Course Descriptions / Autumn 2008

GEOG 123 (5) “W” course Intro to Globalization
Instructor: Matt Sparke
TTH 10:30 am-12:20 pm
Plus WF quiz sections

(Note: course counts towards Geography major, CHID major, Latin American Studies major, and as an alternative to the Intro to Macroeconomics requirement [ECON 201] for the International Studies major.)

Where does your food come from? Who makes your clothes? What does your bank do with your money? Who are you connected to through your work? Why was the 'Battle in Seattle' about more than just Seattle? How are people networking and moving around the world in new ways? How do these networks and movements change politics locally and globally? Why does increasing global interconnectedness also seem to lead to greater division and greater inequality? Why is national security said to depend on the defense of free trade and private property? How we all are connected together, and who are "we"? This course aims to help you start answering these sorts of questions by examining globalization in all its diverse forms of worldwide interconnection. Such interconnections include economic ties, political ties, cultural ties, environmental ties and media ties. These ties can be analyzed independently, but they also need to be understood in terms of how they operate in conjunction with one another to produce the overall effect that has been given the single label globalization. When it is talked about in this singular way, globalization often seems overpowering and unstoppable. However, by learning about each set of ties in turn you will be able to see globalization as something less monolithic, something that is being contested and reworked, something that ties the world together in a range of both constraining and empowering ways, something that is constantly changing and something that therefore can also be changed.

GEOG 207 (5)
Economic Geography
Instructor: Bill Beyers
MTWF 8:30-9:20 am, plus TH quiz section

What's where; how does it affect our lives and why? Think about this in terms of economic activities, and you've got the purpose of Geography 207. This course is an introduction to and overview of economic geography: patterns, trends, and theories of the geographic arrangement and interaction of economic resources, activities, and institutions. We'll cover principles used to understand location and interaction at the intra-urban, interregional, and international scales. Given this broad sweep of material, the course is relevant to students pursuing studies in geography, economics, planning, business, and regional studies. The course format entails lecture and lecture notes, assigned reading, three empirical case studies, weekly review/discussion section, two 50-minute tests and a final examination. Your writing of the case results makes this into a Writing course. No prerequisites -- we'll introduce economic and geographic principles as we need them.

GEOG 230
Global Inequality
Instructor: TBA
MTWF 11:30 am-12:20 pm, plus TH Quiz

Examines global to local interactions of economic, political, and social forces shaping urbanization and development processes across the globe. Provides an introduction to critical development studies, focusing on Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Also examines debates over the causes and geographic patterns of social inequality worldwide.

GEOG 245
U.S. Population “W” course
Instructor: Suzanne Withers
MW 2:30-3:50, plus Th Quiz

The course provides students with an understanding of the geographic variation of the diversity of America’s population. This course advances a demographic perspective towards understanding social change. Students will gain an understanding of the connections between population processes (temporal and spatial) and societal dynamics and diversity. The course examines such topics as the history of U.S. immigration policy, understanding racial differences in mortality, the concept of ‘race’ and its treatment in the U.S. census over time, political redistricting and affirmative gerrymandering, measures of segregation and variations in the internal migration of populations. Students will come away from the class with: (1) a practical understanding of population processes (fertility, mortality, and migration); (2) knowledge of the geographic variation in population structure and characteristics; (3) knowledge of the sources of data for demographic research; (4) experience using geographic information systems for geodemographic analysis; and (5) an appreciation for the demographic underpinnings of contemporary social issues. As such, this course provides an introduction to the field of population geography.

GEOG 315 (5) “W” course
Explanation and Understanding in Geography
Instructor: Michael Brown
MWF 11:30-12:20 pm, plus TTh quiz sections

The objectives of this course are fourfold:

1.) to design your own geographic research effectively,
2.) to evaluate critically the research designs of others,
3.) to develop your appreciation of how knowledge is acquired, and
4.) to prepare you for your future courses in geographic data analysis (425 and 426 for example).

By the end of this course, you will come to appreciate the diversity of methods in geography, the appropriateness of different methods for different research questions, and the standards by which each method should be evaluated.

GEOG 349 (5) “W” Course
Geography of International Trade
Instructor: JW Harrington
TTh 12:30-2:20 pm

"Trade policy,” "foreign direct investment," "globalization," "comparative advantage" -- these concepts, their implementation, and the opportunities and concerns they raise are all fundamentally geographic. They refer to the fact that the resource base, institutional arrangements, and economic histories of places differ, and that these places are separated by distance and regulatory barriers. Provides systematic bases for thinking about, implementing, and critiquing the processes of international economic interaction. Covers neoclassical trade theory, the formulation of trade policy, and some of the logistics of international trade and capital flows. Students will have the opportunity to focus their empirical investigations on trade policy and patterns of Canada, China, or Mexico.

GEOG 360 (5)
Principles of GIS Mapping
Instructor: Sarah Elwood
MWF 8:30-9:20 am, Labs MW or TTh

Origins, development, and methods of cartography. Principles of data representation and map design for thematic mapping and spatial analysis. Introduction to principles of geographic information systems (GIS). Convened with Geography 560.

GEOG 367
Economics and GIS
Instructor: Derek Andreoli
MW 2:30-3:50 pm; plus F quiz sections

Uses of area data and the geographic information systems (GISs) that handle them in routing, marketing, service-are assessment, and site location. Considers key economic- geography concepts, marketing approaches, questions of data availability and suitability, and GIS. Prerequisite: GEOG 360.

GEOG 370
Problems Resource Management
Instructor: Craig ZumBrunnen
TTH 9:30-11:20 am

Intended to help students become more effective participants in environmental decision making as citizens and professionals. Students can expect to learn about:

1) basic economic concepts as applied to natural resource management;
2) a survey history of American resource use controversies and practices;
3) a critical review of the methods/tools of benefit-cost analysis including risk analysis;
4) major ecosystem concepts and processes;
5) natural and human processes associated with water, air usage and pollution;
6) natural (e.g., thermodynamic) and human-economic processes and problems bearing on local, national and global energy use;
7) the strengths and shortcomings of various strategies and policies for environmental and resource protection; and
8) some appreciation for the complexities involved in the controversies surrounding the concept(s) of “sustainable development.”

Includes:

1) lecture and class discussions,
2) 3CM and other group experiential learning processes,
3) small group activities and issue debates,
4) introduction to benefit-cost & cost-effective analyses, and
5) possibly some videos and short field trips.

It should be strongly emphasized that the purpose and perspective of this course is as much to develop critical thinking and questioning skills as it is to convey a specific body of information. Accordingly, expect this class to generate more questions than answers. You should take this course if you are interested in an environmental career, or simply want to be a more informed citizen.

GEOG 430
Development Theory and Latin American Change
Instructor: Vicky Lawson
TTH 9:30-11:20 am

This course examines debates surrounding development since the Second World War. We will discuss the contributions of Geography to producing a more progressive and inclusive development. In other words, we will pose the question "what's missing in development theory?' with a focus on the subjects, places and scales that have been excluded from particular theorizations of development. Our focus will be on democratizing development. In this critical reading of development theory, we will pay particular attention to Latin American empirical experiences with development. We will also think through the challenges of producing development knowledge under ethical and responsible relations to people with whom we work their desires and their politics. We will pose questions about “which development?” and “whose development?”

GEOG 436/SISSA 436 (5)
Social and Political Geographies of South Asia
Instructor: TBA
MW 12:30-2:20 pm

Introduces the social and political geographies of South Asia through reference to the changing landscapes of urban and rural India. Outlines key concepts related to inequality and identity in the region, particularly theories of caste, class, gender, and religious and ethnic nationalism and examines the mechanisms through which these inequalities are reproduced and contested in the contemporary moment.

GEOG 462 (5)
Coastal GIS
Instructor: Tim Nyerges
MWF 10:30-11:20 am, Labs MW or T Th

Methods of analysis provided by geographic information systems (GIS). Operations on geospatial data, including map overlay, buffers, neighborhood operations and transformations, and other spatial and attribute data procedures. Exposure to raster and vector software, but particular emphasis on raster operations. Data sets associated with coastal areas are used in lab assignments, emphasizing land and water interfaces as the substantive theme.

Note: this course was formerly offered as Geog 460, GIS Analysis. Students who have completed Geog 460 will not permitted to register in Geog 462.

GEOG 476 (5)
Women and The City
Instructor: Kim England
TTH 11:30 am-1:20 pm
Offered jointly with Women Studies 476

Explores the reciprocal relations between subjectivities, gender relations, the layout of cities, and the activities of urban residents.

Focus on North America and some European examples. The central theme is that the layout of cities and the activities of the people in cities are gendered (and classed, raced, etc). The class provides a critical appreciation of:

(1) the breath and depth of feminist urban geography, and why the field emerged and why it should be studied;
(2) some of the major topics addressed by feminist urban geographers; and
(3) the types of research strategies employed in the study of feminist urban geographies.

Geog 505 (5)
Research Seminar: China
Instructor: Kam Wing Chan
M 3:30-6:20 pm

This seminar course focuses on selected major geographic issues in China's development, such as population, rural/urban segmentation, institutions, and spatial disparities. Emphasis will be on developing students' theoretical perspectives and research and data skills through active participation in the seminar and completing required readings and work. The course is designed for students who have some background knowledge of China and who wish to specialize in China or learn about the country as a comparative case at an advanced level. Each student is expected to complete weekly readings, participate in presentations and discussions, and prepare a research paper or proposal.

Geog 505 (5)
Research Seminar: China
Instructor: Kam Wing Chan
M 2:30-5:20 pm

This seminar course focuses on selected major geographic issues in China's development, such as population, rural/urban segmentation, institutions, and spatial disparities. Emphasis will be on developing students' theoretical perspectives and research and data skills through active participation in the seminar and completing required readings and work. The course is designed for students who have some background knowledge of China and who wish to specialize in China or learn about the country as a comparative case at an advanced level. Each student is expected to complete weekly readings, participate in presentations and discussions, and prepare a research paper or proposal.

GEOG 512 (5)
History of Geographic Thought
Instructor: Katharyne Mitchell
W 2:30-5:20 pm

Historical development of modern geography. Emphasis on various philosophical and methodological debates in geography and the contexts from which they emerged. Investigates geography's foundational concepts and institutions; how they have responded to -- and influenced -- the world around them.

Geog 513, Grant Proposal Workshop (5)
Instructor: Mark Ellis
W 2:30-5:20

Students will learn about how to write a compelling proposal. This requires having a good idea with a clearly defined research question or questions that can be understood by researchers not necessarily in your subfield, explaining why the project has intellectual merit and what its broader impacts may be, embedding the research in relevant theory/background literature, having a coherent and manageable research plan that explains as much as possible about how and where you will get your data and how you will analyze it in a manner that will answer your research questions. The process also involves developing a budget, navigating the university and agency maze of forms and approvals, and initiating the process of human subjects approval. Although the course will be geared to writing NSF style proposals the template of content and forms I will use are applicable to many other federal agencies and private foundations. The course is most suitable for geography students who already have a well-developed idea and want to fashion it into a proposal. It is not a course designed to generate or flesh out new ideas. At the end of the term students will have completed a proposal ready to submit to an agency. I will assign grades based on the quality of this proposal.

Geog 573 (5)
Urban Political Geography Seminar: Queer Geographies
Instructor: Michael Brown
W 2:30-5:20 pm

The course this year will examine broadly the intersections between sexuality, queer theory and geography through a series of key texts and research monographs. We will focus on work within geography, but also on broader debates on the body, heteronormativity, and homophobia, as well as social history. Non-geographers welcome.

GEOG 574 (5)
Geog & Law Seminar
Instructor: Steve Herbert
T 3:30-6:20 pm

Explores relationship between the construction and enforcement of law and the landscape of lived experience; reviews major approaches in socio-legal analysis and seeks to augment these with insights from contemporary human geography research.

GEOG 581/HSERV 585 (5)
Research Seminar in Medical Geography: Urban Slum Health
Instructor: John Mayer
M 2:30-5:20 pm

Offered jointly with HSERV 585A

In this seminar, we will analyze the major health problems in urban slums, with an emphasis on slums in developing countries. While the majority of research on poverty, and foreign assistance for health is concentrated in rural areas, urban slums are growing rapidly, both because of in-migration and natural increase. Dense population provides an environment conducive to the spread of communicable disease. In addition, migration entails rapid social change. Residents of urban slums carry the double burden of high prevalence rates of both infectious and chronic diseases, thereby creating numerous burdens and limitations on the quality of life for these residents.

In this seminar, we will read original research on health and disease in urban slums from a number of disciplines, including epidemiology, geography, infectious diseases, demography, urban design, and planning, and environmental health.

Students will be responsible for leading weekly discussions. They will also be expected to write a term paper that will be submitted for publication in an appropriate journal. This will be with the assistance of the group, and of the instructor. Students will be able to work in small groups if they choose.