FALL
2007 HONORS COURSES
HONR 217 Life, The Multiverse
and Everything: Developing an Individual
Cosmovision
Tuesday, 7:00-9:30 p.m. (0101)
Wednesday, 7:00-9:30 p.m. (0102)
Dr. John Carlson, Senior Lecturer in University Honors; Director, Center
for Archeoastronomy
All peoples, from hunter-gatherer bands to state-level
societies, develop some view of who and what they are and how they fit
into the universe as they perceive it. Each individual also has his
own unique evolving personal world-view or cosmovision created from
his or her cultural background and personal experiences. As the world
around us changes and we mature, our individual “cosmovisions” develop
into creative works in progress as unique as one’s own genome. The goal
of this seminar is to create a unique interactive learning experience
where the students and teacher consciously explore the process of “Developing
an Individual Cosmovision.”
Students will pursue their own developing personal cosmologies
in light of (1) our contemporary core “Western” scientific world-view
and (2) a selection of other ancient and indigenous cosmovisions for
comparison. Some of these other traditions to be explored in class and
through individual research might include those of the Maya or Aztecs
of ancient Mesoamerica, the Inca or Nazca peoples of Peru, and the Egyptians
or Chinese and their descendants. One central organizing concept is
that we will better understand our own cosmovisions if we learn about
the world-views of our ancestors as well as other cultures very far
removed from our own. As our world becomes more culturally diverse,
we meet and must work with people who come from very different backgrounds
from our own. In this course, we explore together some of the roots
of these difference,s which becomes a culturally enriching process.
In addition to the required readings and in-class discussions,
a vital part of this course involves the process of the students expanding
and editing their “personal cosmovision” essays based on what they are
learning, specifically incorporating a discussion of an “ancestral”
cosmology and how their own world-views might relate to those of their
ancestors. This requires outside research, as with a traditional student
research paper, of the world-view of either a hereditary (genetic) or
cultural ancestor of their choosing. The students are asked to decide
about what they think is “ancestral” to themselves. These expanded essays
are due near the end of the course. The seminar concludes with discussions
of life in the Universe and whether our Universe might be just one such
system in a vast, perhaps infinite “Multiverse,” a concept now receiving
considerable scientific interest in 21st-century physical cosmology.
Tentative selected readings list of texts that have
been used:
J.B. Carlson, America’s Ancient Skywatchers
Jared Diamond, The Third Chimpanzee
Ian Tattersall, The Monkey in the Mirror
E.C. Krupp, Skywatchers, Shamans and Kings
-----In Search of Ancient Astronomies
Martin Rees, Before the Beginning: Our Universe and Others
-----Our Cosmic Habitat
Various handouts and website reading assignments
CORE–Humanities [HO] Diversity [D]
