UH 390.2 Spring 2011
Syllabus & schedule Assignments Angel class space Links	UH 390 Case Study: Global Issues in the Sciences: Using research skills to analyze a global case study or international perspective in the sciences. UH 390, Section 2 Description, Spring 2011
MWF 11:10-12:00 Honors Hall 142   Instructor: Virginia Lohr Johnson Hall 101 509-335-3101 lohr@wsu.edu Office: Tues. 12:10-2 PM     & by appointment	Did you know that students with views of plants from their dorm windows are more productive than those with views of parking lots?  Research on biophilia, the propensity of humans to be drawn to and fascinated by nature, has exploded in recent years.  Scientists in many disciplines, including biology, environmental psychology, geography, medicine, and horticulture, are exploring this new field. We will begin by reviewing various research studies on many of the ways that plants and nature affect people, such as by improving health and reducing mental fatigue, and on theories about why those responses occur, such as through eye and brain responses to fractal patterns. In this course, you will work in small, interdisciplinary groups to examine questions raised in our discussions and to explore their applications to global problems.  You will apply your skills of searching and interpreting the scientific literature to come to thorough and reasoned conclusions that would be trusted by scientists.  You will communicate those conclusions to your classmates in a variety of oral, written, and graphic forms that would be understood by nonscientists.
	Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture Washington State University Pullman, Washington 99164-6414 U.S.A. WSU's Disclaimer & Freedom of Expression Policy Page updated April 29, 2011