华体会

Course in this cluster will explore how technological developments are complicit in colonial and global violences, how technologies authorize structures of domination, and how progress narratives attempt to displace other counter narratives of which lives are seen as grievable and liveable.

Associated Course Pairings:

Course Descriptions

CC102: Hypocrisy, Injustice, and the Bomb

Instructor: Jiun Bang
Learning Across the Liberal Arts Designation: Creative Process
CRN# 18281
Block: 1

What does it mean that there are only five states that are officially recognized as a Nuclear-Weapon State (NWS) in a world of almost 200 states? What issues of morality and justice emanate from this stark hierarchy of power? Where does the normalization of this structural hierarchy come from? This course will use nuclear weapons as a central prism to examine how power has shaped the formation of identities and their corresponding agency for those both ‘wielding’ and ‘weathering’ the power.

CC120: Ethics of Mathematics and Technology

Instructor: Stefan Erickson
CRN# 18320
Block: 2

Mathematics and technology form the foundation of much of our modern society -- telecommunications, infectious disease models, data science, artificial intelligence, social media, surveillance, and cryptocurrency. Although these topics surround us on a daily basis, we rarely consider the philosophical and ethical problems they pose. This course will explore various big questions: What is a proof? What are the advantages and disadvantages of mathematical models? How is "big data" used to create predictive models for good and ill? How is technology changing the way we interact with the world? We will specifically view how these tools can be misused to exacerbate social inequality.

CC104: Power, Place, and the Southwest Borderlands

Instructor: Eric Perramond
Learning Across the Liberal Arts Designation: Historical Perspectives
CRN# 18253
Block: 1

The course explores the complex place we call the Greater Southwest, including Greater Mexico, and the varied peoples who have lived, fought, traveled, written, raised families, farmed, ranched, and survived here. Using interdisciplinary epistemologies and methodologies from Anthropology, Cultural Studies, Geography, Environmental Studies, Chicanx/Latinx, Critical Indigenous, and Literary Studies, we investigate strands of culture (indigenous and imported) that have intertwined in this region over the last thousand years. We begin by examining (pre)historical, geographic, and anthropological records and debates over whose voices get to define the region, proceed to a series of primary and secondary texts to examine physical geographic, historical, and literary traditions of the region, and assess the enduring impacts of conquests. We explore how people have constructed and articulated sense of place over time, and discuss implications of these decisions for relationships people develop between themselves, the environment, and others. The course considers relationships between Indigenous nations, Hispano/Latinx/Chicanx, Black and Asian populations, and Euro-American groups in the natural setting of the Southwest to better understand the conflict, cooperation, and cultural blending among these groups; the ways they understand and affect the biophysical landscape; and how land/nature has forged relationships within and between these groups.

Day trip, and most likely a 2-3 trip in week 2 of Block 1.

CC120: Writing the Southwest Borderlands

Instructor: Santiago Guerra
CRN# 18299
Block: 2

In this course, we will explore place-based writing about, from, and between cultures and landscapes of the Greater Southwest (including Mexico). Using interdisciplinary perspectives on texts, writing, orality, testimony, and genre, we will investigate how the multiple cultures of the region write about experience, place, power, equity, and difference. Building on CC100 Power, Place, and the Southwest Borderlands, we will explore how primary and secondary sources converge in multiple forms of narrative, story, and genre in defining the peoples and places of the region.

The course will require a few day field trips, and the occasional afternoon/evening lecture.

CC105: Power and Responsibility: Exploring Nuclear Physics in the Southwest

Instructor: Christopher Monahan
Learning Across the Liberal Arts Designation: Scientific Analysis
CRN# 18272
Block: 1

This course explores the world of the atom, introducing the concepts and principles of nuclear physics and its historical and cultural context in the American Southwest. The course begins with the key concepts of mass, energy and the properties of elementary particles, progressing towards a contemporary understanding of nuclear physics, including atomic structure and nuclear reactions, culminating in the physics of fission and fusion. We will examine nuclear physics through a place-based lens that emphasizes the history and legacy of Los Alamos National Laboratory, where scientists during the Manhattan Project developed the first nuclear weapons. Students will analyse how this project transformed our understanding of the importance of scientific research in society, its implications for the Southwest region and beyond, and the role of scientific support for the Military-Industrial Complex. Our discussions will include the role of Los Alamos National Lab in scientific innovation, ethical questions surrounding nuclear energy and weaponry, and its continued contributions to research. As part of our analysis of the legacy of Los Alamos National Lab, we will contextualize nuclear physics within the landscapes and cultures of the Southwest, emphasizing Indigenous perspectives and the region's complex relationship with Los Alamos National Lab. By combining scientific inquiry with history, ethics, and regional identity, this course will foster a holistic understanding of nuclear physics and its societal implications.

CC120: Writing About Music

Instructor: Ryan Bañagale
CRN# 18308
Block: 4

How do we capture the impact of music through words? And what different approaches do musicians, scholars, journalists, and fans take when writing about what they hear? This course invites students to explore the diverse ways we communicate musical meaning. We will examine and practice forms of writing—scholarly essays, reviews, program notes, and more—to translate sound into language that resonates with multiple audiences. Along the way, students will discover how the writing process itself opens up deeper insights into music’s structures, histories, and cultural contexts. By the end of the block, participants will have refined their voice as writers, learning how to shape arguments, incorporate research, and engage readers in meaningful musical conversations. Open to all students curious about bridging their love of music and writing, regardless of previous experience or background.

Course will attend some evening on-campus concerts that begin at 7pm.