Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Last Second Day Back

Yes, I actually heard a senior this morning call it "our last second day back." For now, I think I'd prefer to pretend that May 21 doesn't mean anything...

Shopped CGSC 281 Philosophy and the Science of Human Nature today. Unofficially dubbed "Dead guy on Tuesday, cog sci on Thursday," it's a course I've been looking forward to for several years now. At this point, Thursdays should (hopefully) be a review of cognitive science concepts I've studied during my time at Yale, but the connections between traditional philosophical concepts and cog sci research should make the class worth taking. It also helps that Professor Gendler is a fantastic lecturer—they should really make more professors go back to school before teaching students.

I then headed to HSAR 115 Introduction to the History of Art with Alexander Nemerov, the quintessential "must-take" course for every Yale student. The lecture—today's topic was Duccio's Maestà—seemed a bit theatrical, but I did enjoy Professor Nemerov's discussion of the visual and theological connections between the piece and its surroundings. A nice fifth course, perhaps?