MIT OpenCourseWare: New Courses

7.345 Using Simple Organisms to Model Human Diseases (MIT)

Harris, Katie — 2013-05-22T16:53:19+05:00

How do scientists discover the basic biology underlying human diseases? Simple organisms such as baker’s yeast, nematodes, fruit flies, zebrafish, mice and rats have allowed biologists to investigate disease at multiple levels, from molecules to behavior. In this course students will learn strategies of disease modeling by critically reading and discussing primary research articles. We will explore current models of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, childhood genetic diseases such as Fragile X syndrome, as well as models of deafness and wound healing. Our goal will be to understand the strategies biologists use to build appropriate models of human disease and to appreciate both the power and limitations of using simple organisms to analyze human disease. This course is one of many Advanced Undergraduate Seminars offered by the Biology Department at MIT. These seminars are tailored for students with an interest in using primary research literature to discuss and learn about current biological research in a highly interactive setting. Many instructors of the Advanced Undergraduate Seminars are postdoctoral scientists with a strong interest in teaching.

15.229 Managing Global Integration (MIT)

Santos, José — 2013-05-22T15:25:31+05:00

This course on global integration brings together matters of global markets and institutions, global strategy, organization, and leadership. Global integration, the process by which an organization with units around the world becomes united, will be presented as a link to entrepreneurship and general management. The seminar is offered only to those enrolled in the MIT Sloan Fellows Program and challenges the participants to draw upon their past managerial experiences, especially those affiliated with multinational companies.

7.346 Virus-host Interactions in Infectious Diseases (MIT)

Sanyal, Sumana — 2013-05-14T13:41:37+05:00

Co-evolution and adaptation between viruses and humans are often portrayed as a zero-sum biological arms race. Viruses enter host cells equipped with an array of mechanisms to evade the host defense responses and replicate. The rapid rate of mutation of viruses permits evolution of various methodologies for infection, which in turn drive development of non-specific but highly effective host mechanisms to restrict infection. This class will discuss the varied solutions each side has developed as a means for survival. We will use examples drawn from human disease-causing pathogens that contribute seriously to the global health burden, including HIV, influenza and dengue virus. Primary research papers will be discussed to help students learn to pose scientific questions and design and conduct experiments to answer the questions and critically interpret data. This course is one of many Advanced Undergraduate Seminars offered by the Biology Department at MIT. These seminars are tailored for students with an interest in using primary research literature to discuss and learn about current biological research in a highly interactive setting. Many instructors of the Advanced Undergraduate Seminars are postdoctoral scientists with a strong interest in teaching.

22.51 Quantum Theory of Radiation Interactions (MIT)

Cappellaro, Paola — 2013-05-14T13:41:48+05:00

This subject introduces the key concepts and formalism of quantum mechanics and their relevance to topics in current research and to practical applications. Starting from the foundation of quantum mechanics and its applications in simple discrete systems, it develops the basic principles of interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter. Topics covered are composite systems and entanglement, open system dynamics and decoherence, quantum theory of radiation, time-dependent perturbation theory, scattering and cross sections. Examples are drawn from active research topics and applications, such as quantum information processing, coherent control of radiation-matter interactions, neutron interferometry and magnetic resonance.

11.166 Law, Social Movements, and Public Policy: Comparative and International Experience (MIT)

Rajagopal, Balakrishnan — 2013-05-13T15:34:59+05:00

This course studies the interaction between law, courts, and social movements in shaping domestic and global public policy. Examines how groups mobilize to use law to affect change and why they succeed and fail. The class uses case studies to explore the interplay between law, social movements, and public policy in current areas such as gender, race, labor, trade, environment, and human rights. Finally, it introduces the theories of public policy, social movements, law and society, and transnational studies.

15.401 Finance Theory I (MIT)

Lo, Andrew — 2013-05-10T14:54:55+05:00

This course introduces the core theory of modern financial economics and financial management, with a focus on capital markets and investments. Topics include functions of capital markets and financial intermediaries, asset valuation, fixed-income securities, common stocks, capital budgeting, diversification and portfolio selection, equilibrium pricing of risky assets, the theory of efficient markets, and an introduction to derivatives and options.

CMS.407 Media and Methods: Sound (MIT)

Picker, John — 2013-05-07T12:58:38+05:00

This course explores the ways in which humans experience the realm of sound and how perceptions and technologies of sound emerge from cultural, economic, and historical worlds. It examines how environmental, linguistic, and musical sounds are construed cross-culturally. It describes the rise of telephony, architectural acoustics, sound recording, and the globalized travel of these technologies. Students address questions of ownership, property, authorship, and copyright in the age of digital file sharing. There is a particular focus on how the sound/noise boundary is imagined, created and modeled across diverse sociocultural and scientific contexts. Auditory examples will be provided. Instruction and practice in written and oral communication provided. At MIT, this course is limited to 20 students.

21F.027 Asia in the Modern World: Images & Representations (MIT)

Dower, John — 2013-05-04T22:27:43+05:00

Asia in the Modern World: Images and Representations examines visual representations of Asia, interpreting them from both historical and modern contexts. This course is based around using the Visualizing Cultures website. Case studies focus on Japan and China from the mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries.

18.100C Real Analysis (MIT)

Seidel, Paul — 2013-04-11T13:35:39+05:00

This course covers the fundamentals of mathematical analysis: convergence of sequences and series, continuity, differentiability, Riemann integral, sequences and series of functions, uniformity, and the interchange of limit operations. It shows the utility of abstract concepts and teaches an understanding and construction of proofs. MIT students may choose to take one of three versions of Real Analysis; this version offers three additional units of credit for instruction and practice in written and oral presentation.The three options for 18.100:Option A (18.100A) chooses less abstract definitions and proofs, and gives applications where possible.Option B (18.100B) is more demanding and for students with more mathematical maturity; it places more emphasis from the beginning on point-set topology and n-space, whereas Option A is concerned primarily with analysis on the real line, saving for the last weeks work in 2-space (the plane) and its point-set topology.Option C (18.100C) is a 15-unit variant of Option B, with further instruction and practice in written and oral communication. This fulfills the MIT CI requirement.

15.220 Global Strategy and Organization (MIT)

Santos, José — 2013-03-21T10:45:49+05:00

This subject focuses on the specifics of strategy and organization of the multinational company, and provides a framework for formulating successful and adaptive strategies in an increasingly complex world economy. Topics include the globalization of industries, the continuing role of country factors in competition, organization of multinational enterprises, and building global networks. This particular version of the subject is taught and tailored specifically to those enrolled in the MIT Sloan Fellows Program.

6.S096 Introduction to C and C++ (MIT)

Lieber, Tom — 2013-03-18T16:19:10+05:00

This course provides a fast-paced introduction to the C and C++ programming languages. You will learn the required background knowledge, including memory management, pointers, preprocessor macros, object-oriented programming, and how to find bugs when you inevitably use any of those incorrectly. There will be daily assignments and a small-scale individual project. This course is offered during the Independent Activities Period (IAP), which is a special 4-week term at MIT that runs from the first week of January until the end of the month.

6.003 Signals and Systems (MIT)

Freeman, Dennis — 2013-03-14T10:54:29+05:00

6.003 covers the fundamentals of signal and system analysis, focusing on representations of discrete-time and continuous-time signals (singularity functions, complex exponentials and geometrics, Fourier representations, Laplace and Z transforms, sampling) and representations of linear, time-invariant systems (difference and differential equations, block diagrams, system functions, poles and zeros, convolution, impulse and step responses, frequency responses). Applications are drawn broadly from engineering and physics, including feedback and control, communications, and signal processing.

4.210 Precedents in Critical Practice (MIT)

Miljački, Ana — 2013-03-08T10:42:06+05:00

This course provides students with the opportunity to develop a map of contemporary architectural practice and discourse. The seminar examines six themes in terms of their recent history: city and global economy, urban plan and map of operations, program and performance, drawing and scripting, image and surface, and utopia and projection. Students will study buildings and read relevant texts in order to place recent architectural projects in disciplinary and cultural context.

CMS.801 Media in Transition (MIT)

Ravel, Jeffrey S. — 2013-03-04T14:34:10+05:00

This course centers on historical eras in which the form and function of media technologies were radically transformed. It includes consideration of the "Gutenberg Revolution," the rise of modern mass media, and the "digital revolution," among other case studies of media transformation and cultural change. Readings are in cultural and social history and historiographic method.

21A.801J Cross-Cultural Investigations: Technology and Development (MIT)

Paxson, Heather — 2013-03-01T14:54:18+05:00

This course enhances cross-cultural understanding through the discussion of practical, ethical, and epistemological issues in conducting social science and applied research in foreign countries or unfamiliar communities. It includes a research practicum to help students develop interviewing, participant-observation, and other qualitative research skills, as well as critical discussion of case studies. The course is open to all interested students, but intended particularly for those planning to undertake exploratory research or applied work abroad. Students taking the graduate version complete additional assignments.

2.S998 Marine Autonomy, Sensing and Communications (MIT)

Benjamin, Michael — 2013-02-28T10:19:22+05:00

This course covers basic topics in autonomous marine vehicles, focusing mainly on software and algorithms for autonomous decision making (autonomy) by underwater vehicles operating in the ocean environments, autonomously adapting to the environment for improved sensing performance. It will introduce students to underwater acoustic communication environment, as well as the various options for undersea navigation, both crucial to the operation of collaborative undersea networks for environmental sensing. Sensors for acoustic, biological and chemical sensing by underwater vehicles and their integration with the autonomy system for environmentally adaptive undersea mapping and observation will be covered. The subject will have a significant lab component, involving the use of the MOOS-IvP autonomy software infrastructure for developing integrated sensing, modeling and control solutions for a variety of ocean observation problems, using simulation environments and a field testbed with small autonomous surface craft and underwater vehicles operated on the Charles River.

15.279 Management Communication for Undergraduates (MIT)

Breslow, Lori — 2013-02-26T15:00:24+05:00

The goal of this course is to help students learn to communicate strategically within a professional setting. Students are asked to analyze their intended audience, the purpose of their communication, and the context in which they are operating before developing the message. The course focuses specifically on improving students’ ability to write, speak, work in a team, and communicate across cultures in their roles as future managers.

6.007 Electromagnetic Energy: From Motors to Lasers (MIT)

Bulovic, Vladimir — 2013-02-22T10:43:41+05:00

This course discusses applications of electromagnetic and equivalent quantum mechanical principles to classical and modern devices. It covers energy conversion and power flow in both macroscopic and quantum-scale electrical and electromechanical systems, including electric motors and generators, electric circuit elements, quantum tunneling structures and instruments. It studies photons as waves and particles and their interaction with matter in optoelectronic devices, including solar cells, displays, and lasers. The instructors would like to thank Scott Bradley, David Friend, Ta-Ming Shih, and Yasuhiro Shirasaki for helping to develop the course, and Kyle Hounsell, Ethan Koether, and Dmitri Megretski for their work preparing the lecture notes for OCW publication.

14.73 The Challenge of World Poverty (MIT)

Duflo, Esther — 2013-02-11T08:12:25+05:00

This is a course for those who are interested in the challenge posed by massive and persistent world poverty, and are hopeful that economists might have something useful to say about this challenge. The questions we will take up include: Is extreme poverty a thing of the past? What is economic life like when living under a dollar per day? Why do some countries grow fast and others fall further behind? Does growth help the poor? Are famines unavoidable? How can we end child labor—or should we? How do we make schools work for poor citizens? How do we deal with the disease burden? Is micro finance invaluable or overrated? Without property rights, is life destined to be "nasty, brutish and short"? Has globalization been good to the poor? Should we leave economic development to the market? Should we leave economic development to non-governmental organizations (NGOs)? Does foreign aid help or hinder? Where is the best place to intervene?

21H.134J Medieval Economic History in Comparative Perspective (MIT)

McCants, Anne — 2013-02-04T13:15:04+05:00

This course will survey the conditions of material life and changing social and economic conditions in medieval Europe with reference to the comparative context of contemporary Islamic, Chinese, and central Asian experiences. Subject covers the emergence and decline of feudal institutions, the transformation of peasant agriculture, living standards and the course of epidemic disease, and the ebb and flow of long-distance trade across the Eurasian system. Particular emphasis will be placed on the study of those factors, both institutional and technological, which have contributed to the emergence of capitalist organization and economic growth in Western Europe in contrast to the trajectories followed by the other major medieval economies.