Author Topic: Favorite Classes (so far) (Read 6167 times)

JHU_Tabitha · « **on:** November 15, 2007, 12:46 PM »

I was thinking that a thread of our favorite classes and why they are our favorite classes might be good.

At the moment (with only one semester of experience) i'd have to go for intro to bioethics with Professor Bok. It is a really interesting class where we go over all sorts of modern day ethical issues associated with medicine and health care. Professor Bok is a really good lecturer, she makes the classes very entertaining and during lectures she welcomes opinions and discussion, which i really like. The readings for the class are also pretty interesting, they are generally different case studies and different people's opinions on how they should have been dealt with.

So, that's mine, what are your favorite classes? (maybe it'll help me pick classes for spring semester too!)

Admissions_Daniel · « **Reply #1 on:** November 15, 2007, 01:56 PM »

I like this topic a lot ... so I decided to make it Pinned! I can't wait to read everyone's responses, because I can then live vicariously through you all ... since I don't get to enjoy the great classes at Hopkins. :( I'm stuck in the Admissions Office reading applications. :(

JHU_Lauren · « **Reply #2 on:** November 15, 2007, 01:59 PM »

Good idea for a thread topic!! Like you said, since I only have had one semester here my experience is kind of limited but, so far, my favorite classes have been History of Occidental Civilization: The Medieval World and, surprisingly, Subatomic World. This semester, for me, has been mostly taken up by work for introductory classes that are required for my majors, but these two classes I have never minded doing work for - I always liked history, but Occ Civ has given me a completely different perspective on medieval times {not my favorite time in history to learn about}, and I've always given Physics as my "favorite" science but have really disliked science in general, and Subatomic World has made me really appreciate all the effort that has been made {and is continuing today} to learn more about the smallest, most intricate workings of our world. They're fantastic classes that have actually made me excited to take more classes from those departments.

Next semester, I'm HOPEFULLY taking:
Adv. Intermediate French II
Intro. to Fic. and Poetry II
Renaissance Keywords
Fluid Earth
Contemporary Theatre and Film - An Insider's View {with John Astin! lol But I have a feeling that class will be closed by the time I get to registering}
Freshman Seminar: We Are What We Eat

That's if all scheduling goes as planned {I'm crossing my fingers that it does - my schedule is PERFECT for next year!}. I'm really excited about them!

JHU_Phil · « **Reply #3 on:** November 15, 2007, 02:02 PM »

Introduction to Humanitarian Emergencies.

Don't live near water and you probably will be ok...or be involved in a mass refugee migration.

JHU_Jackie · « **Reply #4 on:** November 17, 2007, 12:20 PM »

Shakespeare Then and Now, I took it freshmen year and loved it.

Also, while Microeconomic Theory is really difficult, the professor makes the lecture really interesting. It's kind of shocking home much you are actually able to do in that class.

JHU_Jackie · « **Reply #5 on:** November 17, 2007, 12:22 PM »

Also, like Tabitha I think bioethics is really interesting.

Next semester, I hope that Intro to Archeaology will be fascinating.

JHU_Kate · « **Reply #6 on:** November 17, 2007, 08:22 PM »

Quote from: "JHU_Phil"

Introduction to Humanitarian Emergencies.

Don't live near water and you probably will be ok...or be involved in a mass refugee migration.

Aww, my roommate and one of my suitemates (and almost half of my friends, I suppose) are Public Health majors, and I always hear them talking about how their classes make them see something dangerous in the world around them.

Anyway, here are my favorite courses so far over the past three semesters:

* Art in the Age of Augustus
* Elementary Latin (I'm excited that after one semester without Latin [i.e., I couldn't take Intermediate Latin this semester because of course conflicts], I'll return to studying the language next semester in Intermediate Latin!)
* Freshman Seminar: Tuberculosis
* Introduction to Western Classical Music
* The Nervous System (For me, it's a course that's far from easy, but because I love the material it covers, I'd rather take it than take a course that's easier for me, but that doesn't fascinate me as much.)

JHU_Jermaine · « **Reply #7 on:** November 24, 2007, 07:16 PM »

Origins of Human Sexual Orientation and Variation, taught by Professor Chris Kraft, has got to be up there on my list of classes I love! I registered for the course on the whim, and I am really glad I decided to take this Psychology course. Besides being my only class on Tuesdays, Professor Kraft is really laid back, candid, and he has some of the best stories from the field I've heard! As a practicing psychologist at Hopkins Med., he brings the concepts that we learn in class come to life (plus, we get to watch documentaries titled "You Don't Know Dick" and the like). It's a writing intensive course. It's a lot of work (but def. worth it). It's a great class. Take it!

JHU_Mandy · « **Reply #8 on:** November 26, 2007, 10:45 PM »

Freshman Seminar: On the Road with Professor Leslie is a very interesting class. It's laid back and thought-provoking at the same time. Plus, you gotta love the class when you watch movies like Thelma and Louise, American Graffitti, and Easy Rider, or when the professor organizes a trip to Charles Theater to see Into the Wild during our normal class time. He's a great guy.

...this will sound crazy, but I love orgo. I'm not very good at it (most unfortunately), but it's very interesting and I just like the conceptual side of it all.

JHU_Phil · « **Reply #9 on:** November 27, 2007, 12:12 AM »

....and stay away from testosterone and AK-47s...

JHU_Tanmay · « **Reply #10 on:** November 27, 2007, 02:09 AM »

Hmm... favorite classes so far would have to be:
* Physfound / Systems Bioengineering - really interesting class that's the core of the BME curriculum. Really like the material, don't like the way its graded though
* Mathematical Economics
* BME Design Team (see my first guest blog post
* Adv. Intermediate French - took it freshman year and was a lot of fun. We watched movies and the news on TV and then would discuss what we had just seen (all in French)

JHU_Adam · « **Reply #11 on:** November 28, 2007, 12:02 AM »

Introduction to Social Psychology: The subject matter was simply amazing. Learning about interpersonal relationships, conditioning, how different people like to be treated, how to recognize different personality types... and that was only about 1 month's worth of subject material i just listed. The instructor was great and really made the subject come alive and applicable to daily life. When all this comes together it truly makes for a great class

JHU_Laura · « **Reply #12 on:** November 28, 2007, 09:39 PM »

Oh Wow, I have taken SO many great classes at Hopkins...

Freshman year my favorite class was Feminist Epistemology with Prof Tumulty, but unfortunately she's teaching at Colgate now!! =(.

Sophomore year I really loved my Writing Sems class with Dixon, but he retired. He is amazing though!!

I also really liked my class on Global Warming--we did intensive research projects on the subject and also read a bunch of books. It was fascinating to do all of the reading and such a relevant/timely topic.

This semester I love my Faulkner Fitzgerald and Hemingway class with Professor Irwin. He is absolutely brilliant and the class is so interesting, but a lot of work.
I also really like my Comparative Freedom Struggles class, (comparing the us civil rights movement to the south african anti-apartheid) the reading is fascinating and it is super interesting to see how these two movements evolved.

JHU_Liny · « **Reply #13 on:** November 30, 2007, 03:18 PM »

Models and Simulations

It's a BME class but I felt like I was finally integrating all those random math and science intro classes I've been taking and was starting to apply it to my major...we were pretty much learning how to model various parts of the human body

JHU_Jermaine · « **Reply #14 on:** January 12, 2008, 10:20 PM »

While school is probably the last thing you want to thing about right now, I'll ask anyway. What do you guys think are going to be your most interesting classes next semester? (I'm looking for something to replace a Biology class that got canceled).

As for me, I'm thinking about taking Abstract Expression through the Art History Department. (I'm a little bit nervous though...)

JHU_Tabitha · « **Reply #15 on:** January 15, 2008, 05:42 AM »

I'm actually looking forward to most of my classes next semester (i'll probably regret saying that soon, but hopefully i won't!)
The two i'm looking forward to the most are cognition, and cognitive neuroscience, just because the course material sounds really interesting.
And actually, now i think about it, i'm really looking forward to my history of modern philosophy class too!

How come your class got cancelled Jermaine?

JHU_Phil · « **Reply #16 on:** January 16, 2008, 07:25 PM »

Introduction to Humanitarian Emergencies.

Taught by Gilbert Burnham, probably has the sweetest job in the world. He goes around the different conflicts around the world and studies stuff about refugees, conflicts and population vulnerability.

Best class ever.

JHU_Jackie · « **Reply #17 on:** February 27, 2008, 12:57 PM »

Business Law with Professor Francischini...i'm pretty sure I spelled his name wrong.

This class is really interesting and gives you a basic understanding of the law. The professor is hilarious and as we was an undergraduate theater major he loves to act out the cases and put on southern accents--really just dramatizing everything. I highly recommend it.

JHU_Andrew · « **Reply #18 on:** April 06, 2008, 09:01 PM »

Jackie, I took Internet Law with him my sophomore year in the fall... he is awesome.

My favorite class this past fall was the Arab-Israeli Conflict, taught by Professor Freedman. It inspired my current passion for the Middle East, which--along with international security--has pretty much become my focus as an IR major.

Right now I am taking a class called International Conflict Resolution that I also really enjoy. Unfortunately I am really bogged down with work right now; I have a draft for a paper on the Iran-Iraq War in the '80s due on Tuesday.

JHU_Stefanie · « **Reply #19 on:** July 31, 2008, 01:29 PM »

A couple of classes:

Cell Biology - I loved this course because it was taught by a number of *amazing* professors. Dr. Schroerand Dr. Wendland are still the top science professors in my book. Although it was a course that demanded a lot of time, I thought it was fascinating.

Health Policy & Management - I cannot wait to move onto the classes at the Bloomberg School of Public Health because this course -- which is *not* at the Bloomberg school but taught by some of their professors -- was an amazing course. I know it's just a glimpse of what the other courses will be like. I thoroughly enjoyed this course because it was a needed exposure to the other side of medicine (one side being the actual science). The weekly discussions were great, and we were required to search the media on a weekly basis to practically apply the material to our real world.

Medical Sociology - I loved this class because of the material. Professor Smith presented the class on very simple terms, and I had a fabulous TA who expanded during our weekly discussions. The papers stretched my mind and even pushed me to look further (possibly for honors in Public Health).

JHU_Jackie · « **Reply #20 on:** September 28, 2008, 04:40 PM »

Currently, I am really enjoying my Western Intellectual Thought (1200-1500) class. The other day we had a debate on who was the better philosopher, Aristotle or Plato. While I was not one of the debaters I was very excited to share my opinions with the class. Aristotle won the debate simply because the debaters had a better argument. Although, normally, I would be more inclined to say Plato is the better philosopher. Aristotle, in my opinion is the better scientist. But in the end, just like philosophy, it all comes down to defintions. In this case, it depends on your definition of a philosopher.

We also got to take a trip to "THE CAGE". Just a section on d-level that holds all the rare books and ancient documents. It was pretty cool. Oh and the Professor is also really interesting and does a good job fascilitating discussion.

JHU_Peter · « **Reply #21 on:** September 28, 2008, 06:01 PM »

So far my most interesting classes have been my Portuguese Elements Class, partially because I feel like I'm actually learning the language and also because I get to watch this cool documentaries on football in brazil and stuff like that (football meaning soccer, sorry :X), and the other class being my Freshman Exp in Mech E. Although it's a bit more technical, it seems to unravel a lot of the basic concepts we take for granted. The other day was a discussion about how analog and digital recording works, and then how songs have certain bitrates and what that actually means and henceforth. It's really interesting, I swear! haha.

I'm sure there will be more later once I have taken more classes.

JHU_LaurenB · « **Reply #22 on:** September 29, 2008, 11:16 PM »

So right now a lot of my classes are basic prerequisite ones, but they're nonetheless really interesting. I'm taking Calc, Chem, Intro to Fiction and Poetry, and History of Occidental Civilization. I'd have to say my favorite is IFP (Intro to Fiction and Poetry) for a number of reasons. It's really small (17 people) and almost entirely girls (I went to an all girls school so this is just great). The teacher is a grad student in Writing Sems at Hopkins and she's a great teacher, the people are really interesting and we get to write/discuss/read all the time!

-Lauren
Class of 2012

JHU_Rob · « **Reply #23 on:** September 30, 2008, 09:21 AM »

Favorite Class this semester has to be Portuguese. I love it and the professor is amazing. We also only have nine people in our class, so it is really personal. Other than Portuguese, my other favorite classes have been Contemporary International Politics and Issues in International Development. Both were so interesting, especially with everything that is going around the world today. O and I also really enjoyed Calc III. I took it over the summer and my TA was awesome.

JHU_Dominique · « **Reply #24 on:** September 30, 2008, 07:37 PM »

My African American Family class is so cool. The discussions rock and the professor has so much knowledge and speculation on the history of Africans in America...and how that history is still affecting black people in the U.S. today--namely issues regarding the structure of the Black family. Today we talked about light/dark skinned issues that are still prevalent in the Black community today because of slavery, and the structure of slave families in relation to slave owners families.

Username:
Password:

Welcome to the Hopkins Forums!

Author Topic: Favorite Classes (so far) (Read 6167 times)