Minor: Neuroscience, 17 Credits

As you are reading this description, the very act of reading (moving your eyes from side-to-side and up and down) and comprehension of what you have just read is a result of brain activity. Thus, behavior and cognitive functions are biological phenomena resulting from brain activity. The field of neuroscience examines how the brain, made up of billions of tiny neurons, produces psychology. It also demonstrates that social and biological explanations of psychology are not mutually exclusive, but rather complementary. Social factors influence our psychology by modulating the activity of our brains similar to biological mechanisms. Neuroscience grapples with the age-old mind-body problem: how can a material structure (the brain) produce immaterial experiences such as, thoughts and emotions and analyzes the havoc minute damage to the brain can cause to all aspects of behavior and cognitive processes. In summary, the minor examines the nervous system with a focus on function and on how our behavior and brains interact.

For description of the curriculum please see Psychology.