All first year students take a single first year seminar during their initial semester at McDaniel College. These seminars are designed to ease students' transition from high school to college and to encourage their full participation in the McDaniel College community.
A common goal of these courses is to promote cooperation among students and foster their intellectual development. These seminars are unique in that they are limited to only 15 students, and the professor serves as the students' academic adviser for the first year.
2010 first-year seminars:
FYS 1103 Accounting Principles: Decisions in the Everyday Business of Life
Fundamental principles of accounting with emphasis on the preparation and interpretation of financial statements and decision making in the everyday business of life. Attention is given to the collection and reporting of pertinent information for creditors, management and investors.
FYS 1110 Recursion: Algorithms, Logic, and Mathematics
An introduction to different areas in computer science, logic, and mathematics centered around the notion of recursion. Possible topics include fractals, golden ratio, Game of Life, Fibonacci numbers,Collatz conjecture, game strategies, Euclidian algorithm, Pascal triangle, combinatorics, sorting, and root-finding algorithms, logical paradoxes, Goedel theorem, Markov chains, and Google page rank. You will get a chance to implement many of the discussed recursive definitions and algorithms in a functional programming language. No previous programming experience is expected. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar
FYS 1113 Acting Onstage and Off: The Actor's Craft
An introduction to acting combining practical exercises with study of contemporary texts on acting. Emphasis is placed on scene analysis and scene work, as well as written exercises in performance analysis and acting theory. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, Creative Expression, Textural Analysis
FYS 1114 Technology in Education
From computers to iPods, technology has changed the face of education. This course explores the role of technology in elementary, secondary, and higher education classrooms. Students will share personal observations, review data on technology use, availability, and impact in schools, and will demonstrate various technological applications (including podcasting, vodcasting, and blogging) in the learning environment. This course allows students to explore a career in education.
FYS 1115 A World of Light and Color
Have you ever wondered why the sky is blue or the sunset red? Or why water is clear but snow is white? Or how we know so much about distant stars without actually visiting them? If so, this is the perfect course for you! This course embraces a hands-on guided discovery method of instruction and not traditional lectures. This means you will be performing many simple experiments that involve lenses, mirrors, light boxes, filters, and lasers in class as you explore a world of light and color. Instead of learning about science, you will have the opportunity to be a scientist! McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, Scientific Inquiry
FYS 1116 Born to Buy: The U.S. Consumer Society
This course relies on sociological theoretical perspectives like McDonaldization and conflict theory to understand our culture’s preoccupation with consumerism and how our contemporary consumer culture is seeping into other cultures at rapid speed. It examines how major social institutions help shape our desire to consume. It also explores how consumptive behaviors are moderated by social class, race, gender, and sexuality. McDaniel College: First-Year Seminar, Social, Cultural, and Historical Understanding
FYS 1135 Theatre Appreciation
An introduction to the analysis and appreciation of theatre, the student receives an overview of dramatic theory and practice by reading and attending plays, studying critical evaluations of professionals, and participating in classroom discussions. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar
FYS 1136 Russia Yesterday and Today
This course will investigate the dramatic and controversial history of Russia from earliest times to the present. Students will consider basic questions about Russian history, society, culture, and politics. Aside from reading historical documents, students will read novels, listen to music, and watch films. They will gain a deeper understanding of Russia's place in the world and prospects for the future.
FYS 1137 Chemistry in Context
This is a college level chemistry course that equips students with the skills and experience necessary to succeed in any discipline or potential career where chemistry knowledge and understanding is vital. In the context of an introduction to the subject, the basic principles of chemistry unfold as a historical account of important discoveries followed by an in-depth focus on modern chemistry. Alchemy is used to introduce the concepts of matter, chemical change, and the need for carefully crafted scientific experiments. Atomic theory is investigated through the lens of time starting with the Greek philosophers, progressing through early atomic theories (Dalton, Thompson, Rutherford, Bohr) to arrive at the modern view of the atom. A concurrent historical discussion of energy will allow the culmination of modern views of atoms, energy, and chemical reactivity. ** Students must register for CHE-1001 Introductory Chemistry I Laboratory concurrently. Furthermore, this course satisfies the Introductory Chemistry I (1101) pre-requisite for Introductory Chemistry II, but a passing grade for both the arithmetic and algebra portions of the mathematics proficiency test is required for Introductory Chemistry II (1102).
FYS 1141 World Music Survey
What does music of India have in common with Mozart? How does Indonesian music compare with African music? This course presents a brief and broad survey of a variety of music cultures of the world. We will consider the common threads these musics have as well as learn to appreciate their beautiful differences. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, International Nonwestern
FYS 1142 Basics of a Visual Language
This course is an introduction into the grammar and structure of American Sign Language (ASL) and the premise that sign came before speech in the development of language. Historical and cultural significance of a signed language to the Deaf community around the world, will be emphasized along with a student’s ability to communicate using signs, pictures, or icons instead of the spoken word. Material covered will be a resource for those interested in ASL/Deaf Studies, linguistics, semiotics, anthropology, philosophy, psychology, and/or sociology. The course includes a language laboratory, which is an integral component of the course; and, a cultural experience involving the Deaf community. This course is taught in ASL except for the Flex Days when presentations are made in spoken English.
FYS 1146 What's under my Hood
Have you ever wondered how to keep your engine tuned for optimal performance? The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the scientific principles of nutrition, weight management, fitness, and stress. By investigating and interpreting the results of current scientific literature, you will better appreciate how the body makes short-and long-term adaptations for today and throughout the lifespan. This course will include theory, myths & realities, benefits, behavior modification techniques, and authentic assessments/surveys for each principle.
FYS 1148 Music and Words, a Quest for Expression and Meaning
This course explores the meaning of a variety of works chosen from drama, literature, poetry, and music. This course emphasizes skills of analysis and appreciation to allow students to understand each of these works as reflecting the world view of its time and also to appreciate it as a universal expression of humanity’s search for meaning.
FYS 1150 America's Game: Baseball
This course will investigate the colorful history of baseball: the origins and evolution of the game, the professionalism that grew out of it, and the big business that was built upon it.
FYS 1151 Drugs and the Mind
The earliest historical and literary evidence reveals that drug use has been an integral part of human experience for thousands of years. This course will explore a wide array of dimensions associated with psychotropic drugs. It will draw on a variety of disciplines, such as history, the law, biochemistry, art and music, sociology and, of course, psychology. Students will learn how drugs work, and examine a variety of psychotropics to include legal and illegal drugs, as well as medications used to treat psychiatric disorders. Several guest speakers, such a pharmaceutical representatives, law enforcement personnel, and drug education/rehabilitation will come from off campus to discuss their work. Projects include an evaluation of the issues surrounding the pain killer OxyContin, group presentations on drugs as represented in film and music, and talks/discussions on issues, such as medical uses of marijuana.
FYS 1155 The Ghost Fiction Tradition
This course examines the ghost story in English and American literature and film as it developed over the 19th and 20th centuries. Through analyses of novels such as The Haunting of Hill House and The Turn of the Screw, and a variety of short fiction by masters of the form J. S. LeFanu, M. R. James, Edith Wharton, and Mary Wilkins Freeman, among others, the class explores all elements of fiction but emphasizes imagery, themes, and character types inherent in the genre. Although the course focuses on English and American fiction, students will also have an opportunity to research the oral and literary traditions of the ghost story in cultures worldwide. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, Textual Analysis
FYS 1156 Africa: From Book to Film
This course is a freshman seminar designed to provide students with an introduction to completing college-level academic work, in addition to assisting students with making a successful transition to college life. The content of the course is an introduction to Africa using literature and film as texts. Students will gain some knowledge of important historical moments in African politics and the cultural, social, and historical contexts in which these developments occur. Several novels and one required text are used. Particular attention will be paid to issues and problems that continue to face contemporary African governments. McDaniel Plan: FYS, International Non-Western
FYS 1159 Horror in Fiction and Film
In this course students will examine horror in fiction and film, investigating together why it fascinates so many of us, and analyzing what kind of messages it conveys about the world we live in. In addition to reading and viewing these works for enjoyment, we will analyze them, attempting to understand how they reflect the authors' anxieties about a whole range of concerns: sexuality, the unconscious mind, scientific discoveries, unjust laws, and others.
FYS 1160 Journalism in the 21st Century: The REAL Story
Interested in what makes the news media tick? In this class you'll get an up front and personal look at more than a dozen journalists who visit the classroom and field your questions and comments. Last year's lineup included news reporters, editors, sports columnists, bureau chiefs, and photographers from the Baltimore Sun, Washington Post & Carroll County Times, among others. Plus, from TV news, the news director for a Baltimore station, a prize-winning investigative reporter, and an anchor for a Fox News station. And that's not all. You'll also read a collection of unforgettable newspaper articles by a former Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for the New York Times. By the end of the semester, you'll know why this course is called the "real" story of journalism.
FYS 1161 Rites of Passage: Global Perspectives
This course examines the American college experience as a rite of passage into adulthood. We will analyze the values and beliefs tied to the college experience in relation to rites of passage in other cultures; for instance, Latino Quincea241eras, Navajo Kinaalda, Samoan tattooing, Senegalese female genital cutting, the adulthood ritual of the Amis ( Taiwan ), Pelazon ( Peru ), Massai circumcision, Aboriginal Dreamtime ( Australia ) and the Jewish Bar/Bat Mitzvah. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, International Non-Western
FYS 1162 Reality Television: The Sociocultural Effects
This course will examine the growing phenomena of the last decade that is known as “Reality TV.”Students will explore the underlying themes present in these kinds of programs that are rooted in group dynamics, organizational behavior and sociocultural norms. Students will examine these themes through various theoretical frameworks including Cultivation Theory, Gender Theory and Social Learning Theory. The impact of this genre on psychological and social development of individuals and families will also be explored. As this is a First-year seminar course, students will be challenged in the areas of critical thinking, effective writing, analytic reading, and oral communication. In addition, this course will serve as an introduction to various literacy and learning skills on campus including accessing and retrieving information from the library and utilizing on-campus activities to increase one’s understanding of areas taught during lecture.
FYS 1165 Biodiversity
A study of global biodiversity losses caused by human activity. We will study biodiversity “hot spots” where biodiversity levels and biodiversity losses are also high and the root social causes that are involved in these losses. There will be an emphasis on solutions such as sustainable development that have been proposed for conserving the Earth's remaining biodiversity.
FYS 1167 The Immigrant in American Literature
This course will examine the ways in which the immigrant experience in America has been imaginatively expressed through a variety of literary genres: short stories, novels, poems, and memoirs. We will begin our inquiry with readings from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the several-decade period during which more than twenty million immigrants entered the United States and during which a significant amount of literature by and about immigrants was first produced. Our study will continue through the twentieth century and focus on the more recent outpouring of published immigrant voices in contemporary fiction and poetry. Through critical reading and oral and written analysis, students will examine the ways in which immigrants have struggled to acclimate themselves to their new environment in America.
FYS 1171 Bombay: Fact, Fiction, and Film
Bombay (officially renamed Mumbai in 1995) is India’s financial and entertainment capital, home of both the Bombay Stock Exchange and the Bollywood film industry. With a population of over 22,000,000 people, Greater Bombay also poses massive civil engineering challenges that have made its slums notorious. In this course students will critically examine not only Bombay itself but the diverse representations of the city in various media (among them electronic, print, and film), various genres (such as newspapers, guide books, histories, memoires, short stories, novels), and by various persons and groups. The goal is not to discover a single “real” Bombay but to reflect upon the ways in which we construct images of places, even of places to which we may have never been. Tag: IN
FYS 1172 Identifying and Avoiding "BS"
Lying – the intentional duping of another into believing something false – is generally seen as morally intolerable. But its closely related cousin – "BS" – is generally seen as benign or even entertaining. Consider, for example, Red Bull’s advertising campaign "Red Bull gives you wings" or Coke’s recent Super Bowl ad of a sleepwalker. In these ads, there isn’t even an attempt to suggest the value of the beverage to the consumer. The claims are ridiculous. They are, to put a fine point on it, "BS." Yet these are highly successful advertising campaigns. In this course will use the work of well-established contemporary philosophers to grapple with the question of why this is. What is "BS"? Why is it tolerated when lying is condemned? And why is there so much of it in American culture?
FYS 1173 Malaria: Human Scourge
What is malaria and what causes it? How serious a disease is it? How much impact has the parasitic disease had on the human species? These questions and others will be tackled by first year students within the first year seminar course format of critical thinking and reading, writing and oral presentation. Students will learn to discuss serious human disease from multiple perspectives while adapting to their first college seminar course.
FYS 1174 Private Troubles or Public Issues?
This course introduces students to the field of social work, which examines the interaction between individuals and their environments. While it is the professional mission of the field to enhance the quality of life for people, especially vulnerable populations, particular attention is given to the environmental forces that create contribute to, or alleviate problems in life functioning. The course examines social phenomena such as poverty, domestic violence, and eating disorders to better understand the connection between individual disposition and public responsibility.
FYS 1175 Virtual Worlds
In this course, students will use computers to create animated movies and interactive games of their own design. A virtual-world authoring system will enable beginners to manipulate three-dimensional objects that interact with each other on the screen and react to mouse and keyboard input. Through the development of these worlds, students will learn algorithmic thinking and fundamental concepts of object-oriented computer programming. No prior programming experience is necessary.
FYS 1210 Exploring Disabilities through Mixed Media
Students will be exposed to a range of disability issues through various media, including, but not limited to: films, novels, poetry, journal articles, and performing and visual arts. In addition, students will explore the marginalization of, as well as, some of the pros and cons of the current state of exceptionalities in the US, including how individuals with disabilities are portrayed in the media. McDaniel Plan: First-Year Seminar, Multicultural
FYS 1108 From Chaos to Compromise (Reacting to the Past)
Are you prepared to take on a role from history? Have you ever wanted to go back in time and influence the past? In this course, students will determine the outcomes of decisive moments in history by taking on a historical role during a specific era. Students run the class in the form of debates, based on their reading of important primary texts. Students will offer arguments in order to persuade their classmates on such topics as: Should Socrates die? Should Athenian citizens restore their democracy or be ruled by tyranny? Are the Crusades just and necessary? Should India rule itself independently? If you are persuasive in your arguments, you will meet your objectives and be victorious!
FYS 1139 Half the Human Experience
This interdisciplinary course will introduce students to issues related to sex and gender, with a particular focus on the experience of being female. Students will develop an understanding and awareness of how gender issues impact a variety of social and professional contexts. We will critically evaluate the methods and results of scientific studies of gender differences and stereotypes. Other topics include developmental, biological, historical, and cultural influences on behavior.
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