BIG HISTORY
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  • About Big History
    • The Apollo Earthrise Photo
    • A Short History of Big History
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    • UvA Elective Big History Course
    • UvA Honours Big History Course
    • UvA MOOC
    • High School Courses
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    • Literature
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UvA Elective Big History Course

Introduction

Would you like to know how everything around you has become the way it is today? How the histories of the cosmos, life, Earth and human societies have influenced each other and have jointly shaped important aspects of the world you live in now? And would you like to use that knowledge to develop a better understanding of the challenges our societies are currently facing? If you do, then the big history course is right for you.
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In this course, a variety of renowned experts, ranging from astrophysicists to social scientists, will take you on a journey that covers all of history, from the Big Bang until today. State-of-the-art reading will explain what drove this history. In online assignments you will be stimulated to reflect on the often-unexplored connections between the various astrophysical, geological, biological and cultural aspects that shaped our world. And in a final research assignment, you will be encouraged to apply this knowledge to an important societal challenge and think about this in a creative and interdisciplinary way. While doing so, you will also reflect on what big history might mean for your future.
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Practical information

Credits
6 EC

Language
English

Classes
February to May 2021
Tuesdays from 16:00 to 17:00

Location
See Datanose

Registration
UvA students must register through SIS. The registration period starts on 1 December 2020 and ends one week prior to the start of the course. The required study guide number is 5512BIHI6Y. Contract students and students from other institutions can enroll through Datanose.
Preliminary Program Spring 2021

2 feb
What is big history?
Esther Quaedackers

9 feb
How did our universe originate?
Daniel Baumann

16 feb
How do stars live and die?
Sera Markoff

23 feb
How do planetary systems form?
Jean-Michel Desert

2 mar
How did the Earth develop?
Wim van Westrenen

9 mar
How did life on Earth emerge?
Annemieke Petrignani & Hans Westerhoff

16 mar
How did life on Earth develop?
Jan Smit

30 mar
How has climate change influenced history?
William Gosling & Henry Hooghiemstra

6 apr
How did we become human?
TBA

13 apr
Why did we invent agriculture?
Esther Quaedackers

20 apr
Why do we live in states?
TBA


11 may
How did we initiate the Anthropocene?
TBA

18 may
What can big history tell us about the future?
Coyan Tromp & Esther Quaedackers
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  • Home
  • About Big History
    • The Apollo Earthrise Photo
    • A Short History of Big History
  • Courses
    • UvA Elective Big History Course
    • UvA Honours Big History Course
    • UvA MOOC
    • High School Courses
  • Research
  • References
    • Literature
    • External Links