While you read this sentence, your eyes alone are transmitting approximately 10 million pieces of data per second to your brain. Nevertheless, your attention remains focused on these words, you quickly decipher their meaning, and your memory stores make the whole process feel seamless. How is this possible? Cognitive psychology—often referred to as the “science of the mind”—examines how we represent and process information from our environment.

The study of probability and game theory allows students to apply math to real-world situations. In this course, you’ll learn to use some of the major tools of game theory, a branch of mathematics focused on the application of mathematical reasoning to competitive behavior. You’ll explore concepts like dominance, mixed strategies, utility theory, Nash equilibria, and n-person games, and learn how to use tools from probability and linear algebra to analyze and develop successful game strategies.

Bring your experiences to life on the page in this personal essay course. Through 10 assignments, we will experiment with different essay forms to describe scenes, illustrate conflicts, narrate events, share memories, and extract meaning. As we progress through the course and hone our personal essay writing skills, we will learn to use our senses to create vivid descriptions, observe and select details that convey our perspective to readers, imagine and describe events from others’ points of view, and unlock the power of revision. We’ll complete 10 essay projects over 10 course units.

Record-high temperatures, rising sea levels, massive wildfires, superstorms, and other environmental disasters have increasingly alarmed citizens across the globe. Scientists believe drastic measures are necessary to slow these types of catastrophes and are using expertise in multiple disciplines to explore solutions. This course investigates these and other ecological concerns to develop students’ understanding of human impact on environmental systems.

When the sun runs out of fuel, will it explode in a giant supernova or fade into a white dwarf? Does every galaxy revolve around a supermassive black hole? Will the universe keep expanding or eventually collapse upon itself? Astrophysics—the study of the physical laws governing astronomical objects and the universe—is key to determining how the universe started, how it works, and where it’s headed. In this course, you and your classmates will learn about scale and distances between planets, stars, and galaxies.

How do individuals interact? How do they cooperate, compete, and respond to incentives? All involve strategic behavior, the purview of the economic theory of games.

Study game theory through experiments, competitions, mathematical analysis, and debate, and apply game theory to model, evaluate, and predict outcomes of strategic behavior in the real world.

Conduct a final research project in which you model and analyze a real-world strategic interaction.

Would a boat made of bread and peanut butter actually float? Could one tree be recycled into sweaters and bicycle seat covers? Could a pancake as big as a city block flatten a school? Children’s books ask readers to believe in imaginary worlds—but sometimes, there are important science concepts behind their words and pictures. This course delves into the science behind the stories. You and your classmates will explore the digestive system, weather patterns, engineering, and city planning while reading Judi and Ronald Barrett’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

This course explores the craft of writing, including techniques like brainstorming, outlining, drafting, and revision that effective writers use across multiple genres. You will write a family narrative describing an event experienced by a family member, telling a story that is important to you and your family history. You will also pen an argumentative essay on a topic of your choice and compose a vivid poem using concrete images and abstract concepts.

This writing class explores the techniques great writers and filmmakers use to convey mystery and suspense in popular culture. You and your classmates will learn and discuss how elements like sound and cinematography build suspense in film; the literary merits of the mystery genre, and what mysteries tell us about humanity. You’ll read works by classic mystery writers such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Allan Poe, and Agatha Christie, and watch clips from early horror classics and noir films from the ’40s and ’50s.

The human body is an amazing but sometimes gross thing. From the blood inside us to the gas that comes out, each slimy, gunky, or smelly part has a vital role to play in keeping us healthy. Why do we burp, and why does it smell? What are boogers made of? What’s in blood, and why is it so red? And why do scabs form once the bleeding has stopped?

Explore these questions and bodily functions with your peers through online discussion, anatomy and physiology mini-lessons, research articles, and short at-home experiments.