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How do cognitive neuroscientists examine words and word meanings?  What are the different ways we can remember words, such as definitions (“pollo”, “ji”, “chicken”) and lyrics, and how do words work in our brains?   Why do we sometimes struggle to remember a word that comes to mind easily later on?  Are words and images stored together or separately in our brains?  These questions and more will be addressed in this course, after an overview of the central nervous system.

This course will explore the construction and experience of gender and sexuality in the Middle East through a performative lens. Drawing on research in ethnomusicology, queer and gender studies, anthropology and Middle Eastern history, the course will examine performance (music, dance, theater, poetry and more) as a process of representation, assertion, and sometimes transgression of sexuality and gender identities. This course will delve into the ways that performance, gender, and sexuality relate to ethnicity, nationalism, modernity, colonialism, and religion.

This course explores the life, works, and revolutionary contributions of Harry Partch (1901–1974), one of the most original and influential American composers of the 20th century. Partch was a pioneer of microtonal music and developed a unique 43-tone scale, which led him to construct his own instruments to realize his visionary compositions. Students will examine Partch’s unconventional approach to tuning, his rejection of equal temperament, and his philosophy of music as an integrated theatrical and corporeal experience.