no one else gave co a blog: class, ted

/daniel dennett
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here are some of the classes i plan to attend this semester:

History (628) - History of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States

Civil rights history from 1930-1970. Legal, historical and economic origins of the civil rights movement. Study of the movement's impact on United States culture, politics, and international relations.

Anthropology (104) - Cultural Anthropology and Human Diversity

Introduction to cultural anthropology for non-majors; comparative cross-cultural consideration of social organization, economics, politics, language, religion, ecology, gender, and cultural change. Includes 25% coverage of U.S. ethnic and racial minorities.

Religious Studies (374) - The Rhetoric of Religion

Rhetorical character of religious controversy and sectarian persuasion in Western religion.

Anthropology (641) - The Evolution of Human Diet

Diet as constrained by nutritional requirements throughout primate and human evolution. Topics covered: primate diets as models, diets of our primate and human ancestors, early agriculturalists, and modern gatherer-hunters.

Anthropology (321) - The Emergence of Human Culture

Worldwide archaeological evidence for the development of human culture and behavior from the earliest appearance of human groups to the threshold of the agricultural revolution.

(440) French Philosophy - Existentialism

History (221) - True Believers & Confidence Men-19th C Amer

Psychology (509) - Abnormal Psychology

History (600) - cia covert wars & foreign affairs

i am not taking this class because i don't understand what the point of it is:

no homework for me! seeing as how i've missed the first one i planned to go to (emergence of human culture), and i'm out at the terrace on a lovely day anywho, here's some interesting information regarding the topic.

here's what wiki has to say about culture:

Many people have an idea of "culture" that developed in Europe during the 18th and early 19th centuries. This notion of culture reflected inequalities within European societies, and between European powers and their colonies around the world. It identifies "culture" with "civilization" and contrasts it with "nature." Cultures are internally affected by both forces encouraging change and forces resisting change. These forces are related to both social structures and natural events, and are involved in the perpetuation of cultural ideas and practices within current structures, which themselves are subject to change.

hm. sounds a lot like meme talk. this calls for some ted videos.

daniel dennett - ants, terrorism, and the power of the meme

"get the facts, work out the implications. there's plenty of room for moral passion once we've got the facts and can figure out the best thing to do."

keith bellows - celebrating the camel (16:06)

ann cooper - reinventing the school lunch (19:42)

jonathan drori - why we don't understand as much as we think (14:38)

peter hirshberg - the web and tv, a sibling rivalry (31:40)

evelyn glennie - how to listen to music with your whole body (34:06)

richard dawkins - the strangeness of science (22:42)

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dictionary of the history of ideas, section m-n
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AND

these videos changed my life. not necessarily like changed it 180 degrees or made me want to be a monk, but altered the lenses through which i view and interpret the world. these ideas will make you think differently than you have before (if you allow them to). i can't make you watch these, but seriously, come on. watch them.

jeff hawkins - brain science is going to fundamentally change computer science (22:10)