This course will build on the foundation acquired in NEUR 101 and NEUR 201, focusing on a deeper understanding of specialized topics in neuroscience, including mechanisms of learning and memory, movement control, and cognition. Students will explore how these processes are studied across species and integrated at the systems and computational level. The accompanying laboratory provides experience with widely used neuroscience methodologies including animal behavioral analysis and electrophysiology. Students will learn to effectively communicate their research findings both orally and in writing.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory - NEUR 202L.

What are the neuronal mechanisms and computations that allow an animal to translate sensory information into appropriate decisions and behavior? Neuroethology seeks to understand how a nervous system translates information from the external and internal environment to behavior by examining the whole animal in its natural state. Topics will be introduced via textbook and primary literature and reviewed in lecture, followed by student-led presentations and discussions. What are the moral and societal implications of gaining a better understanding of how the brain controls behavior? We will end with an introduction to the neuroscience of morality and philosophy. This is a Maurer Public Speaking course and will offer multiple opportunities to learn and practice skills for speaking for a technical and non-technical audience.

This course has a required co-requisite Laboratory - NEUR 310L.

Hormones act throughout the body to coordinate basic biological functions such as development, differentiation, and reproduction. This course will investigate how hormones act in the brain to regulate physiology and behavior. We will study how the major neuroendocrine axes regulate a variety of functions, including brain development, reproductive physiology and behavior, homeostasis, and stress. The regulation of these functions by hormones will be investigated at the molecular, cellular, and behavioral levels.

This course provides an introduction to the neuroscience of emotions. We will explore the brain structures, neural circuits, and physiological processes that underlie emotions and subsequent behaviors. Topics include but are not limited to the role of the different brain regions, neurotransmitters, neuroimaging techniques, emotional regulation, the impact of emotions on cognition and behavior and the role of emotions in the development of AI.

This course does not count towards the Neuroscience major.

This course will examine primary literature on neurodegenerative diseases. We will discuss primary research articles on various topics including, but not limited to, the underlying pathological mechanisms and clinical symptoms of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Throughout the course we will address aberrant protein aggregation, genetic variants, and therapeutic treatments associated with these two neurodegenerative diseases. The course will consist of student-led presentations of primary research articles, in-class discussions, writing assignments, and a video essay. Learning goals for this course include enhancing scientific literacy, critically examining research inequities, building teamwork skills, and practicing self-reflection.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory - NEUR 320L.