Course Descriptions

MUS 346 - Music of Brazil (=MUS 246)

(Cross-listed with MUS 246.)  A survey of cultivated and vernacular traditions of Brazilian music from colonial times to the present. Topics include: sacred and secular colonial music, the barroco mineiro, nationalism, the avant-garde, samba, bossa nova, MPB, candomblé, jazz, tropical rock, and rap.

Satisfies a requirement in the Africana Studies major (Geographic Region: Latin America/Caribbean).
Satisfies a requirement in the Latin American Studies major and minor.
Satisfies the Visual and Performing Arts requirement.
Satisfies the Cultural Diversity requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
For Music Majors only.  All other students should register as MUS 246.
(Fall; normally offered in alternate years.)

MUS 356 - Applied Music: Advanced Intermediate

Registration takes place on the music web page during course preferences registration or drop/add for Fall semester.

Applied instruction designed for students with previous vocal or instrumental training.  Must successfully complete jury at end of each semester of study.  See instructor for competency levels and literature requirements.

Prerequisites & Notes
Music 255 or permission of instructor.  1 credit for 2 consecutive semesters.  Can be repeated for credit.  Additional fee $840.

MUS 357 - Applied Music: Advanced

Registration takes place on the music web page during course preferences registration or drop/add for Fall semester.

Applied instruction designed for students with previous vocal or instrumental training. Must successfully complete jury at end of each semester of study. See instructor for competency levels and literature requirements.

Prerequisites & Notes
MUS 356 or permission of instructor. 1 credit for 2 consecutive semesters. Can be repeated for credit. Additional fee $840.

MUS 361 - Advanced Studies in Composition

MUS 380 - Advanced Topics in Music History

MUS 381 - Advanced Topics in Music History

MUS 382 - Advanced Topics in Music History

MUS 383 - Herrmann & Hitchcock

A seminar concentrating on the nine film scores stemming from the remarkable collaboration of composer Bernard Herrmann and filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock. After an introductory section on each, the seminar will then proceed chronologically through their nine films. Particular emphasis will be placed on the ways that Herrmann’s music blended together with Hitchcock’s aesthetic vision to impact and complicate notions of gender identities.

Satisfies the Visual and Performing Arts requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Permission of the instructor required. Normally students will have had at least one prior semester of college-level music or related study. (Not offered in 2016-17.)

MUS 385 - Video Game Music (=FMS 385)

Historical, stylistic, and analytic study of video game music from its origins in the arcade games of the 1970s to the present. Emphases on close readings of music in relation to gameplay, and vice versa. Includes training in digital audio manipulation to create sound design and musical sequences.

Satisfies the Liberal Studies requirement. 

Prerequisites & Notes
Normally offered in alternate years; not offered in 2016-17.

MUS 395 - Independent Study

MUS 396 - Independent Study

Independent study in music under the direction of a faculty member who reviews and approves the topic, and determines the means of evaluation.

Prerequisites & Notes
Open to qualified students with permission of the chair.

MUS 401 - Senior Seminar

A capstone seminar synthesizing historical inquiry, analytical methods, and performance practice along with techniques of music research, writing, and close listening. Topics chosen by the course instructor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Limited to senior music majors; open to other qualified students by permission of the instructor. (Fall)

PHI 102 - Reason and Argument

Satisfies the philosophy major requirement of either PHI 102 or PHI 200.
Satisfies the Liberal Studies requirement.
Satisfies a requirement in the Communication Studies interdisciplinary major and minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 105 - Ancient Greek Philosophy

Introduction to the origins and development of philosophy in ancient Greece, with special emphasis on Plato and Aristotle. 

Counts towards the satisfaction of the Philosophy major requirement to take two courses from among PHI 105, PHI 106, and PHI 107.

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

Counts as a Western Europe area course in the International Studies Interdisciplinary Minor.
Counts towards the major in Classics.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 106 - Early Modern European Philosophy

This course is an introduction to Western philosophy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. This period (or some part of it) is sometimes called The Enlightenment or The Age of Reason, but philosophers usually just call it the early modern period, as it marks the beginning of modern philosophy. We will take a selective look at this period through the work of five philosophers: Descartes, Leibniz, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant.  In addition to being an introduction to the early modern period, the course is also an introduction to philosophy. Our readings and discussions will be organized around four of philosophy’s most important questions:

1. Does God exist?
2. Can we know anything?
3. Do we have free will?
4. Is morality objective?

As we discuss these questions, the basic skills and values of philosophy will take center stage. These include: thinking and writing clearly; critically examining views, not simply accepting them on faith or because they sound deep; and thinking creatively and rigorously about difficult, abstract problems.

Counts towards the Philosophy major and minor requirement to take two courses in the history of philosophy from among PHI 105, PHI 106, and PHI 107.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Counts as a Western Europe area course in the International Studies Interdisciplinary Minor.

PHI 107 - Medieval Philosophy

Counts towards the satisfaction of the Philosophy major and minor requirement to take two courses in the history of philosophy from among PHI 105, PHI 106, and PHI 107.

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

PHI 110 - Problems of Philosophy

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall and Spring)

PHI 120 - Applied Ethics

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies a requirement in the Communication Studies interdisciplinary major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement. 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 122 - Philosophy of Human Nature

We all operate with an implicit theory of human nature-for example, when we deal with other people, decide what is worth striving for or which social arrangements to support. In this class, we confront the issues surrounding the existence and character of human nature explicitly. Examples of questions we will address are: Are we our minds or our bodies? Is the human mind a blank slate inscribed by experience or is it more (as some cognitive scientists put it) like a coloring book within whose lines experience paints? In what sense are we like other animals and in what sense are we different? Are we social by nature or does society serve to keep our natural tendencies in check? And finally, is there a universal human nature?

Satisfies elective requirement of Philosophy major.
Satisfies elective requirement of Philosophy minor.
Satisfies Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

PHI 130 - Medical Ethics

In this course, we will examine some of the moral challenges that arise in the relationship between medical practitioners and patients; the moral assumptions that underlie our conceptions of health, disease, and disability; and the moral principles that should structure our research practices.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Counts as a core course in the Health and Human Values interdisciplinary minor.
Counts as an elective in the Neuroscience interdisciplinary minor.

PHI 135 - Business Ethics

Business occupies a central place within American public culture. Both those who own and those who run private firms enjoy significant power, prestige, and moral responsibility. In this course, we will bring the tools of moral philosophy to bear on the relationships between the firm and its investors, its customers, its employees, and the community at large. What rights does the firm have in these relationships? What are the firm’s obligations?  Working with classic and cutting-edge texts in business ethics, we will explore moral questions that confront business owners and managers in our current social and political context. How should the firm respond to the kinds of inequality that pervade American society? Does the firm owe its employees “meaningful work”? What is the purpose of modern advertising? What responsibility does the firm have for its environmental impact? What moral concerns arise as private firms become more involved in higher education, in journalism, or in the penal system?

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
There are no prerequisites, though students may benefit from prior experience with moral philosophy.

PHI 140 - Environmental Ethics

Introduction to ethical analysis of environmental values and decision-making. Likely topics include (1) the value of different aspects of the environment including non-human animals, species, non-living natural objects, and ecosystems; (2) ethical analysis of different approaches to risk as this bears on environmental policy-making; (3) the moral merits and liabilities of ethical institutions, such as private property rights, as applied to the natural environment.
 

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Humanities track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.

PHI 150 - Eastern and Western Conceptions of the Self

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

Satisfies the cultural diversity requirement.

PHI 160 - Great Philosophers

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
This course can be repeated for credit given sufficiently distinct topics: check with the department chair. (Spring)

PHI 170 - God (= REL 246)

This course focuses on what is said about God in Christian tradition and in philosophy.  It explores representations, symbols, inklings of the divine in biblical and religious texts, developed conceptions of God put forward by philosophers and theologians, and traditional arguments about God , as well as contemporary statements and debates.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major.

Satisfies the Philosophical and religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Not offered 2016-17.)

PHI 180 - Philosophy of Sport

This introductory course will address a range of philosophical questions about sport.  Some of these questions will concern the nature of sport itself.  What is sport? How are sports similar to but distinguished from games or mere exercise? How do the rules of a sport govern play? Is a basketball player who strategically fouls an opponent playing within the rules or outside them?  Some of these questions will be ethical.  Why is cheating wrong? What is valuable about competition and sportsmanship? Should doping be permitted? Are college athletes being exploited? Some questions will concern the place of sport in society. Does sport enhance or detract from education? Do we place too high a value on sport? In what sense, if any, is it appropriate to treat athletes as role models? The course is specifically designed for students without prior exposure to philosophy and a significant goal of the course is that students develop a range of philosophical skills.  Accordingly, we will emphasize an ability to understand and appreciate a diverse range of answers to difficult questions and practice assessing various views through careful argument and analysis.

Satisfies a major requirement in Philosophy.
Satisifes a minor requirement in Philosophy.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

PHI 200 - Symbolic Logic

Satisfires the Philosophy major requirement to take one course on reasoning (either PHI 102 or PHI 200).

Satisfies the Mathematical and Quantitative Thought requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 210 - Games and Decisions

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

Counts as an elective in the Social Science Track of the Applied Mathematics interdisciplinary minor.

PHI 211 - Theory of Knowledge

The central questions of epistemology are: What is knowledge? Do we have any? If so, how did we get it? This course accordingly looks at the nature, scope, and sources of knowledge.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 212 - Metaphysics

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 213 - Philosophy of Science

This course is about the nature of science, with a focus on Thomas Kuhn’s pioneering and widely influential text, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.  Topics include the difference between science and pseudo-science, the rationality of scientific change, the aim of science, the role of values in science, and the objectivity of scientific facts.
 

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor. 
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 215 - Ethics

Introduction to the philosophical evaluation of ethical decision-making and moral life. Discussion of such questions as: What grounds the difference between right and wrong action? How is happiness related to morality? Do moral questions admit of objective answers, and if so how can moral disagreements be resolved? What is the virtue of justice? Does morality require (or benefit from) a religious foundation?  A variety of philosophical approaches will be considered with a view to which best helps us understand this vital dimension of human life.

Satisfies Health and Human Values minor requirement.
Satisfies a requirement in the Philosophy major.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement. 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 216 - Philosophy of Language

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies a requirement in the Communication Studies interdisciplinary major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 217 - Philosophy of Mind

This course is an introduction to philosophical questions about the mind. We will begin with the traditional mind-body problem: What is the mind? Is it an immaterial thing (a “soul”), or can it be reduced to something physical, such as the brain? How can mind and body causally interact? How can we know about the minds of others? Asking these questions will lead us to more specific topics, including mental representation, consciousness, and rationality.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Counts as an elective in the Neuroscience interdisciplinary minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 219 - Freedom & Responsibility

The problem of free will is often cited as one of philosophy’s most difficult problems to resolve. As human beings, it seems that we are subject to laws of nature and to chains of cause and effect. But as personal agents, we feel strongly that we are autonomous beings whose choices and actions are not dictated by external factors. On the other hand, perhaps without external factors, our choices and actions would be random or chancy. Is that really the kind of autonomy we want or think we have? Free will is closely connected to moral responsibility. It seems that we need to have free will in order to be morally responsible for our choices and actions. Can we be responsible for predetermined actions? What about for undetermined ones? In this course we will discuss various philosophical approaches to these issues. Questions addressed may include: how should free will be characterized? Can we be morally responsible for our actions? What does it mean to be morally responsible? Does science give us reason to doubt free will or responsibility? If we don’t have free will and are not morally responsible, can we still have meaningful lives?
 

Satisfies a major requirement in Philosophy.
Satisfies a minor requirement in Philosophy.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.

PHI 220 - Political Philosophy

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies a requirement in the Communication Studies interdisciplinary major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement. 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 221 - African American Political Philosophy

In 1903, W.E.B. Du Bois predicted that the problem of the twentieth century would be “the problem of the color-line.”  We can find evidence that Du Bois was right in all sorts of places: in representations of black Americans on television and in film, in the war on drugs, in relations between black Americans and the politics, and in segregated cities across the country.  The “problem of the color-line” is not a single problem, but a collection of many diverse problems that the American institution of race regenerates through the decades.

In this course, we will bring philosophical tools to bear on these problems, drawing primarily on works by American philosophers of color.  First, we will investigate the kinds of injustice familiar in the racial polity.  Second, we will explore the ways in which people of color have cultivated their own agency, often in active resistance to the oppressive systems in which they find themselves.  Our main guides in these investigations will include Patricia Hill Collins, W.E.B. Du Bois, bell hooks, Charles Mills, and Tommie Shelby.  This course has no prerequisites, though students may benefit from prior experience with Political philosophy.

Satisfies a requirement in the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
 

PHI 222 - Philosophy of Law

Analysis of the nature and function of law. Various theories of law, relation of law to morality, economic analysis of law. An assessment of the principles of legal reasoning and jurisprudence, emphasis on discussion of decided cases.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
 

PHI 225 - Philosophy of Religion

Introduction to philosophical issues in classical and contemporary religious thought. Topics vary, and have included the justification of religious claims, the relation of faith to knowledge, arguments for the existence of God, divine attributes, life after death, the problem of evil, the status of religious language, the relation of religion to morality, and alternatives to theism.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Spring)

PHI 235 - Existentialism

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.

Satisfies the Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 240 - Anarchism and the State

What justifies the State?  Would societies be better off without it?  What would a society without a State look like?  If the State is inevitable, what would a just state look like?  These questions have been at the heart of a great deal of political theorizing in the twentieth century.  In this course, we will examine these questions by reading the work of several prominent philosophers.

Satisfies the Philosophy major seminar requirement.
Counts as an elective for the Philosophy minor.

PHI 250 - Buddhism as Philosophy

Buddhism is one of the world’s major religions, but it is at the same time a philosophical system, one that has something to say about many of philosophy’s central problems. These include questions about the existence and nature of the self, the fundamental structure of reality, the possibility of knowledge, and the moral life. In this course, we examine the Buddhist philosophical system, noting where there is debate within the Buddhist tradition, and at times pausing to compare Buddhist views with Western counterparts. Readings come from a variety of sources: contemporary and classical, Eastern and Western.

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor. 
Satisfies an interdisciplinary minor requirement in South Asian Studies.
Satisfies Philosophical and Religious Perspectives requirement.
Satisfies the cultural diversity requirement.

PHI 350 - Seminar in Philosophy

Fall 2019

From Mind to Matter and Morality: Kant
Busch

Immanuel Kant captured the imagination of modern philosophers with a powerful idea: that
the material world we perceive is partly structured by our minds, and that we can know certain
fundamental principles governing this world by knowing certain fundamental features of our
minds. Kant introduced a similarly powerful idea to moral philosophy: that the morality of
actions is determined by the nature of our rational agency, and that we can know what morality
demands of us by knowing what makes our rational agency possible. How did Kant defend
these two claims, and how might they be related? In confronting these questions, we will
evaluate the following aspects of Kant’s philosophy: (1) Kant’s argument in the Critique of Pure
Reason that we can know general principles governing the material world without having
perceived it, e.g., the principle of “causal determinism” that any event is caused; (2) Kant’s
attempt to reconcile a causally determined material world with our possession of free will by
distinguishing things as we perceive them to be and things as they are in themselves; and (3)
Kant’s argument in the Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals that rationality imposes on us
a “categorical imperative” to act only in accordance with rules that can be universalized.

Satisfies the Philosophy major seminar requirement.
Counts as an elective for the Philosophy minor.

Spring 2020

Persons and Values
Jankovic

At some point in your life, you’ve probably asked questions like “What makes me me?” and “What kind of life would be best for me?” In this course, we will explore these questions from the perspective of contemporary metaphysics and ethics (with a sprinkling of perspectives from literature, films, and cognitive science).

Some examples of issues we might address are: Do we persist over time as one and the same person? What do we owe our future selves? Should we deny ourselves present pleasures (e.g., stop smoking or procrastinating) in order to make our future selves better off? What is the role of the narrative of our lives in constituting our personal identity? What is the role of our moral commitments? Can one human be multiple persons? Can multiple humans form a single person, that is, do we, quite literally, participate in many social persons larger than ourselves?

Prerequisites & Notes
This course can be repeated for credit given sufficiently distinct topics: check with the department chair. (Fall, Spring)

PHI 365 - Philosophy of Mathematics

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHI 399 - Independent Research in Philosophy

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major and minor

Prerequisites & Notes
This course can be repeated for credit given sufficiently distinct topics: check with the department chair. (Fall and Spring)

PHI 451 - Senior Colloquium in Philosophy

PHI 495 - Senior Thesis

Counts as an elective for the Philosophy major.

Prerequisites & Notes
Enrollment requires departmental approval: interested majors should contact the department chair in the Fall semester. (Spring)

PHY 103 - Physics of the Environment

Satisfies the Liberal Studies requirement.
Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Designed for non-science majors. (Not offered 2016-2017.)

PHY 104 - Physics of the Environment with Lab

A study of the physical laws and processes that underlie environmental phenomena with a special focus on energy.  Technical, economic and social consequences of these laws and processes will be examined to better delineate the complex decisions related to environmental issues. One laboratory period each week.

Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Satisfies the 100-level laboratory requirement in the Experimental Physics minor.
Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Designed for non-science majors. Not open to students with credit in PHY 103.

PHY 106 - Introductory Astronomy with Lab

A survey of the current scientific view of the Universe. Emphasis on the physical and mathematical principles necessary to understand how astronomers observe and interpret phenomena. Topics include the historical development of major astronomical theories, the interaction of light and matter, the life cycle of stars, and the structure and evolution of the Universe. One laboratory period per week which will include daytime laboratories and evening observing and astrophotography sessions.

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to students with credit in PHY 105. (Fall)

PHY 110 - The Physics Around You

Satisfies the Liberal Studies requirement.
 

Prerequisites & Notes
Designed for non-science majors. Not open to students with credit for Physics 120, 220, 130 or 230. (Not offered 2016-2017.)

PHY 116 - Sights and Sounds

Scientific principles applied to the production, propagation, storage, detection and perception of sound and light. Applications will focus on current practices in live performance as well as high definition audio and image recording and production. This course is designed for students with an interest in music and the visual arts. One laboratory period per week.

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Designed for non-science majors.

PHY 118 - Advanced Placement Credit: Mechanics

AP credit for Physics 118 does not satisfy the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Only with specific permission of the chair may the course serve as prerequisite to other courses in Physics. Credit for Physics 118 is forfeited by a student who elects to take Physics 120 or 130. (Not offered 2016-2017.)

PHY 119 - Advanced Placement Credit: Electricity and Magnetism

AP credit for Physics 119 does not satisfy the Natural Science requirement. 

Prerequisites & Notes
Only with specific permission of the chair may the course serve as prerequisite to other courses in Physics. Credit for Physics 119 is forfeited by a student who elects to take Physics 220 or 230. (Not offered 2016-2017.)

PHY 120 - General Physics I

Mechanics, rotational motion, fluids, waves, sound, and thermodynamics. One laboratory each week.

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

 

Prerequisites & Notes
(Fall)

PHY 125 - General Physics with Calculus I: Studio (Integrated Laboratory and Lecture)

Mechanics, rotational motion, fluids, waves, sound, and thermodynamics. Course designed for students who intend to major in chemistry, mathematics, physics, and/or students planning to pursue a degree in engineering or medicine. Class meets for 2 hours, 3 times per week in a combined lecture/laboratory setting. 3 hours of laboratory each week. 

Satisfies a requirement in the Applied Mathematics interdisciplinary minor.
Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Corequisite: MAT 111 or MAT 112

PHY 130 - General Physics with Calculus I

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Corequisite: Math 111 or 112. (Fall/Spring)

PHY 200 - Computational Physics (= CSC 200)

Satisfies a requirement in the Data Science interdisciplinary minor.
Satisfies the Mathematical and Quantitative Thought requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Co-requisite: Physics 120 or 130 at Davidson or permission of the instructor. (Spring)

PHY 201 - Mathematical Methods for Scientists

Satisfies the Mathematical and Quantitative Thought requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Mathematics 113 or 140. (Spring)

PHY 214 - Energy, the Environment, and Engineering Design (=ENV 214)

An introduction to engineering design through a focus on energy and the environment.  Students work in teams to create computer-controlled models of energy-efficient buildings. Class meets for 2 hours 3 times/week in a combined discussion/laboratory setting with 3 hours of open laboratory activity per week.

Counts as an environmental natural sciences content course for the environmental studies interdisciplinary major and minor.
Satisfies a requirement in the Experiemental Physics minor.
Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Does not count for credit in the Physics major.

Who Should Take This Class? This class welcomes all Davidson students, especially first- and second-year students that have not yet chosen a major, non-science major students, and students interested in Engineering and/or Environmental Studies. Students majoring in Physics and other STEM disciplines are also welcome in this class. There are no math or science prerequisites, and no prior experience in physics is expected. Of course, we will need to use math - at the level of high school algebra and trigonometry - in this course. The creative and open-ended nature of the labs and final design project will give all students the opportunity to work at an appropriate and rewarding level consistent with relevant STEM preparation. Students of all cultures, backgrounds, and abilities are welcome, valued, and appreciated in this class.

PHY 220 - General Physics II

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Physics 120 or permission of the instructor. (Spring)

PHY 230 - General Physics with Calculus II

Electricity and magnetism, circuits, optics, and modern physics (special relativity, quantum mechanics, atomic and nuclear physics). More comprehensive than Physics 220 and designed for students who intend to major in Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, and/or plan to pursue a degree in engineering. One laboratory each week.

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
PHY 130 or permission of the instructor. (Fall/Spring)

PHY 310 - Electronics and Instrumentation

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Physics 220 or 230. (Fall)

PHY 320 - Introduction to Modern Physics

Satisfies the Natural Science requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Physics 220 or 230. (Fall)

PHY 330 - Classical Mechanics

Newtonian principles are used with differential, integral, and vector calculus to analyze classical dynamics.  Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formulations of mechanics are also developed and applied.  Topics may include:  linear and non-linear oscillations, gravitational systems, the calculus of variations, many-particle systems, non-inertial reference frames, rigid-body dynamics, normal modes, and wave theory.

Prerequisites & Notes
Corequisite:  Mathematics 113 or 140.  Prerequisite:  Physics 220 or 230 or permission of the instructor. (Fall)

PHY 335 - Advanced Laboratory

PHY 350 - Electricity and Magnetism

PHY 360 - Quantum Mechanics I

PHY 391 - Special Topics in Physics

PHY 392 - Special Topics in Physics

PHY 395 - Independent Study

PHY 397 - Independent Study in Advanced Software Development in Science

PHY 400 - Statistical and Thermal Physics

PHY 410 - Intermediate Astrophysics

PHY 415 - Optics and Lasers

PHY 420 - Solid State Physics

An examination of the properties of solids and their device applications. Topics will include: crystal structure and diffraction; phonons and lattice vibrations; free electron theory and band structure; semiconductors; magnetic properties; electrical properties; and superconductivity.

Satisfies a major requirement in Physics.

Prerequisites & Notes
Physics 330 or permission of the instructor. Physics 350, 360, and 400 are recommended.

PHY 430 - Advanced Mechanics

PHY 495 - Independent Research

Open to students with substantial backgrounds in physics with written permission of the supervising professor who reviews and approves the research topic. Satisfactory completion of a research project includes a presentation at a departmental seminar.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Physics 495, Fall; Physics 496, Spring.)

PHY 496 - Independent Research

Open to students with substantial backgrounds in physics with written permission of the supervising professor who reviews and approves the research topic. Satisfactory completion of a research project includes a presentation at a departmental seminar.

Prerequisites & Notes
(Physics 495, Fall; Physics 496, Spring.)

POL 101 - Contemporary Political Ideologies

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to juniors until the first day of classes; not open to seniors except with permission of the instructor and only once the semester begins.

POL 121 - American Politics

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies a requirement in the Communication Studies interdisciplinary major and minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to juniors until drop-add; not open to seniors except with permission of the instructor and only once the semester begins.

POL 140 - Comparative Global Politics

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Credit towards International Studies Interdisciplinary Minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to juniors until drop-add; not open to seniors except with permission of the instructor and only once the semester begins. 

POL 161 - International Relations

Satisfied the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Credit towards International Studies Interdisciplinary Minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to juniors until drop-add; not open to seniors except with permission of the instructor and only once the semester begins.

POL 180 - Introduction to Policy Analysis

This course provides students with an introduction to the methods and theory related to policy analysis. Students will learn various forms of policy evaluation including decision analysis, risk analysis, cost-benefit analysis, and others. Policy topics will include issues in domestic and international policy related to education, the arts, the environment, healthcare, national defense, non-profit and non-governmental organizations, foreign direct investment and affairs, and economic policy. Students will write a policy whitepaper advocating for a policy intervention to impact an area of policy of their choosing.

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 182 - Introduction to Political Science Research Methods

Satisfies the Mathematical and Quantitative Thought requirement. 
Satisfies a requirement in the Data Science interdisciplinary minor.

Prerequisites & Notes
Not open to first-year students.

POL 202 - Classical Political Theory

Satisfies a requirement in the Political Science major.
Satisfies a requirement in the Classics major.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement

POL 203 - Medieval Political Theory

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 204 - Modern Political Theory

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.

POL 206 - Contemporary Political Theory

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.

POL 207 - Family and Justice

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.

POL 220 - The US Congress

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.

POL 222 - Parties and Interest Groups

Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 223 - The Presidency

Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 224 - Political Institutions

This course will examine the origins and maintenance of political institutions, as well as the role of institutions in shaping outcomes and behavior. Theories drawing on insights from Political Science, Economics, History, and Sociology will be explored with a focus on applications in American politics.

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 225 - US Public Policy

Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 226 - Racial and Ethnic Politics

An exploration of the role of ethnic and racial identities in American political life, with special attention to debates about how best to incorporate various American minority groups into the political process.

Satisfies Cultural Diversity requirement.

Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement

POL 227 - Law, Politics and Society

This course is a survey of issues and themes connecting law, politics, and society. Reading and discussion will focus on American politics and explore topics as wide-ranging as racial inequality in sentencing and imprisonment, historical changes in the interpretation of rights and liberties, and civil procedure.

Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
 

POL 228 - US Environmental Politics and Policy

This course will explore the political challenges and opportunities associated with environmental problems in the United States. Through in-depth cases and role-playing simulations at the local, state, and national levels, students study the competing interests, values, narratives, and knowledge claims in the politics of energy, pollution, natural resources, biodiversity, and climate change.

Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.
Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in Social Science track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

Prerequisites & Notes
Offered every other year, in rotation with POL 398.

POL 229 - Business and Politics

This course introduces students to a variety of analytical perspectives on the relationship between the public and private sectors in the United States. It has a particular focus on the characteristics of US political institutions and corporate actors that influence this relationship, the role of corporate activities in the political arena, and the effects of public policies on American businesses.

Satisfies a major or interdisciplinary minor requirement in Communication Studies.
Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement

POL 239 - Special Topics American Politics

Spring 2020

POL 239 A Topic: Social Movements and Social Change in the United States
Instructor: Yesnowitz

When and why do social movements occur? What motivates some individuals to participate in organized collective action? What role do strategies, values, decision-making structures, and leaders play? How have recent technological developments transformed recruitment efforts? Which tactics are most effective in pressuring legislators to respond to movement demands? What impacts have oppositional movements had on politics and society in the United States? In considering these (and other) questions, we will explore a range of movements which have both animated previous cycles of protest such as civil rights, women’s liberation, and antiwar mobilization along with several cases which characterize our own time including climate change advocacy, Black Lives Matter demonstrations, and the #MeToo campaign. When examining the issue grievances and proposed remedies of both historical and contemporary political struggles, we will also focus close attention on media coverage of social movements, intra-movement disputes and inter-movement coalitions, the rise of counter-movements, and movement relations with political parties and presidential administrations.

Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement.

POL 239 B Topic:  What’s Happening to the News, and What it Means for Democracy
Instructor: Sill

The 2020 presidential campaign will flood Americans with news, but how much will be independent information amid political messaging, social media manipulation and partisan spin? This course will examine campaign reporting and other case studies in considering how media disruption and fragmentation are affecting democracy and civic function in the United States, We’ll explore current press-public issues, “enemies of the people” versus “watchdogs for the people” and other issues of trust in the context of U.S. history and the Internet’s transformation of communication, with an eye to what comes next. The course will also include tools and skills for verifying information and evaluating media sources for credibility.

Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement.