Biophysics
Biophysics is a discipline that bridges
and includes both the biological sciences and the physical
sciences. Biophysics is concerned with physical and chemical
explanations of living processes, especially at the cellular
and molecular levels. The past 20 years have witnessed a
revolution in biological sciences, and biophysics has played an
important role in that revolution. Detailed molecular
descriptions are emerging for genetic elements and for the
mechanisms that control their propagation and expression.
Protein structure, nucleic acid structure, enzyme mechanisms,
the phenomena underlying cellular behavior, excitable phenomena
in nerve, muscle and visual cells, and integrative neural
phenomena all have been subject to intense biophysical study.
Physicists and other scientists with strong backgrounds in
mathematics, chemistry and physics have played dominant roles
in these developments; they will continue to contribute as more
detailed descriptions become available and increasingly complex
phenomena are studied.
Chemistry
Chemistry is concerned with the study of
matter and the changes matter can undergo. The chemistry
program provides a basic foundation for career opportunities in
chemical research and teaching, scientific communication and
information transfer and the health professions. Students who
desire preparation for advanced study in chemistry or allied
fields where research experience is advantageous should
complete the chemistry honors program.
Cinema Studies
Cinema Studies is an interdisciplinary
program designed to acquaint students with the history and
interpretation of cinema and to allow them to combine knowledge
of the field with the traditional aims of an undergraduate arts
and sciences education. The program can satisfy the needs of
students who seek a general exposure to the field or who are
preparing for careers in cinema scholarship, journalism,
criticism, arts management or entertainment law. Students
seeking employment in the filmmaking industry should know that
this program does not provide professional technical training.
Classical Studies
The Department of Classical Studies at
Penn promotes the investigation and interpretation of all
aspects of ancient Greek and Roman culture and its influence
through the Middle Ages and Renaissance up to the present day.
As such it focuses not just on the ancient languages and
literatures, but also on material culture, history (political,
social,
The department offers two tracks towards
the major: Classical Languages and Literature (track 1) and
Classical Civilization (track 2).
The Department of Classical Studies also
offers a major in Ancient History. Working from a basis in the
Graeco-Roman world, this major encourages students to engage in
a sustained study of pre-modern cultures. This major allows
students to focus on ancient languages and literatures, as well
as material culture, history, philosophy, religion and
mythology from a range of pre-modern cultures and
civilizations.
Cognitive Science
Cognitive science is the empirical study
of intelligent systems, including the human mind. It is, by its
very nature, an interdisciplinary science combining results
from biology, computer science, linguistics, mathematics,
neuroscience, philosophy and psychology. It combines the
application of approaches from all of these disciplines to the
study of language processing, perception, action, learning,
concept formation, inference and other activities of the mind
and the applications of the resulting theories to information
technology and the study of artificial intelligence.
Communication
The major in Communication consists of 14
courses, eleven in Communication and three in other
departments, selected to support a student’s primary
interests. The curriculum has three goals:
• To expose students to major
strains of communication scholarship—on media systems and
their functions, the relationships of these systems to
cultural, political, and economic life, and myriad influences
of communication on the ways people think and behave;
• To ensure that students
acquire basic familiarity with the methods of research used in
communication scholarship and practice; and
• To permit flexible
opportunities for advanced study in particular topics of a
student’s own choosing.
Areas of concentration within the
Annenberg School curriculum include critical, cultural and
historical media studies; research on children, family and
media; health communication; and political communication. The
curriculum also offers opportunities for independent study,
internship experience, study abroad and—through the
Communication and Public Service program—putting
communication to work in the service of community.
