Learning through Doing

Students in my classes are challenged to engage in the fields of neuroscience and psychology through critical analysis of scientific literature, creating and running experiments, writing and presenting, and most importantly, working to create connections between course content and the world around them.

NEUROSCIENCE COURSES

NSC 310: Brain & Behavior

An examination of the biological basis of behavior in humans and other animals. Topics discussed will include neuroanatomy; sensory and motor systems; psychopharmacology and drug abuse; motivated behaviors; learning and memory; and neurological and psychological disorders. Research methods of behavioral neuroscience will be introduced through class discussions, relevant primary literature, and laboratory investigations.

NSC 307: Neuroscience of Anxiety 

Anxiety is not always a bad thing – it pushes us to achieve and helps to keep us alive. Anxiety becomes pathological only when it manifests in extreme or persistent ways. This seminar will examine anxiety from multiple perspectives (biological, psychological, social) and multiple levels of analysis (from molecular to systems). Readings will be based on case studies and empirical literature, and class meetings will follow a discussion-based format. Discussions will examine the distinction between anxiety and fear, neuroanatomical and neurochemical substrates of fear, and the translation of lab-based studies on fear to cutting edge clinical treatments for anxiety.

NSC 401: CUE: Advanced Seminar in Neuroscience [Past topics: clinical neuroscience; memory modification; memory-based treatment for drug addiction]

This course serves as a graduate-style seminar for the senior neuroscience major and will stress reading and discussion of primary texts, independent research writing, and critical analysis of timely issues within the field.

PSYCHOLOGY COURSES

PSY 101: Introductory Psychology 

An introduction to the science of psychology. Students will investigate theories, topics, and applications in the field of psychology across biological, cognitive, social, developmental, and clinical areas. Students learn to identify ways in which the science of psychology affects everyday lives and gain knowledge in multiple areas of psychology that provide a foundation for future courses within the major and across campus. The course will highlight connections among different areas of psychology and identify ways in which different perspectives contribute to a fuller understanding of human behavior.

PSY 212: Learning & Behavior

An investigation of how our behavior is changed by experience. Topics will include the nature-nurture issue, conditioned reflexes, operant conditioning, observational learning, reinforcement schedules, punishment, and the stimulus-control of behavior.

PSY 215: Biological Psychology

A study of the nervous system and physiological processes directly related to behavior in human beings and animals. The mechanisms underlying sensory and motor processes, learning, emotion, and innate behavior patterns.

PSY 410: Memory & Amnesia 

This seminar will examine the broad categories of memory and amnesia. Readings will be based entirely on primary literature, and class meetings will follow a discussion-based format. Memory and amnesia will be examined via both psychological and biological perspectives and will include topics such as memory modulation and malleability, consolidation and reconsolidation, various forms of amnesia (e.g., retrograde and anterograde amnesia), recovery of memory, and memory-based treatments for some forms of psychological pathology (e.g., PTSD).

PSY 490: CUE: Advanced Research in Psychology [Past topic: memory modification]

CUE: Advanced Research in Psychology is designed to be a culminating undergraduate experience in which students apply and integrate skills and knowledge from the previous psychology courses they have taken. Each course includes an inquiry-driven project requiring students to engage in a substantive literature review; explore novel hypotheses or theories; collect and analyze relevant evidence; synthesize and reflect upon the information gathered; and generate an integrative paper and oral presentation about their work. The course emphasizes mastery of critical thinking, interpersonal, writing, and presentation skills and may have a focal topic that varies by instructor.