Jun 03, 2024  
2017-2018 Graduate Catalog 
    
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2017-2018 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Course Descriptions

 

Geography and Environmental Systems
  

  • GES 605 - Applied Landscape Ecology

    This course applies the tools of landscape ecology, including GIS, remote sensing, aerial photography and landscape classification, to explore the spatial patterning of ecological processes across landscapes at different scales. Hands-on lab and field exercises will develop understanding and skills necessary for students to plan and conduct their own investigations of landscape pattern, process, and change in local and regional landscapes in collaboration with the instructor. Prerequisites: GEOG 305 and 386 or permission of instructor. NOTE: The course includes 4 full day Saturday field trips, scheduling to be arranged. Students enrolling for graduate credit are required to design and execute an original research project relating to their Thesis or Dissertation work.
  

  • GES 606 - Aquatic Ecology

    [4]
    Students enrolled in this course will gain a thorough knowledge of the local aquatic biota and their habitats. Emphasis in this lab/field-based course will be placed on the interaction between physical, chemical and biological processes occurring in aquatic ecosystems. Students will learn how to collect, analyze, and interpret ecological information by working in teams to conduct a research project.
  

  • GES 608 - Field Ecology

    [4]
    Students enrolled in this course will gain an appreciation for the modern scope of scientific inquiry in the field of ecology. A major goal is for the students to become familiar with how organisms interact with each other and their natural environment by understanding the structure and function of different types of local ecosystems. Students will learn field collection techniques, as well as how to organize, analyze, present and interpret ecological information. This class includes both lecture and laboratory sessions.
  

  • GES 610 - Atmospheric Science

    [3]
    This course provides a rigorous survey of advanced concepts in atmospheric science including: Thermodynamics, radiative transfer, chemistry, cloud microphysics, dynamics, mid-latitude weather systems, boundary layer and climate processes. The emphasis is on developing a conceptual understanding of the various physical processes at work in the atmosphere and their linkage with other planetary systems such as the hydrosphere, cryosphere and biosphere. The course will provide a synthesis of underlying principles for the graduate student who desires a concise, modern understanding of how the atmosphere functions within the larger Earth system. The course is also suitable for those wishing to pursue more advanced work in physical geography and/or specialized topics in meteorology such as PHYS 621 /PHYS 622 , PHYS 721 /PHYS 722 , and PHYS 731 /PHYS 732 .
    Prerequisite: Prerequisites: Introductory Calculus and College-Level Physics.
  

  • GES 611 - Fluvial Geomorphology

    [3]
    This course focuses on watershed processes associated with the evolution of river systems and with sculpture of the earth’s surface by running water. Topics covered include the principles of flow in river channels; erosion and sedimentation; dynamics of sediment transport; morphometry of drainage networks; depositional and erosional features associated with the development of river channels and floodplains; the geometry and statistical properties of channel cross-section, longitudinal profile and planform patterns; the dynamics of channel and floodplain response to environmental change; spatial and temporal variability of fluvial processes and landforms; and anthropogenic modification of the fluvial system. Prior coursework in geomorphology or hydrology preferred but waived for graduate students with other strong science background. Introductory physics and calculus required.
  

  • GES 612 - Biogeochemical Cycles and the Global Environment

    [3]
    This course explores the chemistry and cycling of elements across the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, with special emphasis on human-induced changes in biogeochemistry that are driving global warming, ocean acidification, acid rain, ozone depletion, water pollution, and nutrient saturation of freshwater, estuarine and coastal environments. Basic biogeochemical processes will be introduced and then integrated to explain the global cycles of water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur and how these are changed by human activities. Students enrolling for graduate credit are required to design an original research project relating to their Thesis or Dissertation work.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisites: GES 110, 111 or 120, CHEM 102, and GES 308 or BIOL 301, or permission of instructor.
  

  • GES 613 - Advanced Biogeography Seminar

    [3]
    This course will focus on specific topics relevant to the field of biogeography and will include such topics as: phylogeographpy, paleobiogeography, invasive species, island biogeography, diversification and biodiversity, linguistic biogeography and so on. The areas covered in any semester will vary according to recent developments in the field and based on the interests of the students and faculty. The course will include lecture material, relevant scientific papers for discussion, and written and oral presentations by students of reports on selected topics. When appropriate, there will also be field trips to area organizations and agencies as well as parks and reserves to illustrate examples of processes and methods studied and utilized by biogeographers.
  

  • GES 616 - Physical Hydrology

    [4]
    Provides an introduction to quantifying the components of the hydrologic cycle ’ precipitation, evaporation, transpiration, infiltration, runoff, stream flow, and groundwater flow. Emphasis is on quantifying flow and storage in watersheds, including temporal and spatial patterns. Appropriate field and laboratory tests used to measure hydrologic processes and mechanistic and statistical models for data evaluation and interpretation are presented.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisites: Calculus; probability and statistics.
  

  • GES 618 - Agricultural Evolution

    [3]
    This course will pursue in depth the field of agricultural evolution of both plant and animal species. Topics that will be covered in this course include: centers of origin, models of domestication, artificial selection, the domestication syndrome, agricultural development, human ecology of agriculture, germplasm management in traditional and conventional farming systems, and germplasm conservation. The course will involve the critical reading and discussion of the relevant research literature and the preparation of one or more papers on specific issues or topics. On occasion, there will also be field trips to visit farms and research institutions to further illustrate the course themes. This course will be relevant to students pursuing research on agricultural evolution, international agricultural development, plant and animal breeding, cultural ecology, human ecology, invasive species, and conservation.
  

  • GES 621 - Water in the Urban Environment

    [3]
    This course will focus on the environmental, engineering, economic, and policy aspects of water management in urban areas and will address the impacts of urban development on hydrology, geomorphology, water quality and aquatic ecology. The course is team-taught by faculty from Geography and Environmental Systems, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Economics, and Public Policy. There will be several field trips outside of regularly scheduled class time.
  

  • GES 622 - Research Design for the Urban Environment

    [3]
    This course addresses topics intended to answer the following: What are valid and feasible research questions for different kinds of projects? What are the assumptions, conceptual models and research approaches associated with different disciplinary perspectives? What are the key requirements for successful interdisciplinary research? What themes and trends will be important in the near future in interdisciplinary environmental research focusing on urban environment and water resources? Students will work individually and as members of interdisciplinary teams to present case studies, analyze journal articles and grant proposals, educate other students about their own disciplinary perspective, terminology, and methods, and develop research plans in response to an example RFP addressing an urban water-related problem. Each team will prepare written documents and will present and defend its work to the class.
  

  • GES 623 - Modeling and Spatial Statistics with Applications to the Urban Environment

    [3]
    The goal of this course is to provide students with knowledge of mathematical models for the urban environment from various disciplinary perspectives, and how such models might be coupled to address urban water problems. Simple models from the fields of environmental contaminant transport, economics and ecology will be used as examples. Material covered will include time series analysis and geostatistical anaylsis of spatially distributed data in the physical, biological, and social sciences. The course will highlight challenges of the interdisciplinary perspective, including (1) space and time scales of concern to different disciplines; (2) issues with uncertainty in data and models; and (3) examples of models that are available to the different disciplines. The course will include hands-on exercises and the challenge for students to combine models from different disciplines.
  

  • GES 624 - Environmental Justice

    [3]
    This course is designed to engage students with the theoretical debates, case studies, and real-world practice of environmental justice (EJ). EJ concerns the equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens across diverse communities, and the grassroots activism of communities who live with environmental inequities. The course focuses particularly on US-based EJ issues related to human health. It is designed as a four-credit field course that includes a community-based learning component. We will meet in Baltimore at least once every other week.
  

  • GES 628 - Scientific Practice and Environmental Policy

    [3]
    This course studies the relationship between science and environmental policy. Class examines the social process by which scientific consensus emerges and the ways in which environmental policy is affected by the practices of scientists. We will also explore how unsettled scientific disputes inform concrete policy making goals, and how the policy-making process, in turn, shapes scientific research. Intersections of science and policy that we will explore include: climate science and climate change policy; ecosystem science and conservation policy; and the role of citizen science and lay expertise in resolving policy disputes.
  

  • GES 629 - Graduate Seminar in Geography of Disease and Health

    [3]
    This course will engage students in advanced study of environmental and geographical perspectives on health and disease, focusing particularly on the ways health knowledge interacts with society, space, and politics. The course focuses on environmental justice, political ecology of disease, public health policy, pollution law, and historical change in landscapes and medical paradigms, The primary focus is on the US context, but with some attention to international and global health issues.
  

  • GES 634 - Wildlife Law and the Endangered Species Act

    [3]
    The 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA) is arguably the most controversial of U.S. environmental laws. The course combines science, policy and legal history, philosophy and contemporary politics in an integrative approach to understand and analyze the natural resource problem of threatened and endangered species in the U.S. The course covers the evolution of wildlife law from feudal Europe to the present, conflicts over state vs. federal powers, the emergence of wildlife and natural history literature, changing attitudes towards wildlife in the 20th century, and the concept of extinction.
  

  • GES 636 - Global Environmental Change

    [3]
    This course explores international dimensions of environmental issues. We examine the global dimensions of emerging economic, cultural, and political processes and their effects on issues of conservation, pollution, and natural resource management. We will explore the ways in which environmental degradation is closely linked with issues of economic development and the implications of these linkages for addressing environmental issues. We will also examine transnational actors such as finance capital, international NGOs, global corporations, and international governance bodies such as the United Nations, and their various roles in producing, and responding to, environmental problems. Specific environmental issues that will be covered include climate change, food security, water provisioning, environmental security, population growth, waste management, and urban growth.
  

  • GES 640 - Seminar in Urban Geography

    [3]
  

  • GES 651 - Seminar in Urban Sustainability

    [3]
    Students will be exposed to cutting-edge literature in Urban Sustainability, and conduct an original research project integrating the concept of sustainability with human and physical geographies of urban places. Possible topics include urban development and energy consumption, land-use change, or the influence of climate change on environmental issues facing urban places. Research projects focused on environmental justice and equitable urban form are encouraged, but not required. Readings and in-class discussion will support the topical foci of student projects and develop students’ research, writing, and presentation skills.
  

  • GES 662 - Spatial Analysis of Coupled Human-Environmental Systems

    [3]
    This course will focus on the use of GIS in analyzing social and environmental systems that constitute complex human-environmental systems. Specific dimensions of environmental and social sustainability such as land use, transportation, economic development, environmental justice, etc., will then be explored in detail. Spatial analysis skills focused on environmental processes and social contexts will be developed through in-class exercises. These exercises and discussions are designed to enhance the students’ understandings of the planning process and of the complexities of applying the concept of sustainability in the real world. The course will end with a student-defined research project. Projects with an urban focus are encouraged, but not required.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisite: GES 386 or GES 686 
  

  • GES 670 - Advanced Seminar in GIS

    [3]
    This course provides a geographic foundation vital to effective spatial systems development and an introduction to common geospatial tools including ESRI’s ArcGIS and Google Earth. A range of topics are introduced and discussed through student projects, presentations, and guest lecturers.
  

  • GES 671 - Spatial Database and System Design

    [3]
    Students are introduced to the process of spatial database development from data modeling to database implementation in an enterprise environment. Students also learn about database diagramming techniques (e.g., UML), spatial data formats and storage options, database query languages (e.g., SQL), and installation of spatial database software.
  

  • GES 673 - Geoprocessing and Spatial Analysis

    [3]
    This course covers the manipulation and analysis of geospatial data, and focuses on automated approaches to geographic feature overlay, feature selection and analysis, topology processing, raster processing, and data conversion. This course also addresses the role of geoprocessing and spatial analysis in the definition, management, and analysis of information used to form decisions.
  

  • GES 675 - GIS Application Development I

    [3]
    This course provides a working knowledge of desktop GIS application development to help students understand the logic and structures of programming languages, most notably Visual Basic .NET. A feature of this course is students’ ability to conduct applications needs assessments, diagram application logic, develop basic applications, and deploy desktop applications within an enterprise GIS.
  

  • GES 678 - Project Management of the Enterprise GIS

    [3]
    This capstone course involves advanced study and application of structured analysis and design methods throughout the GIS life cycle. The course stresses common approaches for gathering requirements, modeling, analyzing and designing geographic information systems. The course employs the case method of instruction.
  

  • GES 679 - Professional Seminar on the Geospatial Technologies

    [1]
    These professional seminars expose students to the diversity of issues, applications, and developments in the industry. Seminars focus on a specific topic or issue of import to the geospatial industry or professional practice. Each student enrolls in three Professional Seminars over the course of their program.
  

  • GES 681 - Remote Sensing of Environment

    [3]
    This course is an introduction to image analysis and interpretation for mapping/monitoring the earth’s surficial environments from multispectral satellite images. Lectures will cover advanced topics in theories and principles of environmental remote sensing. Laboratory exercises will provide hands-on experience in the use of computers and software for image analysis, interpretation, and classification applied to multispectral satellite image data. Environmental applications include wetland delineation, forest mapping, and land use land cover, and urban sprawl analysis.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
  

  • GES 685 - Field Methods in Geography and Environmental Systems: Environmental Mapping of Local Landscapes

    [3]
    Students in this course gain hands-on experience with field methods for landscape ecology, including sampling, mapping and spatial analysis of soils, vegetation, soil organisms, stream hydrology, and land use patterns in local landscapes using GIS, GPS, imagery, and other techniques. The class will meet one session each week and six full-day Saturday sessions: scheduling to be arranged. Students will work in teams and prepare final projects that will be presented as scientific posters and on the web. Students enrolling for graduate credit are required to design an original research project relating to their Thesis or Dissertation work.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisites: GES 386 (GIS) , and at least one 300-level physical geography course, or permission of instructor.
  

  • GES 686 - Introduction to Geographic Information Systems

    [4]
    This course covers the basic concepts and principles of Geographic Information Systems, data models, data structures, applications, and technical issues. Lab will focus on how these basic principles are implemented in a GIS. These include an entire sequence of building spatial databases: data capture, editing, adding attributes, building topology, registering layers to real- world coordinates, making map compositions, data conversion, and basic analysis available in a vector-based GIS.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
  

  • GES 687 - Advanced Applications of Geographic Information Systems

    [3]
    This is an advanced GIS course covering advanced applications of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and is intended for students who have already acquired an introductory knowledge of the field. The course places a strong emphasis on building hands-on skills as well as advanced theoretical knowledge in spatial analysis. The topics includes the theory and methods based on prior knowledge, skills, and interests of students in the following areas: geospatial ontologies, spatial pattern analysis, advanced raster processing, spatial interpolation and geostatistics, database design and systems, dynamic GIS modeling, and computational geometry and mathematical techniques used in GIS.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
  

  • GES 688 - Seminar in Geography and Environmental Systems

    [1]
    This is a 1-credit seminar that may be offered by department faculty on any topic of special interest. Students will met with the faculty member once each week to discuss key concepts and methods as presented in the scholarly literature. May be repeated for credit and may be offered in multiple sections concurrently.
  

  • GES 689 - Department Seminar

    [1]
    Invited speakers will make presentations on current research topics. All graduate students are required to enroll in Department Seminar for credit as described in the curriculum requirements for the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. May be repeated for credit.
  

  • GES 691 - Directed Study in GES

    [1-3]
    Individual instruction course: contact department or instructor for permission to enroll. May be repeated for credit up to a maximum of 6 credits.
  

  • GES 700 - Special Topics

    [3]
    This course is provided to allow flexibility in offering graduate-level work in Geography and Environmental Systems not found elsewhere in the course offerings. The topic will be announced prior to the semester when it will be offered. Instructor and topics will rotate each semester.
  

  • GES 701 - Introduction to Geography and Environmental Systems

    [3]
    This course is a graduate-level introduction to the principles underlying human and environmental systems, and to applying a geographic approach to studying these systems. Guiding theories of human geography, physical geography and environmental science will be introduced through detailed examination of cross-cutting multidisciplinary issues including natural hazards and human vulnerability, the management of water resources and fossil fuels, and global environmental changes such as the recent atmospheric-oceanic warming trend and land-use/land-cover change. Within these topics, specific theories guiding geographic and environmental research will be covered in depth, including spatial analysis, critical geographic theory, postmodern social theories and political ecology. Important theories governing the functioning of environmental systems will be presented. This includes the cycling of mass and energy between Earth’s various spheres and the theory of Earth as a dynamic system seeking equilibrium in the face of multiple perturbations both natural and anthropogenic.
  

  • GES 702 - Research Methods for Geography and Environmental Systems

    [3]
    This course is designed to provide graduate students with a clear understanding of past and present methodology associated with spatial, temporal, and dynamic research in geography and environmental systems. The primary focus of the course will be on the development of research questions and how to utilize various types of analysis to answer these questions and further fields of inquiry.
  

  • GES 708 - Advanced Ecology

    [3]
    The objectives in the course are to provide a survey of the historical and current ideas that have created community ecology and to critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each idea in order to gain an understanding of the factors that generate and limit biodiversity. Upon successful completion of this course, students will practice critical thinking, gain an appreciation of the history of the field, and obtain a sense of the future trajectory of community ecology. Students will be expected to demonstrate a synthetic and practical mastery of the subject by critically discussing the literature and through quantitative analysis of ecological datasets.
  

  • GES 770 - Special Topics in Enterprise GIS

    [3]
    This course is reserved for topics that are not otherwise covered in the set of courses listed in the graduate catalogue. May be repeated for credit (as long as the topic is different) and may be offered in multiple sections concurrently.
  

  • GES 771 - Advanced Spatial Data Management

    [3]
    This course extends students’ engagement with spatial database development and covers best practices for managing vector and raster data, complex data production workflows, spatial database maintenance, and enterprise integration.
    Prerequisite: Prerequisite: Spatial Database and System Design.
  

  • GES 772 - Geospatial Web Services and Interoperability

    [3]
    This course focuses on the key web technologies used for publishing and orchestrating web services. Topics covered include proprietary and open-source tools, network communications protocols, industry standardization efforts, and the overarching system design principle of services-oriented architecture (SOA). Students will develop a number of web-delivered data, visualization, analysis, and application services over the course of the semester using ArcGIS Server, SOAP, XML, GML, Google Earth/KML, Microsoft Virtual Earth, and IBM WebSphere. Issues of data interoperability are examined via case-method learning.
  

  • GES 773 - GIS Modeling Techniques

    [3]
    This course addresses the concepts, tools, and techniques of GIS modeling, and presents modeling concepts and theory as well as provides opportunities for hands-on model design, construction and application. The focus is given to model calibration and validation.
  

  • GES 774 - Spatial Statistics

    [3]
    This course investigates statistical techniques for exploring and characterizing spatial phenomena. The course covers local/global cluster analysis, spatial autocorrelation, interpolation, kriging, as well as exposure to prominent GIS statistical packages. An emphasis is placed on exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) to develop spatial cognition and analytical skills with practical applications to modeling spatial phenomena in computer environments.
  

  • GES 775 - Advanced GIS Application Development

    [3]
    The course enables students to understand the logic and structures of coding languages, most notably JAVA. A feature of the course is students’ ability to conduct applications needs assessments, diagram application logic, develop basic applications, and deploy Web-based applications with an enterprise GIS.
  

  • GES 776 - GIS Data Sources, Tasking, and Acquisition

    [3]
    In this course, the myriad sources of spatially-referenced and non-spatially-referenced data are examined. Raster, vector, and socio-economic data sources are explored including sensor networks, aerial and satellite-based collection systems, GPS, and data conversion planning. Particular attention is paid to the development of a framework within which students may judge the value of third-party geospatial data to the enterprise GIS.
  

  • GES 777 - Advanced Data Modeling and Editing Techniques

    [3]
    This course provides students with the concepts and skills required to automate and maintain GIS feature data. It focuses on the automation of data workflow, editing processes, coordinate system reconciliation, the maintenance of topology, and the creation and maintenance of metadata. Advanced data modeling is investigated including feature-based and rule-base topology, and custom object development.
  

  • GES 778 - Advanced Visualization and Presentation

    [3]
    Web technologies are providing increasingly sophisticated environments for visualization of spatial data. This course explores advanced techniques for visualizing multivariate and multidimensional data. Topics include advanced cartographic techniques, 3D and virtual environment development, dynamic data update, and temporal modeling.
  

  • GES 799 - Master’s Thesis Research

    [2-9]
  

  • GES 898 - Pre-candidacy Doctoral Research

    [3-9]
    This research course is designated for Ph.D., students who need to enroll in research credits but who have not yet advanced formally to candidacy.
  

  • GES 899 - Doctoral Dissertation Research

    [9]

    Research on doctoral dissertation is conducted under direction of faculty advisor.
    Prerequisite: Admission to Doctoral Candidacy Required
    Note: A minimum of 18 credit hours are required. This course is repeatable.

     

Gerontology
  

  • GERO 672 - Issues in Aging Policy

    [3]
    This is an upper-level undergraduate or introuductory graduate course on issues in aging policy. It provides an overview of the salient issues in aging policy and provides the student with a context for understanding the public policy process. The course will provide basic information and knowledge that will be useful to the student in more advanced policy-related studies in aging and health.
    Note: Also listed as SOCY 672 .
  

  • GERO 681 - Epidemiology of Aging

    [3]
    This core course covers applications of the principle and methods of epidemiology and preventive medicine to the study of aging. There is a review of health assessment techniques that are potentially useful for conducting epidemiological studies of older people; the epidemiology of selected diseases common to old age; primary, secondary and tertiary prevention, as applied to older people, focusing on psycho-social and environmental aspects of health; and differing ideas of long-term care and its role in the prevention, intervention and treatment of illness in older people. Students learn how to evaluate and present research in a specific area of gerontological epidemiology with faculty supervision.
    Note: Also listed as PREV 681.
  

  • GERO 700 - Sociocultural Gerontology

    [3]
    A required advanced interdisciplinary seminar addressing the fundamental concepts, theories and interests of social scientific inquiry on aging and the aged. Topics include: social demographic aspects of aging in the United States and elsewhere; the cultural contexts of age as a basis for social status, stratification and social organization; societal change and aging; the history and development of social scientific theory and methodology in gerontology.
  

  • GERO 703 - Policy Analysis of Aging Issues

    [3]
    This required core course will help students understand how and why aging policies reflect the political system in which they are enacted and implemented. Further, students will learn how research can inform and possibly transform the policy process.
  

  • GERO 711 - Biology of Aging

    [3]
    This course provides opportunities to learn about several aspects of biological aging. They include what it is; how it happens; what effects it has on the structure and operations of the human body; how it affects social, psychological and other aspects of life; how it is related to diseases; and what can be done about it.
  

  • GERO 742 - Economics of Aging

    [3]
    The main objective of this course is to provide students with the basic tools necessary to understand, critique and evaluate alternatives to issues in aging that have economic implications. The course is divided into four main sections. The first part of the course familiarizes students with tools used in microeconomic analysis. This section will also provide students with necessary computer related activities to obtain and process data for economic/policy analysis. The second part of the course will focus on understanding issues at the macro level. Accordingly, this part will address the nature and magnitude of the current issues, implications of these issues for the future and issues that need to be addressed to increase income and health security in old age. The third part of the course will examine the circumstances under which current programs such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other related welfare programs that address economic and health security in old age were implemented, their performance under current circumstances and issues related to their continuation. The final part of the course is designed to view issues discussed in prior units through an aging or life-course perspective that emphasizes the impact of events and issues in younger ages on income and health security in old age.
  

  • GERO 750 - Gerontology Theory/Methods Seminar I

    [3]
    The first of a two-semester sequence integrating theory and methods in gerontology. The course provides students with the information and skills to think like a gerontologist, using both theory and methods unique to the field and understanding the language and techniques used by a wide range of gerontological researchers. Students completing this sequence will be able to approach problems from an interdisciplinary perspective, “speak the language” of gerontology across disciplinary barriers of jargon, employ the work of contributing disciplines in their own research and work as part of an interdisciplinary research team.
  

  • GERO 751 - Gerontology Theory and Methods Seminar II

    [3]
    The second of a two-semester sequence integrating theory and methods in gerontology. The course provides students with the information and skills to think like a gerontologist. Key to these understandings is reading, evaluating and understanding the connections between research questions, theory and appropriate methods of research. Application of critical thinking skills and being able to bridge both linguistic and methodological variations in an interdisciplinary field are emphasized. Students completing this sequence will be able to employ the work of contributing disciplines in their own research, produce a “real world” proposal for research and work as part of an interdisciplinary research team.
  

  • GERO 786 - Psychological Aspects of Aging

    [3]
    A core course that examines psychological and biological changes associated with aging. The topics of the course include theories of aging, research methods of aging, learning, memory, intelligence and problemsolving, personality, stress and coping with illness. Emphasis is placed on the contribution of longitudinal studies to understanding the individual aging process.
    Note: Also listed as PSYC 786 .
  

  • GERO 798 - Special Topics in Gerontology

    [1-3]
  

  • GERO 801 - Independent Study

    [1-3]
    The student selects a topic of professional interest and studies with a graduate faculty member who is competent in that field. Students will investigate issues related to the elderly in-depth.
  

  • GERO 898 - Pre-Candidacy Doctoral Research

    [3-9]
    Research on doctoral dissertation conducted under the direction of a faculty advisor before candidacy.
  

  • GERO 899 - Doctoral Dissertation Research

    [9]

    Research on doctoral dissertation is conducted under direction of faculty advisor.
    Prerequisite: Admission to Doctoral Candidacy Required
    Note: A minimum of 18 credit hours are required. This course is repeatable.

     
  

  • GERO 8800 - Doctoral Special Study

    [1]

Health Information Technology
  

  • HIT 640 - Health IT Text Processing

    [3]

    This course provides an introduction to programming, text processing, and biomedical knowledge extraction for the health informatics professional. Students will gain the skills necessary to implement Perl based solutions to Health IT problems and bio-medical (BMI) research challenges. This course not only teaches programming, scripting and text processing, but also provides an understanding of the broader context regarding how these programming techniques are deployed to address Health IT/BMI challenges. This course teaches the programming interface and the techniques that can be used to write scripts and applications in Perl as well as provide an understanding how Perl is used to address BMI challenges and contribute to the core competencies associated with good BMI practice. This course also covers advanced concepts and capabilities, including object-oriented features, file and network I/O, and database interfaces. Upon completion, students will be able to use Perl techniques and commands to write scripts to perform various user and administrative tasks, and to utilize advanced features of the language. Student will also be able to articulate an understanding of how Perl is used in real Health IT/BMI use cases. As an end of course project students will implement, evaluate and refine a solution to explore biomedical data.

     
  

  • HIT 658 - Health Informatics -1

    [3]

    This course is a graduate-level course which will touch upon areas of healthcare including, but not limited to healthcare informatics, health information technology (commonly referred to as Health IT or HIT) and healthcare. The expectation is for students to become familiar, if not already, with these areas and how they intersect with the broader establishments of healthcare, research and business. The course is the first of a two part series of courses (Healthcare Informatics ¿ II) focused on scoping the interdisciplinary nature of health informatics. The course will touch upon how people, organizations, healthcare and the use of technology are coming together to create this fairly new field and its impact on our drastically changing healthcare system.

     
  

  • HIT 663 - Health IT Policy and Administration

    [3]
    This course provides a comprehensive overview on the policy and administration of health information technology. Students will develop an understanding of the management principles in the American health care delivery system, including the roles of patients, third party insurance payers, health care professionals, and governmental entities. Central to this course will be an examination of key health care policy in the US, specifically those related to health IT, which have impacted and shaped health care management and health informatics. The course will focus on the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act and associate initiatives and regulations, HIPAA, Stark, and others. These policies will be discussed in the context of broader health reform efforts. The course will begin with a brief overview of the health care delivery systems and key players in order to provide context for course discussion. Through a group project, students will learn policy analysis and development principles and make a final presentation of a health IT policy solution.
  

  • HIT 664 - Health IT Law and Ethics

    [3

    This course provides an overview of the United States legal construct and system, including an emphasis on important legal procedures and principles affecting health information technology and management. The course also covers the ethical issues involved in health information technology and management. The student will learn how to think through legal problems consistent with ethical norms, and how to analyze business risks in light of operative legal constructs. Students will study ethical and legal considerations related to health information technology from several, varying perspectives, including those of consumers, providers, payers, and researchers. Students will work in groups during certain exercises, role play in real and hypothetical case studies, and make a final presentation of a comprehensive legal and ethical health IT problem as their course project.

     
  

  • HIT 674 - Process and Quality Improvement with Health IT

    [3]

    This course provides an overview of quality measurement and process improvement as they relate specifically to the health care industry. The course will focus on the tools, techniques, and resources available to health care professionals through effective use of health IT. Students will learn how to create quality benchmarks, gather data, and analyze results. They will learn how to design specific processes that directly address analytic findings and have the potential to improve outcomes. Students will understand a variety of implementation strategies for new processes, and be able to use health IT and other tools to measure the overall effectiveness. They will also learn how to prioritize improvement efforts across complicated business and practice systems. Students will work in groups during certain exercises, explore real and hypothetical case studies, and make a final presentation of an improvement process and implementation which utilizes health IT as their course project.

     
  

  • HIT 722 - Exploration of Clinician Information Needs

    [3]
    This course offers students the opportunity to learn the domain knowledge necessary to understand information needs that arise for clinicians. Students will examine research on the topic of “clinician information needs”, with particular relation to needs that occur while using clinical information systems. We will also examine methodologies for identifying, and resolving, information needs. The course will focus on emerging technology for decision support, including ¿infobuttons¿, which are context-aware links from any application to some on-line information resource. In particular, when they are placed in electronic health records (EHRs) they are considered by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology to be a form of ¿meaningful use¿ of the EHR. An infobutton can be as simple as a link from a drug order entry application to a relevant drug monograph or as complex as an expert system that extracts relevant data about the patient in question, anticipates unanswered information needs and retrieves knowledge to addressing those needs. Other forms of decision support, including knowledge resources, expert systems and alerting systems may also be explored during the course, depending on student interest. The course will involve discussion of publications on information needs and research on resolving them, as well as project work. Topics will include the history clinical decision support, history of infobuttons, infobutton managers, the HL7 infobutton standard, open access infobutton systems, the use of ontologies to leverage clinical data for information retrieval functions, and evaluation of clinical decision support.
  

  • HIT 723 - Public Health Informatics

    [3]

    This course will provide an overview of the field of public health informatics, including concepts, methods, and current issues related to the use of health information technology to improve public health. Topics will include secondary use of electronic health record data, public health syndromic disease surveillance, data analysis and outbreak detection, US Federal Government Adverse Event Reporting systems and strengths and weaknesses of existing public health databases.

     
  

  • HIT 724 - Educational Technology in Healthcare

    [3]
    This course is a graduate-level course which will touch upon areas of healthcare including, but not limited to education and training, health instructional technology, and healthcare IT. The expectation is for students to become familiar, if not already, with these areas and how they intersect with the broader establishments of healthcare, education and technology. The course will introduce the fundamental aspects of educational technology theory, research and practice that span various users and contexts in the healthcare setting and includes a full range of engaging exercises for students that will contribute to their professional growth.  In addition, students will be able to communicate and educate other health IT professionals more effectively and efficiently.
  

  • HIT 750 - Data Analytics

    [3]

    HIT 750 is an overview course introducing students to the essential concepts in data analytics. Rather than the details of the mathematical concepts, the course focuses on explaining the fundamental principles and ideas behind analyzing data and building predictive models. In addition, the course builds strength in application of the concepts by including many examples, classroom exercises, and assignments in R which has become the gold standard statistical environment in many scholarly and scientific communities. Furthermore, the course also achieves depth by engaging students in a semester-long project which involves a particular topic selected by students.

     
  

  • HIT 751 - Intorduction to Healthcare Databases

    [3]
    This graduate level course provides an introduction to the theoretical and practical aspects of creating and maintaining databases within a healthcare setting. This is a beginner¿s course and no previous programming or technical experience is required. Topics include: relational databases, normalization, data integrity, database design, data querying, and data forms/reports. The class includes applied lab and project components to provide hands-on experience with creating and maintaining databases; using Access and SQLite as our database systems. This course is intended for students interested in databases within the context of healthcare informatics, health information technology, and healthcare.
    Course ID: 102527
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R
  

  • HIT 759 - Healthcare Informatics-II

    [3]
    This course is a graduate-level course which will touch upon areas of healthcare including, but not limited to healthcare informatics, health information technology (commonly referred to as Health IT or HIT) and healthcare. The expectation is for students to become familiar, if not already, with these areas and how they intersect with the broader establishments of healthcare, research and business. The course is the second of a two part series of courses, focused on scoping the interdisciplinary nature of health informatics. The course will touch upon how people, organizations, healthcare and the use of technology are coming together to create this fairly new field and its impact on our drastically changing healthcare system.
  

  • HIT 760 - Health Informatics Capstone

    [3]
    The Capstone project provides an opportunity for students to carry out an individual piece of supervised research or a project activity on a specified topic in the Health Informatics domain.  The
    final project should make an original contribution to the body of knowledge in the profession or otherwise demonstrate core competencies in Health IT and Informatics.
    Course ID: 102396
    Prerequisite: HIT 658, HIT 758, and a total of 21 credits in the program or permission of instructor
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R

History
  

  • HIST 529 - Writing American History

    [3]
    Taught periodically. The purpose of HIST 529 is to provide professional development for practicing teachers of American history in elementary and secondary schools. The focus of the teachers’ work will be on the development and writing of research project, the complex process and conventions of historical writing, and the fundamentals of the historical method for source notation, quotation, paraphrasing, and avoidance of plagiarism.
  

  • HIST 601 - History of the Old South

    [3]
    Study of the old South from Colonial times to 1860.
  

  • HIST 602 - History of the New South

    [3]
    Study of the former Confederate states from the Civil War to the present, with special emphasis upon race relations, constitutional interpretation and social and political transformations.
  

  • HIST 603 - The American Colonies

    [3]
    A history of the American colonies from their founding to 1774, comparing the social and economic development of the West Indies, New England, mainland South and middle colonies. Topics include patterns of settlement, racial and ethnic interaction, labor, religion, family and sex roles, and cultural achievements.
  

  • HIST 605 - Comparative Slavery: Africa and the New World

    [3]
    A historical analysis of slavery as an institution, comparing various types of servitude in Africa and the Americas. Examples also will be drawn from European, Middle Eastern and Asian systems of servitude. Traditional anthropological and socioeconomic approaches are complemented by recent studies using quantitative methods.
  

  • HIST 607 - The Founding of the American Nation, 1774-1815

    [3]
    The origins of American democratic institutions will be analyzed in their historical contexts. Such topics as the American Revolution and Confederation period, the age of Federalism, Jeffersonian America and the War of 1812 will be surveyed.
  

  • HIST 608 - Women & Crime in US Memory

    3
    This advanced seminar explores how gender norms have influenced popular media and historical scholarship on women criminals and victims of crime in American historical memory. We will deconstruct select “crimes of the century” and determine how definations of “victims” and “perpetrators” are altered through the lens of gender, class, and racial analysis. Potential themes include motherhood and 1950s adoption ring cases and multiculturalism and 1990s police brutality trails. The end product will be an extensive research project.
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R, P/F, A
  

  • HIST 613 - American Revolution

    [3]

    HIST 613 is a history/public history course designed to create primary source document collections for a website on the American Revolution aimed at teachers and students. Those collections will focus on the aspirations and experiences of ordinary people in the American Revolution. Students will locate documents, research to better understand them, and write “context narratives” to assist online users. The end product will be small collections accompanied by introductory essays that place the documents in historical context and aid in their interpretation.

    In terms of content, the course works in conjunction with its undergraduate counterpart, HIST 413 (a lecture-based course on the American Revolution). Students will attend the lectures to familiarize themselves with the Revolution and to get a sense of historical events and issues around which they might center a document collection. Content will also come from the work of academic historians that students will consult as they build the introductions to their document collections.

    The class also gives students hands-on experience presenting history to different public audiences. Much of that experience will be web-based, as students design their own individual projects to be hosted on the larger site. We will analyze other sites that present primary source documents on the Revolution and explore the possibilities for different kinds of presentation formats. Students will learn best practices for creating an online archive and document sets for high school/college students. The end result will be something students can put on a resume to show potential employers.
    Course ID: 102311
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R
  

  • HIST 614 - Historic Preservation in the United States

    [3]
    Historic preservation is the practice of protecting and preserving historic places. It strengthens local economies, fosters civic beauty, and enhances the appreciation of local and national history. But who decides what should be preserved? This course provides an introduction to the field, examining its history and practice in the United States. Students will gain an essential set of tools for critically observing historic sites, interpreting their historic context, evaluating their significance, and developing preservation plans.
    Course ID: 102314
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R
  

  • HIST 618 - The American House: The History of Domestic Architecture and Life

    3
    Our homes are a central part of the American dream. This course explores the relationship between the ideal house and family and the reality of the American domestic life from colonial settlement to the mid-twentieth century. Topics include the development of domestic architecture; evolving standards of living; the “consumer revolution” and household consumption; household labor and production; class formation and identity; residential space and domestic artifacts; industrialization and home life; and evolving domestic technologies.
     
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R
  

  • HIST 619 - The Jacksonian Era

    [3]
    An analysis of the rise of democracy, capitalism and sectionalism in the United States from the War of 1812 to the Mexican War.
  

  • HIST 620 - Introduction to Assistive Technology and Accessibility Research

    [3]
    This is a graduate level course that will serve as an introduction to the field of assistive technology.  Assistive Technologies empower many individuals to achieve things that they might not have been able to otherwise. This class will serve as an introduction to the design, development and evaluation of a range of assistive technologies. Students will interact with the material through reading relevant literature, participating in group discussions, creating relevant presentations, working on an individual project, and listening to guest speakers. Students will apply their knowledge in a research project where they will design, implement, and/or evaluate an assistive technology.
  

  • HIST 621 - The American Civil War

    [3]
    A history of the Civil War, including an analysis of the sectional conflict, the events of the war and the period of Reconstruction.
  

  • HIST 622 - Documenting America, 1877-1945

    [3]
    Between 1877 and 1945, photographers, collectors, filmmakers and others sought to define, document, and interpret American culture. The photographed, films, museum collections, and other material they produced and protected shaped Americans’ collective identity and they continue to impact ideas about the nation’s shared past and common values. This seminar class will examine these trends, training students to use cultural theory as a tool for understanding the historical significance of various forms of cultural production.
  

  • HIST 625 - Making a Buck: The History of American Capitalism

    3
    The word “capitalism” immediately calls to mind foundational works of modern eonomics, particularly Adam Smith and Karl Marx. So in this course you will read some of the most important philosophers and ecomomists of capitalism. We will supplement this intellectual framework with the work of historians who discuss the political and economic developments that have shaped Americal capitalism. Topics to be discussed include slavery, risk-taking, the rise of corporations, income inequality, and modern finance.
    Course ID: 102395
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R, P/NP, A
  

  • HIST 629 - History of Baltimore

    [3]
    An examination of the growth of Baltimore from the 18th century to the present. Major themes are the evolution of urban government and politics, the development of the urban economy from a commercial port to an industrial center and then to the postindustrial era, the growth of the urban physical plant and its expansion into the metropolitan region in the 20th century and the changing relationships of Baltimore’s socio-economic groups.
  

  • HIST 635 - 20th-Century American Foreign Policy

    [3]
    A history of America’s relations with other countries since 1919.
  

  • HIST 636 - The Rise of China and the United States’ Response

    [3]
    The relationship between the United States and China is one of the most critical for peace and stability in world affairs. The long history of cooperation and competition between the two
    powers dates to the 18th century, long before either emerged as a superpower, but continues today. This course helps students analyze developments in this diplomatic relationship on all
    levels, from the presidential to the personal, while keeping an eye on the future.
    Course ID: 102308
    Components: Lecture
    Grading Method: R
  

  • HIST 641 - Origins of Modern America, 1877-1920

    [3]
    An analysis of political, economic, social and intellectual changes from the 1870s through the Wilson administration.
  

  • HIST 642 - The United States, 1917-1945

    [3]
    An analysis of political, economic, social and cultural history of the United States from 1917 to 1945.
  

  • HIST 643 - The United States Since 1945

    [3]
    An analysis of political, economic, social and cultural history of the United States from the 1940s to the present.
  

  • HIST 645 - History of Science to 1700

    [3]
    The story of the birth of science. Topics include science in traditional cultures, Babylonian astronomy, the advances of the ancient Greeks, medieval European science, the Copernican revolution, conflicts between science and religion, and the Scientific Revolution.
  

  • HIST 646 - History of Science Since 1700

    [3]
    A survey of the history of Western science since the 17th century.
  

  • HIST 647 - History of Civil Rights Since the Civil War

    [3]
    A history of civil rights from the first Reconstruction through the second. Topics to be covered include the Civil War amendments and supportive legislation; the rise and demise of Jim Crow; policy evolution toward race, ethnicity and gender; the civil rights movement since World War II and recent conflict between group and individual rights.
  

  • HIST 648 - American Political History

    [3]
    An examination of the historical origins and development of the American political system, emphasizing the institutional aspects of political parties, the electoral system, Congress and the presidency.
 

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