Illustrations by Bernie Freytag
Cancer Biology (BIOL 337 A) with Professor Engda Hagos
How can cancer develop, worsen, or eventually subside in affected patients? This course provides students with knowledge of tumor cell signaling, DNA damage, and current therapies as they investigate this medical phenomenon.
Out of Control: Pre-Modern Psychology (ENGL 153 A) with Professor Lynn Staley
What can Aristotle, Virgil, and Homer tell us about the way our brains work? These early writers, who express anger, passion, and despair in their stories, are at the forefront of this contemplative, cross-subject course. Students combine the principles of English and neuroscience studies as they ponder how pre-modern writers have personified the workings of various mental faculties.
Public Health in Africa (ALST 334 AX) with Professor Rebecca Upton
Using an anthropological lens, students in this course review African institutions and practices pertaining to public health. They reflect on the history of the continent up to the present day, where politicians and forms of knowledge production are but a few factors that influence disease prevention across the region. To learn about these dynamics, students complete a Community Needs Assessment based on in-depth learning about a community on the continent.
Hunting, Eating, Vegetarianism (ENST 324 A) with Professor Ian Helfant
Is the “hunting instinct” an innate aspect of human identity? How do human intervention and agriculture affect ecosystems, and what emerging technological and cultural trends offer promise for the future? These questions, among others, enter the classroom in this ethics-based investigation into how we source our food and what we decide to eat.
Genetics (BIOL 202 A) with Associate Professor Jason Meyers
This course introduces students to the study of how organisms encode, regulate, and inherit their genomes. To engage with the subject, students read primary literature and learn how to design their own studies. They bring their studies to a social-critical level as they consider the ethics regarding genomic editing and other technologies.
Health and Healing in Ancient Mediterranean Religions (RELG 232 A) with Professor Georgia Frank
In parts of the Ancient Mediterranean world (c.500 BCE), illness was defined as more than a physiological problem — it was also seen as a spiritual, aesthetic ailment. In this course, students develop an appreciation for the culturally patterned ways in which people have come to identify and treat bodily distress.
Medical Anthropology: Culture, Health, and Social Justice (ANTH 222 A) with Assistant Professor Emily Avera
Students are introduced to an interdisciplinary field that synthesizes relationships among cultures, institutions, the environment, disease, and healing. Discussions center around cultural interpretations of sickness and healing, the effects of poverty on health, and the importance of doctors in society, among other topics.
Close Relationships (PSYC 342 A) with Associate Professor Jennifer Tomlinson
Relationships can be a source of great joy when they’re strong and great sorrow when they’re weakened. Only recently, behavioral researchers have turned their attention to this familiar process as they inspect the inner workings of platonic, familial, and romantic relationships. In this course, students explore leading theories and empirical studies about adult relationships.
Critical Global Health (ANTH 226 A) with Visiting Professor Milica Kolarevic
This course examines how people experience, use, and critique global health interventions, and why sociological and anthropological approaches to global health are critical to improving these interventions.
Learn how Colgate prepares students for careers in the health sciences: colgate.edu/academics/pre-professional-programs/health-sciences