UvA Honours 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 world around you, including the challenges our societies are currently facing? If you do, then the big history honours course is right for you.
In this course, online seminars will guide you on a journey that covers all of history, from the Big Bang until today. During these seminars, you will also reflect on the often-unexplored connections between the various astrophysical, geological, biological and cultural aspects that shaped our world. Seminars will be based on podcasts that have been designed and recorded especially for this course and on state-of-the-art reading that explains what drove big history. Seminars will be followed by online ‘little big history’ assignments that encourage you to apply the knowledge you gained during the course to a process that is important in our current world 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.

Practical information

Credits
6 EC

Language
English

Classes
February to May 2022
Thursdays from 18:00-20:00
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Location
See Datanose

Registration
Registration is open for first-year, second-year or third-year Bachelor's students participating in an Honours programme. Between 30 November 10 am and 3 December 11 pm, you can register by completing the online registration form that will appear on Honoursmodules IIS. Placement is random and students will hear within two weeks for which course(s) they are registered.
Please note: There is no guarantee for placement if you register after December 3, so make sure you register on time. For questions about registration, please contact us at [email protected].