest in understanding the relationship between science, technology, and the future of work. In lectures, students will learn a wide variety of multidisciplinary topics, such as technological innovations, labor markets, and workforce development. During lab visits, students will see first-hand how the principles and theories they have learned in the lectures are applied n real-world scenarios. Furthermore, they will have the experiential learning opportunity to engage in practical, hands-on research activities. Overall, this course will help students to develop their creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. These skills are important for academic success in the fields of engineering and social sciences, and can be valuable in other areas of study and in life in general.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 14

Professors: Aaron Mazzeo (Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering)

Description: Pulp-based paper has conveyed information with printed lettering, diagrams, and illustrations for hundreds of years. In these conventional formats, the flipping or turning of pages has required human manipulation. Recent research efforts are beginning to add life and active functionality to paperbased structures in the form of mechanical grippers, manipulators, and locomotors. In this hands-on seminar, students will review state-of-the-art research in paper-based robotics (i.e., paperbotics) and active origami, and then exercise creativity to build paper-based machines that will be capable of motion and interaction with humans. By also planning the aesthetics of their projects, participants in this seminar will go beyond building gadgets to craft functional pieces of art. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 16

Professors: Andrew Egan (Philosophy)

Description: What should we do? And why should we do one thing rather than another? These are often hard practical questions, and they’re also important philosophical questions. We will read and discuss examples of historical and (especially) contemporary philosophy addressing questions of agency, value, and rational decision. Some sample questions: are there some aims that can’t be pursued directly? (Maybe happiness, maybe a selfless character?) If so, how *can* they be pursued? Are values subject to rational criticism? If so, how? How is cooperation possible, if people’s actions are all fundamentally driven by self-interest? *Are* people’s actions all fundamentally driven by self-interest? Is it always better to have more information, or is it sometimes rational to avoid learning more about something? That’s a small sample - we will look quickly at a large selection of issues, and then collectively decide which ones to look at more carefully.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 17

Professors: Amy Miele and Brianna Livelli (Student Affairs)

Description: This course provides an introduction to the principles of restorative justice (RJ) and its application to everyday life. In this course, we will focus on the roots, history, and foundations of restorative justice practices, while also engage in and learn how to craft your own RJ circles, and explore how to listen for needs, identify harm, and begin the journey towards repair. This course also provides you with an opportunity to engage with trained RJ facilitators, who will join some of our classes with intention. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 18

Professor: Min Kwon (Music)

Description:  In 2020, during the pandemic, the instructor embarked on what has since evolved into a multi-year exploration and celebration of "America the Beautiful"—an iconic song that has become a symbol of America, familiar to all who call it home.  From inaugurations and graduations to sports events and ceremonies both large and small, "America the Beautiful" has been sung by everyone from Ray Charles to Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez to famous opera singers.

We will dive into the origins of both the music (which was composed in New Jersey!) and the lyrics, uncovering the behind-the-scenes stories that shaped this cherished anthem. We’ll also interpret and evaluate a wide array of renditions by various artists, each bringing their unique beliefs and styles to this piece. As a classical concert pianist and recording artist, to enrich this already vibrant tapestry, I have commissioned 76 living American composers—ranging in age from 21 to 94 and from a wide variety of backgrounds—to create new variations of "America the Beautiful," which I have titled America/Beautiful. This exciting collection of works represents an intersection of diverse voices, perspectives, and musical traditions. Following the initial and significant media coverage surrounding the premiere —including features on NBC Nightly News, NPR’s All Things Considered, PBS’s All Arts, and The Financial Times—this project will soon culminate in a complete recording and published sheet music release, timed for the 250th anniversary of the United States in July 2026. As part of this multi-year project, Byrne Seminar students will have the unique opportunity to get an exclusive preview of what’s to come. They will also have the chance to offer their reactions and insights into this new body of work, which spans musical, social, and philosophical boundaries. www.America-Beautiful.com

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 19

Professors: Lauren Neitzke Adamo and Cathleen Doherty(Earth & Planetary Sciences)

Description: The goal of this seminar is to explore, examine, and discuss some of the most important and potentially life altering geoscience issues affecting our society.  Through a mixture of guest lectures, field trips, class discussions, and hands-on in class activities; students will learn about topics such as climate change, the search for oil and other natural resources, sea-level rise, the exploration of the moon and other extraterrestrial planets, and more!  This course will provide a space for students to discuss these topics with leading experts in the field, as well as examine how some of this science is communicated to the public with trips to local natural history museums and discussions with formal and informal educators.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 20

Professors: Alice Liu (Cell Biology and Neuroscience) and Samuel Gunderson (Molecular Biology and Biochemistry) 

Description: Neurodegenerative diseases occur when nervous system cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord begin to deteriorate. Changes in these cells cause them to function abnormally and eventually result in the cells' demise. As neurons deteriorate, an individual may first experience relatively mild symptoms — problems with coordination or remembering names. But as huge numbers of neurons die, symptoms progressively worsen. Ultimately, many of these diseases are fatal. Today, ~5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease (AD); 1 million from Parkinson's (PD); 400,000 from multiple sclerosis (MS); 30,000 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), and 30,000 from Huntington's disease (HD). Because neurodegenerative diseases strike primarily in mid- to late-life, the incidence is expected to soar as the population ages. If left unchecked 30 years from now, more than 12 million Americans will suffer from neurodegenerative diseases.  Finding treatments and cures for neurodegenerative diseases is a goal of increasing urgency. Huntington’s Disease is caused by a single gene mutation and transmitted by autosomal dominant mode.  This genetic background is much simpler than the common AD & PD.   HD can be a useful model to better understand the pathogenic mechanism in ND in general and in so doing help to chart therapeutics development.
Part of the goal of this Byrne seminar is for you the student (1) to learn the basics of macromolecular structure and function, and (2) to have a better appreciation and understanding of how mutant proteins can drive disease pathogenesis using HD as a principal example.   

Course Number: 11:090:101 section 13

Professors: Chloe Hawkings and Alvaro Toledo (Entomology)

Description: Insects play a key role in global health but despite this, they are an underappreciated component. Insects that are unintentionally introduced to non-native ecosystems can negatively affect food security, human health and disrupt normal ecosystem functions, while many insects provide crucial ecosystem services in their natural ecosystems. As the world increases global trade and urbanization, and our climate changes, it is crucial to understand components of insect biology and their intersection with human societies to make informed decisions which protect environmental health. In this seminar, we focus on the role insects play in global health and explore systems of food security, human diseases, environmental health and scientific policy

Course Number: 11:090:101 section 10

Professor: Derek Shendell (Environmental and Occupational Health and Justice)

Description: This course addresses indoor air and environmental quality (IEQ or IAQ) problems and mitigation approaches. The course examines major sources, commonly identified pollutants (exposure agents or risk factors for acute and chronic adverse health effects), and factors determining pollutant concentrations in indoor environments. The course also examines health risks associated with various IAQ problems in contrast to other relevant types of health risks (from outdoor air, etc). Risk management options and recommendations, including regulatory and technical approaches, will be reviewed and discussed.  

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 27

Professors: Scott Ordway (Music) and Anette Freytag (Landscape Architecture)

Description: The natural world has always been a primary source of inspiration for musicians. In recent years, composers have continued this tradition by creating powerful works in response to contemporary environmental issues such as global warming, carbon emissions, and wilderness conservation, among others. In this seminar, students will listen to and discuss classical and contemporary vocal and instrumental works that address and celebrate humanity’s efforts to live in harmony with the natural world. They will furthermore investigate how video, sound recordings, and digital tools of analysis and fabrication can change both the perception and the representation of our environment. They will get insight in how to use these tools for their own research, compositions, and designs.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 21

Professors: John Pavlik (Journalism & Media Studies)

Description: Understanding the nature and impact of digital technology on media and society is the focus of this seminar. Students examine the changing nature of media in the digital environment, including social media, and their consequences, especially implications for civility, democracy, journalism and beyond. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 22

Professor: Victoria Banyard (School of Social Work)

Description: A look at the daily news, classes on human history, and the lived experiences of people in our communities and families often show us that adversity, stress, oppression are all around us. But so are strengths and resilience. Resilience science is the study of factors that lead to well-being and thriving in spite of difficulties. This course will introduce students to the science of resilience, an interdisciplinary area of study that includes ideas from across the social sciences including psychology, social work, public health, history, sociology but also has connections to literature and art. Students will learn how researchers define and study strengths and resilience. They will learn what practices and factors promote thriving and well-being. Students will practice applying some evidence-based practices in their own lives through both in-class active learning activities and course-long project of their own choosing. Class meetings will be enhanced by guest speakers who teach and practice well-being enhancing strategies. Emphasis in this seminar will be on learning about strengths across the human social ecology include those that are within individuals, in relationships, and in communities.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 23

Professors: Minge Xie and Linjun Zhang (Statistics)

Description: Have you ever wondered how artificial intelligence (AI), like ChatGPT, understands language, recognizes patterns, or makes predictions? More importantly, how confident can we be in the decisions made by AI systems? This seminar explores the statistical foundations behind AI, focusing on the principles that drive machine learning (ML) and large language models (LLMs). We begin with compelling stories about the origins of statistics and data science, tracing how these fields have evolved to power today’s AI technologies. Students will learn key statistical concepts such as estimation, hypothesis testing, and prediction—essential tools for assessing the reliability of data decisions. Through hands-on activities and real-world examples, we will explore how these methods help train and evaluate ML models, ensuring their accuracy and possible biases. Additionally, we will discuss critical challenges in AI, including data privacy, algorithmic fairness, and ethical concerns surrounding AI safety. Can AI truly be unbiased? How do we measure its trustworthiness? The seminar is designed for undergraduate students who are interested in statistics, data science and AI. It encourages curiosity and critical thinking about the role of data in shaping the intelligent systems we interact with every day.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 25

Professor: Derek Shendell (Environmental and Occupational Health and Justice)

Description: This course addresses indoor air and environmental quality (IEQ or IAQ) problems and mitigation approaches. The course examines major sources, commonly identified pollutants (exposure agents or risk factors for acute and chronic adverse health effects), and factors determining pollutant concentrations in indoor environments. The course also examines health risks associated with various IAQ problems in contrast to other relevant types of health risks (from outdoor air, etc). Risk management options and recommendations, including regulatory and technical approaches, will be reviewed and discussed.  

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 26

Professor: Derek Shendell (Environmental and Occupational Health and Justice)

Description: This Byrne Seminar will focus on selected NJ communities with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency/NJ Department of Environmental Protection designated Superfund or abandoned hazardous waste sites now also potentially impacted by climate change, including extreme weather events and natural disasters year-round. Discussions will incorporate an interdisciplinary perspective across public health, environmental and engineering sciences, socio-demographic factors, and justice issues. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 27

Professor: Kristoffer Shields (Eagleton Institute of Politics)

Description: As the chief executives of their states, governors shape policy, set the state agenda, and act as their state’s representatives in the public eye. Put simply, the governor is usually the most important and powerful person in the state during his or her term(s) in office. No wonder, as we look ahead to 2020, that governors and former governors will once again be on the short lists of potential candidates. Of all the tests a governor can face, however, perhaps none is as important—and difficult—as dealing with the after-effects of a natural disaster. Hurricanes, fires, and floods can be unpredictable, but the importance of a governor’s performance in the aftermath of such an event is certain. This course will begin with a quick look at the office of the governor in general: What is a governor? How do gubernatorial powers differ from state to state? And what role does the governor play in the U.S. federal system? We will then move on to look at this central example of a governor’s power and responsibility: shepherding his or her state through the trauma of a natural disaster. We will use a series of three case studies to research and examine a governor’s range of options in such a challenge, culminating with a long look at our own state’s experience following Super Storm Sandy. We will hear from the people who were involved in the recovery efforts, analyze the political and real-life effects of their decisions, and research what works and what doesn’t when a governor is forced to become the “consoler-in-chief.” 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 28

Professor: Andrea Spaeth and Morgan Murray (Kinesiology and Health)

Description: Many young adults face challenges with attentional focus. This impacts academic performance as well as social interactions. The use of social media and stress related to recent global events has increased the prevalence and severity of this issue. This course will discuss attentional focus as a construct (class 1) and how it is impacted by social media use (class 2) and stress (class 3). In addition, we will learn and practice several evidence-based techniques that improve an individual’s ability to focus and sustain their attention (class 4: mindfulness, class 5: progressive relaxation, class 6: structured scheduling and minimizing distraction, class 7: slow reading, class 8: active listening). We will also conclude by exploring how several commonly-used substances impact attentional focus (class 9: caffeine and other stimulants and class 10: alcohol and cannabis). Concepts covered in the course will span neuroscience, physiology and psychology. The goal is to empower students with knowledge and tools to improve their ability to focus their attention in a variety of settings.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 29

Professor: Lei Yu (Genetics)

Description: Humans have been using nature-made ingredients (herbs, minerals, and extracts from plants and animals) to treat diseases since ancient times. In modern day science, medicine-making is one of the largest industries and job markets for the college-educated. In this Byrne seminar, we will use examples of potion-making from the Harry Potter book series as a literary platform, and introduce the knowledge and scientific approaches for medicine-making science and processes. This class will have assigned reading and extensive in-class discussions, both as a full class, and in small groups. The objective is to introduce the students to biomedical research, and to develop skills in critical thinking. By the end of the course, students should be conversant with the subject area about the modern medicine-making process, the basics of how biomedical research is conducted, and how it applies to real-world examples. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 31

Professor: Milton Heumann (Political Science)

Description: We begin with reading a journalistic account of criminal justice in Chicago. This is followed by a more general discussion of criminal justice across many cities. Next a prosecutor, defense attorney , and judge speak to the seminar and share their experiences with particular emphasis on their most memorable cases and with their most poignant insights from their careers working in the courts. Students have the opportunity to carefully question the speaker, and test hypotheses derived from the readings against the speakers’ experiences. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 32

Professor: Ronald Quincy (School of Social Work)

Description: In this seminar students will work on capacity building projects with the co-instructors to support several civil society and nonprofit organizations in Kenya. Students will engage with the Mandela Washington Leadership Fellowship Alumni on their Civil Society Organization Projects in Kenya through the use of electronic media (e.g. Skype). The seminar will engage students with Johnson & Johnson leaders based both in the U.S. and in sub-Saharan Africa about best practices in managing and leading African Civil Society Organizations. Students will take a trip to the U.N. to attend an international conference related to African Civil Society Organizations.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 33

Professor:  Casimir Kulikowski (Computer Science)

Description: Most recently AI has become notorious for what is expected from ChatGPT and its Large Language Models, frequently able to generate remarkably sensible comments and answers to questions. Yet it also makes clumsy mistakes like inventing fictitious people and references to back-up its texts, while generating fake images is a major activity on the web. Deep Learning methods of artificial neural networks that draw on enormous amounts of data is being hyped as a panacea for solving a wide range of problems, with companies are promoting  self-driving automobiles, drones, investment strategies, and even medical diagnosis. But the hype and fatal accidents with self-driving vehicles have many wondering whether the next “AI Winter” will come soon - when enthusiasm and funding from industry and government dries up as result of AI not delivering on its promises. Critical human abilities of “thinking” visually and metaphorically present tremendous challenges for AI, and ethical and social problems abound. This seminar will take a look at how AI has evolved, and just how far today’s novel techniques can be pushed – and whether or not they might hope to deliver on the claims that robots will outstrip humans with their smart behaviors in our lifetimes and whether a “singularity” is coming, where machine intelligence is able to surpass living beings routinely.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 34

Professor: Simon Wickhamsmith (English Writing Program)

Description: Look out of your window and find something which has not been crafted, sown, destroyed, manipulated, or imposed by humans. Are we really the most powerful, the most intelligent species? (And what do we mean when we talk about power and intelligence, anyhow?) If we keep quiet, and listen instead, if we stop trying to do something, and observe instead, we will notice that, at the same time as we try to adapt the world around us, the world around us is undergoing its own process of adaptation. But rather than thinking of opposition - of imposition versus adaptation, of humans versus nature - we could instead look at how we fit into what the Potowatomi environmental scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer calls the “democracy of species”. This course will ask you to look at the world in a new way, neither to condemn our human species, nor to elevate nature for sentimental reasons, but in order to consider how we can refine our perception of where we, as individuals and as a species, fit in alongside, and enjoy the company of - inter alia - wood and water, tarantulas and tardigrades, cats and cassowaries, the common cold and the Covid-19 virus. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 36

Professor: Dan Swern (School of Communication and Information) 

Description: This Byrne Seminar will introduce students to participation in local government through detailed and thoughtful note taking at meetings, including City of New Brunswick and Middlesex County. A healthy information ecosystem ensures accountability of a community’s government and public institutions, and empowers citizens to participate in public life through advocacy, community service, and elected office. Local government bodies hold thousands of public meetings every day—but the vast majority receive no
media coverage and produce minimal records. The Documenters Network makes local
government more accountable and transparent by training community members to
attend these meetings and publish the results via news products, social media, and the
custom Documenters web app, Documenters.org. The Documenters Network was
founded by City Bureau in Chicago and has since expanded to Cleveland, Detroit, and
diverse communities around the country. coLAB Arts, led by Dan Swern, is launching a
New Brunswick, NJ Documenters program in collaboration with this collective effort.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 37

Professor: Ebelia Hernandez (Graduate School of Education)

Description: What does it mean to be Latino, Latina, Latinx?  What do we share in common, and how are we different?  This seminar examines the diversity of the Latinx experience, such as our differing political views, language, unique immigration histories, being gay/queer, the difference between ethnic identity (Latinx) and racial identity (Black, white, indígeno, etc.), and others.  Why do white women passing as Latinx bother us?  We will pair learning about Latinx identity development and pop culture (e.g., One Day at a Time, Pose, Gentefied), current news, social media, and other forms to understand what being Latinx means today and what it means to college students in particular.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 38

Professors: Francesca Giannetti (Rutgers Libraries)

Description: We find ourselves at a curious moment in the history of human culture in which the “texts” we study may be analog, digital, or the probabilistic aggregates of machines. Traditionally, humanists were trained in the study of the analog cultural record—books, manuscripts, art, and artifacts–but the digital and what is termed artificial intelligence are less well charted objects of study. In this course, you will be introduced to the field of Digital Humanities (DH), which encompasses the use of digital tools and the study of digital culture. Together, we will explore a handful of the skills, ideas, and imperatives for engaging with 21st century humanistic scholarly production. Through brief lectures, discussion, and hands-on exercises, you will gain familiarity with the theoretical and practical approaches of digital humanities scholarship. Most weeks will feature a discussion paired with an exercise designed to shed light on the reading and give you greater proficiency with the use of digital tools to study culture. You will learn about plain text, data structures, code, and web development. You will also learn about some of the key terms and communities of practice in DH, like digital editing, minimal computing, open technologies, data and design justice, and digital degrowth.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 40

Professor: Andrea Baldi (Italian)

Description: The seminar addresses the representation of walking in Western cultures. Rooted in the everyday, in ordinary gestures, the experience of walking is pivotal to the shaping of our experience of place. Strolling relates to our most immediate way of staying in the world, examining and describing it. In the wake of modernity, the new urban subjects have fashioned walking as a style of apprehension and appropriation of their surroundings. Through their “rhetoric of walking,” their choices of itineraries, passers-by devise their own maps of the city, appropriating its spaces. As it constitutes a primary way of relating to others and perceiving the environment around us, walking is a recurrent motif in literary and cinematic texts. Since antiquity, this practice has been prominently recorded in literature as a paradigm of a dynamic relationship with the outside world, often leading to detachment from the mundane sphere, and prompting reflection and introspection. Such observation of our living space is culturally encoded and, with its shifts and transformations in the course of time, reflects changing attitudes and customs, highly influenced by social and economic factors. Walking through the city is also, and foremost, codified by gender, as demonstrated by the various models of flânerie, in which the gender identity of the passer-by shapes the observation of urban space. Walking sets in motion essential processes regarding reflection, knowledge, and writing. It is, ultimately, a call to participation in the world, as well as a process of cognitive discovery, moving from the outside to the inside. In the seminar we will explore these fascinating issues, analyzing an array of captivating literary and visual texts. Because of street harassment, traversing the public space can also instill feelings of unease and fear. We will look into this issue, discussing readings and visual artefacts. Thus, we will raise and ponder questions about our own experience of walking in the metropolis.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 41

Professor: Madhavi Chakrabarty (Rutgers Business School)

Description: This course ignites your curiosity and empowers you to tackle challenges with innovative thinking. We'll explore the power of "thinking inside the box" through hands-on activities like building with LEGOs. You'll learn the importance of following instructions, collaborating effectively, seeking help when needed, and celebrating shared success -  all crucial elements of successful marketing campaigns. But the real adventure begins when we venture "outside the box." Inspired by NASA's "Putting a Square Peg in a Round Hole" approach, we'll challenge conventional thinking and embrace unconventional solutions. You'll learn to identify problems, analyze constraints, and develop creative solutions that defy expectations - just like the best marketing campaigns that capture attention and drive results. This course is not just about building things; it's about building your ability to think critically, solve problems creatively, and approach challenges with a sense of wonder and exploration. Join us and discover the power of curiosity to unlock your full potential.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 42

Professor: Triveni Kuchi (Rutgers Libraries)

Description: With emerging information and communication technologies, the plethora of information constantly generated is overwhelming. Such an information environment directly affects the way you discover, keep, use, or re-use information for your research. How do you manage your bazillion files? What organizing schemes or strategies for managing information are out there? What works, what doesn’t, and why? This course will focus on understanding what information management entails; and how it requires an active, deliberative selection among alternatives, and a critical and habitual pursuit of analyzing and re-categorizing information. Through readings, class discussions, hands-on labs, and guest speakers, students will reflect, analyze, compare and use information organizing schemes or tools for managing a variety of different types of information. Final presentations will allow each student to creatively explore particular information management tools that are used at either the organizational or the individual level.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 43

Professor: Dayna Weintraub (Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs; Assessment, Strategy, and Planning) and Tori Glascock (Student Affairs)

Description: This seminar is designed to help students build foundational skills and knowledge during their first year at Rutgers–New Brunswick that will help to set the stage for an exceptional university experience. Guided by five student learning outcome domains, students have opportunities to engage in programming that promotes growth in and out of the classroom. Through discussion about the student learning outcome domains, challenging our own points of view, engaging in perspective taking, and reflection, this class will be a catalyst for first year students to challenge themselves in a thoughtful environment while also learning about campus partners, how to navigate resources, and create meaningful connections with peers. This class will engage students in discussion about integrating learning to build leadership capacity and cultivate community. Accompanying the introduction to the student learning outcome domains will be an overview of research and assessment tools that we use to make meaning of student data. Students in this seminar will be exposed to new areas of thought that can spark new intellectual curiosities while building confidence in navigating the college environment.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 44

Professors: Hylke De Jong and Pilar Rau (Anthropology)

Description: From an anthropological perspective, Play is serious business. Games, competitions, and sports are activities in which risk and randomness abound, and yet are constrained by rules and carefully isolated from normal everyday life, as “play.” Play in Prehistory and the Present thinks critically about Play in society. We will use anthropological and archaeological theory and methods to examine structured and spontaneous play cross-culturally and its physical residues in the past to make sense of human activities that are frivolous, serious, and often both. We will explore diverse cases, from baseball magic, gambling, and football hooligans to ancient forms of play that blur the boundaries of sport, religious ritual, and warfare, as well as contemporary non-Western examples. Anthropology and archaeology frameworks will help us analyze topics such as superstition, magic, luck, ritual, competition, fate, wealth, communal violence, nationalism, and social hierarchies and divisions in familiar sports and games. Students will apply these insights and learn about anthropological research by designing their own ethnographic projects that observe and analyze the sport or game of their choice.  As a group we will observe and analyze a Rutgers home game (football in the fall or basketball in the Spring).

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 45

Professor: Celeste Domsch (Associate Professor, Rehabilitation and Movement Sciences, School of Health Professions)

Description: Stuttering is a complex speech phenomenon where speakers are unable to produce fluent speech, despite knowing exactly what they want to say. Around the world, 1% of adults stutter; stuttering occurs in multiple spoken languages and even American Sign Language. There are a number of myths about stuttering, including that it is caused by anxiety, poor parenting, or trauma. Historically, supposed (but ineffective) cures for stuttering have included surgery on the tongue and talking with rocks in the mouth. This seminar will examine what contemporary research has uncovered about stuttering, including differences in the genes and the brains of people who stutter and people who do not. We will analyze the controversial “Monster” study, where children were told that they stuttered when they did not, and note its long-lasting impact on those children and the field of speech-language pathology (SLP) in general. Finally, we will trace the evolution in speech therapy from a desire to “cure” stuttering to one which supports resilience and strong communication skills in all speakers, regardless of their fluency.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 46

Professor: Julie Rajan (Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)

Description: The UN was established in 1945 to inaugurate a new global era in which the rights of each and every human being would be prioritized over any nation’s or region’s political/economic ambitions. This new era stresses all human beings as equal, especially in their access to inalienable human rights, including the right to life, dignity, hope, freedom from violence, etc. Since 1945, however, the majority of humans globally have been unable to access any of those rights due to the ambitions of nations with the largest political/economic clout in the UN. As a result, human beings the world over have been left to ‘survive’ a range of human rights violations through decades-long conflicts, genocide/gendercide, and mass trafficking. That a majority of human beings globally cannot access their human rights today---many are not even aware those rights----sharply brings into focus that the state of human rights is itself in crisis. In this course students will use a human rights lens to examine the problematic political/economic dynamics undermining the rights of all human beings in crises resulting from: Western-based, multi-national corporate exploitations of the Global South (Niger Delta); genocide/gendercide (China’s Uyghurs; Syrian Kurds); mass trafficking/enslavement (Gulf States); gender apartheid (Afghanistan/Iran); and Western imperial partitions (India/Pakistan).

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 47

Professors: Philosophy Department Faculty

Description: Philosophy, among the oldest of disciplines, is naturally concerned with longstanding questions: To what extent is the world as it appears to us? Can we be free in a universe governed by natural laws? What does it take to know something is true, as opposed to merely believing it? Are their virtuous ways to pursue happiness, and are there better ways to organize societies in order to achieve this? And so on …. At the same time, Philosophy is alive with an ever-expanding array of novel variations — new questions that arise in light of new ways of understanding, for example, the structure of language, cognition, law, and probability. Rutgers has long been blessed with a top-tier Philosophy department, animated by renowned experts regularly contributing on both fronts. Led by a rotating cohort of them, seminar participants will explore, conversationally, not only what it’s like to do philosophy, generally speaking, but what it’s like to do so on the cutting edge.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 48

Professor: Megan Lotts (Rutgers Libraries)

Description: Play can create a dynamic narrative that promotes engagement and community, as well as fosters creativity and problem-solving which are crucial to innovation.  Play also builds strong communication and social skills, and these skills can be helpful when creating knowledge, performing scholarly research, or engaging with one’s peers. Play can be all-inclusive, encourage exploration and cross-disciplinary collaboration, as well as a chance to embrace failure as a positive part of learning. Developing creativity and problem-solving skills are experiences that are often lacking in higher education and yet a skill that many students are familiar with and will need in their future careers. This course will look closer at play, why it is an important part of our everyday lives, as well as its presence in higher education. This course will involve readings, creating games, keeping a play journal, field trips, and more. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 49

Professor: Jenny Yang (Asian Languages & Cultures) 

Description: This seminar introduces students to the fundamental concepts in the science of learning. Topics covered include the metacognition of learning, growth mindset, the psychology of procrastination, technology and memory, as well as reading and the brain. Through hands-on in-class activities and weekly learning journal entries, students reflect on their own study habits and build on their learning strategies. Conducted in an active classroom, the workshop-style course focuses on collaborative learning and guides students to develop effective skills for autonomous, lifelong learning.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 50

Professors: Nicole Kasatkin and Cassie Porteus (Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences) 

Description:  Have you wondered why you have blue eyes? Does breast cancer seem to run in your family? Can genetics help solve murder mysteries? In this seminar, we will dive into how our genetics shape our lives every day. Our genetics can determine how we look, how we act, and whether we have a predisposition to certain health conditions. On the other hand, your genes do not necessarily dictate your destiny. We will explore the role of genetics in our lives through the lenses of various specialties: cancer, reproductive sciences, and pediatrics. You will be introduced to hot topics such as direct-to-consumer testing (23andMe, Ancestry DNA, etc.), pharmacogenomics, and the ethics of genetics research and testing. Genetic counselors, Nicole Kasatkin and Shannon Trujillo, will share real-world experiences, patient stories, and current advancements. Throughout the course, students will have the opportunity to engage in discussion, observation of videos, and reflection.  

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 51

Professors: Enrique Lopez and Nicole Kasatkin (Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences) 

Description: This seminar provides a comprehensive overview of cultural humility in healthcare, emphasizing its role in improving patient outcomes, satisfaction, and equity. It explores the complexities of culture and identity including race, language, religion, and socioeconomic status, and how these factors influence health beliefs, practices, and patient-provider relationships. Students will examine the impact of bias, stereotypes, and communication barriers in clinical settings, while learning to approach care with openness, self-reflection, and a commitment to lifelong learning. The course also addresses health disparities, ethical challenges, and the influence of social determinants on healthcare access and outcomes. It concludes with strategies for implementing and sustaining cultural humility in clinical practice and healthcare policy through continuous self-evaluation, collaborative decision-making, and advocacy for inclusive, patient-centered care. Genetic counselors, Nicole Kasatkin and Enrique Lopez, will incorporate real-world experiences, patient stories, and current developments to highlight the importance of cultural humility in healthcare. Students will engage in discussions, watch reflective video content, and participate in activities that promote self-awareness and critical thinking. By the end of the course, students will be able to thoughtfully examine how cultural humility influences medical care, social interactions, and ethical decision-making, and will be equipped to approach diverse patient experiences with respect, openness, and a commitment to ongoing learning.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 52

Professors: Christopher Manente (Executive Director, Rutgers Center For Adult Autism Services) and Vanessa Bal (Applied Psychology)

Description: There are currently more than 5,000,000 adults with autism living in the United States, with 50,000 more that “age-out” of their school-based educational entitlement every year. Many adults with autism are without access to high-quality services and supports. As a result, these individuals are often relegated to long adult lives characterized by social isolation, unemployment, untreated psychological and physical health conditions, and near complete reliance on parents, family, and other caregivers to meet their basic needs. This situation represents a crisis for many adults with autism and their families. This current state of affairs is largely due to a lack of trained staff, an absence of research related to the most effective practices for supporting adults with autism across settings & contexts, and few existing models for the delivery of high-quality clinical services. This seminar will examine the nature of autism and the many ways in which a diagnosis of autism can impact a person's life throughout adulthood. Additionally, the seminar will provide a guided exploration of the historical context of society's views and awareness related to autism and the many iterations of models for services and supports that have been implemented ranging from confinement in segregated institutional settings, other community-based models of care, and recent innovative models of services and support that are currently emerging for this population. The seminar will place a particular emphasis on the dire need for highly skilled practitioners from a variety of academic and professional disciplines to get involved in the development of innovative solutions to the multitude of challenges faced by autistic adults in their pursuit of a meaningful adult life in their communities. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 53

Professor: Kavitha Ramsamy (Africana Studies) 

Description: The life and legacy of the esteemed Rutgers alumnus Paul Robeson embodies the idea of “global citizenship.” A towering figure in the African American struggle for human dignity and democratic rights, he connected this struggle with those of other peoples around the world, who were also fighting for political rights, cultural recognition and economic justice. For example, among many other social justice movements that he embraced, Paul Robeson pioneered the global solidarity movement against racial segregation and white supremacy in South Africa and supported and marched with various British union movements in the United Kingdom who were struggling for better working conditions. The aim of this seminar is to introduce students to the life and legacy of Paul Robeson, especially with respect to how he tried to integrate “home” and “world” into his civil rights activism. The seminar has a four-fold focus: (1) to explore Paul Robeson’s formative years as a student at Rutgers and the challenges he faced as the only Black student in his graduating class; (2) to examine some of his artistic achievements as an actor on the stage and screen, especially his role in promoting African-American folk songs on the concert stages of the world; (3) to study his efforts to connect anti-fascism, anti-racism and anti-imperialism together; and (4) to examine his controversial associations with communist movements and the former Soviet Union. This course will feature archival materials and guest presentations by Susan Robeson.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 54

Professor: Sheila Tabanli (Mathematics)

Description:  Why do mistakes feel so discouraging in STEM—and what if they didn’t have to? This seminar introduces students to the science of productive struggle and its role in shaping confident, curious, and resilient STEM learners. Drawing from cognitive science, learning sciences, and psychology, students will explore how common mistakes—both historical and personal—can lead to deeper understanding, innovation, and identity formation in STEM and beyond. Through weekly discussions, case studies, and reflective journaling, students will develop new mindsets about what it means to “fail”—and why it matters. A guest panel of STEM professionals will share real stories of resilience, while students collaborate to create a final “Error Lab Exhibit”: a showcase of learning from mistakes, presented through cartoons, podcasts, poems, or other creative formats of their choice. This course is a safe and empowering space for anyone who has ever questioned their place in STEM—and is ready to rewrite that story through reflection, creativity, and community. All experiences welcome.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 55

Professor: Sunita Chaudhary (Director of Research Education, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey) 

Description: In this seminar learn how the most recent discoveries through cancer research are being translated into cutting-edge treatments for cancer patients. New approaches utilizing computer-assisted diagnostics, medical imaging and statistical pattern recognition allow for a more accurate diagnosis of a range of malignancies. Comprehensive genomic profiling of tumors through next-generation sequencing technologies offers the promise of personalized cancer therapy with targeted drugs. We will discuss the innovative immunotherapy approaches that are being utilized to harness the immune system in the fight against cancer and translational clinical trials that are being tested to study novel drugs in patients. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 56

Professor: J.D. Bowers (Dean, Rutgers Honors College)

Description: There are two adages about genocide. First, that genocides never truly end, even once the mass killing and atrocities stop. And second, that the battle to end genocides always fails in the realm of domestic affairs. When taken together, it is easy to see how and why the more historical adage of “never again” is not only inaccurate but is also seemingly impossible. In this class we will explore the intellectual elements of genocide studies, examine some of the most important readings over the past decade, and delve deeply into the events of the present that are themselves acts of genocide and atrocities or portend as much in the near future, and the consequences of unending genocides, including case studies such as Darfur, Ukraine, Native Americans, and several historical examples as well.  

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 57

Professor: J.D. Bowers (Dean, Rutgers Honors College) and Andrea Rydel (Assistant Dean, Honors College)

Description: Learn from renowned experts in various fields who will provide valuable insights and knowledge as to the latest developments in thinking, technology, the law, climate changes, cancer research, music and the arts, ethics, international affairs, medicine, economics, philosophy, AI and engineering, history, and more.  Each week students will explore new fields and new ideas in preparation for a visit (virtual or in-person) with an expert who will help students position themselves, their thinking, and their knowledge in ways that will propel them forward into the future. Students will instantly build a network beyond their own fields of study, learn from professionals (current and retired) who will help hone and expand their knowledge, and unlock their potential by inspiring them to elevate their curiosity and expand their purpose. The class will conclude by asking the students to develop a “Special Report” (or guide) in which they will share information and aim to influence opinions and encourage action on an issue raised by one of the speakers. These will then be compiled into a collective work and made available to all students at Rutgers via our Sites web-based platform. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 58

*This Seminar Is Open Only to Honors College Students

Professor: Sharon Lydon (Associate Dean of Alumni and Corporate Engagement, Rutgers Business School)

Description: Throughout history, and certainly during the history of the United States and Rutgers University, progress has been synonymous with leadership. The revolutionary understanding of leadership is that it is everywhere and in everyone’s capacity. While some may be born with a number of the attributes needed for outstanding leadership, it is well accepted, that leadership is something that can be learned and that can be studied. This seminar explores qualitative and quantitative research “on leadership,” and reviews research and theory toward the goal of empowering students to be leaders in all aspects of life, including college, career, and community. Topics include leadership in academic, corporate, and nonprofit work environments, as well as leadership styles and competencies. Relevant issues related to women and ethnic minorities will also be discussed. The course includes readings and dynamic discussion, debate, role-play scenarios, and real-world visibility and exposure to leadership with distinguished course co-instructors, and guest speakers from academic, health care sector, and corporate leadership contexts. 

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 59

Professors: Adam Jardine (Linguistics) and Ryan Rhodes (Center for Cognitive Science)

Description: Every language has its own set of rules for how to put words together to generate a potentially infinite number of sentences. Moreover, every language has rules for how to put a finite number of sounds together in order to generate a potentially infinite number of words. Linguists study what these rules are and how native speakers learn them as children (or adults). But what kind of rules don’t exist in languages? Why don’t they? These questions touch on not just linguistics but cognitive science, computer science, logic, philosophy, developmental psychology, and more. In this seminar, we consider possible and impossible human languages through the lens of the computational complexity of patterns. This gives us a window into how humans are able to unconsciously use the complex systems of their native language, and how they, as children, learn these systems in the first place. We also get tools to tease apart the differences, and similarities, between human and artificial intelligence.

Course Number: 01:090:101 section 60

Professors: Chloe Hawkings (Entomology) and Benjamin Lintner (Environmental Science)

Description: Understanding global climate dynamics is an essential part of adapting our society to be more sustainable. As climates change around the world, insects can be a useful model to assess these ecological impacts. Insects are the most diverse group of animals on the planet and provide necessary ecosystem services in all terrestrial environments. As temperatures change it is important to assess how insects adapt. Insects intersect with humans in many ways which can change as a result of climate change. Understanding the dynamics of pests and focusing on the abundance of insects in tropical environments can aid our understanding of ecosystem health. In this seminar we focus on the mechanics of climate change and look at the effect on insect populations.

Course Number: 11:090:101:01

Professor: Karl Matthews (Food Science)

Description: This course provides a window into the world of food microbiology and food science. We will explore popular trends and myths related to food microbes. Discussions will center on topics including probiotics, double-dipping, food safety myths (the five-second rule), and how to avoid foodborne illness when traveling. Finally, we will address the issue of food additives/antimicrobials in the context of food safety.

Course Number: 11:090:101:02

Professor: Paul Meers (Plant Biology)

Description: Biotechnology has been perceived and portrayed in various ways by Hollywood and filmmakers around the world. In this course, we will explore the occasionally wide gap between public perception and the way science really "works." Students will view and discuss the portrayal of bio- and nanotechnologies in popular movies from this country and possibly some select international films. Misconceptions and accurate portrayals will be analyzed to introduce students to a basic understanding of the latest exciting work in rapidly emerging areas such as genomics and epigenetics. Students will present thumbs up/thumbs down science movie reviews as a required assignment.

Course Number: 11:090:101:03

Professor: Jason Grabosky (Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources)

Description: Trees, like Rutgers, can exist for 250 years and longer. Many of the forests in New Jersey are described by the dominant species of tree in that plant community, and forest types change depending on where you live. Of course there are reasons why some tree species grow in New Jersey but not elsewhere. In this seminar, we will explore how the environment influences what trees occur where, and why they look the way they look. We will do this while exploring the campuses and natural spaces of Rutgers, New Brunswick. Finally, we will discuss major forests and trees in North America and consider how a changing climate suggests a changing forest.

Course Number: 11:090:101:04

Professor: Mark Robson (Plant Biology; Dean of the School of Graduate Studies)

Description: There are almost eight billion people in the world today and the population will grow to close to ten billion by 2050.  Almost eighty five percent of the population live in developing countries.  One of the challenges for this ever-growing population is providing a secure food supply.  We will discuss the trends in global food production and the technology used to increase global food supply. We will also explore the ever-growing global obesity epidemic – while there are 900 million under nourished people in the world there is a larger number of people, close to 1.4 billion, who are overweight.  Finally, we will look at the overall health of the global population, their jobs, their lifestyle, and the relationship to global environmental health issues, in particular those dealing with problems such as water and air pollution, food production and safety, and infectious and occupational diseases. Professor Robson will share experiences from developing countries in Southeast Asia and West Africa. Case studies and current research will be used as illustrations.

Course Number: 11:090:101:06

Professors: Yanhong Jin (Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics) and Mary Wagner (Pharmacy)

Description: Both science and experience suggest that our diet directly correlates with our brain function and how we feel. When we eat nutrient-dense foods, our brains function on a higher level – meaning we can learn, think, and memorize information in a greater capacity. An appropriate diet improves cognitive function and overall wellness. Yet, mindful eating is influenced by socioeconomic factors and behavioral factors. In this seminar, students will explore and learn about issues related to food and health such as: a) the impact of food on personal health; b) innovative and sustainable agriculture that supports the environment; and c) the way food access and affordability impact the social determents of health. This seminar will also discuss the potential health complications and environmental consequences related to our current eating styles and introduce the concept of mindful eating. The course will be an adventure where students are empowered to explore, observe, and document their eating behaviors and their connection to food through self-discovery and active learning. This information may lead the students to become inspired to work with their community to address issues of food justice. 

Course Number: 11:090:101:07

Professor: Isaac Vellangany (Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics)

Description: In today’s diverse and interconnected world, the ability to connect with people from different backgrounds is a must-have skill. Whether in college, the workplace, or everyday life, understanding different cultures helps us build stronger relationships, avoid misunderstandings, and thrive in a global society. This course introduces first-year college students to Cultural Intelligence (CQ)—the ability to adapt and interact effectively across cultures. Through interactive discussions, case studies, self-assessments, and real-world applications, students will gain a deeper understanding of cultural frameworks such as Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions, Hall’s High- and Low-Context Communication, and Trompenaars’ Cultural Model. The course also emphasizes the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in fostering cross-cultural relationships

Course Number: 11:090:101:08

Professor: Joseph Heckman (Plant Biology)

Description: Fresh Food from Fertile Soil – the Birthright of Humanity - is a foundational principle in the Organic Farming and Raw Milk Movements.  Fresh unprocessed whole milk from pastured animals provided essential nourishment for centuries and fostered a selective advantage for a dairy-based-culture. Students in this freshman seminar will learn about key events and players in the untold story of milk.  This will include Dr. Henry Coit, MD of Newark, NJ who established (1893) the American Association of Medical Milk Commissions for producing “Certified Milk”; the philanthropy of Nathan Strass who funded the pasteurization of milk in New York City; the FDA Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (1924); the world famous Elisie the cow of Walker Gordon Dairy of Plainsboro, NJ, the USDA Organic Food Production Act (1990); the Real Milk Campaign of the Weston A. Price Foundation (1999); the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund (2007); the publication of The Raw Milk Revolution (2009); and the Raw Milk Institute founded (2011) by Mark McAfee to establish high standards, safety and training for producers of fresh whole unpasteurized milk.  Currently the modern conception (2025) of a Raw Milk Ordinance has been proposed to be administered by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who has been nominated as US Secretary of Health and Human Services.  Students will learn from invited speakers from around the world.

Course Number: 11:090:101:09

Professor: Lena Struwe (Director of Chrysler Herbarium, Ecology; Evolution & Natural Resources/Plant Biology)

Description: Join us in the exploration of the natural history collections of Rutgers University, important resources for understanding biodiversity both locally and globally. Learn how specimens are collected, preserved, and used for research in the past and today, and put specimens in historical and cultural context. We will visit four of our museums on the New Brunswick campus to learn about heritage specimens, exhibit design, digitization of pressed plants, insects, and bird skins for scientists, and education and outreach programs. Rutgers’ natural history collections consist of biological, geological, and paleontological specimens, as well as their associated data (explorers and collectors, expeditions, dates and places). Students in the course will deep-dive into a single museum collection and write a Specimen Story. They will learn how to navigate the taxonomy in museum cabinets and drawers, as well as how to make discoveries in online biodiversity databases. The course gives students an overview understanding of natural history museums, their value to society and science, and how they are used in research in biodiversity, climate change, and ecology.

Course Number: 11:090:101:10

Professor: Yanhong Jin (Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics) and Mingwei Liu (Management and Labor Relations)

Description: The modern workplace is experiencing a profound transformation, fueled by advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, automation, and the prevalence of remote work. These technological innovations and work mode changes reshape business operations, workforce dynamics, and skill demands. This seminar course aims to a) examine the impact of these changes on firm productivity, labor outcomes, and society as a whole and b) identify essential skills needed to respond, adapt, and thrive in these dynamic and ever-evolving environments. The goal is to enable first-year students to build a strong foundation in understanding workplace changes while identifying and developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills relevant to their future careers.

Course Number: 11:090:101:11

Professor: Nicholas Bello (Animal Science)

Description: “Globesity” is the term used by some to describe the worldwide impact of obesity. Several treatments are available for obesity, but do any of them work? In this seminar, we will explore the causes and consequences of obesity and current treatment strategies. Through hands-on experiments, we will analyze neural pathways that control food intake and body weight and examine how obesity drugs work. We will explore obstacles to long-term treatment and efficacy standards of the FDA.

Course Number: 11:090:101:12

Professors: Sara Elnakib (Family and Community Health Sciences) and Kathleen Howell (Rutgers Cooperative Extension)

Description: Time management and planning skills are essential to a student's success. This seminar will introduce students to strategies to help balance newfound freedom with what is required to succeed academically.  This course focuses on pursuing academic success while recognizing the importance of rest, social connections, extracurricular activities, and personal well-being. This seminar will explore creative calendaring, planning, and organization techniques, as well as introduce several types of journaling methods (i.e., bullet, manifestation, prompted, etc.), to curate days in a way that maximizes energy, boosts productivity, and focuses on what is important and nourishing in life. There is no recipe that fits all, but planning in a way that works for each student's personality type is key to living an intentional and meaningful life.  

Course Number: 11:090:101:13

Professors: Ramu Govindasamy and Isaac Vellangany (Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics)

Description: This seminar introduces students to the critical issue of food security in the context of global environmental change, with an in-depth focus on the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Situated in the Pacific Islands, FSM presents a compelling case study for understanding the complex intersections between climate change, economic dependence, and cultural resilience within food systems. Through the lens of the interdisciplinary text Food Security and Global Environmental Change by Ingram, Ericksen, and Liverman, students will explore how environmental shifts and historical forces such as colonization and globalization have influenced the region’s ability to produce, access, and utilize food sustainably. The seminar will examine core themes such as the vulnerability of island nations to climate change, reliance on food imports, transitions in dietary patterns, and the erosion of traditional agricultural practices. Weekly topics will include climate impacts on fisheries, trade policy under the U.S. Compact of Free Association, and the role of local initiatives in promoting agricultural resilience. Students will engage with readings, multimedia materials, class discussions, and guest speakers from various disciplines, including development, policy, and environmental science. Through case-based learning and collaborative projects, students will develop critical thinking skills and a global understanding of sustainability challenges. The seminar culminates in group presentations that propose policy or community strategies to promote food security in small island contexts. This course encourages interdisciplinary inquiry, application of knowledge to real-world challenges, and greater awareness of how global issues affect vulnerable communities.

Course Number: 11:090:101:14

Professors: James Shope and Benjamin Lintner (Environmental Sciences)

Description: Cities are complex human systems shaped by the interconnected dynamics of social, political, and environmental factors. Climate has historically played a key role in the establishment and evolution of cities. Historically, cities were founded in favorable climates for agriculture, trade, and habitation, such as near rivers or coasts for water resources and trade. In today’s world, climate continues to influence our cities, impacting, e.g., urban planning, building design, energy usage through heating and cooling, and stormwater systems. Urban areas, with dense populations and buildings, face unique climate and weather challenges such as the urban heat island effect, whereby the absorption of heat by buildings and pavement cause a city to be hotter than the surrounding regions. This process can cause greater heat stress for residents and can worsen the heath impacts of a heatwave.  As global climate changes, cities will confront many new stressors, both from the direct impacts of climate change (more intense rainfall events, more frequent heatwaves) as well as indirect impacts (disruptions to supply chains, financial burdens of resource scarcity).Climate and climate change not only affects the physical environment but also the social fabric of cities. Often the impacts of severe climate and weather events disproportionately affect marginalized urban communities: those who have been excluded due to characteristics like race or socioeconomic status and have reduced means to deal with natural hazards. Understanding the social and political aspects of city structure is necessary to develop effective and equitable climate adaptation strategies. In this seminar, we will explore the fundamentals of how climate effects cities, especially in light of climate change.  We will address how Earth’s climate is changing due to increasing atmospheric greenhouse gases and how these changes manifest in urban environments. We will also focus on urban environmental justice, discussing how climate change, the urban environment, and policies combine to affect different communities. We will study real-world examples and engage in discussions of how we can apply our knowledge to adapt our cities to a changing climate.

Course Number: 11:090:101:15