Throughout history, the vast majority of people around the globe have believed they have, however defined, a “soul.” While the question of whether the soul exists cannot be answered by science, what we can study are the causes and consequences of various beliefs about the soul and its prospects of surviving the death of the body. Why are soul and afterlife beliefs so common in human history? Are there adaptive advantages to assuming souls exist? Are there brain structures that have been shaped by environmental pressures that provide the foundation of body/mind dualism that is such a prominent feature of many religions? How do these beliefs shape the worldviews of different cultures and our collective lives? What is the role of competing afterlife beliefs in religion, science, politics, and war? This course explores several facets of this relatively unexplored but profoundly important aspect of human thought and behavior. The course consists mainly of 70 to 80 minute lectures, typically broken up into 3 segments, recorded from a course offered by Rutgers University School of Arts and Sciences. These videos include slides and some embedded video clips. Most lectures are accompanied by slides used during the lecture, also including recommended reading assignment which may provide additional opportunities to reflect on your studies. Due to the lengthiness of this class and natural progression, the online course has been separated into 3 units, this is Unit 1.

Conditions and distribution of ethnic minorities and race; socio-psychological and cultural factors in the race and ethnic relations; the pattern of relations in the United States with emphasis on the Southwest and on social services. Upon completion of this course, learners will be able to: Identify sociological ideas, concepts, terms, and theories regarding ethnic minorities and race. The learner taking this course would be interested in gaining the ability to have informed conversations about race and ethnicity in American society. Learning about the current empirical patterns and trends will equip learners to have informed conversations instead of conversations based on opinion alone. To succeed in this course, you should have a background in studying society and an interest in improving race relations.

This course provides an introduction to gentrification and to the cultural impacts of housing displacement for people in cities and neighbourhoods across the world. Gentrification is a term which has been used to describe the process by which wealthier people move into an area leading to the displacement of poorer groups who are priced out of the area by increases in rents and housing prices. It is usually associated with physical improvements to the housing stock and to changes in local shops and services. Sometimes it is closely associated with the displacement of black people by white people. Gentrification is never neutral in its effects. Places change. They look and feel different and different people live there. There are winners and losers, incomers and those displaced, all of whom are caught up in a process by which the social status of an area can often change beyond recognition. Gentrification is both a social and a spatial process. It is not surprising therefore to find that most people who have written about gentrification are either sociologists or geographers. In this course we will learn how the term gentrification originated and the way in which the term has developed since its first sighting in the 1960s. We will consider different theoretical explanations for processes of change and ask questions about who wins and loses. After acquiring theoretical and conceptual skills we will apply these to a series of international case studies to understand what gentrification might look like and feel like in different places. What changes? How do you measure change? What happens to the people displaced- where do they go to? Who are the newcomers? This course will give you insights which will help you better understand neighbourhood level changes; inspire you to learn more about the interaction of social and spatial changes and to think critically about the future of neighbourhoods with which you are familiar.

This course will provide you with an overview over existing data products and a good understanding of the data collection landscape. With the help of various examples you will learn how to identify which data sources likely matches your research question, how to turn your research question into measurable pieces, and how to think about an analysis plan. Furthermore this course will provide you with a general framework that allows you to not only understand each step required for a successful data collection and analysis, but also help you to identify errors associated with different data sources. You will learn some metrics to quantify each potential error, and thus you will have tools at hand to describe the quality of a data source. Finally we will introduce different large scale data collection efforts done by private industry and government agencies, and review the learned concepts through these examples. This course is suitable for beginners as well as those that know about one particular data source, but not others, and are looking for a general framework to evaluate data products.

The best available evidence shows that comprehensive background checks by themselves are insufficient at reducing gun violence, but strong bodies of research demonstrate that states with comprehensive background checks coupled with firearm purchaser licensing, or permit-to-purchase laws, have significantly fewer firearm-involved homicides, fatal mass shootings, and suicides. Additionally, public opinion polling research consistently finds that 75% or more of U.S. adults support firearm purchaser licensing laws and 60% or more of gun owners support these policies. This Teach-Out event includes a general overview of firearm licensing policies and evidence of their effectiveness, as well as materials on the social context of licensing, including public opinion polling and differences across geographic areas and groups. Over the next four weeks, you are invited to join us as we explore this topic together through brief lessons, weekly discussions, and call-to-action activities for you to undertake in your own community. We would also like to acknowledge our funders, the Johns Hopkins Center for Teaching and Learning and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Without their generous contributions, this Teach-Out would not be possible and we are so very grateful for their support.

This course provides insight into the phenomenon of internal displacement, a major humanitarian and development challenge in today’s world. Taking a global perspective, you will learn about who internally displaced persons (IDPs) are and where they come from, as well as delving into the fundamentals of the global protection response for IDPs and potential ‘solutions’ for those who have been internally displaced. The course places you at the centre of the learning experience through engagement with a range of robust and challenging activities, materials and online peer engagement. This course has been developed by a specialised consortium of research networks and institutions working on IDP protection and research: • Global Engagement Network on Internal Displacement in Africa • Latin American Network on Internal Displacement • Middle East Network for Research on Internal Displacement • Internal Displacement Research Programme and Birkbeck at the University of London. Learners who have completed this course may seek to continue studying on our online Master’s programme in Refugee Protection and Forced Migration Studies. In 2019, this MA was awarded the prestigious Roger Mills Prize for its innovative approach to online learning. That programme builds upon the MOOC experience, delivering a fully accredited Master’s degree in an online learning environment. The development of this course was supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), on behalf of the UKRI Global Challenge Research Fund (GCRF) as part of the funded project “Interdisciplinary Network on Internal Displacement, Conflict and Protection” (AH/T005351/1), working in collaboration with network leaders Dr Beatriz Sanchez Mojica, Dr Hana Asfour and Dr Romola Adeola. Key learning objectives: • Explain the main trends in internal displacement, and why IDPs merit special assistance • Assess ‘protection’ and ‘solutions’ for IDPs, including the links to development • Evaluate the experience of internal displacement, drawing on research and creative sources

This course will provide students with an introduction to sustainable regional principles, regional planning concepts and evaluate regional transportation system issues. This will be achieved through dynamic video lectures, practical case studies and the evaluation of practices for success. These will include discussions of the importance of the regional plan, how to engage community involvement, the importance of understanding a development transect and others. Strategies for growth priorities, along with consideration of available housing and food security will also be addressed. The concepts of providing a rural preserve and a rural reserve will be evaluated and mapping of key aspects of the region, such as neighborhoods and districts will be explained. Evaluation of regional transportation systems will be addressed including multi-mobile balance and building choices into the transportation system modes. The considerations for including a regional railway system along with accommodating user mobility and accessibility will be explored. By the end of this course, you will be able to: - Formulate the relationship between regional principles, smart growth, and sustainability. - Evaluate growth priorities, community involvement and scale of governance to achieve sustainable smart growth. - Evaluate and explain regional mapping of rural preserves, rural reserves, neighborhoods, and districts as important tools in regional smart growth planning. - Describe the implications of mapping corridors and regional centers to the overall smart growth planning at the regional level. This course is for : - Government Officials involved planning, designing, monitoring, enforcement, and assessment of sustainable project developments at the local, state, and federal level. - Private sector companies in the transportation and municipal design and construction business. - Architects interested in advancing sustainable concepts for cities and communities. - Foundations, associations, and other NGOs that support smart growth strategies. - Academic faculty and students studying and researching community sustainability and resilience. - Private citizens interested in improving their communities and living conditions. The following list identifies background knowledge that will help you succeed in this course. - helpful to have a general understanding of how public/private projects are planned and implemented - have a strong interest or experience in planning and developing regional sustainable development plans - familiar with how government organizations function in the areas of transportation planning and project development - served as a volunteer committee member or leader on regional transportation projects and/or regional policy development initiatives - have a background and interest in environmental protection plans and projects - a general knowledge of regional transportation project planning and implementation - general knowledge or experience in public participation in governmental policy development - a strong interest and/or experience in improving the urban environment for the benefit of its citizens - have a general knowledge of legal and policy issues involved in sustainable development - have experience or general knowledge of social equity issues

Risk has become one of the defining features of modern society. Almost daily, we are preoccupied with assessing, discussing, or preventing a wide variety of risks. It is a cornerstone notion for businesses and organizations, but also for nation states and their many levels of government. And even for individuals, risk and the avoidance or embracing thereof, is a key theme. The course Risk in Modern Society sheds light on the broad concept of risk. In five distinctive weeks, this course closely examines various types of safety and security risks, and how these are perceived and dealt with in a wide array of professional and academic fields, ranging from criminology, counter-terrorism and cyber security, to philosophy, safety and medical science. Developed in collaboration with scholars from three universities (Leiden, Delft and Erasmus), this course will search for answers to questions such as: “what is risk?”, “how do we study and deal with risk?”, “does ‘perceived risk’ correspond to 'real' risk?”, and “how should we deal with societal perceptions of risk, safety and security?

In this course, students will develop a greater understanding of Asian American history and identities, explore the problematic history of anti-Asian discrimination in the US, and develop skill sets that they can use to address anti-Asian hate and violence in their community. Target learners include students interested in Asian American history and Anti-Racism, but also any learner interested in creating more inclusive communities for AAPI Americans and stopping racism, hate, and violence in their community. Drawing from a diverse range of Asian American experiences, this course will utilize a variety of course-specific and open-source materials and activities that include facilitated conversations, interviews, videos, articles, podcasts, and art to guide the learner through 3 weekly modules. Week 1 focuses on the history of Asian American cultures and identities in the US. Week 2 tightens this lens to examine contextual examples of anti-Asian racism in US history and culture as well as artists, activists, and communities who have actively resisted Anti-Asian violence. Week 3 explores examples of Asian American activism and anti-racism using a humanities-centered approach and encourages learners to think about ways to deploy the skills developed throughout the course in their own communities and lives. During the course, learners will have the opportunity to complete self-guided reflections and responses to course material that will develop their knowledge of anti-racist practices and active bystander intervention. Learners who complete the course will be offered the opportunity to earn a Coursera badge/certificate and all participants will be encouraged to take the knowledge and skills gained from the course into their communities.

This course explores how animals and people are situated within the web of structures and connections known as “society.” Module 1 considers some of the key symbolic roles that animals play in society by investigating the practice of “thinking with animals.” We investigate how people construct different meanings of animals and the implications these meanings have for both animals and humans. You will gain first-hand experience of this by analyzing how animals are represented in the media. Modules 2 and 3 investigate human-animal relationships, including those that involve suffering as well as those that are beneficial. Although many people describe their pets as friends or family members, Module 2 takes a deeper dive into what constitutes friendship and family membership where other species are concerned. Module 3 examines the dark side of these relationships, focusing on animal abuse and its relationship to domestic violence. Module 4 focuses on people’s encounters with those animals outside the boundaries of the home and the farm. The way people understand and regard the species commonly considered “wild” shapes the treatment and moral status of these animals.