First-Year Foundations


Introduction

First-Year Foundations Seminars, First-Year Foundations Ones Programs, and the Vic One Hundred series enable new students to engage in academically rigorous discussions and develop strong written, oral, and teamwork skills in the process. These small classes are capped at 25 students, which helps ensure that all students are active participants in discussions and have the opportunity to build relationships with professors early on in their academic career.

All newly admitted, first-year students in the Faculty of Arts & Science can register for any of these courses, regardless of college affiliation or entry stream. Taught by some of the Faculty's leading scholars, the best researchers and teachers at U of T, First-Year Foundations focus on issues, questions and controversies surrounding a particular topic or theme.

Read below to learn more about First-Year Foundations Seminars, First-Year Foundations Ones Programs, and the Vic One Hundred series.

(Please note: Some First-Year Foundations Ones Programs require an application, while you enrol in others during summer course selection. See details below.)


First-Year Foundations Courses

ACT199H1 - Decipher Financial Puzzles in the Media and Pop Culture

Hours: 24L

Have you ever watched a pundit’s passionate rant over financial crisis on TV and wondered whether he was right or wrong? Did you get the full story after watching movies like Margin Call or The Big Short? What was the efficiency market versus behavioral finance debate all about? Did you wonder why everyone in the financial press seem to be calling for a lower debt/equity ratio on banks in the post-crisis era? If you find yourself think about those questions, this is the course for you. We will start from some basic building blocks of finance, such as time value of money and discounting, and proceed to look at some of the important financial controversies you have read or heard in the pop culture or media. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

AFR199H1 - Africa in Toronto

Hours: 24L

Africa in Toronto offers students the unique opportunity to trace, map and document sites and encounters with “Africa” in Toronto across diverse social, political, economic, linguistic and cultural communities in the GTA.

What are the diasporic lives of diverse African communities in the GTA? How does Toronto become home for them? Students will get the chance to learn about, reflect on and reimagine global Africa in the GTA by exploring topics such as placemaking, community-building, the politics of belonging, organizing and activism, economic hubs, artistic creation and expressive cultures, foodways and the epic battle over jollof rice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

ANT192H1 - Murder and Other Deathly Crimes: Anthropological Perspectives

Hours: 24S

Anthropology has much to say about death. There is foundational literature on sacrifice, suicide, and the rites surrounding the end of life. Anthropology also has a lot to say about violence: war, conflict, revolution. But at the nexus of death and violence lies murder, a culturally and socially salient phenomenon that garners less scholarly attention. This seminar will explore what constitutes murder in different cultural and historical contexts, by reading across anthropology, cultural studies, and film studies. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ANT193H1 - Making, Using, and Interpreting Stone Tools

Hours: 6L/8P/10S

Stone tools are the earliest and longest-lasting record of human technology. This course explores interpreting stone tools from a multidisciplinary perspective. In making, using, and studying stone tools, students will learn how archaeologists form hypotheses and design experiments to understand humans and their technologies in the past. This course presents research that investigate changes in human ancestors’ cognition and livelihoods through the contributions of other disciplines in life and social sciences to the study of stone tools. The course introduces major stone tool discoveries and critically engages with current research through the development of new ideas for research projects. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

ANT194H1 - Human-nonhuman relations through Manga & Anime

Hours: 24S

Anthropology has examined various ways human beings imagine and engage with non-human beings in their everyday lives in particular social and cultural contexts. By using manga and anime, specific popular cultural expressive modes developed in Japan, this course examines social and cultural aspects of human relationship with other beings, including but not restricted to animals, plants, microbes, technological objects and spirits from anthropological perspectives. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ANT195H1 - Speculative Fiction and Social Reality

Hours: 24S

How do the imagined worlds of speculative fiction reflect, and reflect upon, the real worlds of their authors and audiences? And on the other hand, how can works of speculative fiction have real-world impacts? Is speculative fiction different, in either of these respects, than other genres of narrative? This course explores a variety of works of speculative fiction from the perspective of an anthropological interest in ideas, imaginations, and narratives in relation to social life. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

ANT197H1 - Representations of Intellectuals

Hours: 24S

This course is a First-Year Foundation Seminar and provides an opportunity for exploration of different topics and themes. The course explores ideas of intellectuals who carved transformative theories during war times or under repressive regimes in the twentieth century. Intellectuals featured in the course include Rosa Luxemburg, Frantz Fanon, Walter Benjamin, Lu Xin, Audre Lorde. Further, it would examine cultural representations of them, such as, graphic novels, fictions, essays, films and videos on them or relatable to their ideas. For example, it would assign reading of Red Rosa, a graphic novel of Luxemburg together with her own work Theory of Imperialism. Or it would juxtapose Lorde’s classic, Sister Outsider, with Octavia Butler’s science fiction, Parable of the Sower. First-Year Foundation Seminars are restricted to first-year students and do not normally contribute towards program completion. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ANT199H1 - Living on the Water in Toronto

Hours: 24S

What do the Great Lakes mean to people living here? Especially Indigenous people? When and how do people care about the Great Lakes? Poems, stories, social science offer perspectives on the water from anthropology and arts. Field trips including paddling on a river, hiking; talks with local activists and artists. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

AST198H1 - Great Astronomical Issues

Hours: 24S

There are some fundamental questions which humankind has asked itself over the centuries. Many of these involve astronomical origins, events, and objects. Astronomers now have the tools with which to attempt to answer some of the most fundamental questions, such as "Where did it all begin, where are we in space and time, are we alone, and who and what are we?" This seminar will explore some of these great issues. The selection of topics will be made initially by the instructor, but will be modified by the seminar participants at the first class meeting. Topics could include: stellar evolution and the future of the Sun, origin of the elements, origin and future of the Universe, origin of the Earth, origin of life, and extinction of the dinosaurs, global warming, the scientific method, astronomy and the public. Participants will be expected to join actively in lively discussions and to prepare and lead some of the seminars. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: AST199H1
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

AST199H1 - Astronomy at the Frontier

Hours: 24S

This seminar series aims at building up general scientific literacy, by discussing selected topics in current astronomy, cosmology, and space science. We will delve into the physical foundation behind the questions being asked and how the answers are being sought. Students will have an opportunity early in the course to select topics of particular interest to them and this will govern the choice of readings as well. Topics could include: formation of stars; lives and deaths of stars; stellar corpses: white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes; planets around other stars; recent results from Hubble and other telescopes; architecture of the solar system; exploration in the solar system; the invisible universe: dark energy and dark matter; first light; formation of galaxies; the age and future of the universe. Participants should be comfortable with basic mathematics and quantitative reasoning. Students will be expected to do independent research for essays, presentations, etc. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: AST198H1
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CDN197H1 - Inventing Canada

Hours: 24S

This course explores the ways that Canadian history and identity have been commemorated, interpreted and experienced, now and in the past. The course focuses in particular on who has been included or excluded in commemorative efforts over time. Key topics include representations of women, Indigenous peoples, and political figures on screen and through public installations like museum exhibits, plaques and statues. Case studies highlighting a range of interpretive media will encourage students to work with and discuss a range of primary and secondary sources, build critical thinking and academic writing skills. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CDN198H1 - Canada, Colonialism and Settler Relations

Hours: 24S

A First Year Foundations seminar focused on exploring Canada's colonial history and recent efforts to enact appropriate settler relations through an interdisciplinary lens. Topics will include contemporary land claims and treaty-making processes, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, governmental apologies for the mistreatment of Indigenous peoples, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, land acknowledgements, practices of allyship through social movement such as Idle No More, and efforts to influence Canada's overseas mining practices. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

CDN199H1 - Canada- Hong Kong Migration

Hours: 24S

This course surveys the effects of migrations and cultural connections between Hong Kong and Canada from the 1960s. Students will discuss and analyze the impact of migrations, and study the connection between the two locations from the perspectives of history, culture and literature, politics and democracy, economic and financial development and the network of people and community. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

CHM193H1 - Chemicals in the Environment: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Previous Course Number: CHM211H1

Hours: 24S

The world is made up of chemicals: some are natural and some are invented and manufactured by humans. New chemicals are often intended to make our lives safer and easier (e.g., plastics, pesticides, personal care products) but may have unanticipated consequences once they are released into the world. In this seminar course, students will discover what properties of chemicals can lead to risks for the environment and for human health. Through discussion of how chemicals in the environment are understood by scientists, and described in popular media, students will develop improved scientific literacy to better evaluate risk in their own lives. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: CHM211H1
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CHM194H1 - Science and Human Values

Hours: 24S

There is a tension between creativity and the search for truth, which in science can be looking for patterns in nature. With examples drawn particularly from reports of scientific discoveries that have generated controversy, this seminar course will introduce the underlying principles and history of science, as well as how science and its boundaries are evolving, and how these influence human values. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: Minimum level of high school science and mathematics
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CHM196H1 - The Quantum World and Its Classical Limit

Hours: 24S

This course seeks to demystify quantum mechanics and equip students to critically analyze popular depictions of quantum phenomena. While quantum mechanics provides a reliable description of the behavior of atoms, molecules and photons, most people are uncomfortable with some of its predictions, such as "quantum entanglement" between distant particles. In this course we will delve into key aspects of quantum mechanics and its more comfortable classical limit, focusing first on its manifestations in nature and then on fundamental issues such as uncertainty, interference, entanglement, and decoherence. This course will appeal to students with enthusiasm for physics. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: High school physics and mathematics
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CHM197H1 - Environmental Chemistry in a Sustainable World

Hours: 24S

Rapid and widespread industrialization is changing the chemical nature of the planet. In order to have a sustainable future, we need to manage chemicals released by humankind and understand their effects on the environment and on us. Each year, this seminar course designed for non-science students will address the fundamental science behind a specific topic in this field, such as the interactions of our energy choices and the environment, or changes in water and air quality. Emphasis is given to reading from both the popular media and scientific literature. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: Grade 12 chemistry
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CHM198H1 - Biosensor Technology and Applications for the Non-Scientist

Hours: 24S

This breadth course introduces uses of and key ideas behind biosensor technology. Sensors will be familiar to all, playing key roles in our everyday lives, for example in touch screens or in automotive technology. Biosensor devices are fabricated from an electrical transducer which is intimately connected to a biochemical probe such as an enzyme or antibody. The idea is that a detectable electrical signal can be obtained when a target molecule or ion binds to the probe. Such a device offers many applications. These range from the detection of biological markers in blood and serum to test for genetic and infectious disease, to the selective monitoring of biomolecules for public safety, or in biotechnology or other industrial processes. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: Reading of book chapter on biosensor technology
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CHM199H1 - The Context of Chemistry: Origins, Concepts, Tools, and Challenges

Hours: 24S

Chemistry is a practical as well as a conceptual science that serves as the basis for applications in many other fields. The ideas and methods have evolved from diverse inputs leading to widely accepted sets of standard of facts. This collective knowledge has led to progress in the quality and understanding of life at a molecular level. While the facts of chemistry are taught in established courses, the context of what we know, the limitations and challenges of what chemistry can do and how we got to this point will be the targets for discovery by students in this course. The course will operate in a seminar model, combining presentations, readings, reports and discussions of current and historical issues. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: Grade 12 level chemistry
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

CIN196H1 - Story Worlds and the Cinema

Hours: 24S

Films create story worlds, imaginary environments in which characters live and act, and where events, large and small, transpire. Some story worlds are elaborate, fanciful constructs (think of Disney’s animated films). Others stay close to reality (think of “docudramas”). But across the spectrum, all of them are framed by and provided with rules of time and space, of believable or impossible. This course offers an examination of selected story worlds from several periods of film history. Emphasis falls on the expansive story worlds of contemporary corporately-run media-franchise “universes,” like the cross-media “DC Universe.” Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CIN197H1 - School Daze

Hours: 24P/24S

This first-year foundation course is a survey of sound film (with a brief selection of silent shorts) on the topic of how popular cinemas have represented going to school. Looking at one film and one scholarly text a week, the course will offer an introduction to the close reading of film texts, reading and writing film criticism, and the fundamentals of film history. By engaging with only one film/reading per week, the course emphasizes depth over breadth. Texts for the course may include excerpts from Corrigan’s A Short Guide to Writing About Film, Sturken and Cartwright’s Practices of Looking, Staiger’s Interpreting Films, and Prince’s Movies and Meaning, along with selected criticism on the movies screened. Those films may include Zero for Conduct, Aparajito, Tom Brown’s School Days, Tea and Sympathy, If, Rock and Roll High School, Mean Girls, School Daze, Blackboard Jungle, or Lady Bird. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CLA195H1 - Julius Caesar

Hours: 24S

Gaius Julius Caesar (100 – 44 BC) was a writer, an orator, a reformer, and a builder, as well as a general, a conqueror, an explorer, and a dictator. After his death, he was even worshipped as a god with a temple in the very heart of Rome. According to his critics, both ancient and modern, he was also a megalomaniac, an enemy of the state, a war criminal, and a tyrant. Only a very few individuals have left such an extensive and controversial mark on the history of the ancient world. We shall consider as many aspects of his life and his legacy as we can, from his conquest of Gaul to his decision to plunge Rome into a horrific civil war, from his love-affair with Queen Cleopatra of Egypt to his brutal assassination on the Ides of March. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CLA196H1 - Greco-Roman Instructions for Creative Composition

Hours: 24S

Education in Greco-Roman antiquity principally trained students to be public speakers. In the course of this instruction techniques for storytelling were imparted. What are the components of a narration? How does one build a compelling plot for a narrative? How can one suggest things that go beyond what one actually says? We will look at some of the instructional materials themselves. Then we will examine a variety of writings from the ancient world to see how the instructions are (or are not) put into practice. These writings will include public speeches, poems, and more. We will also examine more modern works and think about how the ancient advice might be used to critique, expand or reshape it. And, finally, students will try to put some of the ancient advice into concrete practice by making their own creative compositions. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CLA197H1 - Inventing the Ancient Mediterranean: Roman Technology

Hours: 24S

Two thousand years ago Roman hydraulic engineers designed aqueducts and provided hundreds of cities in the Mediterranean region with a richer water supply than any nation could boast before the late 1800s. Ever more sophisticated ships transported goods from harbour to harbour and Roman experts on construction built the Colosseum and other amphitheatres, as well as countless temples, theatres, roads, bridges, and even high-rise apartment buildings, which in some cases survive to this very day. What was the secret of Roman civilization, and what did this level of technology mean for the empire’s inhabitants? This course presents for discussion the many achievements of centuries of Roman presence on three continents around the Mediterranean Sea, while bringing into the equation also the issue of standard of living and the ecological costs. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

CLA198H1 - Homer's Odyssey down through Time

Hours: 24S

This course will survey creative works inspired by Homer's Odyssey. First we will read through the Odyssey, contextualizing the Homeric epic within the larger story of the Trojan War and the subsequent heroic return in the "Epic Cycle." Then we will study various "receptions" of the Odyssey, ancient and modern. Ancient works will include the satyr play Cyclops by Euripides and portrayals of a love-sick Cyclops in Theocritus and Ovid. In True Story Lucian calls Odysseus a liar but rivals his travel tale with episodes placed on the moon and inside a whale. Modern works include Atwood's Penelopiad, Walcott's stage version of the Odyssey, and the film "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" Themes will include travel literature, truth and lying, localization of the wanderings of Odysseus, culture clash, and the definition of home. All this material, various in date, media, and fidelity to their Homeric source, will provide us with a well-rounded sense of how the Odyssey has been re-imagined over the ages. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CLA199H1 - The “Decline and Fall” of the Roman Empire

Hours: 24S

After a high water mark of territorial reach and economic success in the middle of the 2nd century CE, the Roman Empire eventually disintegrated. How? Why? When? In this course, we will consider some of the historical features that may have contributed to its political collapse, and we will consider some modern scholarly analyses from Edward Gibbon (late 18th century) to the present. But we will also investigate “decline and fall” as a narrative trope. Why is this story arc always with us? Who decides what qualifies as “decline”? Is the “fall” of some systems necessarily a bad thing? Among the topics to be considered in the context of the Later Roman Empire are several of relevance in the modern world, not least: climate change, disease, human migration, religious difference, and economic inequality. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CSB195H1 - Computational Biology Foundations

Hours: 24L/12T

Our understanding of life is built from observation, abstraction, modeling, and comparison. In this First Year Foundations course we explore how these activities are based on concepts of chance and choice, of organization and dispersion, of cooperation and conflict, and how these ideas inform domains such as statistics, computer science, bioinformatics, molecular biology, physiology and ecology. Through this, we build a broad framework of relationships and connections that will make students’ engagement with specialized courses throughout the sciences all the more meaningful. This course's focus on best practices of structuring project work, using tools and resources, and documentation, will be valuable preparation for all subsequent courses. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

CSB196H1 - Genes, Genomes and Us

Hours: 24L

With the completion of the human genome sequence, we now have access to more information than ever before about our genetic make-up. This course addresses topics such as what are genes, how are they identified and how does knowledge about genes impact society. Students will learn basic concepts in genetics. Using this conceptual foundation, the significance of genomic research for understanding human biology, and the social consequences that may result from it, will be discussed. Evaluation is based on class discussions, homework, oral presentation and written assignments. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

CSB197H1 - Human Viruses

Hours: 24L

This course allows students to broaden their knowledge about the most important human viruses and prions. In essence, what viruses are, what they do, what are the diseases caused by viruses and how they are transmitted, etc., and what can be done about them (vaccines, antiviral treatments, etc.). Viruses cause many diseases ranging from a benign rash to severe hemorrhages and death. Each student will select a specific topic in Virology and write an essay and present a seminar for the rest of the class. Major "hot" problems in Virology from pandemics to controversial vaccines will also be discussed. Two tests covering all materials presented by all the students' seminars will be conducted. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

CSB198H1 - Cell and Molecular Biology in the News

Hours: 24L

The pace of knowledge creation in the fields of cell and molecular biology has greatly increased in the 21st century and with it, the need for greater scientific literacy. In this course, we will teach students to find reliable sources of information in order to understand the basic concepts underlying the research reported in these media releases, with the ultimate aim of critically evaluating these reports. Through exploration of various media articles in cell and molecular biology (with an emphasis on humans), students will be able to apply what they have learned to current events, as well as relevant issues in their lives and society as a whole. Students will be assessed through short-written assignments, class discussions, an oral presentation, and a final project where they will get the opportunity to explore the research behind a media article of their choice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

CSB199H1 - Biotechnology and Society

Hours: 24L

From the manipulation of genes of plants for improved food production through to human tissue engineering and stem cell research, biotechnology is increasingly playing a major role in our world. Society, however, is often challenged by the rapid advances in our knowledge in these areas, and how to best apply these technologies in a manner that is socially responsible and economically viable. In this seminar course, students will research and describe various applications of biotechnology using information obtained from reputable sources, and lead discussions on the benefits and concerns that arise from this research. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

CSC194H1 - Impactful Video Game Design

Previous Course Number: PMU199H1

Hours: 24S

An introduction to the fundamental design and development principles for digital games, and their potential for real-world impact and social betterment. Topics include game design history & social issues, narrative and gameplay elements, human-computer interaction and project management. Strong focus on how design elements affect player engagement and learning. This course requires students to create a game as part of the course, with practical assignments and a final project that reflect industry milestones. No programming is required for this course. Please note that not all CSC first-year seminars will be offered in a given year; please check the Timetable for current offerings. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

CSC196H1 - Great Ideas in Computing

Hours: 36L

We will pursue the general (and very debatable) theme of GREAT IDEAS in COMPUTING (including some surprising algorithms). The ambitious goal is to try to identify some of the great ideas that have significantly influenced the field and have helped to make computing so pervasive. We will concentrate on mathematical, algorithmic and software ideas with the understanding that the importance and usefulness of these ideas depends upon (and often parallels) the remarkable ideas and progress in computing and communications hardware. As we will see, many of the great ideas were against the "prevailing opinion". The list of topics we shall discuss will depend to some degree on the background and interests of the class. Please note that not all CSC first-year seminars will be offered in a given year; please check the Timetable for current offerings. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Recommended Preparation: Some knowledge of probability theory
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

CSC197H1 - Big Data and Privacy

Hours: 24S

The rapid advance of technology has brought remarkable changes to how we conduct our daily lives, from how we communicate, consume news and data, and purchase goods. As we increase our online activity, so too do we increase the amount of personal data that we're sharing, often without realizing it. The questions of exactly what data is being collected, who is collecting and accessing this data, and how this data is being used, have significant implications for both individuals and our larger social and political institutions. Organized by a wide variety of case studies drawn from current events, we'll study how personal data can be collected and tracked, how personal and social factors may influence our own decisions about whether and how much to share our data, and what broader political and legal tools are used to either protect or subvert individual privacy. Please note that not all CSC first-year seminars will be offered in a given year; please check the Timetable for current offerings. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

CSC199H1 - Intelligence, Artificial and Human

Hours: 36S

What is human intelligence? How close are we to replicating it? How productive/reductive is the brain-computer analogy? What ethical challenges are posed by AI on workers, society, and the environment? Can we put a hold on "progress"? Is Silicon Valley the seat of a new techno-religion? What can they teach us about today's research priorities? What insight (or inspiration) can we get from works of science fiction about the future of human-AI interaction? Through reading discussion, written assignment, and workshops, this seminar will present students with the opportunity to integrate their computer science interests with philosophy, history, and literature. There is an equivalent course offered by St. Michael’s College. Students may take one or the other but not both. Please note that not all CSC first-year seminars will be offered in a given year; please check the Timetable for current offerings. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: SMC199H1 (Intelligence, Artificial and Human)
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

DTS199H1 - Superman and Other Migrants

Hours: 24S

From the 1938 debut of Superman until the spate of recent autobiographical graphic novels by immigrants and children of immigrants, the development of the comic and graphic novel form has been intricately bound up with the diaspora experience. In this course, we will explore the emergence of the superhero from the immigrant experience; trace the depiction of migrants, immigrants and refugees in recent graphic novels; and study visual strategies for representing migration and displacement. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

EAS193H1 - What is “The Yellow Peril”?

Hours: 24L

This course explores the old and new reincarnations of “the Yellow Peril” complex. The 2020 naming of COVID-19 as “the Chinese virus” by the U.S. president Donald Trump has provoked much anger, criticism, and concerns for anti-Asian violence and the reagitation of “The Yellow Peril” panic. Yet the imaginaries of “the Yellow Peril” and their power effects have been engrained in our political modernity, the Enlightenment ideas, and its institutions in a much more complex, far-reaching, and intersecting ways in East Asia and beyond. The course will explore various types of cultural productions, including history, literature, film, news media, etc., to introduce the racial, colonial, capitalist, sexual, militarized, and other dimensions of the “Yellow Peril.” Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

EAS194H1 - East Asia through Music

Hours: 24L

This course will discuss ‘East Asia’ through music as composed, performed, recorded, processed, remembered, imagined, and represented. Questions to be asked include: what kinds of sound are recognized as music in East Asia? What are the goals and effects of music? When, where, and how is music performed in East Asia? How is music described in East Asian literature and visual art? How does music translate East Asian literature and visual art? How are certain musical elements—tonality, rhythm, genre, instruments—recognized as ‘East Asian’? How is East Asia imagined musically? How are East Asian composers and performers received globally? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

EAS195H1 - Shan Shui Landscape: A Cultural Historical Study

Hours: 24L

This course looks into the history of cultural production of Chinese Shan Shui (lit., mountain and water) landscape representations from an environmental humanities perspective. As an artistic motif, Shan Shui travels between past and present and across various mediums as well as literary and artistic genres. What exactly are we invited to see and contemplate on in the Shan Shui? Are Shan Shui works about “nature,” spirit, Qi, or the human world? The course seeks to inquire into these and other questions through examining the concepts, arts, and transformations of selected Shan Shui works in imperial and contemporary China. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

EAS196H1 - Consumption, Taste and Culture in East Asia

Hours: 24S

This course explores the roles that consumption and taste play in personal and public lives in East Asia. Course focus may include the cultural histories of food, fashion, tourism, sports, or forms of audio and visual media. (No prior knowledge of East Asian languages or cultures is necessary.) Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

EAS197H1 - Media Worlds and East Asia

Hours: 24S

The term "world-making” is often used nowadays to refer to transmedia storytelling, or the creation of story-worlds across serial narratives in a range of entertainment media, such as novels, games, film series/franchises, television shows, comics, and webtoons. This course looks at the ways that media producers and fans, alike, engage with media worlds. More importantly, the course situates these media worlds within a broader conception of "world-making," namely, the geopolitical and economic configuration of modern East Asia. (No prior knowledge of East Asian languages or cultures is necessary.) Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

EAS198H1 - Martial Arts in East Asian Narratives

Hours: 24S

What can we learn about East Asian history and culture through its rich tradition of narratives featuring the martial arts? This course introduces short stories and novels dealing with combat and warfare from nearly two thousand years of East Asian literature, exploring issues such as self and society, gender, power, the body, and identity. All texts will be provided in translation, and no prior knowledge of any East Asian language or culture is necessary. The texts explored will vary year to year, depending on the instructor. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

EAS199H1 - Thinking through Art in Chinese Culture

Hours: 24S

This seminar explores different visions and methods of art (textual and visual) as a way of thinking about living, knowing, and willing in Chinese culture. Examination of various theoretical texts on arts and literature, as well as works of art themselves, will provide students with knowledge and research skills on arts in Chinese culture, and an expanded sense of Chinese intellectual history. Questions explored in the course will include: How should we understand the concept of Chinese art beyond representation? How did Chinese literati pursue a sense of beauty through their poetry and painting? How is beauty apprehended in natural and constructed landscapes? What are the political and social functions of art education in Chinese culture? How do Chinese artists fit into a global cultural context? (No prior knowledge of East Asian languages or cultures is necessary.) Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ECO196H1 - An Economist's Guide to the Galaxy

Hours: 24S

Climb aboard as we seek answers to the "Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything" (Douglas Adams). Unlike the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the answer will not be 42. Prepare for a wide-ranging journey into the questions economists seek to answer and the evidence they muster to examine these questions. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ECO197H1 - Seminar on Classical Economic Thought

Hours: 24L/12T

This seminar examines the basic ideas of the five most notable economic thinkers before 1870: Aristotle, Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, David Ricardo, and Karl Marx. We focus on demand as the basis of price in Aristotle; the ambiguity in Smith between a labour theory of value and a demand/supply theory of value; the principle of population in Malthus; Ricardo’s labour theory of value and his theory of rent and economic growth; and Marx’s labour theory of value as the explanation for the development of capital. The understanding in these authors of economics as an historical process of production gives fascinating insights into modern economic development that contrast with the modern economic concentration on the distribution of resources in a world of scarcity. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ECO198H1 - Seminar on Modern Economic Thought

Hours: 24L/12T

This seminar examines the development of modern economic thought from the marginal revolutionaries (Jevons and Menger) who proclaimed that demand in the form of utility was the basis of price to the supply/demand analysis of Alfred Marshall that established modern microeconomics by 1890. We then look at Irving Fisher’s 1907 foundation of the modern concept of the interest rate and the present value of capital before reviewing J.M. Keynes’ 1936 criticism of neo-classical positions on full employment and interest rates in arguing for government manipulation of interest rates to ensure full employment. We finish with Milton Friedman’s championing of the unregulated market economy through his quantity theory of money critique of Keynes. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ECO199H1 - Economics and Sustainable, Green Development

Hours: 24L/12T

Economic growth has been a powerful force through history in improving living standards throughout the world. At the same time, there is a growing recognition that environmental damages frequently accompany this growth, whether it be at the local level (soil degradation and deforestation), or the global level (climate change). Economics studies the allocation of scarce resources, but how can it incorporate "the environment" in a meaningful way that can help guide policy-makers in the 21st century? This course is a fast review of economic approaches and tools, and a review of a wide range of environmental policies, designed to manage the possible adverse impacts of economic expansions. The major emphasis in this course is on the market-based policies that guarantee incentive compatibility of these policies, thus, a higher chance of success. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

EEB196H1 - Using Ecology and Evolution to Understand our World

Hours: 24L

Understand the living world by learning principles of ecology and evolution. Through discussion, scientific literature research, seminal readings, written reports and presentations, you will discover how scientists ask and answer questions in ecology and evolution. Specific topics will vary to emphasize the expertise of the instructor, with examples including: Are humans still evolving? What is causing the sixth extinction crisis and how can we protect endangered species? Are species shifting their ranges to mitigate the impacts of climate change, and should we be helping them? How do diseases evolve and can we use evolutionary tools to control diseases of concern? Why are there so many species, and do introduced species increase or lower this diversity? Can and should we use evolution to create improved species? For non-science students in all disciplines. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

EEB197H1 - Biodiversity and the City

Hours: 24L

Most of us are urban creatures, but we as people are not the only urban creatures. In this seminar we will explore the diversity of animal and plant species comprising the ecological community that we call “Toronto”. We will learn their names, whether they are endemic (from here originally) or newcomers, general aspects of their biology that suit them to living in an urban environment, how natural selection shapes the traits similarly and differently for species in urban versus wilderness settings, and what happens when the wild and the domesticated members of the community meet one another. For non-science students in all disciplines. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

EEB198H1 - Genes and Behaviour

Hours: 24L

In this course you will experience the new paradigm in behaviour genetic research. You will learn why the concept of a nature-nurture dichotomy is passé and that it has been replaced by a new understanding gained from animal and human research in the areas of gene by environment interaction and epigenetics. We will discuss how our genome listens to our environment and the effect this has on our health and behaviour. We will learn why our early experiences are critical for the development of our brains and our bodies. Together this new body of knowledge will help us understand how individual differences in behaviour and health arise. For non-science students in all disciplines. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

EEB199H1 - Humans, Evolution and Ecology

Hours: 24L

Learn about the evolution and ecology of humans and other species. Through discussion, scientific literature research, seminal readings, written reports and presentations you will discover scientific answers to questions such as (topics vary among years): How did life originate? Why are there so many species? Where did humans come from? Will humans become extinct? How can we explain human DNA and human brain size? Need we worry about climate change? What is causing the sixth extinction crisis? Are there ecological limits to human population size? What will life be like in the Anthropocene? Are humans still evolving? For non-science students in all disciplines. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

ENG196H1 - Cook the Books

Hours: 36S

If, as Brillat-Savarin so famously said, “you are what you eat”, then what are we? What do our eating choices reveal about us and what we value? In this class, we will examine stories about farming, cooking, and eating in order to understand how culture shapes culinary traditions and vice versa. But we don’t stop there: through cooking and eating together, we will create new stories about our food and our relationship to the earth that sustains us. Co-taught with a professional chef, this course combines literary and historical analysis with hands-on cooking classes, shared meals, and food-oriented field trips. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. An additional fee to cover food and field trip costs is required.

Exclusion: ENG197H1, ENG198H1, ENG199H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ENG197H1 - Time Travel and Narrative

Hours: 24S

From H.G. Wells to Star Trek to Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, tales of time travelers remain captivating. What does our fascination with time travel tell us about storytelling and narrative? This course will explore the questions that time travel raises about narrative as well as history, temporality, subjectivity, and agency. We will look at examples of time travel in film, television, and books as well as philosophical and scientific writing about it. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ENG196H1, ENG198H1, ENG199H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ENG198H1 - Representing Disability

Hours: 24S

Understanding disability as a cultural concept—not a medical condition or personal misfortune—that describes how human variation matters in the world, this course asks: how do literary texts represent physical and intellectual disability? Reading drama, fiction, and poetry, we will consider how disability prompts new strategies of writing and thinking, in order to consider what new forms of representation disability can produce, and what the concept of disability can teach us about being human. We will consider literary, visual, performative, and performance-based possibilities for bodies and minds that resist normative structures, theorize ideas of access, cure, and care, and claim disability as enlivening identity. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ENG196H1, ENG197H1, ENG199H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ENG199H1 - Tree Stories

Hours: 24S

Trees are all around us. We climb them, tell stories about them, write on paper, at desks, in homes made from them. But most people tend to take them for granted. This course considers how we imagine trees in works of art and legend and what trees can teach us about our own place in the world. We will read stories and poems as well as exploring the trees around campus and the environment we share. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ENG196H1, ENG197H1, ENG198H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ENV194H1 - Topics in Climate Change

Hours: 24S

In this class we will discuss the underlying science of the climate system and also explore how this information is communicated effectively. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

ENV195H1 - The Sustainability Transition

Hours: 24S

Can you imagine a sustainable future? What would it look like? How can we get there? We are often bombarded by negative images about our future and the future of the planet. In this seminar class we will explore what a sustainable world might look like and ways that we can get there. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ENV196H1 - Environment, Culture and Film

Hours: 36S

This first-year foundation course will introduce students to the scope and seriousness of some of current ecological concerns, as well as some core principles and concepts in the field of the intersection of environment and culture, through the lens of feature films. Through journal reflections, class discussions and guided critical thinking exercises, and a paper, students will be able to build confidence and enthusiasm for further study in environmental studies, within a small seminar setting. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ENV197H1 - Idleness and the Environment: What Does Sustainable Work Mean?

Previous Course Number: ENV198H1

Hours: 24S

In a fast-paced, high-tech world—and one that must rapidly decarbonize to address the climate crisis—the relationship between labour and environment is rapidly changing. This course explores the intersection of work and the environment, considering how ideas about leisure and idleness might offer new pathways for a more sustainable future. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ENV198H1 - Environment & Mental Wellness

Hours: 24S

This foundations course is an introduction to Environmental Psychology and related disciplines. We will examine the mutual relationship between the human psyche and the environment, with a focus on mental wellness. Topics will include: psycho-evolutionary environments, place attachment and identity, neurological toxins and environmental health, the modern period, cultural perceptions on nature-psyche, climate anxiety and ecological grief, nature connectedness and restorative environments. As a foundations course, students will develop key academic skills such as academic literacy, communication and application, interdisciplinary critical thinking, as well as creative problem solving. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

ENV199H1 - Debating & Understanding Current Environmental Issues

Previous Course Number: SII199H1 LEC0201

Hours: 2L

The course examines current environmental issues for which there is no easy answer or consensus position. For instance, to help solve climate change should we generate more electricity from nuclear power-plants, which have no greenhouse gas emissions? Or instead, should we phase out nuclear plants because of possible accidents, costs and radioactive wastes? The seminar examines the scientific and political aspects of such issues and debates the pros and cons of each. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ESS196H1 - Life and Death in the Solar System

Previous Course Number: PMU199H1

Hours: 24L

Earth is the only planet in the solar system known to support life. Through directed readings, seminars, videos and lab visits, participants in this course will work with instructors whose own research tackles important questions concerning the origin of life on earth; the limits to life on this planet; implications for life under extreme conditions elsewhere in the solar system; and the life cycles of the planets themselves. The course will involve reading of scientific literature, student-led discussions, oral presentations and research projects, as well as potential field trips to sites in Southern Ontario. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

ESS197H1 - Earth and Life through Time

Previous Course Number: PMU199H1

Hours: 24L

This seminar will look through the lens of earth history to explore drivers of change in the biosphere and the impacts of these changes. We will focus on episodes of mass extinction, and the spectacular landscape changes and speciation events which often followed. Abrupt or gradual climatic changes, massive volcanism, asteroid impacts, catastrophic carbon releases, and human activity will be evaluated as the causes of major extinction events in Earth history. The course will involve reading of scientific literature, student-led discussions, oral presentations and research projects, as well as potential field trips to sites in Southern Ontario. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

ESS198H1 - Resources and Sustainability

Previous Course Number: PMU199H1

Hours: 24L

The rise of humanity is intricately linked to the exploitation of natural resources. From its earliest attempts to use fire and extract metals from rocks, to coal-fired steam that brought the industrial revolution, hydrocarbons that fuel international travel and trade, nuclear energy to produce electricity, and the reliance on smartphones in our daily lives, the planet’s resources have brought innovation and problems and require us to ask questions regarding sustainability. This course will explore the gamut from resource extraction and trading, to its societal consequences including global politics, environmental pollution, and remediation. The course will involve reading of scientific literature, student-led discussions, oral presentations and research projects, and potentially field trips to sites in Southern Ontario. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

ESS199H1 - Earth Science Perspectives on Human Origins

Hours: 24L

Archaeologists and paleontologists depend on earth science to provide the contextual information that is essential to our understanding of human evolution. Among the topics this course will examine are the methods used to determine the age of discoveries, approaches to understanding the environments human ancestors lived in, and how geologists unravel site formation processes. Our discussions will include the role of fire in human evolution, the adaptations of Neanderthals, and the timing of the first appearance of modern humans. The course will be structured around key research localities including Hadar, the Cradle of Humankind, Olduvai Gorge, Wonderwerk Cave, Kebara Cave, Hohlefels, and Pinnacle Point. The course will involve reading of scientific literature, student-led discussions, oral presentations and research projects. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

FAH194H1 - Public Art: Local and Global

Hours: 24S

We are surrounded by public art, whether in the form of official commemorative monuments or ephemeral (some say illegal) street art. We will examine the history and current practice of this important art form in Toronto and by comparison, globally. The focus will be on discussing the nature, roles, and issues pertaining to contemporary public art that we can see in situ in downtown Toronto. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FAH195H1 - On Foot: From Pilgrimage to the Mobile City

Hours: 24S

Walking is a basic human activity, yet it also defines and shapes us. In order to understand the permutations of this seemingly simple activity we will look at walking in a variety of contexts through the study of texts, art, movies and the built environment. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FAH196H1 - Marco Polo's World

Hours: 24S

This course explores the visual and material worlds of the Italian traveller Marco Polo, which are described in his Travels. Together we will read sections of this text and explore their meaning with respect to the objects and monuments of Marco Polo’s time from the regions to which he travelled. By studying cartography, art, architecture, and urban form in the expansive medieval world of Marco Polo, the course will introduce us to the global world of the Middle Ages. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FAH197H1 - Classical Art from Greek Gods to Roman Gladiators

Hours: 24S

The ancient Greeks and Romans lived in a world full of images. Ancient visual culture comprises not only the high arts but also the everyday. This course is meant to introduce students to key ideas about how art and images in general impacted the life of ancient Greeks and Romans. Students will learn to examine various categories of visual material ranging from the pictorial and applied arts (painting, sculpture, architecture) to everyday artifacts (for example, domestic wares, jewelry or weapons). Through a series of discussion-centred seminar sessions students will explore the interconnections between art and ideology, art and identity as well as visuality and viewing. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FAH198H1 - Shocking Artists, Shocking Art

Hours: 24S

Art causes scandals for many reasons, provoking a range of consequences, including censorship, cuts to government funding of the arts or even destruction of the work in question. In this course we will consider a number of kinds of art scandal arising from exhibition in public galleries and urban spaces, including those that have to do with legal issues such as plagiarism and vandalism; aesthetic objections on the part of the public, ranging from perceived obscenity to simple resentment of abstract art; racism; sacrilege; and political subversion, amongst others. We will consider the work of artists including Chris Ofili, Joep van Lieshout, Paul McCarthy, Damien Hirst, Michael Snow, Sally Mann, Banksy, Rachel Whiteread, Richard Prince, Andres Serrano, Robert Mapplethorpe, Carl Andre, Maya Lin, and Jeff Koons, amongst others. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FAH199H1 - Architecture of Toronto

Hours: 24S

The architecture of Toronto is characterized by artful and influential monuments as well as stylistically incoherent neighbourhoods, vibrant civic spaces alongside dysfunctional infrastructure. This course investigates how Canada's national metropolis came to embody such extremes of architectural richness and urban contradictions. The seminar focuses on how to "read" the buildings of Toronto and think critically about the forces that have shaped city planning, monuments, public space, and concepts of heritage. Readings and discussions will be combined with field trips, research on site or in the archives, and direct engagement with local communities and preservation initiatives. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FCS194H1 - Urban Youth Languages of the World

Hours: 24S

Are there such phenomena as urban youth “languages”? How do they evolve and what commonalities or divergences are there? In this course, we will survey a range of urban youth languages that have emerged in African, North American and European contexts – with specific focus on their structural (linguistic) and social typicalities. Discussions and presentations will focus on the sociolinguistic concepts of language contact, bi/multilingualism, lexical innovation/renovation, language mixing, etc. in relation to youth language practices. We will be comparing major varieties of these language practices within and between the continents, and also be assessing their prospects and implications for language change. This course is taught in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

FCS196H1 - Historical, Geographic and Social Variation in French

Hours: 24S

Throughout most of its nearly 1200-year history, the language that we now call French was not a single linguistic entity, but rather a collection of related dialects. Although socio-political factors resulted in a partial unification of these dialects during the 18th and 19th centuries, the unification was, to a large extent, outweighed by French colonization of areas such as North America and Africa, which resulted in even greater linguistic diversification. The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the extensive variation that exists throughout the French-speaking world. Topics to be covered include phonetics (pronunciation), lexicology (word selection) and morpho-syntax (grammar). This course is taught in English. No knowledge of French or linguistics is required. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

FCS197H1 - Pleasure, Pain and Nostalgia in Belle Époque

Hours: 24L

This course will explore ideas and cultural representations of 19th century France through examples from art, philosophy, and literature with an emphasis on the critical discussion of two literary narratives that challenged tradition and authority: Flaubert’s “Madame Bovary” and Maupassant’s “Bel-ami”. The course will be held in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FCS198H1 - The Literacy of Images: Interactions between Text and Other Media

Hours: 24L

How do images create meaning in texts? How do words guide the interpretation of images? This course will examine relations between texts from different literary genres (the Bande Dessinée, fiction and autobiography) and other media (illustration, photography, cinema) through an interdisciplinary theoretical framework, by combining perspectives from literature, cinema, illustration, and photography. The course will be held in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

FCS199H1 - Marketing in the French Speaking World

Hours: 24S

This course investigates sociocultural and linguistic issues surrounding market expansion and marketing of products and services to French-speaking audiences in Canada and elsewhere. Students consider challenges posed by increased globalization through comparisons of English- and French-speaking communities, while exploring basic marketing theory. Through case studies of successes and failures, students examine how companies develop and adapt branding and messaging for Francophone audiences by integrating differences in humour, values, politics, and financial considerations. Students thus develop an understanding of the Francophone consumer and gain skills for advertising and branding in a Francophone or bilingual environment. This course is taught in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

FOR199H1 - Trees in Architecture and Urban Design

Hours: 24L

Most depictions of “cities of the future” are a fusion of buildings and forests. Is this happening? If not, why not? This course bridges the disciplines of forestry, architecture, and landscape and urban design to examine the evolving role of trees in human habitations. The course will survey designs incorporating trees on buildings, from the hanging gardens of Babylon to the Bosque Verticale of contemporary Milan, the evolution of urban forestry and urban “green infrastructure”, and history and current policy initiatives and debates. The course will involve site visits and guest lectures in the City of Toronto, readings of both popular and scholarly literature, as well as student design projects and presentations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

GER194H1 - Our Vampires, Ourselves (E)

Hours: 24S

Vampires are among the most fascinating figures of popular culture. Since Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897) – and, in fact, well before that – they have been haunting the human imagination in various shapes and forms. This course examines the figure of the vampire as a potent cultural metaphor in the German context and beyond, showing how every age embraces the vampires it needs and gets the vampires it deserves. The goal is to teach students to reflect critically and independently on issues of self and society and to develop a structured approach to critical thinking in general. All readings and class discussions will be in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

GER195H1 - Cities, Real and Imagined (E)

Hours: 24S

Cities have been described as places of desire and places of fear. They pulse with life, bringing together people from different class, gender, and ethnic backgrounds, simultaneously giving rise to a sense of freedom and oppression, a sense of belonging and alienation. This course will explore the city as a physical reality that shapes our lives, but is also a projection of our deepest imaginings. Through readings of philosophical and sociological texts by influential theorists of the city, we will consider various ancient and modern conceptions of urban space and subjectivity. Alongside these theoretical readings, we will also examine literary and filmic representations of the city as a space of desire, memory and power. All readings and class discussions are in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

GER196H1 - "Es war einmal auf Deutsch" - Learning German with Fairy Tales

Hours: 24S

Grimms' Fairy Tales – we all know and love them. But what do we really know? Which versions are we familiar with? Most likely not the ones by the Brothers Grimm. And certainly not in German! This course is a journey into the mythical German Schwarzwald, a place of wolves and witches, the realm of the fantastic. It is not a traditional language course, as we won’t be cramming grammar and vocabulary, at least not excessively. Rather, we will learn German playfully by reading, analyzing and acting out original folk tales, their Romantic adaptations and modern retellings. In the process we will enrich our understanding of German language and culture. Please note that basic knowledge of German is required to participate in this course (i.e. at least one year of solid high school instruction). Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: One year of German instruction, or equivalent
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

GER198H1 - Technology and the Human in German Literature and Thought (E)

Hours: 24S

Technology has changed our lives, and scientific knowledge has enhanced human capacities. At the same time, though, this development is also experienced as a threat. Killing missiles, controlling 'Big Brothers,' and monstrous creatures are often considered the flip-side of technological advancement. This course asks: What is the relationship between technology and the "human"? Can there be progress of technology without a regress of humanity? Or is technology liberating us from the bonds of nature? We will discuss possible answers to these questions by looking at key texts in German literature, philosophy, and cultural history from the eighteenth century to Post-Modernity. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

GER199H1 - The Pleasure of Reading: Reading as Self-Emancipation in the German Literary Tradition (E)

Hours: 24S

In this course we read some of the most enjoyable plots and stories in German Literature and examine how the pleasure of reading sets readers free to re-imagine themselves and the world released from everyday pressures and the repressive weight of the status quo. Readings are all in English translation and include texts by Lessing, Goethe, Schiller, Kleist, Keller, Heine and Kafka. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. 

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

GGR196H1 - The Yard: Micro-Geographies of Household Outdoor Spaces

Hours: 24S

A “yard” is the area of land immediately adjacent to a building, often a residence. By examining micro-geographies (that is, detailed empirical studies of a small, specific locale) of these ubiquitous, everyday spaces, the course explores how yards are intimately connected with broader ecologies, cultures, and social relations, all of which can be explored using geographic theories and techniques.

The course also serves as an introduction to other subjects that are relevant to navigating post-secondary life, such as: critical reading; conducting university-level research; presenting and communicating ideas in the classroom; teamwork, and how to benefit from it; and developing social networks.

Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

GGR197H1 - Nature, Conservation and Justice

Hours: 24S

Every day we read about climate change, species extinction, environmental degradation and the need for nature conservation. It is increasingly becoming apparent that the environmental problems that we face today arise from a deeper crisis relating to human ways of viewing and connecting to nature. This course asks how we can rework human ways of relating to nature, while querying the idea of “nature” and questioning the dominant approaches to nature conservation. It asks how can concerns for nature and for other species be balanced with that for human livelihoods and well-being? How can inequalities with regards to the distribution of environmental goods and bads be reduced? How are citizens and communities in the different parts of the world struggling against environmental injustice and to protect their local environments? How do these place-based movement demand justice and what visions do they articulate for a more just and sustainable world? How do indigenous worldviews offer conceptual resources for rethinking nature and our ways of relating to nature? The course will explore these questions using lectures, class discussion, videos and student presentations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

GGR198H1 - Mobility and Borders

Hours: 24S

This course examines the political geographies of transnational migration. It asks how spaces of migration and mobility are political, and how migration politics are tied to inequalities wrought through intersecting histories of race, class, and gender. It seeks to extend our understandings of migrants, borders, and mobility, and it explores the processes through which mobility is produced, delimited and structured. We will consider the transnational politics of migration, the militarization of border zones, and the political spaces of migrant displacement, dispossession, and dislocation. The seminar readings focus on classical paradigms as well as emerging approaches in immigration studies. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

GGR199H1 - Global Racial Capitalism in the 21st Century

Hours: 24S

This course uses the tools of political economy, decolonial and anti-colonial theory, and critical approaches to the study of racism to explore how the construction of racial categories continues to be integral to the working of capitalist systems. We will explore the reasons why capitalism was never meant to work for everyone by examining how and why racial categories have continued to matter since capitalism's earliest formations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS190H1 - Freedom Schools

Hours: 24S

This first-year seminar explores radical traditions of education beyond and in resistance to formal schooling. Transnational in scope—and journeying from the late nineteenth century to the present day—we will study the pedagogical innovations and grassroots struggles of anarchic youth, guerrilla intellectuals, and feminist revolutionaries who used education broadly, and historical inquiry in particular, as tools for empowerment and collective liberation. Focusing on primary sources from archives of anticapitalist, antiracist and anticolonial movements, we will investigate traditions of self-teaching and co-learning, genealogies of critical and transformative pedagogies, the construction of decolonial survival and supplementary schools, student mobilizations within and against the university, as well as abolitionist education in our contemporary moment. This course invites participants to interrogate the relationship of education to freedom and justice through collective criticism, self-reflection and creative expression. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS191H1 - Pandemics and Human History

Hours: 24S

We have all just lived through a major historical disruption caused by CoViD-19. In this course, you will be invited to use your experience of the pandemic as a tool for understanding other times, other places, and the study of history itself. We will study plagues and diseases from the ancient world to the Twentieth Century, and introduce methods from social, cultural, and economic history, as well as concepts from the histories of science and medicine. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS192H1 - A History of Queer Asia

Hours: 24S

A first-year seminar on the history of queerness, in all its complexity and diversity, in the no less complex and diverse settings of East, South, and Southeast Asia. Our journey will encompass empires and Indigenous peoples, rulers and rebels, and range from early recorded history down to the twentieth century. Focus will be placed on primary sources and introducing students to the evolving definitions of "queerness" itself. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS193H1 - Calls to Action: The TRC and Residential Schools in Canadian History

Hours: 24S

The last Indian Residential School in Canada closed in 1996. For more than a century and half before that, the Canadian state supported church-run residential schools intended to take Indigenous children away from their families, cultures, languages and traditions. Over 150,000 children passed through the doors of these different schools that operated from coast to coast. Using the formal report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission as a central text, this course explores that history and the ongoing legacy of residential schools in Canada while introducing first year students to historical research methods and sources. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS194H1 - Power, Resistance, and the Graphic Novel

Hours: 24S

This course will look broadly at the question of power and resistance in the Americas (Canada, the United States, and Latin America) through the prism of graphic novels. Each week we will read a graphic novel related to important historical moments or events, drawing on scholarly articles to help us contextualize the novel. We will discuss the medium of graphic novels, their history and place in the broader culture, as well as how they might help or hinder our ability to study and disseminate information about the past. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS195H1 - Remembering and Forgetting

Hours: 24S

This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary study of history by exploring processes of remembering and forgetting intrinsic to every society. Topics include the ideas of history and memory, memory cultures and narratives and counternarratives and the study of legal trials, museums, monuments, novels and films as popular vehicles of historical knowledge. The course analyzes in particular how the experiences of war and violence have been both remembered and forgotten. The intersection, and dislocation, between trauma and remembrance is a main theme, as is the topic of collective memories in post-conflict societies. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: AMS199H1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS196H1 - Religion and Violence

Hours: 24S

This seminar explores the roles of religion in extreme violence. Working backward from the 1990s (Rwanda, Yugoslavia), we will consider cases including Guatemala, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Holocaust, Armenians, German Southwest Africa, and genocide of Indigenous peoples in North America. Students will produce a final project based on original research. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS197H1 - Medieval Medicine

Hours: 24S

This course focuses on the theories and practices of medicine in Europe, c.500-1500, by examining surviving evidence from the period, including (in translation) pharmaceutical recipes, diagnostic guides, doctor’s records, treatises on anatomy, surgery and gynecology, commentaries on Hippocrates and Galen, laws and regulations for physicians, university lectures, disputes in court records, satirical writings against physicians, and so on, as well as visual evidence of artifacts, surgical instruments, manuscript illumination/diagrams, hospital sites and design. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

HIS198H1 - Decolonizing Women's History

Hours: 24S

This course introduces students to the historiographical and theoretical debates in women's and gender history from a global perspective, with emphasis on the local histories of women in the non-western world. Students will study the themes in women's history as articulated by first and second wave feminists. The second part of the class deconstructs the basic assumptions of Western feminism through the perspective of post-colonial feminist writings and empirical studies. The readings are structured so that you consider how examples from Asia disrupt narratives of universality in Western feminist epistemologies. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

IMM199H1 - Immunology in the News Today

Hours: 24S

Why do we get sick? How do vaccines work? Does our diet influence our immunity? This course is intended to inspire curiosity about questions generated by immunology concepts that are prevalent in the news today. Different topics will be explored each week including immunity worldwide, human vaccinations and the mucosal immune system. Topics will be placed in context through real-life case studies, immunology virtual laboratory simulation, interactions with faculty members and extensive coverage of the basic science underlying each topic. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

INI100H1 - The City Where Movies Are Made

Hours: 36S

In this course, first-year students will be introduced to film culture in Toronto from a variety of angles, including: a history of the city onscreen (both as itself and as a popular shooting location for American productions); an account of major Toronto filmmaking sites and institutions; introductions to local directors and producers; and overviews of contemporary local film festival culture (TIFF and beyond) as well as the city’s film-critical community. Through a combination of lectures, screenings, field trips and special guest speakers, the students will be moved to consider both the vitality of Toronto’s film scene as well as its connections to other aspects of the city. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

INI101H1 - Blogging the Just City

Hours: 36S

An introduction to the concept of the city as a creative environment promoting not only growth and wealth but also social justice, equality, cooperation, and civility. Students will learn to build their own blog to help them to observe, interpret, and reflect upon the process of urban interaction and the relationship between creativity and justice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

INI102H1 - Telling the Stories of the City: Writing Creative Non-Fiction

Hours: 36S

An introduction to creative writing techniques and the personal essay form through which students will explore and develop their conscious connection to the natural-urban landscape. The course will include activities such as field trips, readings, interviews, and journaling to generate the material for personal essays on engagement with nature in the city. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

INI106H1 - Writing Literary Journalism: Telling the Stories of the City

Hours: 36S

An introduction to literary journalism, in which students study the craft of storytelling along with interviewing, reporting, and the journalist’s ethical stance. Guest speakers, field trips, writing activities and course readings will help students engage deeply with their environment and develop the skills and sensitivity required for literary reporting. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

INI196H1 - Environmental Writing

Hours: 24L

From environmental disasters and ecological collapse to climate change denial and celebrations of nature and wilderness, we will explore the diverse ways humans imagine and write about the natural world and the consequences of such writing. We will study a variety of nonfiction texts, images, and videos about ecology, the environment, nature, wilderness, and sustainability as we consider what these terms mean. From the 19th century American transcendentalists to 20th century ecologists, and 21st century scientific, Indigenous, feminist, and anti-racist perspectives, we will analyze the many ways that humans use writing to argue for certain ways of seeing and interacting with our planet and the creatures that inhabit it. Through weekly reading, written reflections, and discussion, students will hone their deep reading, research, and writing skills. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

IRE199H1 - Why We Work: Understanding Work Through the Prism of Art & Culture

Hours: 24S

Why do we work? What does work mean to the average person? These questions are not as straightforward as they appear. We work for the bulk of our lives and most of our days are spent with coworkers who are neither family nor our closest friends, but we often fail to realize how self-defining work really is. This speaks to work’s centrality but also to its invisibility in reflective discourse. However, through “popular” representations of work (e.g., such as in story-telling, cave drawings, hieroglyphs, music, writing, painting, television, film, video games, etc.,) we can begin to better understand the meaning of work and how this has changed over time. Readings in anthropology, history, economics, sociology and employment relations plus film and art criticism will help us explore these questions from an interdisciplinary perspective; assignments will encourage students to reflect on their own experience of work. Developing strong analytical and communication skills is an important goal of the course. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

ITA196H1 - Image and Text in Medieval and Renaissance Italian Culture

Hours: 24L

The course will explore various aspect of the interaction between literature and the visual arts in Italy from the Middle Ages to the end of the Renaissance. The focus will be on the intersection between the literary and visual modes of perception in the works of representative Italian authors from the Fourteenth to the Sixteenth Centuries. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ITA197H1 - The Fine Art of Murder: Reading Detective Fiction

Hours: 24L

Since its inception in the Nineteenth century, detective fiction has been one of the most popular literary genres, proving adept at both entertaining and shining a critical light on social and political problems. This course will explore the many faces of detective fiction addressing questions such as: Why does crime hold such a fascination for modern audiences? What kind of pleasure do we derive from reading stories that often follow established conventions and rules? What do these novels about crime and punishment tell us about broader social and political issues? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC197H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ITA198H1 - Machiavelli and Machiavellianism

Hours: 24L

An examination of Machiavelli’s political doctrine in The Prince and the development of his ideas in politics, ethics and the arts. Special attention will be paid to the enduring relevance of his legacy in the modern world. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC142H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

ITA199H1 - Italian Fascism and Global Responses: The Dark Side of Italianità

Hours: 24L

After WWI, Italian society faced a political, economic, and moral crisis that resulted in the rise of fascism. Using diverse sources (media, literary texts, movies, architecture and design), this course explores various reactions in Italy and abroad to the rise of Mussolini and the totalitarian State. Why did common people, intellectuals, politicians, and business and community leaders around the globe succumb to the seduction of fascism? How did other people denounce fascist violence? After an introduction to Italian fascism, the course will consider global reactions to Italian fascism and diverse responses in Italian communities abroad (e.g. Canada, USA, Argentina). Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

JCI199H1 - Italians in Canada: Histories, Journeys, Struggles, Successes

Hours: 24L

This course explores the presence of people from the Italian peninsula in what is now known as Canada. The course begins with discussions on Giovanni Caboto’s and other explorers’ journeys to then focus on contemporary Italian-Canadian communities. This course provides students with the critical tools necessary to understand various historical, linguistic, culinary, spiritual, political, and creative elements of Italian-Canadian identity and life. Students of both Italian and non-Italian heritage are most welcome in this course, which is taught in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

JRC199H1 - Truths & Reconciliations in Canada

Hours: 24S

In this course, we examine the idea of reconciliation among Indigenous and Canadian nations by considering the complicated role of religion and spirituality in “truth and reconciliation.” Specifically, residential schools for Indigenous children were a collaboration of church and state that violently broke the spirit and intent of the treaties—or sacred promises—made between the Crown and Indigenous nations. The course will set the 2015 Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada in a longer history of twentieth-century commissions, reports, and petitions in which both Indigenous and Canadian people (and some churches) named the cultural and spiritual genocide of residential schools and called for action. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

JRN199H1 - Exodus and Enslavement

Hours: 24S

Popular conceptions of enslavement in North America have influenced how we frequently imagine enslavement in Exodus and related biblical and related texts from the ancient Near East. Yet, depictions of enslavement in these ancient texts may be strikingly different from our ideas of enslavement in North America. This course explores similarities and differences between enslavement in these different historical contexts. It also examines how biblical texts were utilized in debates over and revolts against enslavement primarily in the eighteenth and nineteenth century. All readings will be in English. No knowledge of Hebrew is required. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

LIN192H1 - Sustaining Indigenous Languages

Hours: 24S

There has been much publicity in recent years about language shift and language loss and, along with it, language revitalization. In this course we examine shift involving Indigenous languages – and particularly those of Canada – from a variety of perspectives, and looking at reasons why one might want to 'save' a language. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN194H1 - The Science Behind Our Accents

Previous Course Number: TBB199H1

Hours: 24P

When we speak, the sound is transmitted through the air as a complex sound wave. How are various speech sounds – vowels and consonants – manifested acoustically? What does it mean, in physical terms, to have an accent? These and other related questions will be explored through computer-based acoustic analysis and perceptual experimentation. Upon completion of this course, students will (i) have overview knowledge of basic acoustic properties characterizing phonetic variation pertaining to speech, and accents in particular, (ii) be able to conduct simple speech production and perception experiments, and write up results in the form of scientific research reports, (iii) begin to read and understand scientific literature pertaining to acoustic phonetic variation and its relevance for communication. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN195H1 - Babel: Language in the Mind of Speakers

Hours: 24L

What is the relation between language and thought? In this course we examine how language is represented in our minds, and how language and cognitive processes interact. While the link between words and meanings is arbitrary and reflects culture, language is considered to be a universal property of our species. We will examine the place of language in the architecture of the mind; the debates about the universality of language structure vs. linguistic relativism; and how language and thought interact in children’s development. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN196H1 - Language and Communication

Hours: 24L

We will explore the ways in which information is communicated in conversation. We will consider systematic ways in which what a speaker intends to communicate with language goes beyond what one says in conversation. The goal of the course is to investigate the ways in which speakers rely on knowledge of language and implicit “rules” to enrich and transform the literal content of someone’s utterance.

Students will familiarize themselves with some fundamental concepts in linguistic semantics and pragmatics. They will develop analytic skills necessary to analyze a text in an academic context and beyond. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN197H1 - Language and Social Justice

Hours: 24L

This course explores how language is used to construct and reinforce unjust social structures. Topics may include: the underlying sexism, classism, racism, and ableism of prestige dialects and prescriptive language education; the history and consequences of national language movements; language endangerment, documentation, and revival; sign languages and language rights for the deaf and hard-of-hearing; popular media representations of linguistic variation, especially vocal fry, uptalk, and regional accents; and the relationships between language and sex, gender identity, and sexuality.

Students will develop research, analytic, and writing skills through critique and discussion of assigned texts, independent research projects, and regular written and oral presentation of their work. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN198H1 - Language Diversity

Hours: 24L

There are estimated to be about 7000 languages currently spoken in the world. What do they have in common? In what ways are they different? This course will explore these questions, covering such topics as meaning, sound systems, the structure of words, the order of words in sentences, question formation, concepts such as subject and object, tense systems, pronoun systems. We will also discuss language loss and revival. Students will develop analytic skills as they consult published grammars and other resources to address these issues. Students will share their findings through oral and written presentation. Examples will be drawn from a wide range of languages. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

LIN199H1 - Exploring Heritage Languages

Hours: 24L

We will explore how speakers use Heritage Languages in Toronto, using data recently collected in the GTA, so students should be familiar with one of these languages. We will collect, organize and interpret information about heritage languages in Toronto. We will look for speech patterns that differentiate first, second and third generation speakers in Toronto from corresponding speakers in their countries of origin, and look at the effects of cultural and language attitudes and usage.

Students will develop analytic skills as they explore a range of research methods and resources to address these issues. Students will share their findings through oral and written presentation, including online formats. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

MAT193H1 - Women’s Mathematics

Hours: 36S

Mathematics has been shaped in significant ways by the work of outstanding female mathematicians such as Hypatia, Emmy Noether, Sofia Kovalevskaya, and Maryam Mirzakhani. Despite these successes, women still experience barriers to entering the field and participating at the highest levels. This course will blend an exploration of mathematics created by women with a study of the issue of women in mathematics. Students will have the opportunity to examine the complex factors that impact women’s participation in STEM, learn about the lives of female mathematicians, create their own mathematics, and sharpen their spatial cognition and logical thinking skills. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: High school level algebra.
Exclusion: Not intended for students in a Mathematics Specialist or Major program.
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MAT194H1 - Mathematical Personalities

Hours: 24L

An in-depth study of the life, times and work of several mathematicians who have been particularly influential. Examples may include but are not limited to: Coxeter, Euler, Germain, Grothendieck, Hilbert, Kovalevskaya, Kowalewski, Mirzhakhani, Newton, Noether, Ramanujan. Not intended for students in a Mathematics Specialist or Major program. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MAT195H1 - Mathematics as an Interdisciplinary Pursuit

Hours: 24L

A study of the interaction of mathematics with other fields of inquiry: how mathematics influences, and is influenced by, the evolution of science and culture. Art, music, and literature, as well as the more traditionally related areas of the natural and social sciences may be considered. Not intended for students in a Mathematics Specialist or Major program. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MAT197H1 - Mathematics as a Recreation, Mathematical Discovery and Creative Problem Solving

Hours: 24L

This course is an exploration into the creative process and use of imagination as they arise in the context of mathematical problem solving, puzzles, and recreational mathematics. The topics for the course may include a study of games, puzzles and problems that require a pre-Calculus background. One of the course’s main goals is to hone each participant’s creativity and mathematical problem-solving skills while guiding them towards the ‘Aha!’ experience which accompanies independent discovery. Not intended for students in Mathematics Specialist or Major programs. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MAT198H1 - Cryptology: The Mathematics of Secrecy and Security

Hours: 24S

How do we send our own confidential information through secure channels, and how can we break codes to uncover the secret information of our adversaries? The mathematical field of cryptology is dedicated to answering such questions. In this course we will study breakthroughs in cryptology, from secret messages in the ancient world and the Enigma cipher in World War II, to modern cryptosystems that facilitate online commerce. Along the way, you will develop a sophisticated understanding of how numbers interact and develop the ability to communicate messages secretly and mathematics clearly. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: High school level algebra.
Exclusion: Not intended for students in a Mathematics Specialist or Major program.
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MAT199H1 - Aha! Mathematical Discovery and Creative Problem Solving

Hours: 36S

This course is an exploration into the creative process and use of imagination as they arise in the context of mathematical problem solving. The problems, which are all at a pre-calculus level, are chosen primarily by the criterion of aesthetic appeal, and emphasize reasoning rather than technique. Still, many of them are quite challenging, and substantial independent thinking will be required, the course is therefore appropriate for students from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines, including hard sciences. Its goal will be to hone each participant's creativity and mathematical problem-solving skills while guiding them towards the `Aha!' experience which accompanies independent discovery. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: High school level algebra
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

MUN100H1 - Global Innovation

Previous Course Number: MUN101H1

Hours: 24S

Innovation has always been a key driver of economic growth, population health, and societal success. Transformative change has historically been linked to major innovations such as urban sanitation, pasteurization, the printing press and the industrial revolution. Currently, the opportunity to enhance life chances worldwide relies on innovating for the poor, social innovation, and the ability to harness scientific and technological knowledge. What precisely is innovation? When does innovation happen? Who benefits from innovation? How can innovation be fostered, and how do innovations spread? Relying on major global transformations and country-specific case studies (for example, South Korea, Taiwan, Israel and India), this course examines the drivers of innovation, the political, social, economic, and scientific and technological factors that are critical to promoting innovation and addressing current global challenges, and the consequences of innovation. Restricted to first-year students admitted to Munk One. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Munk One
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

MUN110H1 - Peace, Conflict and Justice in the Indo-Pacific

Hours: 24S

In recent years, countries including Canada, India, Japan, and the United States have devised Indo-Pacific strategies in recognition of the rising importance of the region. The region now accounts for half of the world’s people, 60 percent of world’s GDP, and two-thirds of global economic growth. Devising effective solutions for the policy challenges related to the Indo-Pacific will be crucial to prevent catastrophic conflict and promote sustainable prosperity in the 21st century. In this class, students will examine the nature of policy problems with a global scope - in areas such as the management of geopolitical conflict, economic security, and human rights and transnational justice - and devise solutions tailored to emerging challenges in the Indo-Pacific. Restricted to first-year students admitted to Munk One. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Munk One
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

MUN130H1 - Climate, Energy, and Power

Hours: 24S

Energy is at the crux of a range of pressing global issues, including climate change and the existential threat it poses across the world. This class uses energy – sometimes as a focal point, sometimes as an entry point – to examine a range of issues including inequality, emergent technologies and policy making in a global context. Restricted to first-year students admitted to Munk One. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Munk One
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

MUN140H1 - Design for Social Change and Inclusion

Hours: 24S

Framed around a design challenge, in this class students work in teams to come up with an innovative, equity-focused approach to a global problem. To this end, the course includes modules on topics such as: collecting primary data (via interviews and/or focus groups); conducting secondary research; identifying beneficiaries’ needs; developing a mindset for social innovation; assessing feasibility and viability; and how to develop culturally responsive and relevant propositions. Restricted to first-year students admitted to Munk One. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Munk One
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

MUN195H1 - The Economics of Birth, Death and Everything in Between

Hours: 24L

Does welfare really encourage people to have more kids? How do contraception bans affect women’s work? Do new immigrants create competition that makes wages drop? Economic demography – applying economic analysis to the study of populations – can help us understand all these questions and more. Among other topics, this class will examine how pension systems, health care, immigration policy and economic growth, marriage and divorce laws and women’s labor force participation relate to public policy.

Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

MUN196H1 - Somebody’s Watching Me: The Global Politics of Surveillance

Hours: 24L

From security cameras and cell phones, to drones and social media, our data are collected in countless ways. But who controls our data? Do we have a right to privacy? Does mass surveillance make us safer?

This course invites students to explore the global politics of mass surveillance, and the role played by states, big tech, police, activists, and ordinary people. Through in-class discussion and analytical writing assignments, students will engage with surveillance studies through many dimensions, including public policy, human rights, international relations, economics, technological development, and race, class, and gender.

Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

MUN197H1 - Strong States or Weak Parties?

Hours: 24L

This course will introduce the study of Europe by exploring the political history of European authoritarianism, and resistance to it, from the 1930s right up to the present day. The accent will be on the present: we will seek to explain the growing appeal of populist authoritarianism seven decades after World War II, the Holocaust, and the defeat of German Nazism and Italian fascism. Are current politics in Europe a matter of back to the future? Or is there something new? Is there one authoritarianism in Europe or multiple?

Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

MUN198H1 - Digital Technologies and Human Rights

Hours: 24L

What are digital technologies, exactly? How do we govern them? Do they threaten or protect human rights? In this course, we’ll look at the Internet, advanced computing, ‘Big Data’ analytics, and artificial intelligence – the technologies which form the basis of everything from facial recognition software to home appliances to social media. We’ll consider how to govern and use these technologies, and the consequences of those choices for global human rights. Evaluation is based on essays, a presentation, and class participation. There is no exam.

Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)
Course Experience: University-Based Experience

NEW101H1 - The Everyday Politics of Food

Hours: 12L/24S

How often do we reflect on the environmental, social and economic impact of our everyday food choices? This course offers an introduction to the key concepts, terms and theories that underlie our current food system. The course links the food we eat to global forces and considers how these forces affect food distribution, access and consumption. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW102H1 - Exploring Multilingual Toronto

Hours: 12L/24S

How does language connect and divide people, places and communities? This course considers how interactions between people in Toronto are shaped by language as well as history, economy, architecture and urban landscapes. Students engage with the city both in and out of class to think about a range of questions linked to gender and sexuality, indigeneity, migration, race, ethnicity, and public/private space. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW103H1 - Digital Technology and Society

Hours: 12L/24S

While the internet and other forms of digital technology have created new forms of social relationships and widened access to information, they have also raised concerns. This course explores issues such as surveillance, addiction and bullying as well as the potential of digital technologies (e.g. smart cities, Big Data, and the internet of things). The course engages students' own experience of digital technology. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW104H1 - Creating Community: Art, Identity and Belonging

Hours: 12L/24S

How is art implicated in the process of community building? How does art foster a sense of community identity and belonging? This course explores how communities, in Toronto and beyond, engage a variety of art forms including graffiti, spoken-word, hip-hop, digital art, traditional dance and music to connect people and express community identity. Students will have the opportunity to visit community arts projects. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NEW105H1 - Current Issues Without Borders I

Hours: 12L/24S

This interdisciplinary course addresses a current issue that exemplifies the themes of "Learning Without Borders" in New One. It investigates how this issue is implicated in connecting us with others around the globe; it engages different kinds of knowledge and community perspectives; and integrates students' own experience as related to the issue. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW106H1 - Science, Health and Social Justice

Hours: 12L/24S

How can scientific knowledge and research be mobilized to impact individual and global health? How is health impacted by social, racial and economic inequalities? This course explores scientific research and practice with special attention to the translation of scientific knowledge in the public sphere, and its ability to inform policies, practices and laws. Students have the opportunity to meet with clinician-scientists, policy-makers, and other professionals connected to the health care system. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW111H1 - Food, Ethics and Sustainability

Hours: 12L/24S

How do we produce and ensure access to nutritious and environmentally sustainable food for all? This course explores what is involved in achieving ethical food production and food security, examining topics such as: the paradox of food waste amidst scarcity, the relationship between food production and climate change, community-led alternatives to dominant food systems, and the role of biotechnology. Research projects allow students to focus on an issue of particular interest. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW112H1 - Language Freedom and Power

Hours: 12L/24S

How do we imagine a balance between the need for communication, freedom of expression, and protection for marginalized groups? This course considers how language shapes and is shaped by the relations of power not only in such sites as colonies, nations and institutions, but also in popular culture and how we communicate online. It explores the key role of language in activism and youth cultures and allows students to focus on an issue of particular interest. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW113H1 - Unpacking Digital Technology

Hours: 12L/24S

What are the social and material implications of the digital technologies we use every day - for the present and for the future? This course explores how digital technologies have been remaking the world and affecting our lives by tracing their historical development, their social effects, and the impact of their physical presence. It also peers into scenarios of the future in this digital world. Students engage in research on a topic of their own interest. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW114H1 - Art for Social Change

Hours: 12L/24S

How does art contribute to social change? Artistic productions can draw attention to social problems, mobilize support for and symbolize social movements, and inspire new visions for imagined futures. This course will explore case studies of the role of various art forms in relation to past and current social change initiatives. Students will have the opportunity to engage in research on an art project of their choice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NEW115H1 - Current Issues Without Borders II

Hours: 12L/24S

Explores the social and ethical implications of a current issue exemplifying the themes of "Learning Without Borders." Also considers examples of policy and community organizing responses. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW116H1 - Science and Global Threats

Hours: 12L/24S

What is the role of science in addressing current global threats? What are the possibilities and the limitations of scientific research and knowledge in tackling complex problems such as climate change, pandemics and pollution? In this course, students explore these questions by examining case studies, meeting with specialists in various scientific fields, and engaging in research on a topic of their own choice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW197H1 - Public Intellectual Activism: Theory and Practice

Hours: 24S

Explores the role of the public intellectual in modern and contemporary societies from a theoretical and practical lens. Specifically, investigates the interventions of this capital actor of the social fabric in specific historical junctures of the 20th century and the new millennium with the idea of informing a hands-on approach to participation in civil society debates. Students will be encouraged to examine how “marginalized communities” intervene in the public sphere to effect social change. Term work will include the writing and publishing of an op-ed article, blog, social media posts and a podcast interview. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

NEW198H1 - Myths of French Sensuality

Hours: 24S

A study of French cultural history with respect to the French reputation for the indulgence and refinement of all the senses in visual arts, music, cuisine, perfume and fashion. Supporting mythologies are investigated, along with stereotype formation, exoticism and cultural appropriation. Through various research, writing and presentation techniques, including mini-essays, poster displays and pecha kucha, students will explore what is left of this reputation in an era of globalization. No knowledge of French is necessary. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NEW199H1 - We Are What We Eat: The Example of French Cuisine

Hours: 24S

The historical study of French cuisine reveals a culture rich in controversy and conflicting narratives. These include contested origins, court intrigues, sensual delight, revolutions, colonialism and slavery, controversial farm practices, haute cuisine, cuisine bourgeoise, regionalism, European regulation. Through various research, writing and presentation techniques, including mini-essays, wikis and pecha kucha, students will explore what is left of French food culture in an era of globalization. No knowledge of French is necessary. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NMC195H1 - Rebels, Misfits, and Outcasts in Modern Arabic Literature

Previous Course Number: NMC242H1

Hours: 36S

This course examines modern Arabic literary texts that portray marginalized social figures and groups who have been excluded from a protective system of resources and privileges. Students will read novels and short stories by prominent Arab authors who have represented marginal social groups in their fiction, including representations of the urban poor, the peasantry, the delinquent, the prostitute, sexual minorities, women who reject normative roles, and the political rebel. These fictional texts address issues such as political resistance and rebellion, economic precarity, and social exclusion. Students will engage with these texts by critically examining the role of literature in narrating unspoken and suppressed histories. The class will also introduce students to theoretical modes of literary analysis and interpretation. All texts will be read in English translation. Authors include Mohamed Choukri, Hanan al-Shaykh, Alifa Rifaat, Sonallah Ibrahim, and Arwa Salih. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: NMC242H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NMC196H1 - Law and Order in the Ancient Near East

Hours: 24S

Are human beings basically evil or good? What creates order in society? Coercion? Religion? Can societies operate without law? This course explores different systems of authority and control through ancient texts, focusing on the very first ideas of law in human history. We examine actual law codes, court cases on real estate disputes and conspiracy to commit murder and rape, as well as alternative means of regulating communities such as ideology, ritual and magic. While most courses on ancient law approach the topic from the perspective of modern concerns, this course situates the first law in its own historical, social and political context. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NMC197H1 - Myth and History in the Bible

Hours: 24S

Reading the Bible is easy, but reading it well isn’t. Should we read its stories as history? All of it? Or perhaps only part of it? If so, which parts? And if some parts aren’t meant to be read as history, then what are they? Was Jonah really swallowed by a large fish? Did the sun and moon stand still for Joshua? Did Moses really part the Red Sea? Did Jesus really raise Lazarus from the dead? Are miracles necessarily fiction? In this seminar, we will read together many of the most colourful stories of the Bible, sometimes alongside similar stories from the cultural context of ancient Israel, and discuss what genre (history, myth, legend, folktale) they belong to and how this affects our reading of these texts. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NMC198H1 - Iranian Women Reveal Their Lives: The First Generation

Hours: 24S

Persian women born in the late 19th century and early decades of the 20th century grew up in a period of major political, social, and cultural change that impacted women. A course reading, Memories of a Persian Childhood, illustrates the important role of the family and childhood experiences in the lives of a first generation of women to have access to a modern education, and step beyond traditional boundaries. Women’s personal writings are the main sources we use to learn about female aspirations, hopes and disappointments as well as the challenge of living in a patriarchal society that took for granted that a woman would devote her life to caring for home and family. We will explore how this generation navigated restraints on women in the years of Pahlavi rule (1925-1979) and served as a model of female contribution for a young generation following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Each seminar will consist of the instructor’s introductory comments, a discussion of the assigned readings and an exchange of opinions about the life of women in different environments. The final mark is based on the readings in the course syllabus, the instructor’s lectures, and class discussions of assigned topics. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

NMC199H1 - Babylon: Fact vs. Fiction

Hours: 24S

The ancient city of Babylon, now a vast archaeological site in Iraq about 100km south of Baghdad, has captured people’s imagination up to this day. Who has not heard of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Biblical Tower of Babel, or the sci-fi TV series Babylon 5? Yet, how much of that reflects the reality of ancient Babylon? This course will explore the city of Babylon through its texts and archaeology and contrast this data with the way the city has been remembered over the past two thousand years. However, the goal of the course is not only to investigate how myths about Babylon have been constructed throughout the centuries. It will also look at the shortcomings of contemporary academic research on Babylon, and how difficult it is to reconstruct humankind's distant past. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

PHL196H1 - Philosophy, Film, and Social Criticism

Hours: 48S

This course will critically examine the role of cinema in relation to selected topics and themes in social and political philosophy; these will vary from year to year, but may include race, ethnic and cultural 'other'-ness, class, social conflict, citizenship, cosmopolitanism, and human rights. Films will be screened in class and discussed against the background of focused critical and philosophical readings. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.


Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

PHL197H1 - Introduction to Philosophical Anthropology

Hours: 24S

Philosophical anthropology is the subject that poses the most fundamental questions about human nature and the human condition. Taking as its point of departure the most up-to-date scientific understanding of human nature, from anthropology broadly conceived, it goes on to inquire, in a disciplined fashion, about the implications of these views for perennial philosophical questions about human rationality, morality, the possibility of progress, the existence of god and the meaning of life. This course will examine one or more topics in this domain, as a more general introduction to the discipline. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PHL198H1 - Philosophy of Time

Hours: 24S

The passage of time is a fundamental aspect of human experience: we are born, we grow older, and eventually we pass away. During our lives our experience of the past, present, and future are distinct. We can influence the world in the present and the future, but it does not seem that we can influence the past. We have hopes about the future, memories of the past, and experiences of the present. In this seminar we will explore insights from contemporary philosophy and physics concerning the nature of the passage of time. Questions to be considered may include the following: What does it mean to say that time passes? Does time really pass at all? How do we experience time? Why can we influence the future but not the past? Is it possible to travel backward in time? Is time even real? What is time? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

PHL199H1 - Ethics and Fiction

Hours: 24S

The goal of this seminar is to investigate selected ethical questions via works of fiction, considering how, and with what effect, fiction functions as an ethical medium. We will reflect on what fiction can teach us about pressing challenges of the human condition; themes to be discussed will vary from year to year, but may include choice and responsibility, freedom, friendship, empathy, integrity, and our relation to the divine and to death. Genres studied may range over novels, short stories, plays, and narrative poetry. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PHY196H1 - Emergence in Nature

Hours: 24S

The universe is not a rigid clockwork, but neither is it formless and random. Instead, it is filled with highly organized, evolved structures that have somehow emerged from simple rules of physics. Examples range from the structure of galaxies to the pattern of ripples on windblown sand, to biological and even social processes. These phenomena exist in spite of the universal tendency towards disorder. How is this possible? Self-organization challenges the usual reductionistic scientific method, and begs the question of whether we can ever really understand or predict truly complex systems. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: No prior experience with physical science will be required, but familiarity with Grade 10 mathematics will be assumed.
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

PHY197H1 - Modern Physics for the Curious

Hours: 24S

Have you wondered about the origin and workings of the natural world around us? Have you found physical science interesting but inaccessible because it was too full of math and jargon? Have you felt a pull to become more science-literate? If so, this seminar course is for you -- or for anyone interested in understanding more about the universe, including our planet, seen through the lens of modern physics. Ideas on the menu will include: particle physics, space and time, relativity, black holes, quantum physics, unification forces, string theory, and big bang cosmology. The intriguing story of these integrated phenomena unfolds over a wide distance and a long time. Students from diverse academic backgrounds are warmly welcome. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: No prior experience with physical science will be required, but familiarity with Grade 10 mathematics will be assumed.
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

PHY198H1 - Physics at the Cutting Edge

Previous Course Number: PHY289H1

Hours: 24L/12S

A limited enrollment seminar course for First Year Science students interested in current research in Physics. Students will meet active researchers studying the universe from the centre of the earth to the edge of the cosmos. Topics may range from string theory to experimental biological physics, from climate change to quantum computing, from superconductivity to earthquakes. The course may involve both individual and group work, essays and oral presentations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: PHY151H1
Corequisite: PHY152H1, MAT137Y1/ MAT157Y1
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

PHY199H1 - Dark Matter and Dark Energy are the New Black

Hours: 24S

It is now 90 years since astronomers found the first evidence for a form of matter that wasn't part of the stars in our galaxies, but rather is "dark" and has a gravitational attraction to ordinary matter. Other lines of evidence lead us to believe that there is six times more dark matter than the ordinary matter we are familiar with. Despite this, we have no credible, direct evidence for what this dark matter might be. It is one of the biggest puzzles in particle physics and cosmology. In the last decade, we have also discovered that something else is going on – the universe appears to be filled with "dark energy" that causes the expansion of our universe to speed up instead of slowdown. We will discuss what we know about the hypotheses of dark matter and dark energy, and the debates about what might really be going on. Are we seeing science in crisis, with a revolution just around the corner, or is this just the "normal science" talked about by Kuhn and other philosophers of science? Participants will be expected to participate in seminar-style discussions, as well as take the lead on at least one topic of discussion. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: No prior experience with physical science will be required, but familiarity with Grade 10 mathematics will be assumed.
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

POL193H1 - First-Year Foundation Seminar: Politics and the Arts

Hours: 24S

A study of political ideas as found in literature, plays, art works and film.

Restricted to first-year students.

Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

POL195H1 - First-Year Foundation Seminar: Settler Colonialism and Enduring Indigeneity

Hours: 24S

This seminar explores the politics of representation in Indigenous multimedia. We study Indigenous cultural productions—memoir, documentary, graphic novel, film, poetry, music, and video games—to examine representations of settler colonialism and how Indigenous peoples endure it.

Restricted to first-year students.

Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

POL196H1 - First-Year Foundation Seminar: The China Challenge

Hours: 24S

China’s meteoric rise to great power status has triggered an intense international debate over its global implications. While many analysts see Beijing’s rise as posing a threat to global political and economic stability, Chinese leaders have argued forcefully that China’s efforts to regain its historic preeminence will result in a ‘win-win” outcome for all states. This course will assess the merits of these contending positions through an historical examination of China’s 20th century renaissance. The course will begin by tracing the long period of imperial decline in the 19th century, culminating in China’s revolutionary rebirth as a Marxist state in 1949. A major focus will be on the Mao-era legacy of revolutionary diplomacy and the foreign policy consequences of its later transformation into a market-authoritarian powerhouse.

Restricted to first-year students.

Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

POL197H1 - First-Year Foundation Seminar: Politics and Sports: Identity, Activism, and Political Economy

Hours: 24S

The course aims to introduce first year students to key themes in political science – power, race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, class, nationalism, social movements, activism, and political economy – through the lens of sports and those who participate in them.

Restricted to first-year students.

Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

POL198H1 - First-Year Foundation Seminar: Social Justice and the City

Previous Course Number: POL198Y1

Hours: 24S

An introduction to the concept of social justice from an urban perspective. It will highlight how unequal relations of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability operate through the urban environment, and how these conditions can be contested through political mobilization.

Restricted to first-year students.

Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

PSL190H1 - Biomedical Research at the Cutting Edge

Hours: 24L/6S

Explore the thought processes, logic, motivation, techniques, analysis and impact of recent high-profile publications to gain insight into the enterprise of science. Outstanding scientists present recent high-impact papers, and students will examine the research in depth, focusing on the underlying questions, experimental approach, results and significance. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: SBI4U and SCH4U (Grade 12 University Preparation Biology and Chemistry); permission of Department
Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

PSY194H1 - The Psychology of Student Success

Hours: 24S

University life presents students with all sorts of challenges as well as amazing opportunities for learning and growth. While there are many different ways to define a “successful student”, the goal of this seminar is for everyone to develop the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to make the most of out of the university experience. Students will discover what research in psychological science has to say about facing and overcoming common academic, intrapersonal, and interpersonal challenges, as we cover topics including deliberate practice, imposter syndrome, and belongingness. Students will also learn evidence-based strategies for better managing their attention, energy, and emotions so that they may thrive (rather than just survive) in university. In addition to learning about psychology, students will develop useful skills in scientific literacy, critical thinking, self-reflection, written and oral communication, and teamwork. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PSY195H1 - The Science of Babies and Children

Hours: 24S

This course will use an interdisciplinary perspective to explore how the infant mind emerges and grows. Topics could include how brain plasticity influences “critical” or “sensitive” periods for learning, or how studying infants’ perception, cognition and behaviour can offer us critical insights into long-standing philosophical questions. Note that specific content will depend on the instructor and will be posted on the Department of Psychology’s Undergraduate Course Information webpage. During the course, students will (1) engage in lively discussion and present their perspectives; (2) use exploratory writing to develop arguments and their understanding of subject matter; and (3) begin to read and summarize scientific research papers in Developmental Psychology. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. 

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PSY197H1 - Rethinking the Human Mind

Hours: 24S

This course will use an interdisciplinary perspective to explore the quirks, achievements, and puzzles of the human mind. Topics could include how technology and tools extend our minds, or the light that our ability (and inability) to reason sheds on human nature. Note that specific content will depend on the instructor and will be posted on the Department of Psychology’s Undergraduate Course Information webpage. During the course, students will: (1) engage in lively discussion and present their perspectives; and (2) use exploratory writing to develop arguments and their understanding of the subject matter. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. 

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PSY198H1 - The Psychology of Magic

Hours: 24S

Magicians entertain us with their tricks. What appears as “Magic” is based on fundamental aspects of human psychology: visual and auditory perception, decision making, logic, memory, and verbal abilities. In this class, we will consider and discuss the psychological basis of magic tricks and use magic to explore aspects of psychology. The class will require reading of scientific articles and book chapters as well as watching and analyzing magical tricks. The only prerequisite is a curious and critical mind. The course puts great emphasis on writing and on starting to read primary scientific literature. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

PSY199H1 - Psychology and History of Drug Use

Hours: 24S

This seminar will examine the historical and contemporary use of drugs. Students will be introduced to the general psychological and neuroscientific mechanisms by which drugs affect human behavior, and explore highlights of current research on drug effects in animals and humans. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

RLG195H1 - Alt-Bible: What Could Have Been

Hours: 24S

Why does our contemporary Bible not include any daughters for Adam and Eve or any stories of Jesus as a young boy? What if Enoch was more prominent than Moses or Thomas more prominent than Paul? "The Bible" that we have is not a single book or a simple collection, but something that has grown over time, been the object of contention and argument, and has sometimes been a common ground across traditions. We examine side-by-side writings that have become canonical and writings that once held authority but have not found widespread canonical status, and strive to understand the processes by which we ended up with "the Bible" we have today. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/CNR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

RLG196H1 - Goddess Lessons: Gender, Religion and Pop

Hours: 24S

Is God a woman? How can we get to heaven without losing a piece of ourselves? What does it mean to follow Lesbian Jesus? Pop music provides us with some important – if often surprising – opportunities to think through deep questions. Increasingly, these questions tie together two of our most powerful human categories: gender and religion. This course will consider the diverse interactions between pop, gender, and religion. Examples might include Beyonce’s self-representation as the Yoruba goddess Oshun and Lil Nas X’s reinterpretation of the Garden of Eden in Montero. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

RLG197H1 - Enchantment, Disenchantment, Re-Enchantment

Hours: 24S

Modernity is associated with disenchantment, secularisation and progress, and has traditionally been understood as the successor to the enchanted, spiritual, and transcendent worldviews of antiquity and the middle ages. Re-enchantment, a term increasingly encountered in popular and academic contexts alike, demonstrates nostalgia for an enchanted past, a discomfort with the modern narrative, and a desire to recover wonder. This course will examine the history of enchantment through a series of readings taken from literature, philosophy, theology, ranging from Plato to contemporary magical realism. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

RLG198H1 - Dystopia: Religion & Gender in Science Fiction

Hours: 24S

This course will examine the “what ifs” and imagined worlds of ideal utopias and oppressive dystopias through the lens of religion and gender in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s Herland. Because science fiction and utopian/dystopian literature expresses what an author sees as possible or hopes is possible, but also fears is possible, we will consider science fiction as a political and social critique. Themes to be covered include fundamentalism, totalitarianism, the relationship between technology and religion, religion and reproductive rights, and the potential relationship between religion, gender and oppression. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

RLG199H1 - Contagions

Hours: 24S

It is obvious that infections spread through social networks; what is less well known is that forms of human behaviour, including religious affiliation, have network characteristics. This course examines a variety of historical and contemporary contagions to introduce essential concepts in network analysis and the factors that account for the spread of innovation and other forms of human behaviour. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SDS199H1 - Sexuality at the Intersections

Hours: 24L

This First-Year Foundations seminar will explore sexuality at the intersections of race, gender, class, disability, citizenship status, and geography, among other social relations and processes as a foundational practice in Sexual Diversity Studies. In an intimate seminar setting, students will develop reading, writing, and presentation skills necessary for engaging in Sexual Diversity Studies across a wide array of disciplinary traditions. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SLA190H1 - Losing It

Previous Course Number: SLA201H1

Hours: 24S

How does one cope with loss, be it a nose, a leg, a pet, a name, a lover, a battle, a fortune, or one’s sanity? Through literary texts from Central and Eastern Europe, we explore the trauma and poetics of losing, and the mechanisms of coping with and compensating for the lost object. Taught in English, all readings in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: SLA201H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA191H1 - The Criminal Mind

Hours: 24S

In the mid-nineteenth century, European and American fiction became obsessed with the subject of criminals. This course examines this preoccupation and its literary and social ramifications. We discuss the changing image of the criminal in British, French, Russian and American fiction. Readings by Dickens, Dostoevsky, Balzac, Zola, Poe, Stevenson and Lombroso. Reading and discussion in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA192H1 - On the Road in Eastern Europe

Hours: 24S

This course examines the function of travel within texts and films depicting journeys through Eastern Europe. We will distinguish various types of journeys, the narrative and cultural expectations they imply, and the ways that travel relates to individual identity, raising questions about nationality, race, gender, sexuality, and the Other. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA193H1 - Objects of War

Hours: 24L

An object or a thing always has a collective history. It speaks of the political and the social conditions under which it was made. In this course, objects of war – the material culture of conflict – from the 20th and 21st centuries will be critically and historically examined. How do these objects speak of violence, politics, and culture, but also rewrite and influence the arenas within which they circulate? Some objects include: canned food, drones, the journalists’ hotel, helmets, tents. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA194H1 - Utopia Interrupted: Late and Post-Soviet Russian Literature

Hours: 24S

Almost 30 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, what can we understand about its culture and people, and its impact on the popular imagination in the West? To answer these questions, the course introduces students to canonical literary and cinematic works from the post-Stalin era to the present, with particular attention to the literary and cultural peripheries. Some of the topics will include: Gulag, or Return of the Repressed, Counter-Culture, Space Race, Immigration, Gender, Perestroika, and Putin’s Russia. All readings in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA195H1 - Literature and Painting in Russia and the West

Hours: 24S

What makes literature ‘visible’? How do the verbal and the visual coexist? This seminar explores the relationship between words and images, texts and pictures through history, in Russia and the West. Special attention will be paid to the figure of the artist. Is it a writer’s alter ego, the incarnation of creativity, or just a character among others? Literary texts (mainly short stories) from Balzac and Gogol to Chekhov and O. Henry, Maugham and Bunin, Nabokov and Camus will be studied along with the paintings of some major 19th-20th century artists. The comparative dimension of the course will help students contextualize Russian literature and think about its relationship with the Western canon. We will also watch some 21st century films about artists (such as Julie Taymor’s Frida [2002], Milos Forman Goya’s Ghosts [2006], and Mike Leigh Mr. Turner [2014]). All texts will be in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA196H1 - Russia at War

Hours: 24S

In its long history Russia has fought numerous wars, both defensive and offensive, and these wars have inspired a rich, complex, contradictory poetic response. We examine Russian war narratives starting with the medieval period and ending with the Second World War and including epic poetry, songs, stories, novels, paintings, and films. We will study the depiction of war and the image of the soldier (or warrior) in different genres and time periods, as well as the historical circumstances in which the different works were produced and the respective audiences for which they were intended. All texts will be in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA197H1 - The Imaginary Jew

Hours: 24S

The course examines the genesis and evolution of the image of the Jew, central to all European cultures, from the theology and psychology of Christian anti-Judaism to their reflection in folklore, visual, plastic, and verbal arts, and to the survival of the imaginary Jew in secular forms. Special attention is given to the Jews of Slavic and East European imagination. All readings are in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA198H1 - The Slavic Grecian Formula: From Ancient Rhapsode to Modern Slav Song

Hours: 24S

Slav singers of heroic tales about war, lust, honour and revenge have made a special contribution to our appreciation of classical literature and mythology. We will compare Slavic epics and African-American rap songs to reveal the connection between Homer's Iliad and Nas's iconic Illmatic, between the mythical image of the pagan goddess Aphrodite and the mystique of Nicki Minaj, Lauryn Hill, and other iconic singers today. As we read The Iliad closely, we will study songs from the Russian, Bosnian Muslim, Croatian and Serbian traditions. Employing new performance formulaic theory, we will learn that they share much, in melody and message, with the work of today's hip-hop artists, whose roots of rap "flowing" reach back to the beginnings of Western literature and the epic singers of ancient Greece. Students will have the opportunity to interact with a unique online multimedia edition of an epic song by a traditional Slavic singer.

No knowledge of languages other than English is required. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SLA199H1 - Invisible Kingdom, Imaginary Space

Hours: 24S

The Central European Region of Galicia gave rise to a remarkable array of literary representations -- Austrian, Jewish, Polish, and Ukrainian -- animating fantastic creatures, powerful myths, deviant pleasures, and sublime stories. Bruno Schulz created shimmering peacocks, Leopold von Sacher-Masoch seized ecstasy through pain, and Ivan Franko investigated the effects of avarice and social decay. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC155H1 - SMC One: The McLuhan Seminar in Creativity and Technology

Hours: 12L/12S

This seminar is an interdisciplinary exploration of the relationship between creativity and technology. Inspired by the innovative thinking of Marshall McLuhan, it explores how the humanities relate to other fields of thought and research in addressing the individual, social and cultural experiences and effects of technological innovation. This course may include a compulsory travel component (location to be determined based on travel restrictions). (An ancillary fee of $1,750 is required to help cover a portion of the travel costs.) Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

This course is restricted to newly admitted Faculty of Arts and Science students accepted to SMC One. Applications are due before the end of April (deadline subject to change). Apply via the JOIN U of T website.

https://stmikes.utoronto.ca/program/smc-one-mcluhan-seminar

Prerequisite: Admission to SMC One
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC165H1 - SMC One: The Boyle Seminar in Scripts and Stories

Hours: 24L/12S

This seminar introduces students to university-level studies through an interdisciplinary exploration of Celtic influences in the mediaeval world, with a particular focus on early books and historical artifacts as physical objects and bearers of meaning. Students will learn how to read and analyse these books and artifacts to decode their meanings, and, in support of that, take introductory language instruction in Latin and Irish. Subjects discussed will include intercultural encounter and dialogue, research methods with historical sources, and the relationship between the written word and lived experience, then and now. A co-curricular, optional travel opportunity to Dublin, Ireland may be associated with this course. If the trip is offered and you choose to go , an ancillary fee of $1,750 is required to help cover a portion of the travel costs. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

This course is restricted to newly admitted Faculty of Arts and Science students accepted to SMC One. Applications are due before the end of April (deadline subject to change). Apply via the JOIN U of T website.

https://stmikes.utoronto.ca/program/smc-one-boyle-seminar

Prerequisite: Admission to SMC One
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC185H1 - SMC One: The Christianity, Truth and Reconciliation Seminar

Hours: 24L/12T

This seminar critically explores the complex relations of Christianity and Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island, with a special focus on education. Sample topics include: settler colonialism and treaty relationships; prominent Indigenous Christians, critics and reformers; the residential school system; the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada; recent initiatives in ecclesial repentance, dialogue, and enculturation. The course includes guest speakers and compulsory co-curricular activities, including travel to residential school site(s) and archives in Ontario during the fall reading week. The costs of these activities are supported by the University of St. Michael’s College. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

This course is restricted to newly admitted Faculty of Arts and Science students accepted to SMC One. Applications are due before the end of April (deadline subject to change). Apply via the JOIN U of T website.

https://stmikes.utoronto.ca/program/smc-one-christianity-truth-reconciliation-seminar

Prerequisite: Admission to SMC One
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

SMC188H1 - SMC One: The Gilson Seminar in Faith and Ideas

Previous Course Number: SMC188Y1

Hours: 12L/12S

This seminar is an interdisciplinary exploration of leading scholarly, intellectual and public questions related to ecology, science, literature, and public life. From a variety of perspectives, the seminar considers how religion, and how different kinds of religious experience, figure in the broader context of human affairs. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. Enrolment in SMC188H1 will automatically enroll you in SMC189H1 at the departmental level. The department will enroll you in SMC189H1 before the start of the term.

https://stmikes.utoronto.ca/program/smc-one-the-gilson-seminar-in-faith-and-ideas

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

SMC189H1 - SMC One: The Gilson Seminar in Faith and Rome

Previous Course Number: SMC188Y1

Hours: 24L

This course provides an intensive international learning experience in Rome, Italy. It offers contemporary and historical models of integrating faith with reason, and religious practice with intellectual, creative, and public engagement, specifically the roles that the Catholic Church and Vatican play in Rome, in ecology, science, literature, and public life. This course includes a mandatory travel component to Rome, Italy, which takes place following the Winter term exam period. An ancillary fee is required to help cover a portion of the travel costs. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

https://stmikes.utoronto.ca/program/smc-one-the-gilson-seminar-in-faith-and-ideas

Prerequisite: SMC188H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC195H1 - God and Money in the Middle Ages

Hours: 24S

This seminar considers the ethical, political, and spiritual questions arising from the existence of wealth and poverty in medieval European culture. With readings from Dante, Chaucer, Thomas Aquinas and others, the course will examine how the interaction of spiritual ideals and material realities shaped cultural developments from late antiquity to the Protestant Reformation. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SMC196H1 - God and the Poets: Lyric Form in the Christian Tradition

Hours: 24S

This course will develop the skills fostered by the close reading of poetry by exploring how the most sophisticated forms of language have been used to address the highest possible subjects in the Christian literary tradition. With readings in English, we will survey poetry in a range of languages and forms, giving particular attention to how, in lyric poetry, poets have addressed themselves to God—from devotion to desperation, ecstasy to outrage, tenderness to terror. In addition to building the necessary skills for reading, describing, and analyzing poetry, this course will also develop other research skills. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC197H1 - The Sistine Chapel: History, Imagery, Usage

Hours: 24S

The Sistine Chapel in Rome is a historical artifact, an artistic monument, and a house of worship—at once recognizable and mystifying. This seminar explores fifteenth-century origins, decoration by some of the most accomplished artists of the Italian renaissance, and continuing use (especially the election of popes). Topics will include: art and patronage, rhetoric and ritual, controversial restoration, and the Sistine Chapel in popular culture—with an emphasis on the close analysis of the major frescoes. The seminar will develop the academic skills needed for the analysis and discussion of texts, paintings, and ritual events. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC198H1 - How to Study Video Games

Hours: 36S

Games and play are a fundamental part of human society, and today digital games occupy a central place in popular culture, media industries, and the imaginations of players around the world. This seminar introduces students to the growing academic field of game studies, with an emphasis on close analysis of specific games as cultural objects. Through lectures, discussions, and in-class play sessions, students will build a critical vocabulary and toolbox of techniques for understanding the unique formal, aesthetic, narrative, and thematic properties of games in a variety of platforms and genres, and develop basic academic reading, writing, and research skills. No previous experience or expertise with video games is required to take this course. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SMC199H1 - Intelligence, Artificial and Human

Hours: 36S

What is human intelligence? How close are we to replicating it? How productive/reductive is the brain-computer analogy? What ethical challenges are posed by AI on workers, society, and the environment? Can we put a hold on "progress"? Is Silicon Valley the seat of a new techno-religion? What can they teach us about today's research priorities? What insight (or inspiration) can we get from works of science fiction about the future of human-AI interaction? Through reading discussion, written assignment, and workshops, this seminar will present students with the opportunity to integrate their computer science interests with philosophy, history, and literature. There is an equivalent course offered by the Department of Computer Science. Students may take one or the other but not both. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: CSC199H1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SOC196H1 - Introduction to Arab Majority Societies

Hours: 24L

This course has two goals. It aims to familiarize students with current challenges and dynamics within Arab societies. It seeks to help students develop a critical perspective on prevalent analytical frameworks such as culturalist, orientalist analyses applied to the region. To achieve this, we will use a controversy, conflict, or current event as an entry point to illuminate one or more dimensions of the society we are studying. The countries studied will vary from session to session to reflect the socio-economic, cultural, religious, and political diversity of the region, as well as the common challenges facing these countries. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SOC197H1 - The Courses of Lives, Histories, & Futures

Hours: 24L

This course will explore how changes in technology, economy, ecology, culture, and other factors shape how individual lives and social relations tend to unfold. Much of the research and theory that social scientists have produced on the “life course” has focused on how historical events and trends, such as war, economic depression, and trends in family-life have re-shaped life transitions and aging. Those latter changes in turn lead to broad social changes that influence subsequent generations in new ways. In this course we will not be solely concerned with changes in and from the past. We will also keep an eye on the future, and ask how technological changes related to bodies, such as genetic engineering and bioelectric implants, might alter the trajectory of lives and social relations of future generations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SOC198H1 - Explaining the Persistence of Racialized Inequalities

Hours: 24L

Why are Black and other racialized groups comparatively more disadvantaged than people racialized as White? Although race is a social category, it has profound effects on our life chances and opportunities. Explanations for and strategies to address racialized inequalities have long been debated. Emphasizing sociological perspectives, this course highlights and presents explanations for ongoing racialized inequalities across various social institutions, in opportunities for advancement, and in everyday social interactions. More specifically, this course will discuss racialized inequalities in the following areas: poverty and wealth, the labor market, the educational system, the criminal justice system, health, neighborhoods and housing, the political process and representation, and social interactions and relationships. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SOC199H1 - Living Together Differently in the 21st Century: Israel as a case study

Hours: 24S

How can people with different worldviews and dissimilar moral visions live together? Liberal philosophers have grappled with this question offering solutions including tolerance, peace, and multiculturalism. However, many people today, particularly in the West, oppose liberalism as a cultural message and a political goal. Powerful evidence can be found in the rise of "populist" backlash movements and the sharp polarization between liberals and conservatives. Can Western democracies overcome this crisis? This seminar explores this question from a sociological perspective with Israel as a case study. We will probe the efforts of Israeli activists and professionals to instill non-liberal peace among Jews and Arabs, to bridge the chasm between liberals and conservatives, and to include LGBTs and people with disabilities as equal members of society while surpassing liberal principles. By analyzing their work, we will broaden our understanding about living together differently in the 21st century. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

SPA195H1 - Barcelona

Hours: 24L

A deep dive into the modern experience of one of the world´s most compelling cities, this course considers Barcelona from a multidisciplinary perspective that includes study of its architecture, foodways, politics and response to mass tourism. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SPA196H1 - Class and Work in the Americas

Hours: 24L

This course examines economic and social inequalities in the contemporary Americas. We look at the ways in which class divisions are represented in academic studies, literature, film, and television. From Mexican maquiladoras to indigenous reservations, we consider the global poor and how recent changes in the character of work (automation, outsourcing, free trade zones) have had an impact on class divisions, especially for younger members of society. Can a renewed understanding of class and work help us to negotiate power, privilege, and inequality in this century? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SPA197H1 - Cervantes and Imperial Spain

Hours: 24L

During the lifetime of Miguel de Cervantes, the Spanish monarchy governed an empire that extended across the globe, from its traditional lands in Europe to colonies in the Philippines and the Americas. We will examine the advantages and cost of imperial rule through reading a selection of Cervantes's works. Discussions will centre on such questions as the social impact of imperial wealth, the disruptive role of soldiers in civil society, contact with non-European cultures and the sub-cultures of Spanish society. Students will be introduced to the University of Toronto´s outstanding resources for studying the literatures and cultures of early modern Europe. Readings will include some of the Exemplary Stories and selected episodes of Don Quixote. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SPA198H1 - A Brief History of Love in the Western World

Hours: 24L

This course introduces students to the ways in which the foremost thinkers in the history of the Western world (Plato, Ovid, St. Augustine, Ficino, Ebreo) conceived the idea of love; how did the notions of sexuality and gender play into that idea, and how did these notions carry on – or not – into our present understanding of love, sexuality and gender. While the background readings pertain to the general Western cultural heritage, the literary texts through which we will observe particular applications of the theories of love were produced by some of the outstanding 16th and 17th century Spanish authors (for ex. Rodríguez de Montalvo; Jorge de Montemayor; Miguel de Cervantes; Tirso de Molina, María de Zayas, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz). All the readings will be in English. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

SPA199H1 - More than Nachos and Tequila: Mexican History and Culture

Hours: 24L

This course aims at studying the rich history of Mexico from an interdisciplinary perspective. We will cover a wide range of issues, such as identity, modernity race, immigration, gender, sexuality, globalization, and iconic figures. The issue of identity as construed from the inside, but also from the outside and particularly from the English-speaking world (i.e. current US presidential views on the wall), will be widely examined. Course materials will range from chronicles of conquest to modern reflections and representations by historians, philosophers, filmmakers, musicians, writers and artist, among others. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

STA197H1 - Thinking Better with Statistics

Hours: 24S

This course explores how our statistical intuitions and ways of thinking can let us down. There’s no need to be a math whiz to be a better statistical thinker. Everyone can become a more critical consumer of claims presented in media, advertisements and by politicians—especially those relevant to our own health and wealth. This course uses real-world examples and tours common and avoidable statistical traps and tricks. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

STA198H1 - Probabilities Everywhere

Hours: 24S

This course examines the meaning and mathematics of probabilities, and how they arise in our everyday lives. Specific topics may include: the nature of coincidences, the concept of luck, games involving dice and cards, long run averages in casinos, margins of error in polls, the interpretation of medical studies, crime statistics, decision making, pseudorandomness, and Monte Carlo algorithms. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Grade 12 Mathematics
Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

STA199H1 - Statistical Evidence: Truth or Myth?

Hours: 24S

This course explores the impact Statistics has made and continues to make on everyday life through science, law, and the modern methods for information processing. Statistical principles will be illustrated using examples from real life including business, romance and health. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

TRN125Y1 - Contemporary Issues in Health Science

Hours: 48S

Can the immune system be strengthened? Are some diseases incurable? What is the best way to stop the spread of a virus? This course examines the scientific principles underlying contemporary issues in the science of human health with the goal of exposing students to the current state of biomedical research. We will develop three distinct types of understanding that are essential to literacy about the science of human health: the basic concepts in science; the nature of scientific research; and the rules that govern how scientists do their work. This course will explore topics such as stem cells, gene editing, regenerative medicine, vaccination, drug development, and personalized medicine. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN225Y1
Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN135Y1 - Science and Social Choice

Hours: 48S

Many of the decisions we make as a society rely on advances in scientific knowledge. In this course, we will discuss a number of contemporary medical topics that involve complex scientific discoveries about health, the human body, disease, and infection. We will consider genes and study the medical implications of our growing understanding of the human genome. We will study a number of recent cases in order to explore how scientific findings influence decision-making in hospitals and the selection of social policies. We will also discuss the background forces that shape medical research and how this affects the kinds of health problems that are prioritized. The objective of this course is to develop a solid understanding of biological concepts related to human health and consider them in their wider social and ethical contexts. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN136Y1
Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN136Y1 - Canadian Health Policy in the Global Context

Hours: 48S

In this course we consider when our health policies support the highest standards of medical care, consistent with the latest discoveries in medical research. We examine the ways in which debates around ethics, effectiveness and efficiency shape global and national health policy. We begin by exploring the most important advancements in global health policy over the past two decades. We then assess Canada’s experience in providing health care, identifying lessons for national policy reform and for Canada’s role as a leader in global health research and policy. We explore a range of health challenges including universal health care, anti-microbial drug resistance, HIV AIDS, tuberculosis, reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, cardiovascular care, oncology, environmental health, indigenous health, violence against women and mental health. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN135Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN140Y1 - Ethics, Humans, and Nature

Hours: 48S

This course introduces students to ethical issues arising from the way humans interact with nature. Students will study some theoretical approaches for evaluating how human society affects the planet, ecosystems, and the other animals. Theories will be drawn from philosophy, theology, and ecology, and will include Western and non-Western approaches to living in harmony with one’s environment. Key themes may include speciesism – the idea that human needs are the most important – as well as overpopulation, extinction, vegetarianism, and responsible resource management. The course will also look at how social policy shapes human choices and whether sustainability initiatives should be pursued through the public or private sector. The course will also discuss the spiritual connection between humans and the environment and how society can be organized to promote access to nature in urban communities. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN141Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN141Y1 - Environmental Science and Pathways to Sustainability

Hours: 48S

This course introduces students to fundamental issues in environmental science with a multi-disciplinary focus on human impacts on physical and biological systems, and on identifying pathways to sustainability. Key themes will include energy and resources, climate change, land use, contaminants and protecting biodiversity in the context of the Anthropocene. The course challenges students to apply the scientific method to environmental monitoring, research and problem solving through project design, data collection and analysis. The course also emphases information literacy, skills to distinguish science from pseudo-science, and considerations around representation of environmental science in the media. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN140Y1
Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4), The Physical and Mathematical Universes (5)

TRN150Y1 - National versus International

Hours: 48S

The international system today faces extraordinary challenges. Understanding these challenges requires understanding the past. This seminar course briefly reviews the origins and development of the international system from the 17th century through the age of empires and the great wars of the 20th century. It then concentrates on the clash of nationalism with internationalism in the world since 1945, looking at such issues as what drives nationalism and what alternatives there are to it. We will study ideas and ideologies as well as the institutions that make up the current geopolitical world. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN151Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN151Y1 - Global Governance

Hours: 48S

Terrorism, the proliferation of arms (including weapons of mass destruction), environmental degradation, globalization, technological change, and the rise of non-state actors all pose challenges to statecraft and the management of global order. This seminar course explores the changing dynamics of global politics and the responses to them by states (and others). Topics will include an examination of new forms of international collaboration that have developed in the wake of crises in the years following the Second World War. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN150Y1/ TRN152Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN152Y1 - Justice & Global Conflict

Hours: 48S

Modern states face both new and familiar challenges to protecting national security. National insecurity threatens a country’s capacity to protect the well-being of its citizens while at the same time participating in international organizations and treaties. This course explores the origins and management of international conflict from the 17th to the 21st century, focusing on the precursors to war and the markers of peace. We will also consider the ways in which our current global world order promotes and preserves justice between and within nations. Students will consider different theoretical approaches to justice between nations, and apply them to recent security issues. By studying the history of conflict and the difference between justice and injustice students will gain a deeper understanding of how current geopolitical actors can structure and affect the prospects for security policy reform moving forward. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN151Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN160Y1 - Public Policy and the Public Good

Hours: 48S

This course examines the sense of the public good that undergirds Canada's domestic and international obligations. We examine the notion of the “public” through investigating possible answers to a central political question: what is the purpose of government? Drawing on readings in philosophy and political theory, the course considers a variety of approaches to defining the nature of the public good and how policy makers should respond when competing goods (e.g., freedom and security) clash with each other. In addition, the course looks at the treaties and conventions that articulate the responsibilities of signatory nations regarding challenges such as climate change mitigation, refugee resettlement, and foreign aid. Students will learn how international agreements either compel or encourage participation and multilateral cooperation in the absence of robust enforcement mechanisms.

Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN161Y1/ TRN162Y1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3), Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

TRN161Y1 - Making Public Policy Work

Hours: 48S

How do we know what kinds of public policy will work and what will not? How do we assess the effectiveness of a policy? An historical examination of ways in which Canadian governments have addressed a range of policy problems. Case studies of areas of federal and provincial activity today. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Trinity One
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN162Y1 - Political Economy and Social Inequality

Hours: 48S

What is the relationship between capitalism and democracy? How can understanding rational choice theory inform public policy? This course will introduce students to the methods of studying the interplay between economics and politics. We will focus on specific topics to guide our quantitative analysis, which may include intergenerational poverty, the transfer of wealth, efficiency, and social stratification. We will analyse empirical results while developing critical skills for interpreting economic data and research. The course also considers global economic dynamics, transnational governance regimes, as well as the political-economic dimensions of setting global policies. By the end of the course, students will have a better understanding of global political economy, and its connection the fields of international relations and public policy.

Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN160Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN170Y1 - Ethics and the Creative Imagination

Hours: 48S

A seminar course that explores ethical issues through the study of works of the creative imagination that pose or provoke questions of right and wrong, good and evil, justice and injustice. The selected works will be drawn from such fields as literature, film, and the visual and performing arts. Open only to students admitted to Trinity One. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Trinity One
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1), Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

TRN171Y1 - Ethics and the Public Sphere

Hours: 48S

What does it mean to be morally required to do something? What rights do we have over ourselves, our bodies, our privacy, our choices? In this course, we will read texts from philosophy, history, political science, cultural studies and beyond that engage with the theme of ethics in the public arena. These will provide valuable analytic tools as we go on to confront contemporary issues that raise urgent ethical questions. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN172Y1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3), Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

TRN172Y1 - Ethics and the Law

Hours: 48S

What is the relationship between moral values and the law? What role does the law play in enabling people to live better lives? Are legal institutions and actors subject to higher ethical standards? In this course we will read texts from legal theory and political philosophy to try to explain the connection between ethics and the law. This will provide the basis for thinking about some historical and contemporary legal cases, as well as ethical issues judges, lawyers, and lawmakers face in their professional roles. Restricted to first-year students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN171Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN191H1 - Disaster and Terrorism: Religion and Ethics at Ground Zero

Hours: 24S

In response to contemporary terrorist attacks and natural disasters, many are led to cry, “The world will never be the same!” How should such statements be evaluated? What impact do they have on social and political life? This course explores religious and cultural responses to human tragedy and cultural shock. Discussion will attend to debates over the meaning of suffering, public reactions to terrorism, the traumas of natural disasters, and the role of media in covering such events. These themes are engaged from the perspectives of ethics, cultural theory, religious studies, and theology. The course focuses on popular responses to events that include: the Lisbon Earthquake of 1755, the First World War, the Holocaust, Hurricane Katrina, the Japanese experiences of Hiroshima and Fukushima, 9/11, and more recent examples of terrorism and disaster. Attention will be given to concerns such as the impact of trauma on social and political debate, the function of religious discourse in the face of tragedy, the nature of ideology, and the relationship between religion and violence. A thematic concern throughout the course will be the nature of ethical commitment in the midst of confusion and social disruption. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

TRN192H1 - Public Health in Canada: Health for the 21st Century

Hours: 24L

This course deals with preventive care and population health. It will also move into new areas like healthcare and the environment (climate change) and the greening of healthcare. It will look at health as an extension of democracy – of how health extends individual rights beyond the political realm to the social realm, of how it can build social capital and knit populations together. It will look at areas inimical to health, ‘detriments to health’ and how economic inequality can lead to health inequality. Along with this it will look at ways of empowering the individual, the public as agent and a role of public engagement by major institutions. It will also push beyond the popular determinants of health to engage students in a paradigm on next steps, the future challenges in population health. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN193H1 - Canadian Health Policy: Past, Present and Future

Hours: 24L

This is a health systems course. It deals with illness care, individual health, and health insurance. It will take a comparative and historical approach. We will look at the genesis of Canadian healthcare, our benefits and those other countries provide (e.g., pharmacare, dental care). We will look at indirect contributors like childcare and basic income. We will examine the public-private debate. We will also take some novel approaches. One is that the university has an expanded role in the 21st century, one that involves public outreach, a role that includes healthcare. Recent academic literature on healthcare notes that it is nation-building. We will look at why. We will examine some cutting-edge ideas, like integrated care, the learning health system, the concept of customer-owners. We will explore whether our healthcare system needs to be anchored by ‘institutions of excellence’ and identify these. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN194H1 - Literature and Wicked Problems

Hours: 24L

This course explores contemporary literature in relation to the interdisciplinary framework of “wicked problems.” Research emphasizes that complex, entrenched problems, like government relations with Indigenous peoples or human impacts on the climate, involve interconnected systems and require approaches that cross disciplines and types of knowledge. The course examines the role of literary works (mostly 21st-century fiction) in addressing these issues of pressing concern to students as global citizens. Critical thinking, scholarly reading and database research are foundational skills that this course strengthens in order to prepare students for their writing in disciplines across the university. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

TRN195H1 - The Literature of Heroes and Horrors

Hours: 24L

This course explores contemporary literary works that redefine heroism in light of personal and cultural trauma. What does recent literature (mostly 21st-century fiction) show us about the nature of heroism in our time? To answer this question, the course examines theories of psychological trauma, studies in the field of positive psychology, and research on gothic and dystopian literature. Critical thinking, scholarly reading and database research are foundational skills that the course strengthens in order to prepare students for their writing in disciplines across the university. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

TRN196H1 - Joy and Resistance in Diverse Storytelling

Hours: 24L

"Can we speak about joy for once?" In contemporary literature from Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) authors across Canada and Turtle Island, there is a resurgence in diasporic stories that capture the joy and resistance of carving space for community against the mechanisms of the state. This course explores how BIPOC literature has intersected with social problems and activist movements, creating spaces for readers to reflect on their own lived experiences. Students will expand their creative thinking, critical reading and scholarly writing skills through multi-modal assignments that offer connections to current issues and community knowledge. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

TRN197H1 - In the Shadow of the Vikings: Depictions of the Early Norse in Medieval, Modern, and Post-Modern Culture

Hours: 24L

Although rarely attested during the historical era when they were active, since the early nineteenth century the word “Viking” has been popularly applied to describe groups of Scandinavian adventurers who marauded along the frontiers of Medieval Europe: in this respect, the image of “the Viking” may be regarded as much a modern, as it is a medieval, creation. The legacy of historical “Viking activities” was a factor in the development of modern nation states in Scandinavia and the Baltic region, and their contributions to the heritage of people residing in Britain, continental Europe, the Middle East, and even the Atlantic coast of Canada have been and continue to be cited to the present day. Aspects of culture attributed to “the Vikings”—their assumed independence, courage, resourcefulness, and tenacity in the face of adversity, as well as the occult characteristics of their cosmology—have, for better and worse, inspired modern artists, writers, composers, intellectuals, explorers and even political leaders, and persist in present day literature, art, music, sport and popular culture as well. Why and how do elements of historic Viking culture continue to evoke traditions and characteristics popularly attributed to “the Vikings”? What are some implications of “Viking-ness” for those people in the post-Viking Age past and/or present who we may regard—or may regard themselves—as the “cultural descendants” of the Vikings? In this seminar, participants will study selected cultural artifacts of the “post-Viking Age,” along with recent multidisciplinary research, to observe how various “post-Viking Age” cultures and subcultures have selectively appropriated elements of the “Viking” past. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

TRN198H1 - The Viking Phenomenon: Commerce, Conflict, and Communication along Europe’s Frontiers, 7th – 15th Century

Hours: 24L

Perspectives on the impact that the Scandinavian raiders and traders popularly referred to as “Vikings” had on European and World history continue to develop as the work of historians, archaeologists, linguists, and scientists expands our understanding of the past. Recent research has revised the traditional view of the “Vikings” as primarily marauding warriors; in its place, a more complex and nuanced conception of the implications that “Viking activity” had on the social, economic, and political development of the peoples with whom they came in contact has emerged. This seminar will consider the relationship between the traditional conception of the “Viking warrior” and recent research that suggests the broader impact that the “Viking Phenomenon” had upon the economic revival and sociopolitical development of medieval Europe and its frontiers. In the course of the seminar, we will examine a selection of historical records and information concerning artifacts of the material culture of “The Viking Age” in order to better understand the activities of early medieval “Vikings,” not only as warriors, but also as agents of commerce, explorers, pioneers, and rulers. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

TRN199H1 - Classical Social and Political Thought from the 18th Century Enlightenment to the 20th Century

Hours: 24L

We begin with European social and political thought during the 18th century, including ideas of enlightenment and revolution. We move on to the 19th century to engage with the critical Marxist theorisation of the new “capitalist” social and political formation, and look at the reception of the Marxist view in the 20th century, all of which continues to affect the character of Western social and political thought. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

TRN225Y1 - The Art of Health Science Discovery

Hours: 48S

Illustrated by contemporary examples, students go through the stages of the scientific discovery process. From initial idea, through literature review, funding (grant writing and assessment), experimental design and critical analysis of data through to the public dissemination of results by publication, the patent process and development of intellectual property. Restricted to students admitted to the Trinity One Program. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Corequisite: TRN125Y1
Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4), Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN235H1 - Health Policy in Canada: Past, Present and Future

Hours: 24S

This course explores the nature and impact of public health policy in Canada. The course describes the origins of Canadian health policy, its evolution towards its current form and the choices resulting from aging populations and the increasing costs associated with a high standard of health care.

Prerequisite: TRN135Y1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

TRN236H1 - The Politics of Global Health

Hours: 24S

This course explores the nature and impact of policy relationships designed to improve global public health. We explore the analytical tools necessary to study these institutional arrangements and examine successes and failures of these policy relationships across a range of global health policy challenges including infectious disease and child health.

Prerequisite: TRN135Y1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

UNI101H1 - Citizenship in the Canadian City

Previous Course Number: UNI101Y1

Hours: 36S

Who belongs? Who governs? Who decides? In this course, you will examine the concepts of citizenship, public space, political membership, civic responsibility, and belonging. You will address topics such as Indigenous sovereignty claims, urban multiculturalism, public housing, and greening the city. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

UNI102H1 - Performing the City I

Previous Course Number: UNI102Y1

Hours: 36S

In this course we learn about different practices of performative engagement with the city and experiment with them through exercises and creative activities. The goal is to gain, through this mode of embodied engagement with the city, a critical understanding of urban space as a diverse social, cultural, and physical environment. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

UNI103H1 - Gradients of Health in an Urban Mosaic

Previous Course Number: UNI103Y1

Hours: 36S

In this course, you will examine how Toronto’s varied communities access and use health care, and how they may encounter barriers in doing so. You will study how economic disparities, shifting demographics, and government policies affect health policy and the right to access resources. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

UNI104H1 - Sex in the City

Previous Course Number: UNI104Y1

Hours: 36S

You will learn about the sexual politics of the city and how cities and their neighbourhoods become sexualized and desexualized spaces. In Sex in the City, you will examine what “sex” means to Toronto’s varied, multicultural communities by looking at urban space, cultural productions, law enforcement, safety and health resources and more. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

UNI106H1 - Performing the City II

Previous Course Number: UNI102Y1

Hours: 36S

Further exploration of connections between the performing arts, urban spaces, and cultural diversity; complementing UNI102H1. How does theatrical performance affect how people perceive the city? What are the alternatives to established theatres, and how does community activism inform performing arts in Toronto? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

UNI197H1 - Hamilton: Musical and History

Hours: 24S

This course examines the American revolution and its reception in the musical “Hamilton.” The American revolution generated multiple stories that included and excluded actors, peoples, perspectives, and more. This course delves into the American revolution and the diversity of those engaged in it and affected by it. The songs, performances, and reception of the musical “Hamilton” are a key resource for exploring the events and role of the American Revolution. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

UNI198H1 - Why Go to University? The Changing Role and Purpose of Higher Education

Hours: 24S

Is higher education about job preparation or about giving students an opportunity to learn about themselves and the world around them? Can higher education in Canada achieve both these aims? This course engages with the spirited conversations and scholarly debates about the ideals of a liberal arts education and how these connect with ancient and contemporary arguments about citizenship. We explore the impact on higher education of globalization and what some call the “corporatization” of universities. Students will be encouraged to think, read, research and write about various models of higher education and explore questions suggested by these debates. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

UNI199H1 - The Construction of Race in America: A History

Hours: 24S

The course will explore the origins of racial categories in America. Drawing on primary sources such as memoirs, film, and government records as well as writings by scholars, we will examine how beliefs about these categories changed over time and with what consequences for the unfolding of American history. Arriving at the present day, we will consider such contradictory developments as the accelerating influence of Black Lives Matter and the headline-grabbing white nationalism on display at the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, August, 2017. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC101H1 - Conflict Theory and Practice

Hours: 24S

This course is a general orientation to conflict theory, and develops a basic understanding of essential conflict resolution principles that will complement the study of conflict theory. The course will examine the differences between conflicts and disputes, the functions and desirability of conflict, and the conditions that facilitate conversion of conflicts from destructive to constructive. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC102H1 - Ethics and Choices in Times of Crisis

Hours: 24S

This course examines a specific event, or events, in relation to the public sphere. The course will use events or an event as an entry point to discuss the nature of society including topics such as major revolutions, economic crises, the impact of the appearance of significant artistic or cultural works, and the impact of technological changes. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC102Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC103H1 - Leadership, Narrative, and Creativity

Hours: 24S

This course examines what it means to be a leader through narrative presented in media such as text or film. Such works of creative fiction aspire not simply to depict actions and events, but also to lay bare the inner psychology of protagonists. They capture and convey realities with a psychological depth that social scientists cannot always replicate. Students will study such narratives to understand various kinds of leadership skills and leadership types. By creating narratives of their own, students will practice the communication skills that leaders need. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC105H1 - Odysseys: The Search for Meaning

Hours: 24S

Metaphors and motivations of journeying have long intrigued human beings as they have attempted to understand the meaning of their existence: the setting out, the seeking for a desired object, the pilgrimage of religious observance, and the longing to return home. Through texts, art, music and film, this course will explore some of the shaping journey-myths of our culture from classical, Hebrew, medieval and modern sources. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC106H1 - Psychology and Society

Hours: 24S

This course explores central developments and ongoing controversies in the scientific study of the human mind, brain and behaviour. It examines topics such as: psychoanalysis, behaviourism, humanistic psychology, evolutionary psychology, intelligence testing, and feminist perspectives. Goals include understanding the historical evolution and social relevance of scientific psychology. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC206H1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC107H1 - Evolution, Genetics, and Behaviour

Hours: 24S

In this course we examine major episodes in the history of evolution and genetics in the twentieth century. Topics include Darwinian evolution, sociobiology and evolutionary psychology, eugenics, and genetic screening and therapy. We will examine different views about the control of evolution and genetic manipulation in their socio-cultural-economic context and discuss the ethical and social implications of those views. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC207H1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC108H1 - Belonging, Imagination, and Indigenous Identity

Hours: 24S

This course will examine a number of questions related to Indigenous identities as they have been constituted through collective belonging and cultural representation. Topics covered may include: language, the arts, cinema, ecology, religion, ritual, and the enduring legacy of colonialism. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC108Y1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC109H1 - Innovators and Their Ideas

Hours: 24S

A study of the ideas and concerns of innovators who questioned traditional views and values. The course includes creative thinkers who challenged basic concepts on politics, literature, religion, and society. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC109Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC110H1 - Critical Perspectives on Society

Hours: 24S

By means of short texts, film or art works this course explores such themes as the effect of technology on the political, the nature of democracy, the question of resistance through art and the role of violence in the social. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC112H1 - Puzzles, Discovery and the Human Imagination

Previous Course Number: VIC112Y1

Hours: 24S

There has never been a period of time, nor has there ever been a culture, without some kind of puzzle tradition. Are puzzles just playful artefacts, intended merely to entertain? Or are they mirrors of something much more fundamental in human life? The course will take a close look at what puzzles tell us about the human mind and human culture. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC112Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC113H1 - Encountering Distant Climes: The Literature of Travel and Exploration

Hours: 24S

This course will study accounts of world travelers and explorers from the Middle Ages to the present, including representative examples drawn from the Age of Exploration, the Grand Tour, scientific and map-making expeditions, and the contemporary genre of travel writing. Particular attention will be given to the trans-cultural nature of travel, and the interactive aspects of the gulf between the observer and those observed. Students will analyze the diverse motivational factors behind excursions and expeditions, and apply a critique to written accounts in light of such factors as self-discovery, knowledge and imagination, Eurocentrism, orientalism, cultural relativism, colonialism/imperialism, race, gender, and eco-tourism. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC114H1 - Renaissance in Popular Culture

Hours: 24S

This course explores the depiction of the Renaissance in a wide range of plays, films and novels. The focus is on the exchange between film, fiction, and ‘fact’, and on how the values and concerns of the present shape creative recreations of the past in popular culture. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC114Y1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC115H1 - Imagined Power: Literature and Film

Hours: 24S

In this course we will study a number of literary and cinematic works that take up questions of power, duty, rights, responsibility, and freedom. Our texts will be drawn from a long history, and from many parts of the world. The sequence however will not be chronological. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC115Y1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC116H1 - Politics of the Pen

Hours: 24S

A study of how literature challenges prevailing political beliefs and social norms. We will situate our discussion in the broader context of human rights and freedoms. We will examine cases where literature has been censored and writers have been imprisoned or driven into exile. Part of this course involves a community service-learning component. We will consider how this literature contributes to debate and advocacy around issues of social justice. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC117H1 - Understanding the Performing Arts: Interpretation and Expression

Hours: 24S

This course examines two key issues about the performing arts that concern both artists and theorists: the nature of interpretation and of expression. What might we mean when we say that a work, a piece of music or a dance for example expresses something? What is it to express? And what is the nature of interpretation? Are there any constraints or boundaries on interpretation? We will draw on both philosophers and non-philosophers to explore these sorts of questions. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC119H1 - Myths and Legends in Modern Contexts

Hours: 24S

This course provides an introduction to modern forms of ancient narratives, exploring the ways in which selected ancient literary sources and myths have been adapted to modern Canadian literature. Ancient narratives or ‘old stories’ are often reused, reinterpreted or reconstructed in modern narratives and given new relevance in a contemporary context. Students will encounter sources and contexts of ancient narratives. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC121H1 - Evaluating Healthcare: Problems and Solutions

Hours: 24S

This course introduces students to the study of healthcare by asking foundational questions about how evidence and knowledge are produced in the context of healthcare problems. Students will explore how different frameworks for clinical practise (e.g. Evidence-based Medicine, Person-Centered Healthcare) conceptualize evidence and how different methodologies impact how healthcare research is conceived, reported, and understood. Students will learn to critically appraise healthcare research studies and assess their evidence value and implications for clinical practice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Living Things and Their Environment (4)

VIC122H1 - Scientific Evidence in Public Policy

Hours: 24S

This course investigates issues arising from the translation of scientific evidence for public consumption, including in the development of public policy and in confronting problems of social and global significance. Areas of focus will include climate change, global health, and clinical medicine. Students will explore concepts including the perception and communication of risk, the generalizability of research findings, probabilistic and mechanistic thinking, and the use and abuse of scientific authority and “expertise” in public discourse. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC134H1 - Globalization

Hours: 24S

This interdisciplinary course explores the contemporary character of globalization. The world is shrinking as money, goods, people, ideas, weapons, and information flow across national boundaries. Some commentators assert that a more tightly interconnected world can exacerbate financial disruptions, worsen the gap between rich and poor nations, undermine democracy, imperil national cultures, harm the environment, and give unconstrained freedom to predatory corporations. Others proclaim that globalization - understood as capitalism and free markets - fosters economic growth, encourages creative collaboration, inspires technological breakthroughs, and enhances human prospects for a better life, in rich and poor countries alike, in unprecedented ways. Our task is to evaluate the evidence and draw our own conclusions. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC135H1 - The Death of Meaning

Hours: 24S

In The Origin of Species, Darwin concluded there was no evidence to suggest that life was designed by a higher power. A corollary of this is that our lives lack any necessary purpose or meaning. Our readings will be directed to the question of what it means to lack ‘Meaning’. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC136H1 - How to Study Everyday Life

Hours: 24S

An introduction to the academic study of everyday life. A cross-disciplinary discussion class drawing on a wide variety of examples from ordinary life, fantasy, and culture. We situate the apparently innocuous within larger patterns of social relations and social change. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC137H1 - Science and Science Fiction

Hours: 24S

Based on reading and discussion of science fiction and popular science in the context of social issues, this seminar course explores the fantastic visions of humanity's future inspired by scientific advances during the twentieth century. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC141H1 - Discovery and Revolution

Hours: 24S

This course examines the emergence of a global modern world in relation to the upheavals of the Renaissance (1350-1700) and its discoveries and innovations in culture and society. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: VIC141Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC142H1 - Machiavelli: The Politics of Power

Hours: 24S

The name of Machiavelli unleashes powerful opinions and responses and conjures up trickery, duplicity and cynicism. Yet Machiavelli himself is arguably the least Machiavellian of political figures of the Italian Renaissance. This course examines the writings of Niccolò Machiavelli, placing them in their historical context in order to understand this most controversial figure of the Renaissance, his influence and his lasting legacy. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ITA198H1 (Machiavelli and Machiavellianism); VIC141Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC150H1 - Theory and Practice of Teaching: Theoretical Perspectives

Previous Course Number: VIC151Y1

Hours: 24S

This course introduces past and contemporary theories and perspectives on teaching and learning in schools and broader society. While there is consensus on the fundamental role that both learning and teaching play in society, a range of perspectives exists on what comprises “teaching” and “learning”, how they occur, and how they might be facilitated through designed environments. The course begins with an exploration of major theories of learning and their implications for practice. It then examines several pedagogical frameworks and perspectives of teaching and their implications for educational practice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC151H1 - Theory and Practice of Teaching: Professional Practice

Previous Course Number: VIC151Y1

Hours: 24S

This course introduces the theories and practices of teaching through analysis of three main themes: planning and implementing inclusive instruction, establishing a classroom context to support diverse learners, and analyzing professional concerns for teachers. Students will be involved in a volunteer placement in a school or community-based setting. Field experience is central to the course with students expected to apply course ideas in their volunteer work and reflect on their experiences in seminars. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC152H1 - School and Society: Historical and Contemporary Contexts

Previous Course Number: VIC150Y1

Hours: 24S

This course investigates the historical and contemporary roles of the school and formal education system and explore changes in these organizations over time. The course examines schools and learning as social, political, intellectual, and economic phenomena. Topics covered include the history of Canada' education system, the purposes of formal schooling, the role of the school, education and the law, education policy and school curriculum. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC153H1 - School and Society: Equity and Social Justice in Education

Previous Course Number: VIC150Y1

Hours: 24S

This course will examine education as a human right and through a human-rights- based lens, explore themes of equity and diversity, global education, Indigenous knowledge and perspectives, and decolonizing education. Contexts of discussion will include early-years learning, elementary and secondary school, post-secondary education, and other community-based learning settings, both locally and globally. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: None
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC159H1 - Vic One Hundred Special Topics Seminar

Hours: 24S

Topics vary from year to year. Not eligible for CR/NCR option. Breadth requirement will vary from year to year depending on the course topic. Please refer to course website for more information: https://vic.utoronto.ca/academic-programs/special-topics-courses/vic159h

VIC159Y1 - Vic One Hundred Special Topics Seminar

Hours: 48S

Topics vary from year to year. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1), Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC162H1 - Cultural Forms and Their Meanings

Hours: 24S

A study of culture with a view to developing basic concepts with examples drawn from the visual arts, music, film, literature, architecture, and/or local urban artefacts. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC163H1, VIC164H1, VIC165H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ENG or FAH or PHL
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC163H1 - Cultural Forms and Their Meanings: People and Ideas

Hours: 24S

A study of culture with a view to developing basic concepts with examples drawn from the visual arts, music, film, architecture, and/or local urban artefacts. We will emphasize how contemporary thought has affected the practice of everyday life. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC162H1, VIC164H1, VIC165H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ENG or FAH or PHL
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC164H1 - Ideas and Their Consequences: Literary and Artistic Realms of the Imagination

Hours: 24S

A study of the ideas and concerns of creative thinkers and their impact upon cultures. The course includes literary, scientific and/or religious intellectuals from the major traditions. Attention to modes of reasoning, cultural definition and expression. Emphasis on philosophical and artistic concepts. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC162H1, VIC163H1, VIC165H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ENG or FAH or PHL
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC165H1 - Ideas and Their Consequences: Isolation and Communion in Modern Culture

Hours: 24S

A study of art, with a focus on poetry, as an essential mode of experience and knowledge, in the context of contemporary and modern society. Along with literary artists, the course includes writers on history and sociology and presents the interplay between artistic vision and socio-political situations. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC162H1, VIC163H1, VIC164H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ENG or FAH or PHL
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC166H1 - Common Vices and Neglected Virtues: Intro to Ethics of Character

Hours: 24S

Vice is popular: a prestigious university press has brought out a series of seven books on the Seven Deadly Sins. This course examines such questions as the following. Are greed, lust and gluttony just bad names for necessary and otherwise acceptable instincts? What is the place, in a good human life, of such qualities as honesty, trust, civility and the like? Are vices and virtues culturally determined or a matter of individual preference? Can character be taught, or is it rather a matter of genes and luck? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC167H1, VIC168H1, VIC169H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ANT or PHL or RLG
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC167H1 - Ideas and Fine Thoughts

Hours: 24S

This course examines how political ideas are formed and developed through literature, art, plays, essays and philosophical works in the twentieth century. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC166H1, VIC168H1, VIC169H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ANT or PHL or RLG
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC168H1 - Identity and Equality in the Public Sphere

Hours: 24S

This course explores current legal and philosophical debates around equality, discrimination, and the shaping of individual and group identities. It addresses the way values, affiliation, and identities have an impact on the public sphere of law and policy-making – and the ways in which law and policy, in turn, shape our conceptions (and misconceptions) of people's identities. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC166H1, VIC167H1, VIC169H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ANT or PHL or RLG
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC169H1 - Ethical Living in a Pluralistic World

Hours: 24S

This course examines different values, beliefs, and traditions relating to the natural and social world, ethical living, and the common good. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC166H1, VIC167H1, VIC168H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ANT or PHL or RLG
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC170Y1 - The Impact of Science on Our Society

Hours: 48S

How rhetoric and statistical analysis are used to communicate scientific observations and theories to different audiences will be examined in lectures and seminars. Uncertainty, belief, evidence, risk assessment, random error and bias will be discussed using examples drawn from literature, the arts and the physical, life and social sciences. Students will prepare a research grant application on a scientific topic of their own choice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC171Y1 and 1.0 credit selected from first-year course offerings in the sciences (0.5 credit must be a BIO course)
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC171Y1 - Methodology, Theory and Practice in the Natural Sciences

Hours: 48S

An examination of scientific theories and their logic in life and physical sciences. Experimental design, novel device production, data analysis and modeling will be discussed using examples drawn from primary source material in the natural sciences. Students will prepare a research paper on a topic designed in consultation with the instructor. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC170Y1 and 1.0 credit selected from first-year course offerings in the sciences (0.5 credit must be a BIO course)
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC172Y1 - Physical Sciences Today

Hours: 48S

How is science performed and what enables scientific progress? What are our responsibilities as scientists? We base the discussion mostly on the development of microscopy tools. We look at how scientific discoveries affect and were affected by society. This course explores the complementary skills and knowledge needed by modern scientists. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC173Y1 and 1.0 credit selected from first-year course offerings in the sciences (0.5 credit must be a CHM, MAT or PHY course)
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC173Y1 - Philosophy of Science for Physical Scientists

Hours: 48S

This course introduces students to some of the issues in the philosophy of science, in general, and in the philosophy of physics, in particular. Topics include the scientific method and its controversies, the meaning of time and its properties, realism versus competing approaches, thought experiments, and quantum mechanics. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC172Y1 and 1.0 credit selected from first-year course offerings in the sciences (0.5 credit must be a CHM, MAT or PHY course)
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC181H1 - Events in the Public Sphere: World Affairs

Hours: 24S

This course will review issues in contemporary world affairs, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to the present day. The course will examine the politics and practice of foreign policy decision making. Issues to be covered include the collapse of the Soviet Union, intervention in humanitarian crises, and the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC183H1, VIC184H1, VIC185H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ECO, HIS or POL
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC183H1 - Individuals and the Public Sphere: Shaping Memory

Hours: 24S

This course explores how public service and citizenship are developed. Topics may include the role of law and government, civil liberties, rights and responsibilities, and the creation of policy, as well as how these factors shape collective memory. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC181H1, VIC184H1, VIC185H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ECO, HIS or POL
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC184H1 - Individuals and the Public Sphere: History, Historiography and Making Cultural Memory

Hours: 24S

A seminar course that examines the contribution of an individual or individuals to the public sphere. The course will explore how public service and citizenship are developed in social, philosophical, and cultural contexts. We will examine our evolving role in developing collective, cultural and counter memory. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC181H1, VIC183H1, VIC185H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ECO, HIS or POL
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC185H1 - Events in the Public Sphere: Social Justice

Hours: 24S

This course uses events to discuss the nature of society including major revolutions, economic crises, and the impact of significant artistic, cultural and technological developments. Emphasis on our responsibilities towards social justice. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC181H1, VIC183H1, VIC184H1, and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ECO, HIS or POL
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC186H1 - The Art and Literature of Leadership 1

Previous Course Number: VIC186Y1

Hours: 24S

What is a leader? Are leaders born or are they made, and if they are made is there a craft to being able to lead others? Through works of art, film, and literature, this course examines the various types of men and women who become leaders from natural-born talents to statesmen and state-crafters and individual entrepreneurs with the purpose of defining those qualities that make for the leaders of tomorrow. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC187H1, VIC188H1, VIC189H1, ECO101H1 and ECO102H1
Exclusion: VIC186Y1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC187H1 - Prosperity, Justice, and Sustainability: Introduction to Public Policy

Hours: 24S

This course introduces policy applications of measurement tools and economic concepts by analyzing current issues in the news, such as public spending and debt, health care, social security, energy, climate change, innovation, and education. Concepts from the philosophy and history of economic thought will be used to address such questions as: What is the nature of economic explanations? Do they tell us the truth about reality? Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC186Y1, VIC188H1, ECO101H1 and ECO102H1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC188H1 - Corporate Citizenship, Sustainability, and Ethics

Hours: 24S

Drawing together philosophical background readings with contemporary applications, this course addresses issues of corporate social responsibility, business ethics, human rights, diversity, and equity, and considers how these topics intersect with a wide range of global practices. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC186H1, VIC187H1, VIC189H1, ( ECO101H1 and ECO102H1)/ ECO105Y1
Breadth Requirements: Thought, Belief and Behaviour (2)

VIC189H1 - The Art and Literature of Leadership 2

Previous Course Number: VIC186Y1

Hours: 24S

What is a leader? Are leaders born or are they made, and if they are made is there a craft to being able to lead others? Through works of art, film, and literature, this course examines the various types of men and women who become leaders from natural-born talents to statesmen and state-crafters and individual entrepreneurs with the purpose of defining those qualities that make for the leaders of tomorrow. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC186H1, VIC187H1, VIC188H1, ECO101H1 and ECO102H1
Exclusion: VIC186Y1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC190Y1 - The Arts and Society

Hours: 48S

The artist, filmmaker, poet or dramatist has changed society and how we imagine our future. The course explores a number of paradigm cases of how the arts have interacted with social problems. Both historical and current examples of the role of the imaginative arts will be explored. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC191Y1 and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ARC or CIN or DRM or ENG or MUS or VIS
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC191Y1 - Artistic Creation and Public Issues

Hours: 72S

This course addresses social issues through the exploration of creative activity and the imaginative arts. Topics will be discussed from historical, ethical and philosophical perspectives, and might be considered either in a group or individually. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Prerequisite: Admission to Vic One: https://vic.utoronto.ca/future-students/vic-one/
Corequisite: VIC190Y1 and 1.0 credit in any 100-level course in ARC or CIN or DRM or ENG or MUS or VIS
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC196H1 - Renaissance Queens

Hours: 24S

This course examines Renaissance queens and queenship by exploring historical and fictional queens and empresses. Topics may include the varied roles queens played within their societies, their relationship with religious and political institutions, the ways in which they negotiated sovereignty vis-a-vis the gender they embodied, and all the ways in which queens were celebrated, criticized, and imagined by artists, writers, and communities of their time and today. Discussion will delve into broad questions around identity and politics and feature a broad range of case studies from Europe to colonial America and beyond. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC197H1 - Detective Fiction

Hours: 24L

This course considers detective fiction from its inception in the late nineteenth century to the present day. Students will be introduced to canonical and lesser known authors of detective fiction, evolving generic conventions, and reception history. Course content may include mystery stories, connections to emerging legal processes, and critical writing on detective fiction. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ITA197H1
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

VIC198H1 - Posters and Propaganda

Hours: 24L

How and when have political posters been used? What forms do they take? How have they changed over time? What can these visual artifacts tell us about the relationship between art and propaganda, and about the political movements that have mobilized visual strategies to advance their aims? This course involves visits to several poster collections, develops visual literacy skills, and highlights the role of the visual in societies past and present. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

VIC199H1 - The Secret Life of Objects: Analyzing the Culture of Things

Hours: 24S

This course will examine the materiality of objects with a view to understanding how artefacts are made, their circulation, consumption, and the importance of things to social and cultural life. An investigation of artefacts from various collections in and around the university will be undertaken to develop basic methods for the study, description and analysis of material culture. In addition to hands-on exploration of objects, topics may include antiquarians and their methods, material culture in colonial contexts, and materials in contemporary user-friendly design. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

WDW151H1 - Order and Disorder I: Issues and Perspectives

Hours: 16T/24S

Societies require law and order, but at what point does order become oppression? How do we balance our need for freedom and society’s need for order? This interdisciplinary seminar allows students to explore these and related questions through selected readings introducing theories from sociology, political science, philosophy, and history. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

WDW152H1 - Order and Disorder II: Problems and Solutions

Hours: 16T/24S

This interdisciplinary seminar introduces students to some of the methods used by scholars and researchers in sociology, political science, philosophy, and history to develop, test, and debate possible solutions to the problems of social order and disorder. Topics will vary from year to year. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion:  
Breadth Requirements: Society and its Institutions (3)

WDW195H1 - From Page to Screen: Reading in the Digital Age

Hours: 24L/12T

This course explores the practice of reading at the juncture between printed page and digital screen through assembling a digital commonplace book, an annotated personal anthology that will document each student’s intellectual path. Students will learn close reading strategies, multimodal annotation techniques, and various modes of digital engagement with texts. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

WDW196H1 - From Rayguns to Light Sabers: Science Fiction in Contemporary Culture

Previous Course Number: CCR199Y1

Hours: 24S

This course examines science fiction as pop culture genre, media industry, and sociocultural phenomenon, with attention to some of its key themes, its important texts, creators, and audiences, and its place in contemporary culture. We will study some works chosen by the class as well as by the instructor. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Exclusion: ANT195H1, VIC137H1
Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

WDW197H1 - Jane Austen on Film

Hours: 24S

In the 21st century, Jane Austen’s early 19th-century novels of love and marriage are increasingly experienced through retellings and updatings in theatrical and made-for-television movies. The course will examine highlights from the last 25 years of Austen adaptations for what they can tell us about relationships in our time, including how Austen’s stories are rewritten to please a modern audience. Films in the course will include works from 1995 to 2016 (from 1995, Clueless, Austen’s Emma retold as a Hollywood high school comedy and starring Alicia Silverstone; and Sense and Sensibility, for which Emma Thompson’s screenplay won an Academy Award; and from 2016, the Hallmark Channel’s Unleashing Mr. Darcy, Austen’s Pride and Prejudice transferred to the present-day dog show circuit; and writer/director Whit Stillman’s Love and Friendship, the first-ever film version of Austen’s Lady Susan). Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

WDW198H1 - There and Back Again: Exploring Tolkien

Hours: 24S

Since the mid-twentieth century, J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings have become classics of children’s and fantasy literature. In this course, we read Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and investigate the world-building and imagined history that lies behind the books. We trace how Tolkien’s own life experience informed his work—his experience as a soldier of the Great War and a civilian during World War Two; as a scholar of medieval language and literature, and of fairy tales; as a Catholic thinker; and as a lover of nature and the past. We also survey the afterlife of the novels in fantasy, film, and the popular imagination. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

WDW199H1 - Indigenous Knowledge and Storytelling in Toronto

Hours: 12T/24S

The land now known as Toronto has a 13,000+ year old history of Indigenous presence that is still unfolding. This history is inscribed in the land – it is visible in the geographical features, place names, and contemporary urban form of the city and is represented through stories (oral and written) told by diverse members of Toronto’s Indigenous community. This course engages with stories of Indigenous history and presence in Toronto through a selection of Indigenous literary works about Toronto, Indigenous guest speakers, and a series of experiential Indigenous storytelling tours of significant locations across the city. Students will be introduced to Indigenous worldviews and ways of knowing and will learn why storytelling remains a significant and culturally-appropriate means for keeping and sharing land-based Indigenous Knowledge. Students will gain a deeper appreciation of the city as a traditional Indigenous territory and will reflect on their own relationships and responsibilities within these lands. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Breadth Requirements: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)