What does the Star Wars theme and Beethoven have in common? What does La La Land's soundtrack, Final Fantasy Battle Themes, and Mozart share? In this course, we will start by listening and dissecting the ideas behind these pieces of music. We will learn how to compose our own pieces using the tools that many composers have used before us. We will focus on music written in the 21st century, but take detours to look at older masterpieces. In the last two or so classes, you'll have the opportunity to show your own works in a masterclass style, where I will give you feedback on your compositions and give you the tools to become a composer!


Prerequisites
Ability to read music is helpful, but not required. We will use the following Musescore to notate music, a free program available here: https://musescore.org/en/download

Take a dive into the world of Structural Engineering!
This course will offer an overview of the structural engineering field including the sub-disciplines of this field, roles and responsibilities of a structural engineer, and project considerations. We will also dive into some project case studies to review engineering concepts and take a look at a day in the lives of engineers out in the field.

From Apollo to Artemis, humans have tried to explore our place in the universe. Recently, SpaceX launched astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the ISS where they safely came back down to Earth, re-igniting interest in space exploration. Columbia Space Initiative, in the spirit of human exploration, would like for you, the Artemis Generation, to join us in this excitement!

In this lecture series, CSI members will be presenting their student mission progress and how each of those missions relates to space and science. Our first lecture will be a basic overview of space exploration. The following lectures will focus on CSI-specific missions:

SPOCS - a NASA opportunity for a team of Artemis Generation students enrolled in institutions of higher learning to design and build an experiment to fly to and return from the International Space Station.

SUITS - a NASA challenge for students to design and create spacesuit information displays within augmented reality (AR) environments.

Rockets - the Columbia Rocketry Program designs, builds, and tests high performance rockets. As one of only a few collegiate rocketry teams worldwide developing hybrid rocket engines, we are a dedicated group of engineers and scientists focused on technical advancement.

Micro-g - an annual NASA design competition in which teams compete to design and manufacture tools designed to function in microgravity environments.


Prerequisites
Basic math and science understanding would help, but all you need is the curiosity to learn about space!

This course focuses on both basic ASL and a discussion of Deaf awareness. We will teach basic signs and phrases to get by in a conversation and introduce yourself. We will also discuss things like accessibility, sign language, media representation, close-captioning, interpreting, Deaf culture, and how to be an ally to the Deaf community.


Prerequisites
We greatly encourage our students to learn the ASL alphabet before our first session. However, we will go over the alphabet in class.

This class will be an introduction to several topics discussed in an Abnormal Behavior class. We will delve deeper into the history of abnormal psychology, personality disorders, anxiety disorders, and mood disorders. We will also look into how psychologists asses, diagnose, and treat different psychological disorders.

Did you know that individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim when other people are present? Or that a mass shooting in the United States is followed by other mass shootings due to the copycat phenomenon? In this course, we will talk about copycat crimes, conformity, cults, mass hysteria, culture, mass incarceration, and more sociological phenomena. We will also look at historical examples such as the Salem Witch Trials and discuss infamous behavioral experiments such as the Stanford Prison Experiment.

Note: This is a discussion based course.
Content Warning: We will discuss suicides & mass shootings

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the French language. This includes learning general sayings, an introduction to verb structure and verb tenses, pronouns, numbers, and cool French traditions and holidays. This course may be challenging because it moves at a fast rate to cover all the material, however it is still for people with no prior French experience.


Prerequisites
none

Do you love reading, and now you want to create your own stories? Do you have Thoughts on the Subject whenever you read your favorite books? Do you already have a grasp of plot, characterization, and setting, and feel ready to move on to bigger and better things in your writing? Most of all, do you want to learn the secrets that professional writers use to draw their readers in?

Then this is the class for you! Taught by a Columbia University creative writing major, we'll be taking a prose- and fiction-focused approach to creative writing and storytelling (and playing lots of fun writing games!). Also, there will be snacks.


Prerequisites
A love for reading and writing, a grasp of the basic mechanics of English and plotting a story, and a desire to play fun writing games!

Are you interested in doing a data science project but don't know what data science is or how to start such a project? This course will help you learn more about data science in a project-based approach. You will be using Python and Jupyter notebooks to create a project around the MTA turnstile dataset. You will learn how to gather the data off the internet, clean the data, analyze the data, create a basic data model and present your findings just like in a real data science project.


Prerequisites
Decent typing skills, Anaconda with Jupyter Notebook installed on a computer with a working Internet, curiosity, perseverance

Ever wonder how Wolfram Alpha comes up with results for impossible integrals? Or how to guess how long you will wait in line at the store? Or even how to model stock market? Then simulation can help get you to your goal! Come learn about methods for approximating reality with nothing more than the generation of millions of random numbers, statistics, and the programming language Python.


Prerequisites
Google Drive account Knowledge of what derivatives and integrals are Familiarity with any programming helpful but not needed

Until 1905, physicists' conception of Space was that of a static backdrop against which the drama of the Universe played out to the steady tick of Time as its metronome; a meter was a meter and a second was a second. When a certain German patent-clerk showed up on the scene with a wild haircut and crazy idea, however, that all changed. In this course, we will explore Albert Einstein's 1905 Theory of Special Relativity that changed our outlook on Spacetime -- the very fabric of the Universe -- forever. Though most people are familiar with its founder, few are actually aware of the mind-bending consequences that Special Relativity implies for us as inhabitants of the cosmos. Over the next five weeks, we will endeavor to explore the subject at an introductory level accessible to anyone with a little algebra and geometry in their back pocket. We will derive firsthand how Space and Time are not the fixed stage which we imagine them to be, but rather dynamic and shifting dimensions that compose a very different underlying reality than the one we are used to in our everyday lives.


Prerequisites
Algebra I A basic understanding of Geometry/Trigonometry Algebra II or the equivalent will be helpful, but not absolutely required. A class in introductory physics (mechanics) would also be helpful, but not required.

This class will explore introductory concepts in Neuroscience at the cellular level as well as the level of brain-body-environment interactions. We’ll start off by exploring how the brain works, what different parts of the brain do and what questions neuroscientists are interested in. We’ll investigate major processes including memory, sensation and perception, sleep, reflexes and more. We'll look at brain differences in the animal kingdom and across the human lifespan and how those differences can reveal unique skills. We'll also learn about the machines and techniques that Neuroscientists use to do research and communicate their results.
Each lesson has learning goals related to a specific topic or field in Neuroscience. However, the class is far from a lecture format. While students should definitely be prepared to be challenged with new science concepts, especially at the beginning of class, we will use break out rooms and collaboration through google drive to creatively communicate our new learning. The class will also use videos and activities to help students interact with the content through many mediums.


Prerequisites
Having previously taken biology is preferred but not required

Everything you ever wanted to know about DNA, from the ground up. You need no previous experience in genetics. We will start from the beginning , with:
The basic chemistry of the DNA molecule,
To how DNA is used to make proteins (The Central Dogma),
To the discovery and biology of the gene,
To the structure of genomes,
To the regulation of gene expression,
To how a genome can direct the formation of a human (developmental biology),
To viruses, to viroids, to incredibly rare inherited diseases, to how to manually engineer entire organisms.
Yep. Everything about DNA that I (a DNA fanatic) can think to squeeze into 5 classes. It seems like a lot of information, but we will digest it piece by piece with interactive polls and visuals. By the end of this course, you will be able to grasp the incredibly delicate complexity of genome structure and the coordinated web of activity that is gene expression regulation - you will understand why a banana and a human being can share 60% of their genetic information, yet be completely different life forms. And you will know how to alter the genetic code manually.


Prerequisites
Basic biology (what is a cell? what is the nucleus?) and basic chemistry (what is a bond? what is a hydrogen bond?)

This course will cover basic virology principles. Please note that this class will not be specifically focused on the Coronaviruses. Rather, this course aims to provide a groundwork of the basics of virus life cycle (entry to egress), to infection and pathogenesis, to immunity, to therapeutics.

The class should be divided according to the ff and will use easily digestible (yet exciting!) journal articles to spark class discussion.

Class #1: Virus life cycle (including diff families)
Class #2: Infection Basics
Class #3: Host immune response
Class #4: Cool virus topics that students suggest
Class #5: Therapeutics - Vaccines, antiviral and virotherapy


Prerequisites
Biology and basic understanding of DNA→ RNA→ protein ENTHUSIASM!

Stoicism is not like other philosophies. It’s practitioners throughout history range from powerful emperors to playwrights and slaves, not just academics. It focuses on how to live a virtuous and content life, not on abstract ideas of the world. It’s texts are easy to read, unlike most from philosophers. Stoicism is designed to simplify your life, not convolute it. In this course we’ll be learning from the Stoics, ancient and modern, about what it means to live a virtuous life, how to separate what we can and can’t control, and how to turn life's obstacles into opportunities. We'll explore daily practices as well as comparisons to other philosophies and religions. The course will be founded on practicality and each student will finish the program with the tools to cultivate a Stoic mindset to thrive in our uncertain world.

It's hard to put a label on those important particulars you need to have a satisfying experience in high school and a successful transition to college. Instead of spending a lot of time on labels let's spend it on essentials!
1. How Do You Ask a Relevant Question?
2. How Do You Introduce Yourself in a Charming Way?
3. How Do You Use a Planner to Have a Social Life?
4. What Are 5 Differences Between High School and College?
5. How Do You Throw a PowerPoint Party?


Prerequisites
1. Access to a computer 2. 3 problems you try to solve with friends, teachers and fa mily 3. 5 things you've done that you're extremely proud of. 4. 2 things you enjoy doing with friends 5. 4 colleges you're interested in (not interested in going to--interested in.)

This course will closely follow the curriculum guide produced by Education Liberation in Minneapolis in coordination with the "Enough is Enough" Police Report from MPD150. We will examine the murder of George Floyd and subsequent protests against policing through the lens of activists and community organizers on the ground. First, we will examine where we have been, exploring the general historical context of the United States and the local historical context of Minneapolis. We will then examine the contemporary relationship between Minneapolis residents and the police. We will end looking toward the future and deal with the question of defunding the police.


Prerequisites
Some knowledge of the history of race in the United States and some knowledge of recent events as pertaining to protests may be helpful

This course investigates the 'why' and 'how' of people on both sides of the 20th century colonial system. Why were colonized young men willing to serve in colonial militaries and even fire upon pro-independence protestors? How did colonial administrators prioritization of colonies' security affect imperial policy? How did the US government handle the questions of foreign colonies when they spilled into North America? Why did those who chose to resist colonialism do so? To answer these questions and many others, we shall use a case study model looking at colonial India in crisis - during the First World War, as the British tried to adapt the colonial system to the demands of modern war and the Indian Independence Movement first gained serious strength. We shall debate the motives of the more than 1 million Indians who fought for the British Empire in World War One, how World War One should be viewed in Indian History, violence in anti-colonial movements, and the fascinating case where Indian independence activists stood trial in US court on charges of using US soil as a base for a war to liberate India.


Prerequisites
No specific knowledge is required. I will fill you in on everything necassary.