Interdisciplinary problems such as regional and urban planning and environmental applications are addressed. An interdisciplinary investigation of dinosaurs and the world they occupied. Dinosaur culture is studied in a variety of disciplines, such as literature, film, pictorial arts, economics, and child psychology. Interpretations of dinosaurs and their world provide an introduction to science as a human activity, an activity shaped by the social and cultural contexts of the interpreters. This course examines the interaction of the scientific community, legislators, and the public throughout the policy making process.
Lectures emphasize the scientific basis of existing and proposed policy.
Student presentation of the legal, ethical, societal, and economic issues surrounding a particular policy is an important component of the course. The course's primary geographic focus is Inner Asia, a region of some 300 million inhabitants, where much of our way of life was originally shaped. An in-depth investigation of some of the environmental issues faced by humankind and possible ecological changes that may occur if we do not deal with them. After approaching a given topic from many directions scientific, political, economic, sociological, for example, students attempt to identify practical solutions for effecting favorable change. An interdisciplinary seminar on a global theme.