LTA2022 The Speculative Genres: Horror, Sci-Fi and Fantasy Literature and Film
4 credit intermediate liberal artsIn this class, we examine the speculative genres, stories containing science fictional, gothic/horror, or fantastic qualities that are particularly invested in socio-political questions. Rather than resolutely celebrating a techno-scientific future, these stories engage audiences in difficult ethical and philosophical discussions: What does it mean to be human? What is the cost of progress? What does it take to imagine (and then create) a more equitable world? We discuss a range of texts, including essays by J. R. R. Tolkien and Ursula K. Le Guin; novels by Mary Shelley, Octavia Butler, Karen Tei Yamashita, Cormac McCarthy, and Margaret Atwood; short fiction by Keri Hulme, Carmen Maria Machado, W. E. B. Du Bois, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Ted Chiang; films such as Get Out, The Hunger Games, Black Panther, and Blade Runner; and tv such as Station 11 and The Rings of Power

Prerequisites: (AHS1000 or FCI1000) and (WRT1001 or RHT1000)

SEN1309 The T in LGBTQ: An Introduction to Transgender Studies

(Senior Instructor: Elizabeth Lin) This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to transgender studies. Introduction to Transgender Studies will be divided into three phases. First, the course will critically examine the interactive relationships between cultural/social institutions and individuals based on an understanding of non-normative gender identities, gender expressions, and sexualities. This first phase will take a deep dive into the institutionalized oppression faced by the transgender community in federal and state documentation, medicine, housing, employment, and incarceration. Next, student will look into how race, sexuality, and disability intersect with and impact trans individuals' lived experiences. In the final phase, students will focus on developing an understanding of allyship and what it means to be an ally to the transgender community.

Course Schedule:
Class 1 - Wednesday, January 28
Class 2 - Wednesday, February 4
Class 3 - Wednesday, February 11
Class 4 - Wednesday, February 18
Class 5 - Wednesday, February 25
Class 6 - Senior Seminar Showcase: Tuesday evening, 3/3 or Friday afternoon, 3/6. Details to be confirmed by first day of class.

EPS1210 The Ultimate Entrepreneurial Challenge
(Formerly EPS3510 and EPS3579)
4 CreditsThis highly competitive course, patterned after the Donald Trump TV show, The Apprentice, involves intense TEAM competition and problem solving. Students will elect CEOs, negotiate to acquire team members and compete for ten weeks to determine the ultimate winner. We have designed a learning experience that will develop and test your skills in strategy, marketing, negotiation, management, finance -- as well as creative, innovative, entrepreneurial thinking. Your learning experiences will primarily engage you in real world business cases, including when feasible interactions with the entrepreneurs that are the subjects of the cases, or practitioners who have relevant experiences and insights to share.

Our goal is to make this course one of the most challenging and rewarding learning experience for you during your time at Babson.

This course is typically offered in the following semesters: Fall

Prerequisites: FME1001 or MOB1000

HSS2010 The US in the World in the 20th Century
4 Intermediate Liberal Arts CreditsThis course explores the role of the United States throughout the world from 1900 to the present. We will investigate the people, institutions, and processes that influenced American diplomatic and military engagements, and analyze the impact and effectiveness of America's role. We will begin by exploring the emergence of America as an empire, and how American power and influence evolved and changed over the course of the century to the present day. We will explore America's role in shaping the Cold War, in particular in Latin American and the wars in Vietnam, as well as more recent engagements in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Africa.

Prerequisites: (FCI1000 or AHS1000) and (WRT1001or RHT1000)

PRF1120 Theater Production Workshop
2 Free Elective CreditsThis course will center on a major collaborative project undertaken jointly by all enrolled students (as well as some students involved in an extra-curricular capacity): the rehearsal and performance of a full-length play. In the professional theater world, every production is a considerable undertaking, requiring deep collaboration among a diverse ensemble, each bringing distinctive expertise to the project. Creating a theater production is not only a rigorous intellectual and aesthetic undertaking but also one that demands the development of leadership and collaboration skills. Whether you intend to pursue a career in the arts or not, the core skills developed through this experience will be highly relevant to any professional path.

Prerequisites: None

LTA2079 Theories of Love
4 Intermediate Liberal Arts CreditsWhat is love? Where does it come from, what does it ask of us, and how does it alter our minds, bodies, values, and relations? Are sex, friendship, and marriage necessary for love, or do they inhibit love's fullest expression? In this course, we will examine how influential writers have conceived and contested love's meanings across a range of cultural contexts. Focusing primarily on erotic love (erôs), we will consider how such meanings relate to notions of art, beauty, conjugality, legality, pleasure, sexuality, spirituality, and transgression, both in their original era and our own. Particular attention will be paid to differences of race, class, age, gender, and authority as incitements to, and/or impediments of, relations of love and eroticism.

Prerequisites: (FCI1000 or AHS1000) and (WRT1001or RHT1000)

THR4600 Contemporary Acting Techniques for the Stage: Building a Character
4 Advanced Liberal Arts CreditsEffective theatrical performance and communication begins with focused concentration, a free and active imagination, physical poise, and a controlled voice. In this course students will hone these skills as they read, analyze, and experiment with contemporary acting strategies and methods. Students' work on the stage will be guided and grounded by careful study and consideration of acting theory and history beginning with the work of Constantin Stanislavski and continuing with the methods of late 20th century and early 21st century practitioners and directors. By course's end students will not only have an understanding of the discipline and rigor required for successful performance but will also have a theoretical understanding and tools to create compelling and viable characters for the stage and for a public audience.

Prerequisites: 3 Intermediate liberal arts courses (CVA, LVA, HSS, CSP, LTA in any combination)

QTM3615 Time Series and Forecasting
4 Advanced Liberal Arts CreditsThis course is about the analysis of time series data in the context of various real-life forecasting situations pertaining to business and non-business areas, such as sales, banking, healthcare, sports, and global warming. The objectives of the course are: to provide practical experience with time series data to predict future outcomes; to provide a framework for comparing alternative models in terms of predictive accuracy; to cultivate an appreciation of various types of times series modeling approaches; to provide advanced exposure and experience in programming to build, test, and apply time series models; and to develop skills at communicating results effectively. The software used throughout the course will be Excel and R/RStudio. Effective teamwork and professional presentation of analyses and recommendations will be required during this course.

Prerequisites: AQM2000 or QTM2000 or permission from instructor

SCN3601: Triumphs and Trials of the Pharmaceutical Industry

4 advanced liberal arts credits

In 2022, the US pharmaceutical market was valued at over $1.2 trillion, forecasted to reach more than $2 trillion dollars by the year 2025. Bringing a new drug or therapeutic agent to the market is a complex process that can take upwards of a decade with a hefty price tag upwards of $2 billion dollars. The United States pharma industry spends about $60 billion yearly on drug research and development, generating approximately half of the $1.2 trillion market. As a result of this significant investment, the pharma industry has made great strides in the treatment of many diseases and developed therapies that have changed the world, including the development of antibiotics to treat infection and drugs like insulin, which have saved hundreds of thousands of lives Research, technological advances and development have led to new and innovative approaches to treat cancer, has reduced HIV infection from a 100% mortality rate to a chronic illness in the US and led to the development of a vaccine against COVID19 in record time. Despite making many significant scientific strides, public opinion of the industry is lower than ever before. It has been plagued with controversy after controversy about questionable practices including intellectual property arguments, skyrocketing costs, exorbitant executive payouts and inequitable vaccine access across the world. Additionally, a seemingly arbitrary drug pricing system and the indisputable role the pharma industry played in the opioid crisis, have fed into the significant public relations problem the industry currently faces. This course will focus on real world considerations that drive both the good and the bad of the pharmaceutical industry. We will discuss the triumphs and challenges that occur in bringing a drug from bench to bedside, and explore some of the questionable practices that have been connected to the industry. We will discuss the process and impacts of new drug development, translational medicine, and drug pricing models, investigating the ethics of balancing patient access, scientific innovation and the sustainability of a complex and often inefficient system. By the end of this course, students will appreciate the complexity of drug development system and understand the critical scientific and ethical challenges the pharmaceutical industry faces in bringing a drug to market.

Prerequisites: Any NST1XXX course