Badger Precollege Classes

With the explosion of innovative technologies and new knowledge about the brain, the neuroscience field remains on the frontier of contemporary science. We will look into the rapid advances in the field as well as unresolved mysteries that future generations of neuroscientists will be tackling.

Did you know there are an estimated 1 billion different species of microorganisms on Earth? Microorganisms play a role in every aspect of the world we live in. As an applied biological science, microbiology deals with many important practical problems in medicine, agriculture and industry. Microbial physiology and genetics will be emphasized along with a survey of applied microbiology in the fields of medicine, agriculture, food safety and ecology. This lab-intensive course will focus on laboratory techniques and procedures used in research and industry including cultivation, identification, enumeration, genetic engineering and aseptic technique. The effect of microorganisms on human health, specifically epidemiology and the microbiome will be explored. The manipulation of microorganisms in ecological bioremediation, food production and preservation, and pharmaceutical development will be investigated. This course is intended to satisfy any curriculum that requires introductory-level microbiology. It will challenge you to use scientific inquiry skills to investigate and analyze data and will allow you to examine the diversity of microbes on Earth and their importance in the biosphere.

Learn how to identify and evaluate arguments with the skills of logicians, lawyers and debaters. Examining arguments from popular media and the great philosophers, you will learn to distinguish between deductive and inductive arguments and how to identify and avoid specific fallacies in reasoning.

Exploring the legal frameworks that govern the relationships between states and various entities. Investigate global issues and develop tools to assess international legal issues and understand the forces that shape policy decisions.

Diseases challenge scientists to unlock the most complex puzzles of illness, disability and the body's response. Beginning with an overview of human anatomy and physiology, students will probe the nature of disease with new understandings of genetics, pathology and epidemiology.

You will learn to collect, analyze and interpret physical and biological trace evidence such as fingerprints, hair, fibers and DNA. This laboratory-based course will allow you to use logical thought processes and scientific inquiry skills to interpret evidence and analyze criminal psychology.

Environmental Studies is interdisciplinary, embracing several unifying themes, including The Living World, Global Change and Sustainability. Our focus will be on assessing and promoting the Natural Capital of local ecosystems (deciduous forests, prairies and lakes). We will explore different social science approaches to interpreting the relationship between the environment and society at various scales, from the local to the global. This course will trace the social origins of environmental concerns, their social impacts and the different responses they engender. Students will have an opportunity to interact with UW researchers, educators and campus leaders. In the end, students will grasp the values of the natural world and the tools for protecting it.

This course is intended to provide a thorough understanding of the relationship between economics and social relationships. Students will become familiar with the basic principles of markets, how economic resources are organized and how economics and sociology come together.

This course provides a foundational introduction to programming in Python. Learn essential programming concepts, including data structures, control flow, and visualization techniques, while developing an understanding of computational methods used in physics.

Engineering is a problem-solving profession that is both academically rigorous and creatively demanding. This course will introduce you to a broad spectrum of engineering fields and provide a strong foundation for understanding its key tools and concepts.

This course will investigate the impact that chemical products have on consumers' daily lives. Major topics may include food additives, prescription and non-prescription drugs, fuels, pesticides, detergents, synthetic fibers and plastics.

Explore the concepts behind the things you see in everyday life such as buildings, roads, and waterways, and how they come to be. Through real-world, global, and local examples, you will study the basics of structural and civil engineering as well as hear from campus experts in the field.