The Young Adult (YA) publishing boom has changed the way we read—and write—coming-of-age stories. This course will introduce students to the elements that shape YA novels, and explore the fiction writing techniques needed for long projects, including narrative arcs, character construction, worldbuilding, and scene work. We’ll study work from a wide range of YA genres and authors, including Angie Thomas, Elana K. Arnold, Leigh Bardugo, Jason Reynolds, A.S. King, Elizabeth Acevedo, and more.
Students will begin to write and outline their own YA novel, and a variety of in-class writing exercises will support the development of each project. All students will workshop their own writing and respond to the work of others. By the end of class, students will have a portfolio of materials to draw from, and a richer understanding of the YA landscape and its possibilities.
The development of the modern culture of consumption, with particular attention to the formation of the woman consumer. Topics include commerce and the urban landscape, changing attitudes toward shopping and spending, feminine fashion and conspicuous consumption, and the birth of advertising. Examination of novels, fashion magazines, and advertising images.
Prerequisites: RUSS UN2101 and RUSS UN2102 or placement test $15.00= Language Resource Fee, $15.00 = Materials Fee , Curriculum evolves according to needs and interests of the students. Emphasis on conversation and composition, reading and discussion of selected texts and videotapes; oral reports required. Conducted entirely in Russian.
Prerequisites: RUSS GU4333 or placement test $15.00= Language Resource Fee, $15.00 = Materials Fee , Continuation of RUSS S4333H.
This course explores human adaptation from a biological, ecological and evolutionary perspective. From our earliest hominin ancestors in Africa to our own species' subsequent dispersal throughout the world, our lineage has encountered innumerable environmental pressures. Using morphological, physiological and behavioral/cultural evidence, we will examine the responses to these pressures that helped shape our unique lineage and allowed it to adapt to a diverse array of environments.
This course covers a broad knowledge base required for piano building, rebuilding, voicing, tuning, regulation and support of the instrument for classical pianists and piano technicians. Coursework begins with a focus on classical piano instrument history, dating from the Harpsichord and its evolution, to early 1700’s Pianoforte to contemporary instrument making. The second and primary focus of the course is introduction to sound production, piano action technical knowledge and piano care for fine art musicianship. Course includes piano action regulation and basic tuning.
The objective of this course is to develop understanding of how political institutions and behavior shape economic outcomes, and vice versa. Starting from the micro level study of political behavior, we will build up to analyze the internal workings of institutions and ultimately macro level economic and political outcomes. During the course we will cover the following topics
• Limits and potential of markets
• Public goods provision
• Voting
• Redistribution
Prerequisites: ECON UN3211 and ECON UN3213. This course examines labor markets through the lens of economics. In broad terms, labor economics is the study of the exchange of labor services for wages—a category that takes in a wide range of topics. Our objective in this course is to lay the foundations for explaining labor market phenomena within an economic framework and subsequently apply this knowledge-structure to a select set of questions. Throughout this process we will discuss empirical research, which will highlight the power (as well as the limitations) of employing economic models to real-world problems. By the end of this course we will have the tools/intuition to adequately formulate and critically contest arguments concerning labor markets.
Generation of random numbers from given distributions; variance reduction; statistical output analysis; introduction to simulation languages; application to financial, telecommunications, computer, and production systems. Graduate students must register for 3 points. Undergraduate students must register for 4 points. Note: Students who have taken IEOR E4703 Monte Carlo simulation may not register for this course for credit. Recitation section required.
Prerequisites: ECON UN3211 and ECON UN3213. Equivalent to ECON UN4415. Introduction to the systematic treatment of game theory and its applications in economic analysis.
Prerequisites: ECON UN3211 and ECON UN3213. Types of market failures and rationales for government intervention in the economy. Benefit-cost analysis and the theory of public goods. Positive and normative aspects of taxation. The U.S. tax structure.
Prerequisites: ECON UN3211 and ECON UN3213. Equivalent to ECON UN4500. The theory of international trade, comparative advantage and the factor endowments explanation of trade, analysis of the theory and practice of commercial policy, economic integration. International mobility of capital and labor, the North-South debate.
This course will offer an immersion in both the history and the language of comics, from the newspaper strips through the early comic books to today's graphic novels. Beginning with readings that offer a theoretical framework and an analytical vocabulary, students will examine and discuss the way page layout, panel composition, color, lettering, sound effects, and more help carry and shape the narrative, as soundtracks and shot composition do in film. Readings will include wordless works by Shaun Tan, classic works by Alison Bechdel, as well as many that may be less familiar. Students will analyze the American, Asian, and European approaches to comics. Guest speakers from the comics industry will aid in developing students' analytical skills. Instructor permission is required for registration after 5/28.
Enrollment in this course acknowledges the student’s participation in an industry project.
Working with a mentor (alumni, adjunct faculty, or industry partner) in relevant industry, students will work with a team of 3-5 students on an identified project. The career placement officer can assist in administering the advertisement, selection and recruitment processes. Students can enroll in ENGI E4700 for zero credit, zero fees; students who wish to earn academic credit can enroll in Fieldwork. The specific requirements for the project is defined by the mentor. Groups should meet with their mentor on a weekly basis for at least 30 minutes. Students are also encouraged to submit bi-weekly progress reports to the mentor. Upon completion of the project (end of July/beginning of August), each team will participate in an industry project showcase to present their project and deliverables. Students will receive coaching on presentation skills from the professional development and leadership and the career placement officer teams.
Prior knowledge of Python is recommended. Provides a broad understanding of the basic techniques for building intelligent computer systems. Topics include state-space problem representations, problem reduction and and-or graphs, game playing and heuristic search, predicate calculus, and resolution theorem proving, AI systems and languages for knowledge representation, machine learning and concept formation and other topics such as natural language processing may be included as time permits.
Computational approaches to natural language generation and understanding. Recommended preparation: some previous or concurrent exposure to AI or Machine Learning. Topics include information extraction, summarization, machine translation, dialogue systems, and emotional speech. Particular attention is given to robust techniques that can handle understanding and generation for the large amounts of text on the Web or in other large corpora. Programming exercises in several of these areas.
Prerequisites: POLS W4710 or the equivalent.
This course will
intensively
examine some of the data analysis methods which deal with problems occurring in the use of multiple regression analysis. It will stress computer applications and cover, as needed, data coding and data processing. Emphasis will also be placed on research design and
writing research reports
.
The course assumes that students are familiar with basic statistics, inference, and multiple regression analysis and have analyzed data using computer software (e.g., any standard statistical programs on micro-computers or larger machines -- Stata, “R”, SPSS, SAS, etc.). Students will be instructed on the use of the microcomputers and the R and Stata statistical software program(s) available as freeware (R) or in the CUIT computer labs (Stata; several campus locations) or through SIPA. The lectures and required discussion section will emphasize the use of “R.” Students may use whatever computer programs they prefer for all data analysis for the course. There may be an
additional fee
for classroom instructional materials.
This is the required discussion section for
POLS GU4712.
Selected topics of interest in the area of quantitative finance. Offerings vary each year; some topics include energy derivatives, experimental finance, foreign exchange and related derivative instruments, inflation derivatives, hedge fund management, modeling equity derivatives in Java, mortgage-backed securities, numerical solutions of partial differential equations, quantitative portfolio management, risk management, trade and technology in financial markets.
Selected topics of interest in the area of quantitative finance. Offerings vary each year; some topics include energy derivatives, experimental finance, foreign exchange and related derivative instruments, inflation derivatives, hedge fund management, modeling equity derivatives in Java, mortgage-backed securities, numerical solutions of partial differential equations, quantitative portfolio management, risk management, trade and technology in financial markets.
Stochastic control has broad applications in almost every walk of life, including finance, revenue management, energy, health care and robotics. Classical, model-based stochastic control theory assumes that the system dynamics and reward functions are known and given, whereas modern, model-free stochastic control problems call for reinforcement learning to learn optimal policies in an unknown environment. This course covers model-based stochastic control and model-free reinforcement learning, both in continuous time with continuous state space and possibly continuous control (action) space. It includes the following topics: Shortest path problem, calculus of variations and optimal control; formulation of stochastic control; maximum principle and backward stochastic differential equations; dynamic programming and Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation; linear-quadratic control and Riccati equations; applications in high-frequency trading; exploration versus exploitation in reinforcement learning; policy evaluation and martingale characterization; policy gradient; q-learning; applications in diffusion models for generative AI.
Topics from generative and discriminative machine learning including least squares methods, support vector machines, kernel methods, neural networks, Gaussian distributions, linear classification, linear regression, maximum likelihood, exponential family distributions, Bayesian networks, Bayesian inference, mixture models, the EM algorithm, graphical models and hidden Markov models. Algorithms implemented in MATLAB.
In this class we will consider the various forms and functions of humor in written prose, discussing techniques and approaches to humor writing. Students will write their own humorous stories and essays which we will read and discuss in class, focusing not only on what is or isn't funny, but on how humor can be advantageously used to increase the power of an overall piece. The class will also break down stories, novels, and essays from a variety of authors-Bill Hicks' political satire; the darkly comedic fiction of Barry Hannah and Paul Beatty; the absurd humor of Tina Fey and Baratunde Thurston; Anthony Lane's charming British snarkiness; Spy Magazine's sharply parodic voice; Woody Allen's one-liners; Lena Dunham's zeitgeist comedy-in an effort to better understand what makes their humor work. Students will be asked to write stories inspired and influenced by these authors. As we critique each other's work, we will investigate strategies related to the craft of humor writing, including self-deprecation, political satire, humor and the other, going blue, dark comedy, schtick, humor as a means vs. humor as an end, crossing the line, and how to write funny without sacrificing substance.
The course focuses on the nexus between energy and security as it reveals in the policies and interaction of leading energy producers and consumers. Topics include: hydrocarbons and search for stability and security in the Persian Gulf, Caspian basin, Eurasia, Africa and Latin America; Russia as a global energy player; role of natural gas in the world energy balance and European energy security; transformation of the global energy governance structure; role and evolution of the OPEC; introduction into energy economics; dynamics and fundamentals of the global energy markets; IOCs vs NOCs; resource nationalism, cartels, sanctions and embargoes; Asia's growing energy needs and its geo-economic and strategic implications; nuclear energy and challenges to non-proliferation regime; alternative and renewable sources of energy; climate change and attempts of environmental regulation; emerging international carbon regimes and search for optimal models of sustainable development. Special focus on implications of the shale revolution and technological innovations on U.S. energy security.
The interaction of intelligence and political decision-making in the U.S. other Western democracies, Russia and China. Peculiarities of intelligence in the Middle East (Israel, Iran, Pakistan). Intelligence analyzed both as a governmental institution and as a form of activity, with an emphasis on complex relations within the triangle of intelligence communities, national security organizations, and high-level political leadership. Stages and disciplines of intelligence process. Intelligence products and political decision-making. The function of intelligence considered against the backdrop of rapid evolution of information technologies, changing meaning of homeland security, and globalization. Particular emphasis on the role of intelligence in the prevention of terrorism and WMD proliferation.
Research training course. Recommended in preparation for laboratory related research.
Research training course. Recommended in preparation for laboratory related research.
Research training course. Recommended in preparation for laboratory related research.
Research training course. Recommended in preparation for laboratory related research.
Working with a faculty member and a team of 3-5 graduate or undergraduate students, students will have the opportunity to work on a small research project. Students can enroll ENGI E3900/4900 for zero credit, zero fees; students who wish to earn academic credit can enroll in the faculty member’s independent research course or Fieldwork. Specific requirements for the project are defined by the faculty members. Research groups meet weekly with their faculty member. Students are also encouraged to submit bi-weekly progress reports to the faculty member. Upon completion of the research project (end of July/beginning of August), each research team will participate in a research symposium to present their research and deliverables. Note: Enrollment in this course acknowledges the student’s participation in research with an Engineering faculty member.
Working with a faculty member and a team of 3-5 graduate or undergraduate students, students will have the opportunity to work on a small research project. Students can enroll ENGI E3900/4900 for zero credit, zero fees; students who wish to earn academic credit can enroll in the faculty member’s independent research course or Fieldwork. Specific requirements for the project are defined by the faculty members. Research groups meet weekly with their faculty member. Students are also encouraged to submit bi-weekly progress reports to the faculty member. Upon completion of the research project (end of July/beginning of August), each research team will participate in a research symposium to present their research and deliverables. Note: Enrollment in this course acknowledges the student’s participation in research with an Engineering faculty member.
Working with a faculty member and a team of 3-5 graduate or undergraduate students, students will have the opportunity to work on a small research project. Students can enroll ENGI E3900/4900 for zero credit, zero fees; students who wish to earn academic credit can enroll in the faculty member’s independent research course or Fieldwork. Specific requirements for the project are defined by the faculty members. Research groups meet weekly with their faculty member. Students are also encouraged to submit bi-weekly progress reports to the faculty member. Upon completion of the research project (end of July/beginning of August), each research team will participate in a research symposium to present their research and deliverables. Note: Enrollment in this course acknowledges the student’s participation in research with an Engineering faculty member.
Prerequisite(s): Approval by a faculty member who agrees to supervise the work. Independent work involving experiments, computer programming, analytical investigation, or engineering design.