The course will utilize the SFSU Planetarium and students will have the opportunity to use telescopes in the University's astronomical observatory. This course examines the idea of evolution, from its antecedents to its formulation in Darwin's mind, to its various impacts on literature and philosophy down to the present day. We will study relativity and quantum physics and modern literature to discover a new world of time, space, and modes of observation. Relationships and convergences will be sought among the themes of writers and scientists. We will consider the history and nature of scientific revolutions, and such topics as cloning, the Human Genome Project, DNA databases, genetic privacy, codes of professional responsibility, gene therapies, embryo research, and patenting living organisms, as well as drug development and testing, conflict of interest, press coverage of science, and the Internet and changing concepts of privacy.
Science is now the norm for running our lives, from health to the environment, even politics.
Expect to work hard to reach and defend your own worldview.