This course presents the basic principles of Calculus by examining functions and their derivatives and integrals with a special emphasis placed on the utilitarian nature of the subject material. Since the derivative measures the instantaneous rate of change of a function and the definite integral measures the total accumulation of a function over an interval, these two ideas form the basis for nearly all mathematical formulas in science, engineering, economics, and other fields. This course also provides instruction on how to model situations in order to solve problems. Applications include graphing, and maximizing and minimizing functions.

Goal: We will learn about caring as a value, practice and framework and the many ways people express care.

This Introductory Chemistry course is a continuation course which follows AFSO Chemistry 1 - Part 1 (from Summer '23 or Fall '23).  Part 2 will continue with molecules & compounds, chemical bonding (including VSEPR and hybrid orbitals), chemical reactions and chemical quantities (stoichiometry), and solution stoichiometry.

This seminar is designed for students, especially those in the social sciences, who want to improve their writing. Classes will focus on how to write an argumentative or persuasive essay, as contrasted with a “narrative essay.” Our main focus will be on “academic” or professional writing, in which the author poses a significant question and sets out to answer it, presenting evidence and drawing on relevant literature on the issue. We will also examine persuasive writing directed to a larger, non-professional audience, including those addressed to citizens generally. Students will write four or five essays during the course.

We will prepare for the TOEFL and other English language exams with practice in reading, writing, listening, and speaking in English, using examples from the TOEFL exam and other sources. At the end of the semester, students will take a practice TOEFL exam. All students who hope to take the Colloquium in Fall 2024 must take this seminar.

In this class, we will use a rhetorical framework to develop our English writing, academic vocabulary, and speaking skills. Via small group activities and individualized feedback, students will expand their knowledge of English and their own unique writing processes. We will practice thinking critically and strategically to become more confident communicators.

A short-10 lessons course to introduce students to the terminology and biology of eukaryotic cells. We will first dissect basic cellular components (organelles, DNA, RNA and proteins) and functions (cell replication, cell communication, cell differentiation), to then zoom in on a specific cell type. B lymphocytes, central components of the immune system, will be introduced to students as an example of the importance of individual cell subsets. The cells and their derivatives (antibodies) will be discussed in biological and pathological settings. Their exploitation for diagnostic and therapeutic applications will also be explored to link between basic science and medical translation.

An introduction to Newton's laws of motion and conservation laws

This course offers an introduction to films produced in the Middle East, to understand the culture and history of the region. In this class we will view films from the Arab world, as well as films from Iran and Afghanistan. Readings will provide background on the particular cultural and historical contexts in which the films were made, and the aesthetic traditions from which they emerged from and to which they refer. Readings will also serve to familiarize students with approaches to critically interpreting visual media. All films will be screened in original language with English subtitles.

The course provides an essential and solid background for understanding fundamental processes and phenomena in biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. It extends the main topics of differential and integral calculus for real-valued functions of one real variable to the case of vector-valued functions of one real variable; real-valued functions of several variables; and vector fields. Specific topics include vectors in the plane and space; parametrized curves and surfaces; partial derivatives and gradients; constrained and unconstrained optimization; integration over regions in the plane and space; integration over curves and surfaces; Green’s Theorem, Stokes Theorem, and Divergence Theorem.

This course covers basic concepts in statistics including statistical vocabulary, data collection, data summary and graphical display.  Students should come away from the course understanding statistical terms and graphics and able to do some basic analyses.  They will be prepared for more advanced courses in statistics, data science or research methods.

This course examines the history of the Middle East and Afghanistan in the last century or so through the collapse of empires, the emergence of modern states and the rise and consolidation of political Islam. We will emphasise the historical connections between these two regions by exploring themes such as the influence of European Colonialism and American Imperialism, the rise of secular Nationalism, and the impact of the Cold War as they shaped the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran and the rise and consolidation of the Taliban in Afghanistan. We will also study the history of countries and conflicts that are still in the news today: the Palestine/Israeli conflict and the consolidation of oil monarchies in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar which now are the wealthiest in the world.