Lower Division Courses numbered 1–99 are designed primarily for freshmen and sophomores but are open to all students for lower division credit. (Graduate students requesting to enroll in lower-division undergraduate courses will not receive unit credit nor will the course fulfill degree requirements.) Upper Division Courses courses numbered 100–199 are open to all students who have met the necessary prerequisites as indicated in the catalog course description. Preparation should generally include completion of one lower division course in the given subject or completion of two years of college work.
GRADUATE COURSES
Courses numbered 200–299 are open to graduate students. (Undergraduate students must obtain the signature of the instructor, School Dean, and the Dean of Graduate Studies. Graduate level units will count towards the required 120 units for graduation; however students are urged to meet with their academic advisor in order to determine if graduate course units may be used to fulfill a graduation requirement.)
CROSS-LISTED/CONJOINED COURSES
Cross-listed Courses are the same course offered under different course subjects at the same level (either undergraduate or graduate) that share the same meeting time, requirements, units, etc. Conjoined Courses are the same course but one is undergraduate and one is graduate.
COREQUISITE COURSE
A corequisite course is a course that must be taken at the same time as another course.
PREREQUISITES
Prerequisites for courses should be followed carefully; the responsibility for meeting these requirements rests on the student. If you can demonstrate that your preparation is equivalent to that specified by the prerequisites, the instructor may waive these requirements for you. The instructor also may request that a student who has not completed the prerequisites be dropped from the course. If the prerequisite for a course is not satisfied, students must obtain the approval of the instructor (or school designee) of the course they wish to take.
For all undergraduate courses a “C-” or better grade is required for a course to be used as a prerequisite for another course. If a course was taken for a “P/NP” grade then a “P” grade is required.
For all graduate courses a “B” or better grade is required for a course to be used as a prerequisite for another course. If a course was taken for a “S/U” grade then a “S” grade is required.
WORLD LANGUAGES
No credit is allowed for completing a less advanced course after successful completion (C-or better) of a more advanced course in the world languages. This applies only to lower division world language courses, not upper division courses.
GRADING OPTIONS
Unless otherwise stated in the course description, each course is letter graded with a P/NP or S/U option (unless required for your major or graduate program). The policy regarding Grading Options, can be found in an alternate section of the catalog.
Provides in-depth knowledge about audition. Students will engage in a variety of topics, such as: (1) the anatomy and physiology of the auditory system, from the ear to the brain; (2) how different forms of sound (e.g., speech/language and music) are processed in the brain; (3) brain/cognitive mechanisms that support speech understanding in challenging (noisy) listening environments; (4) development of the auditory system and speech perception in infants and children; and (5) the effects of aging and hearing loss on auditory perception and speech comprehension.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Badge: Scientific Method
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or PSY 001 or BIO 001 or equivalent exam Open only to the following class level(s):
Focuses on how different species of animals process, organize, and retain information. Topics such as learning and memory, sensation and perception, navigation and migration, and communication, are discussed from ethological, experimental, behavioral, and neuroscientific perspectives. Contemporary issues in the comparative study of the evolution of human cognition are also addressed.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: PSY 001 or COGS 001 or equivalent exam Open only to the following class level(s):
An overview of music and language as communicative systems. The focus is on the cognitive, perceptual, emotive, and social processes that drive the interpretation and production of musical and linguistic form. Some attention is given to musical and linguistic diversity across individuals (e.g., typical vs. atypical), cultures, and genres.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: GASP 103T Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
Examines the interactive nature of language. Discussion focuses on the extent to which perception, memory, and other non-linguistic processes interact with language and the way people use language to interact in everyday situations. Topics include conversational language, gesture, speech disfluencies, figurative language, spatial language, child-parent interaction, and speech recognition.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 Instructor Permission Required: No
Focuses on methods for recording speech and other vocal signals, for processing and modifying such recordings, and for synthesizing artificial speech. Necessary background in speech science is provided. In addition to class discussion and short, hands-on exercises, each student develops, executes, and presents a hands-on term project.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Conjoined with: COGS 251 Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
An interdisciplinary survey of metaphor with links to linguistics, literature, philosophy, psychology, and other areas. The focus is on the use and understanding of metaphor in everyday thought and communication, art, politics, literature, and technology. Popular theories and approaches to studying metaphor are included.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 Instructor Permission Required: No
COGS 160: Free Will in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
Units: 4
An exploration of the concept of free will and the plausibility of its existence through both philosophy and cognitive science. By the end of the course students will be conversant on the topic of free will and the latest developments in the debate.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: PHIL 171 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or any lower-division PHIL course Instructor Permission Required: No
Consideration of how philosophers and cognitive scientists have tried to bring experimental methods to bear on philosophical debates. Topics may include consciousness, free will, and moral psychology.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: PHIL 172 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or any lower-division PHIL course Instructor Permission Required: No
An introduction to the study of human judgment and decision making. Topics include decision making under uncertainty, financial choices, health decision making, group decisions, rational theories of choice behavior, and improving decision making. The material is related to cognitive science, psychology, economics, and other social sciences.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: ECON 153, MGMT 153, POLI 153 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or PSY 001 or ECON 001 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
Advanced study of recent research on human memory such as systems of memory, memory disorders, the neural basis of memory, memory and consciousness, memory and emotion, representation of knowledge, computer models of memory.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: PSY 160 Instructor Permission Required: No
Advanced study of recent research on thinking and reasoning such as inductive and deductive reasoning, concepts and categorization, problem solving, creative thinking, expertise, cognition in groups, relations to philosophy of science.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: PSY 160 Instructor Permission Required: No
Advanced study of recent research on judgment and decision making, such as behavioral economics, rationality and intelligence, health and medical decision making, decision neuroscience.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: MGMT 173 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 153 or MGMT 153 or ECON 153 or POLI 153 Instructor Permission Required: No
Topics include navigation, perception of space and motion, spatial attention, spatial language, neurological deficits related to spatial cognition, spatial mental models, motion path planning in humans and computers, and visual representation in the arts and new media.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or PSY 001 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
COGS 177: Consciousness in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
Units: 4
Exploration of the phenomenon of consciousness in both philosophy and cognitive science. By the end of the course, students will be conversant on different forms of consciousness and techniques for studying consciousness.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: PHIL 173 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 or any lower-division PHIL course Instructor Permission Required: No
Covers the mental, physiological, and behavioral dimensions characterizing the emotions with an emphasis on social and evolutionary considerations and focuses on understanding the methods used in scientifically studying the emotions and their contributions in human behavior.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Scientific Method
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 Instructor Permission Required: No
Analyzes the ultimate functional purposes and proximate psychobiological mechanisms characterizing the emergence of supernatural beliefs. Understand the scientific methods used in studying religious cognition. Develop a vocabulary for thinking about supernatural beliefs as biological adaptations or by-products. Review and evaluate basic research on the psychological and/or brain mechanisms underlying the representation of supernatural agents as well as supernatural abilities.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 Instructor Permission Required: No
Services e.g., restaurants, hotels, lawyers, information technology operations, business consulting – account for more than 80% of jobs in the US. Through case studies of businesses and scientific studies of people in real service settings, this course focuses on how to align people and technology effectively to generate value.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: MGMT 150, MIST 150 Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
Provides oversight and structure for a student’s internship in a field related to cognitive science connected to the study of cognitive science. Students are required to write an original research paper or relevant product that demonstrates how the internship advanced their knowledge of cognitive science.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: 2
Pass/No Pass only
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
Solidification and expansion of students’ existing knowledge of the fundamental theoretical frameworks and methodological tools of cognitive science. Connections among philosophy of mind, cognitive neuroscience, theoretical linguistics, artificial intelligence, and cognitive psychology, are emphasized. Required of all first-year Cognitive Science graduate students.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Continuation of COGS 201, with more emphasis placed on recent developments and applications in Cognitive Science, and tools needed to conduct cognitive science research in a variety of domains. Also includes practical career information, such as tutorials in grant-writing, effective presentation, writing techniques, and professional development. Required of all first-year Cognitive Science graduate students.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Introduction to the study of complex phenomena using dynamical computer simulations, which exhibit emergent properties, sensitivity to initial conditions, fractal structure, phase transitions in random graphs, and shifts from stability to meta-stability to chaos. Matlab projects include: probability games, neural networks, the Lorenz attractor, the logistic map, the Mandelbrot set.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Conjoined with: COGS 104 Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
A broad approach to understanding and using formal models to study social behavior and organization. We will take an interdisciplinary approach, drawing from the social sciences and from evolutionary ecology in roughly equal measures. Methodology will focus on agent-based modeling, but also included some evolutionary game theory and related approaches. Topic covered include foraging, disease transmission, cooperation, segregation, social norms, and the cultural evolution of language.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: QSB 222 Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Design and analysis of computational simulations of human behavior and brain function. Techniques for modeling active membranes, individual neurons, the dynamics produced by recurrent excitation and lateral inhibition, synaptic plasticity, and the computational role of neurotransmitters. Formal models of perception, attention, learning, memory, language, categorization, and cognitive control.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: EECS 273 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: Yes
Focuses on teaching first-year graduate students from a variety of graduate programs skills in computational methods, programming languages, team science, project development, problem solving, social networking, and career preparation.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: CHEM 243, EECS 243, MATH 243, ME 243, PHYS 243, PSY 243, QSB 243 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: Yes
Broad issues in cognitive science, with an emphasis on computation, and the connections among mind, technology, and society. Each semester will feature guest speakers and topics such as artificial intelligence, design, human-computer interaction, perception, language, high level cognition, reasoning, philosophy of cognitive science, neuroscience, and the role of technology in society.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: Unlimited
Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory only
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Introduces methods for recording speech and other vocalizations, for processing and modifying such recordings, and for synthesizing artificial speech. Necessary background in speech science is provided. Each student develops, executes, and presents a hands-on term project, related to their research interests, and produces a full-length technical conference proceedings style paper.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Conjoined with: COGS 151 Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Covers the the mental, physiological, and behavioral dimensions characterizing the emotions, with an emphasis on social and evolutionary considerations and focuses on understanding the methods used in scientifically studying the emotions and their contributions in human behavior.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Analyzes the ultimate functional purposes and proximate psychobiological mechanisms characterizing the emergence of supernatural beliefs. Understand the scientific methods used in studying religious cognition. Develop a vocabulary for thinking about supernatural beliefs as biological adaptations or by-products. Review and evaluate basic research on the psychological and/or brain mechanisms underlying the representation of supernatural agents as well as supernatural abilities.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
COGS 285: Topics in Philosophy of Cognitive Science
Units: 4
Detailed study of special topics in the philosophy of cognitive science, including (but not limited to): Animal Cognition, Cognitive Architecture, Consciousness, Mental Representation, Modularity, Nativism vs. Empiricism, and Self.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: 3
Normal Letter Grade with Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Under faculty supervision, group of students meets each week for a semester in a student-led study group to pursue a specific topic of their choice that is not covered in other department courses.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: Unlimited
Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
CRS 010: Introduction to Community Engaged Research
Units: 4
Introduction to the conditions and contexts for Community Engaged Research (CEnR) in the San Joaquin Valley-Sierra Nevada region and analogous communities nationally and internationally. Fundamental principles and approach of CEnR, and fundamental skills necessary to work with community members will be explored.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Ethics
Badge: Leadership, Community, and Engaging the World
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Provides students with a community-engaged research (CEnR) experience. Students will explore the implications and applications of CEnR for the San Joaquin Valley and nearby Sierra Nevada, a region characterized by disadvantages in the environment, economics, education, health, and civic engagement, as well as analogous regions nationally and internationally. Key concepts include analytics of prosperity, sustainability, and community-engaged innovation. One or more research projects will be developed to illustrate the principles and benefits of CEnR.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: 1
Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Badge: Leadership, Community, and Engaging the World
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CRS 010 Cannot be taken for credit after successfully completing: CRS 010 Open only to following major/minor(s):
Community Research and Service Minor (Undergraduate) - CRS
CRS 195: Community Research and Service Experience
Lower Unit Limit: 1 Upper Unit Limit: 4
Provides students with a community-based undergraduate research experience. Links to our local San Joaquin Valley and Sierra Nevada regions while also considering global analogs. Addresses themes of: analytics of prosperity, sustainable development, and community engagement or community-inspired innovation.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: Yes Repeat Limit: 1
Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Culminating Experience
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Ethics
Badge: Leadership, Community, and Engaging the World
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
This project-based experience presents the use of computers to control information flow: data collection, management, analysis, and presentation. Basic programming skills, selection of appropriate computer-based tools and languages, and data security are covered. Emphasis is placed on computer knowledge necessary for non-CSE majors to successfully use and manage data and information.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Explores basic concepts of discrete mathematics used in computer science and other disciplines that involve formal reasoning. Topics include logic, proof, counting, discrete probability, relations, graphs, trees, and Boolean algebra.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Quantitative and Numerical Analysis
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to the following class level(s):
Presents the basics of programming to a student with no prior experience. Basic concepts of Input/Output, Data Types, Variables and Arrays will be introduced in the context of solving problems. Elementary programming skills such as conditional and loops execution will be emphasized.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Lower Division: Language
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Explores modern programming concepts such as Object-oriented Programming, methods, recursion and data manipulation will be introduced. Students are expected to solve problems using different programming paradigms.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Lower Division: Language
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 020 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
Focuses on the design, analysis, and implementation of fundamental data structures, design patterns, and algorithms used throughout computer science, including linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, hash tables, graphs, recursion, and methods for searching and sorting.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 021 or equivalent exam Concurrent Prerequisites: CSE 015 Corequisite: CSE 015 Open only to the following class level(s):
CSE 031: Computer Organization and Assembly Language
Units: 4
Exposes students to the underlying structure of machines. Starting from C programming, pointers, data representation, MIPS instruction-set, Compilation process and down to Hardware implementation.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 030 Open only to the following class level(s):
Introduction to the design and analysis of computer algorithms. Topics will include concepts of algorithm complexity, and various algorithmic design patterns like divide and conquer, dynamic programming and greedy algorithms. Also covers major algorithms and data structures for searching and sorting, graphs and some optimization techniques.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 030 and MATH 032 Concurrent Prerequisites: CSE 031 and MATH 024 Corequisite: CSE 031 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Our ability to manipulate data depends on and is limited by our familiarity with computing technologies. We study tools for exploratory computing, emphasizing programming and scripting languages over point-and-click interfaces. We cover the Unix basics and common utilities, regular expressions, Perl and R languages. Development of a problem solving ability to learn languages independently and cull online documentation.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Overview of digital image processing including visual perception, image formation, spatial transformations, image enhancement, color image representations and processing, edge detection, image segmentation, and morphological image processing.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Principles of database design and operation. Relational data model. High-level data modeling representations. SQL database language. Active databases with constraints and triggers. Query optimization with views and indexes. Exploiting database servers within programming languages for web application development. Other topics include transaction processing and recovery, user-defined functions, and data warehousing.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Teams work on approved design projects or on software teams. Through these projects, students will practice design methodology and learn modern software engineering techniques to create reliable, efficient, reusable, and maintainable software systems using various design process models. Good standard project practices topics will be covered.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Culminating Experience
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Quantitative and Numerical Analysis
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Cannot also be taken due to similarity of content: ENGR 190, ENGR 193, ENGR 194 Open only to the following class level(s):
Presents an end-to-end view of the design life cycle for information systems and services. Explains how design problems are conceived, researched, analyzed and resolved in different types of organizations and contexts, including start-ups, enterprises with legacy-systems, non-profit and government entities.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: MGMT 126 Discussion included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Open only to following major/minor(s):
Management & Business Economics (Undergraduate) - MBE
Understanding the inherent capabilities and limitations of computers is a fundamental question in computer science. To answer this question, we will define formal mathematical models of computation, and study their relationships with formal languages. Topics will consist of three central areas of the theory of computation: automata, computability, and complexity.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Fundamental concepts of digital computer design, including instruction sets, memory systems and registers, logic and mathematics units, modern CPUs and their architectural features are discussed along with the motivation for each design choice.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and ENGR 065 Open only to the following class level(s):
CSE 155: Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction
Units: 4
Introduces students to the basic concepts in the theory and practice of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Teaches how hardware and software design influence the interaction between human and computers to provide insights into the design and development of safe, effective, and enjoyable interactive systems.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Engineering Science
Badge: Ethics
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Badge: Quantitative and Numerical Analysis
Badge: Scientific Method
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Junior
Senior
Instructor Permission Required: No Strong skills in computer and Web programming preferred.
Design concepts and implementation features of computer networks. Concepts of network robustness, scalability, addressing, routing, and security. Several contemporary networking protocols are analyzed.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
CSE 165: Introduction to Object Orientated Programming
Units: 4
Topics include object-oriented programming concepts, such as classes, objects, methods, interfaces, packages, inheritance, encapsulation, and polymorphism.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: ENGR 140 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Basic algorithms in computer graphics enabling students to understand and experience the process of implementing modern computer graphics applications. Topics covered: programmable shaders, rasterization, hidden surface removal, transformations, rendering pipeline, scene graphs, curves and surfaces, boundary representation, spatial partition methods, keyframe animation, texture mapping, illumination and shading.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and (CSE 165 or ENGR 140) and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Covers the main algorithms and techniques used in the implementation of interactive 3D Graphics, such as in Computer Games, Robotics Simulators and Virtual Reality. Topics covered are: keyframe animation, articulated figures, direct and inverse kinematics, physically-based simulation, path planning, behavior-based animation, scripting behaviors, and other advanced topics.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Conjoined with: EECS 287 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE100 and CSE 170 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Design and analysis of computational simulations of human behavior and brain function. Techniques for modeling active membranes, individual neurons, the dynamics produced by recurrent excitation and lateral inhibition, synaptic plasticity, and the computational role of neurotransmitters. Formal models of perception, attention, learning, memory, language, categorization, and cognitive control.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: COGS 123 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: COGS 001 and any upper-division COGS course Instructor Permission Required: No
Overview of the main concepts and methods underlying the construction and analysis of intelligent systems, including agent architectures, problem solving, heuristic search, knowledge representation, reasoning, planning, communication, perception, robotics, and machine learning. Includes a laboratory component in which intelligent systems are constructed and examined.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: COGS 125 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 021 or equivalent exam COGS 001 recommended Instructor Permission Required: No
Survey of techniques for development and analysis of software that learns from experience. Specific topics: supervised learning (classification, regression); unsupervised learning (density estimation, clustering, dimensionality reduction); reinforcement learning; and others. Specific techniques: linear classifiers, mixture models, nonparametric methods, decision trees, neural networks, kernel machines, ensembles, graphical models, Bayesian methods, etc.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 141 Open only to the following class level(s):
Studies the internals of a database management system, with emphasis on query execution. The final goal of the class is to build a fully-functional database execution engine consisting of all the standard components: storage manager, buffer manager, query execution engine, query optimizer, and query compiler.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Conjoined with: EECS 277 Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and CSE 111 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Introduces fundamental concepts in the design and development of secure computer networks. Covers security threats, secret-key and public-key cryptography and algorithms, digital signatures, authentication, Electronic mail, Public-key infrastructure, viruses and worms.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and CSE 150 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Parallel computing is pervasive. From embedded devices, laptops, to high-end supercomputer, and large-scale data centers, parallel computing is widely employed to achieve performance and efficiency targets. This course introduces the foundations of parallel computing, including parallel architectures, parallel programming methods and techniques, and parallel algorithm designs.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and CSE 140 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Covers the basic of robotics focusing on the algorithmic side, rather than technology. Introduces basic computational techniques concerning spatial modeling, planning, and sensor processing. The course has a strong hands-on component. Implementation of different techniques in simulation will complement the theoretical lectures.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Overview of fundamental image processing and pattern recognition techniques including image formation, edge detection, image segmentation, optical flow, recovery of three-dimensional structure from shading or stereo information, shape representations, and issues in object recognition.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CSE 031 and CSE 100 and MATH 024 Open only to the following class level(s):
Junior
Senior
Instructor Permission Required: No Requires mathematical background commensurate with upper-division engineering students
Provides foundation for UC Merced’s general education program with a strong emphasis on writing, quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, and understanding events in their historical and cultural contexts. CORE 001 is designed to introduce students to UC Merced’s faculty, our research, and the academic fields in which we work.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Discussion included Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: WRI 001 or equivalent exam Open only to the following class level(s):
CRES 001: Introduction to Critical Race and Ethnic Studies
Units: 4
Examines the historical and contemporary contexts of race and indigeneity. Uses an intersectional lens (including gender, sexuality, class, religion, etc.) to explore settler colonialism and labor; im/migration and segregation; and politics of representation and resistance.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Discussion included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Examines the history of Asian immigration to the United States and Asian American racial formation through the immigration and citizenship restrictions, popular culture, and U.S. transnational relations with Asian nations. Traces the “Asian American” figure to foreground the categories of race, class, gender, and sexuality and center this figure in the formation of the U.S. nation-state.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Discussion included Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 027: Local Harvest, Global Industry: History of the Production and Consumption of Food
Units: 4
Looks at various ways to understand the complex role of food in society. Explores Issues of food production and consumption, and how our relationship to food contributes to the political and social structures that we live with.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 027 Discussion included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Ethics
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Badge: Sustainability
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Surveys African civilization and culture from well before recorded history to the mid-1800s. Students will explore major themes and topics in pre-colonial African history such as African geography and environmental history, pre-conquest empires and kingdoms, the development of Swahili culture, the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the historical roots of apartheid, among others. Diverse histories of African people and places that existed on the continent prior to the era of European colonization is emphasized.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 043 Discussion included Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 100: Theories in Critical Race and Ethnic Studies
Units: 4
Advanced survey of key issues, themes, and debates in the field of critical race and ethnic studies. Perspectives may include symbolic interaction, class analysis, sovereignty, literary criticism, feminism, racial formation, critical race theory, postmodernism, and global or transnational.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CRES 001 or ANTH 100 or ENG 031 or SPAN 031 or ENG 100 or SPAN 100 or GASP 133 or GASP 021 or GASP 173A or GASP 160 or GASP 155 or GASP 101 or HIST 101 or GASP 175 or HIST 126 or HIST 017 or HIST 027 or HIST 100 or HIST 123 or HIST 141 or PHIL 103 or SOC 038 or SOC 100 or SOC 180 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
Studies representations of race and its intersections with gender and sexuality in film and other popular media. Topics will include images in film, TV shows, and advertisements, the social implications of popular racial images, and the role of media in shaping and reflecting power relations.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Examines the idea of sexuality alongside the categories of race, gender, and nation. Traces sexuality’s co-construction with race through colonialism and modernity. Examines how sexuality, gender, and race intersect in culture, politics, and everyday practice. Addresses the question: how does sexual politics create racial subjugation? Turns to critical queer, trans, and feminist theory to ground our thinking and practice around race, sex, and gender.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 110: Interdisciplinary Methods in Critical Race and Ethnic Studies
Units: 4
Examines methodological approaches to the study of race and ethnicity in the United States. The course also assesses the relative strengths and weaknesses of key methodological paradigms. Perspectives may include ethnography and oral history, archival research, literary and cultural analysis, and decolonizing methods.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Explores the relationship between race, gender, class, sexuality and law as it applies to civil rights both in a historical and a contemporary context. Themes include myth, production, and effects of law. Topics include slavery, settler colonialism, voting rights, immigration, segregation, marriage, prison industrial complex, deportation, and reproductive rights.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Charts an interdisciplinary field of critical refugee studies (CRS) to re-conceptualize the refugee as a site of social and political critiques. It also assesses communities, movements, artists, and academic texts as critical sites of knowledge to forge new and humane dialogues and representations.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Upper Division: Crossroads
Approaches to Knowledge: Social Science
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Ethics
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
Examines the history of immigration and citizenship legislations as well as contemporary debates about immigration to understand how the historical and contemporary issues impact immigrant groups. Traces the “immigrant” figure to foreground the categories of race, class, gender, and sexuality and center this figure in the formation of the U.S. nation-state. Examines immigrant rights movements and cultural productions that reshape the immigration debate.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Upper Division: Crossroads
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: CRES 001 Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 123: Comparative Race and Ethnicity in the United States
Units: 4
Examines the construction of race and ethnicity in the United States in an historical and comparative context. The foundational concept of this course is that race is a social construction that comes into being through both historical and continuing interactions between various groups within U.S. society.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 123 Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Media and Visual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 124BR: African American History 1877 to Present: Research
Units: 4
Explores the African American experience from Reconstruction through the present day. Themes include the development of African American culture, Jim Crow segregation, civil rights, black power, and the prison industrial complex. The “R” version of the course involves a student research project.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 124BR Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Diversity and Identity
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: HIST 016 or HIST 017 or CRES 001 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
Explores in depth the rich cultures, societies, and civilizations of North, South, East, and West Africa from prehistoric times through late antiquity. The course will focus on African development as well as knowledge production and exchange from its earliest times to showcase the sophistication of African peoples throughout the continent. The course also focuses on the contributions of ancient Africa to other ancient civilizations such as those in Asia, India, Greece, Rome, Phoenicia, and even the ancient Americas.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 144 Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No
During the Romantic period (roughly 1780-1830), British literature and the early British Empire underwent transformations in which the Orient, real and imagined, served as an experimental site for envisioning a global modernity. This course is premised on the assumption that literature served as a crucial medium through which Britons and their colonial subjects understood a developing western empire, and the early empire in turn profoundly informed the themes and forms of literary expression in Britain and India.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: ENG 110 Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: WRI 010 or equivalent exam Open only to the following class level(s):
Focuses on the history of Iran. Begins with the pre-Islamic era, and then examines the Islamic conquests, and social, political and religious developments. Special topics will include literature, art and architecture, kingship, and political legitimacy.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Summer
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 159 Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Literary and Textual Analysis
Badge: Societies and Cultures of the Past
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite:
Any lower-division HIST course or CRES 001 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
CRES 160: History of Women and Gender in the Middle East
Units: 4
Covers the history of women and gender in the Middle East beginning with the period immediately prior to the establishment of Islam and continuing into the modern period. Examines issues related to veiling, power and authority, women and religion, colonialism, nationalism and revivalist movements, and intersectionality. Readings will cover a broad variety of historical texts, emphasizing women’s voices.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: HIST 160 Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Arts and Humanities
Badge: Global Awareness
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: Any lower-division HIST course or CRES 001 or equivalent exam Instructor Permission Required: No
Examines the concept, theory, method and practice of intersectionality. The following will be considered and addressed: how scholars have intersectionality as a concept, theory, method and practice of social change; what intersectionality has to offer to other theoretical approaches; and the ongoing debates regarding intersectionality and the study of social inequality and justice. The objective of this course is to critically examine and understand the paradigm of intersectionality.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Fall
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Crosslisted with: SOC 183 Normal Letter Grade only
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite: SOC 001 or CRES 001 or SOC 038 or SOC 060 or SOC 030 Instructor Permission Required: No
Senior capstone for critical race and ethnic studies students. Students will formulate a research proposal, conduct research, and write a final capstone paper based on their research. Students will apply interdisciplinary theories and methods to produce knowledge about race, gender, sexuality, and power in the United States. This course will be a culmination of the critical thinking, research, and interdisciplinary skills cultivated in other preceding CRES courses.
Course Details Anticipated term(s) course will be offered:
Spring
Repeatable for Credit: No Normal Letter Grade only
GE Requirements
Badge: Leadership, Community, and Engaging the World
Upper Division: Culminating Experience
Upper Division: Writing in the Discipline
Requisites and Restrictions Prerequisite:
CRES 001 and CRES 100 and CRES 110 Open only to following major/minor(s):
American Studies Minor (Undergraduate) - AMER
Anthropology (Undergraduate) - ANTH
Chicano Chicana Studies Minor (Undergraduate) - CCST
Introduction to basic principles of earth systems for non-science majors and prospective majors. A multidisciplinary approach that draws from geology, chemistry, physics, and biology to understand how the Earth functions as a complex system, and the role and impact of human beings on Earth systems.
Course Details Repeatable for Credit: No Discussion and Laboratory included Normal Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option
GE Requirements
Approaches to Knowledge: Natural Science
Badge: Quantitative and Numerical Analysis
Badge: Scientific Method
Badge: Global Awareness
Badge: Practical and Applied Knowledge
Requisites and Restrictions Instructor Permission Required: No