12 HNRS Courses You May Not Have Heard Of (But Should Take a Look At)

T TH 1:30-3:00 p.m., 200 French House and 1244 Patrick F. Taylor Hall
Professors: Craig Harvey and Ipsita Gupta

Note: Craig Harvey's section in 200 French House is designated as a CxC course.

This course will cover topics on the science of energy, energy sources and uses, and their place in society. It will educate students on critically evaluating energy issues for everyday life and decisions. Upon completion of the course, students will have an enhanced appreciation for: (1) The science of energy, (2) Energy sources and type, (3) Energy use, (4) Relevance of energy in everyday life, and (5) Energy decisions. The course is directed at freshman, sophomores, and others who have not been exposed to college level science courses. It aims to generate an understanding of energy science for informed decisions on energy issues.

T Th 9:00-10:30 a.m., 142 Atkinson Hall
Professor: James Spencer

Great for students pursuing a LASAL minor or Public Policy/Architecture majors!

The places we experience every day are a result of a complex web of policy and planning decisions made by various actors at different points in time.  Places reflect the values of the people who can them home.  This course examines how planning processes operate across different geographic and political scales – from small neighborhood initiatives to regional and state planning frameworks.  Students will study planning institutions and governance structures in Louisiana, exploring how coordination, conflict, and collaboration shape development and long-term resilience outcomes.

T TH 1:30-3:30 p.m., 120 Peabody Hall
Professor: Joy Blanchard

Study the history of campus free speech and expression. Do students have more rights than professors? How does the 1st Amendment apply to campus today?

T TH 1:30-3:00 p.m., 218 French House
Professor: Jennifer Cramer

Explore methods, theory, ethics, and practice of doing oral history with Louisiana Veterans. Examine cultural, institutional, and relational dimensions of military and veteran history and culture through the study of war literature, history, and individual experiences. Create primary documents to be archived jointly at the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History at LSU Libraries and the Library of Congress Veterans History Project experiences.

T TH 4:30-6:00 p.m., 2074 ECE Building
Professor: Sabrina Cervantez

In this course, we will discuss topics related to the History of Science in the nineteenth century with a focus on Britain. We will discuss scientific discoveries and technological advancements in various fields. We will also discuss the popular perception of scientific discoveries during the nineteenth century. Topics include geology, mathematics, medicine, chemistry, science fiction, and more!

M W 3:30-5:00 p.m., 200 French House
Professor: James Stoner

One of the most remarkable developments in political and moral philosophy in recent years has been the resurgence of interest in the ancient and medieval authors Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas.  Both wrote extensively on morals and politics, the latter offering detailed commentary on the former while adapting his work in light of the advent of the Christian faith; together they were attacked and rejected by many of the better-known philosophers of modern politics.  With the crises of modern regimes in the 20th century, however, the question arose whether the attacks were justified and the rejection premature.  In this course, we will read the two authors in turn, concentrating on their moral and political works, but paying attention as well to their treatment of physics, metaphysics, and what has come to be known as epistemology.  We will take seriously the classical texts themselves, but will also consider their meaning in the world today.

T TH 5:00-6:30 p.m., 109 Coates Hall
Professor: Daniel Felty

This honors seminar investigates one of the most fundamental questions in philosophy: what kind of thing is a human person? The course focuses on philosophical theories of the soul, the mind–body relationship, personal identity, and the possibility of survival after death. Students examine historically influential accounts: from Plato and Aristotle through Aquinas, Descartes, and Locke, alongside contemporary challenges from materialism and neuroscience.

Rather than surveying views at a distance, the course emphasizes close reading of primary philosophical texts, sustained discussion, and comparative argumentation. Students are expected to actively engage with competing models of the human person, reconstruct arguments charitably, and defend or critique positions through structured philosophical dialogue. No religious belief is presupposed; the course is grounded in philosophical reasoning and critical evaluation.

T TH 10:30-12:00 p.m., 203 French House
Professor: Pallavi Rastogi

This course examines the Bollywood blockbuster since the 1990s, a period marked by the global boom in Hindi cinema consumption. We will focus on how these movies combine high drama, low comedy, tear-jerker romance, lavish settings, and spectacular song-and-dance sequences to offer insight into life in a changing India and its growing diaspora. Through close analysis of iconic blockbusters such as “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge,” “Lagaan,” “Parineeta,” and “Kahaani,” we will consider how Bollywood’s extravagant music, choreography, and visual style represent, critique, and fantasize about reality. The course will also investigate how Bollywood aesthetics travel globally through crossover productions such as “Bend It Like Beckham” and “Polite Society.”

T TH 1:30-3:00 p.m., 220 French House
T TH 3:00-4:30 p.m., 221 French House
Professor: Herman Kelly

This course will survey the development of The Civil Rights Movement in America and its impact on present day society. In recent years people have developed an interest in The Civil Rights Movement. Many of the icons have left the scene and it is necessary to maintain the legacy. Between 1953 and 1968 there was an intense effort, employing a set of methods, aimed at a set of goals, and involving a wide array of groups, and charismatic leaders. This movement began with the bus boycott in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (McMickle: 238). This community was active in the Civil Rights era, and therefore this experience is important for students to understand and articulate the importance of this narrative called The History of The Civil Rights Movement. We will discuss and explore the Rhetorical Traditions of this movement and the persons and events that led to this historical movement in this country.

T TH 12:00-1:30 p.m., 130 Lockett Hall
Professor: Mark Wagner

This course will explore a range of issues surrounding sex and sexuality in the Arab world, including marriage, divorce, adultery, homosexuality, obscenity, rape, slave concubines, eunuchs, FGM, sex-change operations, contraception, abortion, and aphrodisiacs.

T 4:30-7:30 p.m., 126 Stubbs Hall
Professor: Wesley Shrum

How can we understand recent and future technological developments that promise to change the very nature of what it means to be human? The entities created by Artificial Intelligence may be compared and contrasted with the ways that humans have conceptualized unseen but often influential entities such as gods and ghosts, androids and cyborgs. Course topics include shamanism, the technologies of consciousness, witchcraft, magical beings, and the afterlife.

T TH 3:00-4:30 p.m., 237 Coates
Professor: Wonik Kim

We are increasingly living in a faster and smaller world. Globalization has radically changed our daily life for better or worse, so we must understand the nature of this gigantic transformation of social structures and cultural zones. Focusing on the politics of globalization, we will consider answers to critical questions:

• What is the essence of globalization?
• Are we converging into a world society?
• Is the nation-state becoming obsolete?
• How serious is the globalization backlash?
• Why populism everywhere?
• Are globalization and democracy contradictory with each other?
• How has globalization caused climate change?
• Are we all deranged?
• If globalization is transformative, what will be and should be a new world?
• What does it mean to be a citizen of the world? What is global justice?