This course explores the social relevance of neuroscience, considering how emerging areas of brain research at once reflect and reshape social attitudes and agendas. Topics include brain imaging and popular media; neuroscience of empathy, trust, and moral reasoning; new fields of neuroeconomics and neuromarketing; ethical implications of neurotechnologies such as cognitive enhancement pharmaceuticals; neuroscience in the courtroom; and neuroscientific recasting of social problems such as addiction and violence. Guest lectures by neuroscientists, class discussion, and weekly readings in neuroscience, popular media, and science studies.

This course addresses the philosophical question of what a non-violent life entails. It investigates its ethical dimensions and challenges, and considers whether we can derive a comprehensive moral theory from the principle of non-violence. In addition, it discusses the issues of lying, the duty to forgive, non-violent communication, the ethics of our relationship to anger, the possibility of loving enemies, and the ethics of punishment and rehabilitation. Readings are included from primary exponents of non-violence, such as Tolstoy, Gandhi, and King.
This course is part of the Experimental Study Group at MIT.

Topic 8: Motivation and EmotionTextbook readings: pp. 331-338; pp. 342-343; p. 352.Watch:Discovering Psychology: Motivation and EmotionMotivation and Emotion is the twelfth program in the DISCOVERING PSYCHOLOGY series. Based on the early research of Sigmund Freud and Abraham Maslow, this program explores the sources of motivation, causes of behavior, and interplay between motivation and action. It examines societal and individual motivation, sexual motivation, and cumulative effects of optimism and pessimism in human life.©2001 WGBH Educational Foundation All Rights ReservedWatch: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs - Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a theory in psychology. It argues that there are five stages of human needs that motivate our behaviour. Learning objectives:1.      Discuss these two types of “motivation”: extrinsic and intrinsic.2.      Explain how these factors can help explain “motivation”: instinct, drive theory, arousal theory, self-efficacy, and Maslow’s theory of “hierarchy of needs”.3.      Describe how hunger and eating are regulated.4.      Define anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa.5.      Define emotion.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Deciding when to return to sport following an ACL injury can be extremely challenging. Athletes must contend not only with the physical consequences, but also with the psychological ones. While readiness tests take various factors into account, it’s unclear how these factors might be linked. In a study published in _The American Journal of Sports Medicine_, researchers from Norway report on the association they found between psychological readiness to return to sport and tibial displacement. The study enrolled 132 patients aged 16 or older nine to twelve months after ACL reconstruction surgery. At baseline, patients completed a project-specific activity questionnaire and the ACL-Return to Sport After Injury scale evaluation. Knee laxity was assessed using the Lachman test, a KT-1000 arthrometer, and the pivot-shift test. Patients were followed-up two years after surgery..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

Psychology is designed to meet scope and sequence requirements for the single-semester introduction to psychology course. The book offers a comprehensive treatment of core concepts, grounded in both classic studies and current and emerging research. The text also includes coverage of the DSM-5 in examinations of psychological disorders. Psychology incorporates discussions that reflect the diversity within the discipline, as well as the diversity of cultures and communities across the globe.Senior Contributing AuthorsRose M. Spielman, Formerly of Quinnipiac UniversityContributing AuthorsKathryn Dumper, Bainbridge State CollegeWilliam Jenkins, Mercer UniversityArlene Lacombe, Saint Joseph's UniversityMarilyn Lovett, Livingstone CollegeMarion Perlmutter, University of Michigan

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Explain the major theories of emotionDescribe the role that limbic structures play in emotional processingUnderstand the ubiquitous nature of producing and recognizing emotional expression

We will examine current research and theory regarding the validity and utility of commonly accepted gender differences in many realms. Topics include: gender differences in cognitive abilities; the social construction of gender; developmental, family, educational and medical influences; and political and economic forces.

Social-Emotional Learning is essential for work and school environments. Since it is the transition to high school, this is very important at the middle school level. Students will learn how to be self-aware and build healthy relationship skills. Once the entire social-emotional lesson is completed, the students learn how to: work with others, build resiliency, achieve goals, reduce bullying, and prevent risky behaviours. Vanessa Matthiessen, Parker Eklund, and Sarra Choucair 

This course examines interpersonal and group dynamics, considers how the thoughts, feelings, and actions of individuals are influenced by (and influence) the beliefs, values, and practices of large and small groups. Learning occurs through a combination of lectures, demonstrations and in-class activities complemented by participation in small study groups and completion of homework assignments.

Millions of people are on-line today and the number is rapidly growing - yet this virtual crowd is often invisible. In this course we will examine ways of visualizing people, their activities and their interactions. Students will study the cognitive and cultural basis for social visualization through readings drawn from sociology, psychology and interface design and they will explore new ways of depicting virtual crowds and mapping electronic spaces through a series of design exercises.

This course examines the issues, principles, and challenges toward building machines that cooperate with humans and with other machines. Philosophical, scientific, and theoretical insights into this subject will be covered, as well as how these ideas are manifest in both natural and artificial systems (e.g. software agents and robots).

About the Arts, Care & Connection Lesson Pilot Series:Arts for Learning Northwest collaborated with Oregon teaching artists on the development of this series of four arts courses designed for K-5 students, with integrated social emotional learning content in the areas of dance, visual arts, theater, and music. This lesson is part of a pilot project, and will be shared in its final version in an Oregon Open Learning Lesson Collection. 

Survey and special topics designed for students in Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Emphasizes ethological studies of natural behavior patterns and their analysis in laboratory work, with contributions from field biology (mammology, primatology), sociobiology, and comparative psychology. Stresses human behavior but also includes major contributions from studies of other animals.

Students will learn what expressions and phrases are used when they want to make a guess. Then, they will discuss about the Korean New Year's, including what they do, eat, and wear. Students will also compare and contrast different New Year's traditions among different culture.