Rodman seminars

Background

Rodman Seminars (RodSems) are one-credit pass/fail courses taught exclusively for Rodman Scholars. Currently, four Rodman Seminars are required before graduation. It is hard to define exact criteria for the topics of these courses, but a look below will confirm our assertion that these offerings are truly diverse. Any ideas for future RodSem topics or professors can be sent to our current Academic Affairs Chair, Jessica Ungerleider (jlu4qt@virginia.edu).

• Fall 2010
• Personal Finance by Rahul Gorawara – Wedensdays 6-7:30 pm, Maury 110.

• The course presents popular perspectives on maximizing and protecting after-tax wealth. Students should gain an understanding of financial concepts and terms while developing critical thinking skills that will aid them in financial decision-making.

• Music and Physical Computing by Steven Kemper – Mondays 7-8:00 pm, New Cabell B030.

• This class will explore technologies that enhance the expressivity and interaction between computer music and the physical world. Study will focus on both the technical aspects of these systems and their musical results. Students will study a wide variety of works including those that incorporate gesture capture, environmental sonic art, and musical robotics. Students will also learn to make music with readily available components such as Wii Remotes, Guitar Hero/Rock Band controllers, laptop accelerometers, video cameras, and contact microphones. They will also design and be encouraged to build and perform with their own musical systems.

• RodSquad by Reed Wilson and Jamie Harris – Mondays 2-2:50 pm, Chemistry Building 260.

• In this class, participants will learn about the principles of home energy and home energy audits. Students will learn where and how energy is used as well as ways to reduce total energy consumption. This class will consist of once a week class room meetings to teach how energy audits are conducted and to prepare students for in the "field" audit(s) or case studies that will occur later in the semester. Should be an interesting class, useful for anyone who intends to live in a home.

To view the seminars from prevoius years, go to the Old Rodman Seminars page.