Inquiry

Courses

INQ 102: Firefly

Class Program
Credits 3
Even though the television series was cancelled after only 12 episodes, Firefly lives on in the 2005 film, Serenity; in regularly published graphic novels; and in a fandom that is still active today. Therefore, this course will explore how Joss Whedon's Sci-Fi Western series (including the television show and its movie sequel) shows us evolving notions of community, family, leadership, gender, sociopolitical discourse, technology, knowledge, and censorship in the 21st century. You will be asked to examine not only the series itself but also the academic criticism surrounding it as well as intersections between the entertainment industry and fandom. Firefly raises interesting and complex questions that will engage your critical thinking skills as you contemplate correlations between technology, power, and knowledge; what it means to build a community and a family; and what it means to lead and be socially responsible.
 
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 103: Afrofuturism

Class Program
Credits 3

The course fosters critical thinking and engagement in diversity through discussion and instructional activities on Afrofuturism as history and philosophy. It promotes awareness and appreciation of African American culture through music, film, and literature such as Marvel's Black Panther, Kendrick Lamar, and science fiction short stories and poetry.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered every semester.

INQ 104: Why do we love Psychopaths?

Class Program
Credits 3
Why do we love psychopaths? We will begin by studying empathy, our ability to put ourselves in the shoes of others in an effort to understand how they see the world. Empathy plays an important role in facilitating our concern for the well-being of others. Almost everyone feels empathy—everyone, that is, except for psychopaths. We will then turn to studying the psychopathic personality, and we will investigate one of the puzzles of popular culture: Why do ordinary, empathetic people love psychopaths? Why is school-shooter Eric Harris a hero to many teenagers? Why do fans of crime fiction adore the sociopathic thief Parker? Why do moviegoers flock to see the emotionless James Bond? And why on earth would Hannibal Lecter be anybody’s idea of a good time?
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 105: Jazz Age

Class Program
Credits 3
"The uncertainties of 1919 were over - there seemed little doubt about what was going to happen - America was going on the greatest, gaudiest spree in history and there was going to be plenty to tell about it."
--F. Scott Fitzgerald
This course will be a survey of the historical events and extreme social upheaval during the period known as the Jazz Age. Students will examine the literature, art, music, and film of the decade to evaluate the tone of the era and attempt to better understand the decade of the "Lost Generation." Students will analyze this cultural explosion as reflected in advertising, the beginnings of mass communication, flappers, the changing roles of women and minorities, the Harlem Renaissance, politics, and, of course, Prohibition. Students will enhance critical reading, writing, and communication skills as they respond to class readings and discussions and generate questions for further study of the cultural and societal changes that shaped and defined the Jazz Age.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 106: Trailblazers and Torchbearers

Class Program
Credits 3
This course examines the role and contributions of women involved in three significant historic developments: the French Revolution (1789-1795), Nazi Germany (1933-1945), and the American Civil Rights Movement (1941-1965).
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 107: American Utopia

Class Program
Credits 3
This course will explore utopian America envisioned in the Declaration of Independence and reinforced in the Bill of Rights. Contemporary utopian and dystopian literature will be used as a lens through which major historical events such as Manifest Destiny, the Civil War, slavery, Vietnam, and the politics of personality. The ultimate question addressed will be the impact of past events on the wiliness or ability of America to achieve the vision of those who set this nation on the path of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 108: Tyranny & Utopia

Class Program
Credits 3
This course will explore the concepts of utopian thought, tyrannical practice, and dystopian society as they relate to both real-life and literary examples. Students will analyze the progression of events that led to the rise of the Third Reich in Nazi Germany, the People's Temple Massacre in Jonestown, Guyana, and the murders committed by the "Manson Family."
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 109: Monsters and Monstrosities

Class Program
Credits 3
This course examines the historical roles monsters and "the other" have played in various cultures and societies. Using a variety of disciplinary perspectives, students will examine how myth and folklore have developed and evolved in various cultures. The students will explore the historical origins of these tales and use them to interrogate questions concerning race, sex, disability, and spirituality in relation to the scary and taboo versus the accepted and "normal."
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 110: Everyday Life in American History

Class Program
Credits 3
This course examines aspects of everyday life in American history in three pivotal eras: 1) 1750-1800, during the late Colonial era, the American Revolution, and the Early National era; 2) 1860-1876, during the Civil War and Reconstruction era; and 1915-1945, during World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. Sample topics across all three eras include: Houses; Education and Work; Transportation; Arts and Entertainment; and Recreation and Sports.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 111: The Killers Among Us

Class Program
Credits 3
This course will be a seminar of America's most notorious serial killers, a review of their cases, the investigations and aftermath, and comparing the facts to the media portrayals of these killers in movies or television.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 112: The 1960s: Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n Roll

Class Program
Credits 3
An examination of the watershed decade of the 1960’s. The course will examine such topics as hippie/counterculture, the sexual revolution, the drug revolution, the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, and social protests. All of these elements will then be filtered through the music of the time.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 114: Finding Your Way into Your Future

Class Program
Credits 3
Finding Your Way into Your Future engages students personally by inviting them, through the means of a variety of intrapersonal and interpersonal reflective exercises to explore their feelings and thoughts about their various gifts and their personal prospects for the future and identify these in writing during the respective exercises.  At the same time, it will engage them intellectually by inviting them to explore the textual and online resources available in our library that can further inform them about different vocational opportunities and enable them to create their own guidebook to the study of a subject or subjects in which they have a personal and intellectual interest. In the process, students will be introduced to a variety of tools (including tools to enhance their ability to concentrate, manage their time, set priorities, and increase their fluency and self-care) that will help them build confidence in their prospects for the future.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 116: The Mind and the Matter

Class Program
Credits 3
There are a lot of misconceptions about how our brain works and how we learn. This course will look at how the brain processes information and about how school, media and our surroundings impact what we see and learn. The class will critically explore how we gain false assumptions about people, places and information and how we can develop the critical and analytical skills for today’s complex world.  Assignments will be interactive and based on media and written materials, the students will learn how the brain functions and have some assignments directly tied to learning how the brain records and stores information. Many assignments will be students exploring the world and investigating what is reality and what is perceived by our brain and through media and cultural assumptions. Assignments will include reflection and critical thinking.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 118: Life Through Sport

Class Program
Credits 3
Life through Sport is an investigation of personal growth through the premise of sports.  Students will examine how film and readings lead to exploration of personal growth and purpose while seeking to better understand one's responsibilities to themselves and others around them.  This course supports the goals of the College and the Inquiry Learning Outcomes by using sports as the vehicle to have students think critically about themselves and the world around them as well as develop communication as it relates to their personal growth.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 119: Kitchen Chemistry

Class Program
Credits 3
In recent years, the advent of molecular gastronomy has heightened the science of the kitchen and brought it into the mainstream. In this course, the chemical reactions that occur during food preparation will be discussed, as well as variations that appear in different regions around the world.
Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 120: Monuments of Music - Sacred Music

Class Program
Credits 3

This course explores iconic works of the Western Art Music tradition, including styles and forms encompassing the past 400 years: from the Baroque era through the Post-Modern/Contemporary era.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 121: Social Sciences at the Cinema

Class Program
Credits 3

In this course, students will focus on applying critical thinking skills by identifying sociological and psychological theories used in classic and recent film. Students will learn about and discuss core theories within the social sciences, such as theories of mental disorder and memory loss, as well as bystander effects and individuals' interaction with group membership, and then be responsible for watching film and determining which specific theories have been utilized. Students will also be responsible for writing their responses and analysis of the film in the form of writing assignment responses.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 122: Medical Terminology

Class Program
Credits 3

This course will be an application of medical terminology in a clinical setting. Throughout the course, students will examine the usage and meaning of medical terminology. Students may utilize television dramas, YouTube, Podcast, and other media offerings as a basis from which to extrapolate medical terminology. Medical terminology will be learned through the practical application of prefixes, root words, and suffixes to integrate and utilize these terms in a practical setting. Prior to the viewing, students will be informed and instructed in the various components of medical terminology with particular emphasis placed on the 16 organ systems. Students will develop a methodology for determining the meaning and proper usage of vocabulary.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 123: Is It Good to be King?

Class Program
Credits 3

"Is it Good to be a King?” is a course designed for students to explore the American societal fascination with the British monarchy beginning with the Tudor dynasty established by Henry VII (r. 1485-1509) and reaching to the reign of the current monarch, Charles III (r. 2022-present). Through readings and research, students will demonstrate critical thinking and communication skills in an effort to explain this fascination through topics such as (but not limited to) religious conformity vs. individual faith, scandal and the royal image, the struggle of tradition vs. modernization, public vs. private actions, responsibility in the era of social media.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 124: Discovering Chat GPT

Class Program
Credits 3

This course will explore the frontiers of artificial intelligence and develop critical thinking skills through an inquiry-based approach to ChatGPT, delving into its capabilities, ethical implications, and practical applications.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 125: Seven Deadly Sins

Class Program
Credits 3

From Gregory the Great to Captain Marvel comics, from Dante to David Fincher, one of the Western world's schema for understanding evil has been the Seven Deadly Sins. This class will examine the theoretical roots of the concept, and trace its application and development in literature, art, and culture from the early Middle Ages to our current era.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.

INQ 126: Physics of Sports

Class Program
Credits 3

This course attempts to draw on the general interest in sports at Newberry College and connect it with the fundamental science that all sports rely on, namely Physics. Examples will be provided by videos and practical exercises, such as video analysis of sporting scenarios that the students participate in planning and performing.

Core Tags
IQ
Semester Offered
Offered as needed.