This course examines how a variety of cultural traditions propose answers to the question of how to live a meaningful life. It considers the meaning of life, not as a philosophical abstraction, but as a question that individuals grapple with in their daily lives, facing difficult decisions between meeting and defying cultural expectations. The course also provides tools for thinking about moral decisions as social and historical practices, and permits students to compare and contextualize the ways people in different times and places approach fundamental ethical concerns.

(and where to find them)

Short Description:
A student-authored textbook, exploring beliefs, ideas, and religions of traditional China throughout history.

Long Description:
Based on the course with the same name: A cultural history of the strange in pre-modern China. How did the Chinese people explain the existence of ghosts, demons, immortals, fox spirits, (maybe even unicorns) and many other strange creatures? What do the encounters between humans and these creatures tell us about the pre-modern Chinese worldview? And how much of that tradition is still alive in China now?

Word Count: 43949

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

This is a seven part module that deals with water development. The goal is to get students thinking about water development in terms of its appropriateness, and to get them to think about competing value systems. It is ultimately about ethics and philosophy,not about practicality or utility, but students -- especially undergraduate students -- sometimes have trouble figuring that out. If you you elect to use all seven modules, this is a multi-week project. But, individual parts will stand alone if need be.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

Language study can be divided into four parts: reading, speaking, listening, and writing. Where reasonable, we try to make use of and develop all four of these skills. Through practice, students can become well rounded and increasingly proficient at expressing themselves in English and more generally in their lives. In this book, we focus on critical thinking and clean writing.The last four chapters are a short introduction to philosophy, and they can be a significant leap in difficulty compared with prior chapters.

This book is designed as an English for Academic Purposes class for ESL high school students living in Japan, with a focus on critical thinking and writing. However, there's nothing specific about Japan in the book, and it could be used in other countries just as easily.

Transnational Feminist Perspectives

Short Description:
During the past few years, we’ve witnessed how interconnected our world is. These instances of global interconnection—both positive and negative—have differing impacts on people based on gender while also creating and reinforcing the ways people experience gender. We see that experiences of gender are always shaped by nationality, race/ethnicity, sexual identity, social class, ability, age, and religion. This social construction of gender, its shaping of the world, and its effects on individuals and groups of people are at the core of this textbook. Data dashboard

Word Count: 158699

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

For this "Celebrating Diversity" project students are required to write a short research paper and create an oral presentation on one or two aspects of their culture. The purpose of the project is to broaden perspectives, challenge stereotypes and promote tolerance as students learn more about other cultures and religions.  This project encourages a global perspective thus preparing students to successfully compete in a diverse and increasingly global marketplace.  It also promotes greater cross-cultural understanding and collaboration within the students leading to improved retention in the classroom. And finally, I hope this project inspires our students to become  “civically responsible global citizens,” in keeping with our college mission.

Mark Milliron has a radical proposal: Why not give learners immediate feedback on their progress? He sees an opportunity to use data and information to increase communication among teachers, administrators, and students. As the Chancellor of Western Governors University Texas he is exploring how new technologies for real-time assessment can open doors to motivated students and empowered teachers.

The Open Source movement revolutionized the way computer systems were developed and how companies made their businesses. Its philosophy requires that all source code should be freely shared, so that as many people as possible can use, change, learn, and improve upon it. In recent years the increasing availability and low costs of electronic components, processors and 3D printers meant that an open model of development has taken root also in the world of hardware, including the development of scientific lab equipment. The implications for research can hardly be overstated: “Open Labware” designs are almost always cheaper than “closed source” ones, allow for distributed development and, critically, customization by the end user, the lab scientist. PLOS welcomes submissions in this field.

Astronomy Notes is a website with a brief overview of astronomy's place in the scientific endeavor, the philosophy of science and the scientific method, astronomy that can be done without a telescope, a history of astronomy and science, Newton's law of gravity and applications to orbits, Einstein's Relativity theories, electromagnetic radiation, telescopes, all the objects of the solar system, solar system formation, determining properties of the stars, the Sun, fusion reactions, stellar structure, stellar evolution, the interstellar medium, the structure of the Milky Way galaxy, extra-galactic astronomy including active galaxies and quasars, cosmology, and extra-terrestrial life. This site also has pages giving angular momentum examples, a quick mathematics review, improving study skills, astronomy tables, and astronomy terms

Learn about an important physics experiment that uses an invention that manipulates light in this interactive activity adapted from NASA.

In this lesson, students continue their examination of Tocqueville's argument about the power of the majority and its consequences. Having suggested previously that the majority can crush a minority without even hearing its screams, he elaborates on the dangers of unchecked and unlimited power in democratic America and how to deal with it.

This course surveys both classic and cutting-edge work on the politics of the Middle East, broadly defined. Topics include the causes and consequences of political and economic development, authoritarianism and democratization, the influence of social movements, the role of women in Middle Eastern politics, regional inter-state relations, Islamism, terrorism, colonialism and foreign occupation, state-building, resistance and rebellion, and the Arab uprisings.

The Middle East conflict and terrorism are issues we hear about almost daily in the news. This lesson will use video clips from WIDE ANGLE's 'Suicide Bombers' (2004), Internet sites, and primary sources to examine the roots of the Middle East conflict. The video contains interviews with young Palestinians who participated -- or intended to participate -- in suicide bombings. These young Palestinians share the personal, religious, political and emotional reasons behind their participation in these suicide operations. This lesson could be used to review information about the three major monotheistic religions and their connections to Israel, to relate post-World War II policies to the current political state of the Middle East, and/or to get students to understand the roots of the terrorism that threatens the world we live in.

This resource provides human services students with a general review and self-assessment of key terms related to diversity. This overview sets the foundation for advanced work on how to critically implement Human Services Code of Ethics Standards 10 and 11 in their work with clients. STANDARD 10 Human service professionals provide services without discrimination or preference in regards to age, ethnicity, culture, race, ability, gender, language preference, religion, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, nationality, or other historically oppressed groups.STANDARD 11 Human service professionals are knowledgeable about their cultures and communities within which they practice. They are aware of multiculturalism in society and its impact on the community as well as individuals within the community. They respect the cultures and beliefs of individuals and groups.

Short Description:
This is a series of 4 lessons based on an interview with social anthropologist Maria Tendriakova. The topics of the lessons are: Women in Russia, Problems of equality, The Russian Orthodox Church, Nationalities in Russia.

Long Description:
This is a series of 4 lessons based on an interview with social anthropologist Maria Tendriakova. The topics of the lessons are: Women in Russia, Problems of equality, The Russian Orthodox Church, Nationalities in Russia.

Authors: Shannon Donnally Quinn, Victoria Thorstensson, Darya Vassina, Nina Familiant, Benjamin Rifkin, Dianna Murphy

New version created by: Shannon Donnally Quinn and Isabella Palange with help from Lidia Gault

Word Count: 11074

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided as part of a bulk import process.)

This course is designed for students seeking a fundamental understanding of Japanese history, politics, culture, and the economy. "Raw Fish 101" (as it is often labeled) combines lectures, seminar discussion, small-team case studies, and Web page construction exercises, all designed to shed light on contemporary Japan.

What is day-to-day life like for people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities who live in group homes? How do they express their desires and wishes? How do care workers think about them and treat them? Do they have basic rights to activities most of us take for granted: activities like sociability, sexuality, and moral affirmation? Narrowed Lives is an illuminating portrait of what life is like in Finnish group homes where adults who have profound intellectual and multiple disabilities live their lives. Based upon ethnographic data, it documents how care workers strive to guarantee individuality and dignity against a backdrop of scarce resources and misguided policies. This book argues that the lives of people with profound disabilities need not be determined by their impairments. It calls for a re-evaluation of disability policy so that its underlying conviction of people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities as equally valuable fellow humans would materialise in practice. This novel and accessible book combines ethnography and philosophy, and will be of interest to researchers and students in disability studies, special education and philosophy, as well as parents, professionals and policy makers. Endorsements from Readers For people with profound intellectual and multiple impairments, what is a good life? Who is responsible for trying to ensure that such a life is possible? This sobering, no-nonsense book about individual people who live in Finnish care homes is a timely and vital contribution to thinking about both the possibilities and the limitations of care, empathy and moral engagement. — Don Kulick, Distinguished University Professor of Anthropology, Uppsala University This important book boldly challenges many pervasive and harmful assumptions about people with profound disabilities. Through powerful illustrations of how the external world can constrain, limit, and deny the worth of disabled persons, the authors confront difficult but essential questions that must be asked in order to combat ableism and enable flourishing. By combining philosophical analysis with in-depth research into lived experience and relationships, this book is a call to critically reconsider how meaning is assigned, and how moral values are embodied in everyday practices. Narrowed Lives boldly asserts that the varied and complex lives of people with profound disabilities need not be narrow at all. — Licia Carlson, Professor of Philosophy, Providence College Provocative… this book provides answers to questions of the human that unconsciously abound in any conception of intellectual disability and, crucially, urges all researchers to consider the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. — Dan Goodley, Professor of Disability Studies and Education, University of Sheffield

Nearly Everything You Need To Know About the Aztecs Can Be Found Within the Sacred Precinct.

This engaging video examines the most important part of the entire Aztec world: the literal center of the Universe: The Sacred Precinct of Mexico-Tenochtitlan. Now, nearly everything you need to know about the Aztecs can be found within this sacred space located in the center of its majestic city: Tenochtitlan. There’s about 78 structures, although all of them haven’t been found yet…. But these buildings can you teach you nearly everything… about the Culhua Mexica. You can learn about Aztec religion…. Social structure… architecture… engineering… sports… their cleanliness.

Model of Sacred Precinct is located at the Mexican National Museum of Anthropology and History.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Compare and contrast monarchy and republican governmentDescribe the tenets of republicanism

This lesson focuses on the debates among the U.S. Founders surrounding the distribution of power between states and the federal government. Students learn about the pros and cons of state sovereignty vs. federalism and have the opportunity to argue different sides of the issue.