3D Game Studio: Unreal is a practical course that introduces students to the methods, tools and principles used in developing three-dimensional games. This class builds on the foundations laid by the Intermediate Game Development course, but moves into the popular Unreal engine as a technical platform instead. Over the course of the semester, students learn all the technical and design fundamentals that are peculiar to the development of contemporary 3D games: geometry, light, materiality, the camera, use of 3D space, and ways of seeing. The focus in this class is on solo work, since it aims to build the specific set of skills that students will need to make 3D games in later classes. Only basic code skills are required, however.
Tag Archives: Fall 2022
What is Science and Technology Studies (HUMN-SHU 110)
This course is an introduction to Science and Technology Studies (STS), an interdisciplinary field treating science and technology as socially embedded enterprises. We will examine how social, political, cultural, and material conditions shape scientific and technological activity and how science and technology, in turn, shape society. You will become familiar with the basic concepts and methods developed by STS scholars in history, sociology, and anthropology and explore how the scope of the field has expanded to include a variety of empirical case studies, theoretical arguments, and scholarly debates. The kinds of questions we will explore include: What counts as scientific knowledge? How is it produced? How do scientists establish credibility? Can there be a scientific study of scientific inquiry? To what extent are science and technology shaped by historical context? Prerequisite: None.
Humanities (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
HUMN-SHU 110-000 (23807)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Mon,Wed2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by
Ethics, Technology, and Business (BUSOR-UH 1009)
This course examines the ethical issues that arise in the context of the rapid development of technology and the increasing power of business corporations. In recent years, technological progress has allowed us to achieve many things, including the creation of intelligent machines that can surpass human capabilities. Yet, for all these benefits, the development of science and technology has spawned a host of problems such as: conflict between individual rights and social welfare; clash between respect for personal autonomy and expertise; automation and unemployment; and the replication of human bias by algorithms. Along with technological progress, the social role of businesses and corporations are also becoming increasingly important. How should corporations, for example, balance the pursuit of profit with respect for employees’ rights and liberties? Should the state refuse to enforce unconscionable contracts, even when enforcing those contracts would make both parties better off? What is the social role of corporations in the context of increasing inequality?
Business & Organizational Studies (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
BUSOR-UH 1009-000 (17905)08/29/2022 – 12/13/2022 Tue,Thu9:00 AM – 11:00 AM (Morning)at Abu DhabiInstructed by Kim, Soo Jin
Distributed Ledger Technology: Ethereum, DeFi, and Beyond (BUSF-SHU 274)
One of the most exciting socio-technological developments in the past decade has been the emergence of blockchain technology, and with it the Blockchain Economy. This subset of the digital economy has mostly been driven by the Internet-of-Value (web3.0) where decentralized platforms compete over user’s investments in various blockchain verticals. These include Decentralized Finance (DeFi) – a vibrant decentralized money management ecosystem, NFT’s that promise to overhaul how we consume and invest in art, DAO’s that decentralize business governance, various novel financial instruments such as perpetuals, ERC20’s to disintermediate resource sharing, and many more. Fulfillment: BUSF Non-finance Elective; BUSM Non-marketing Elective; IMB Business Elective. Prerequisite: CSCI-SHU 11 Introduction to Computer Programming. Antirequisite: Students who have taken ECON-SHU 232 Blockchain, Cryptocurrency & Money or BUSF-SHU 366 Applications in Entrepreneurial Finance: Fintech are not eligible to enroll.
Business and Finance (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Asian Art and Architecture (ART-SHU 180)
This course surveys Asian art and architecture from the earliest civilizations to the present day through several themes. It focuses more on the arts and monuments from China, Japan, and India but also introduces those from Korea and Southeast Asia. We will study how artistic traditions transmit and develop in distinctive yet interconnected societies in Asia, as well as how those traditions interact with specific political, religious, social, and cultural contexts in which they grow. Issues investigated include (but are not limited to): the spread and metamorphosis of Buddhist art, the artistic exchanges between the “East” and the “West” (and the formations of the ideas of the “East” and the “West”), the production and consumption of art as related to various forms of power such as political authority, social hierarchy, and gender, and the “Asian-ness” in the contemporary world. Prerequisite: None.
Art (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
ART-SHU 180-000 (23806)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Mon,Wed2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Kong, Hyoungee
Real Estate Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning (FINC-UB 36)
Exponential growth in the availability of high quality real estate and real estate-related data is fueling a major shift in development, investment, and lending decision-making processes. In this highly applied course, students will be introduced to major data analysis and machine learning platforms; a wide range of public and private real estate and urban data sources; approaches to exploratory data analysis, real estate data visualization, and communication of findings; applied statistical modeling, including forecast modeling; and, emerging and prospective real estate applications for artificial intelligence and machine learning. Assessment will include case work focusing on real-world real estate decisions and coding assignments. While the data and applications for this course are principally in the real estate sector, the applied skills learned may be of interest for students across a wide range of industries.
Finance (Undergraduate)
3 credits – 12 Weeks
Sports Economics (ECON-UB 211)
This course applies microeconomic theory and econometric analysis to sports and explores some public policy issues that have arisen in the design of sports competitions. The course is divided into four main parts: the structure of sports leagues, labor market issues, college sports, and the market for sports betting.
Economics (Undergraduate)
3 credits – 14 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2023)
ECON-UB 211-000 (22435)09/05/2023 – 12/15/2023 Mon,Wed2:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by Bowmaker, Simon
Sound and the City (ARTS-UG 1494)
New York’s soundscape is hard to ignore: it can be overwhelming, it is always intricate, but also surprisingly subtle, and there is much that we hear that we don’t really listen to. We will interrelate the subjects of noise, silence, and the city, ranging from important moments in the history of noise abatement in New York City to the philosophy and work of composers such as John Cage. New York City’s diverse population strongly affects and produces its unique soundscape; how does this particular city reflect its inhabitants? There will be off-site field trips to events such as the West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn, as well as visits to sited works such as Max Neuhaus’s Times Square. We will consider how sound is often explicitly designed to affect and influence us in places such as retail environments. How do our attempts to mediate sound with devices like headphones affect our listening? Students will engage the ideas of writers such as Stuart Hall, Jacques Attali, Luigi Russolo, John Cage, Emily Thompson, R. Murray Schaefer, and Shuhei Hosokawa, as well as works by Christina Kubisch, Susan Phillipz, and Pauline Oliveros. There will be three short production assignments, some of which will be made for specific sites in the city as a way of investigating the interplay between public spaces and listening. At its core, you will be asked to consider the politics and subjectivity of your own listening as a citizen of New York. Who do you hear? How do you sound?
Arts Workshops (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 8 Weeks
Mixing in the Digital Audio Workstation (MPATE-UE 1135)
This course explores the art and craft of mixing records, with special attention to “mixing in the box” (via a digital audio workstation). Focus on methodology and technique, with particular emphasis on establishing balances, using such tools as compression and automation to enhance dynamics and develop unique coloration. Examines intersection of technology, budgets, and the marketplace. Students execute their own mixes, with guidance and critique from the instructor. Basic level of DAW proficiency required.
Music Technology (Undergraduate)
3 credits – 14 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2024)
MPATE-UE 1135-000 (13050)09/03/2024 – 12/12/2024 Thu12:00 AM – 2:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by Killen, Kevin
MPATE-UE 1135-000 (13051)09/03/2024 – 12/12/2024 Thu3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by Killen, Kevin
Communicating For Influence (IMBX-SHU 104)
Communication sits at the core of all human interactions and is highly valued in workplaces. Beyond the minimal goal of articulating and presenting one’s ideas effectively, communication also involves building empathy, cultivating an eye for detail, developing awareness of goals and contexts, and integrating critical and reflective thinking. How can we communicate our own projects to different audiences? Why should other people care? What types of media can we use and how do we know they are effective? How can collaborative and participatory elements help to improve engagement levels? This course aims to guide students to review and create their own learning profiles as they learn to engage a diverse range of targeted audience. Prerequisite: Not open to freshman. Fulfillment: IMA Major Electives; IMB Major Interactive Media Elective.
Interactive Media and Business (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
IMBX-SHU 104-000 (22138)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Thu1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Wang, Nicole
Senior Design Capstone Project I (ENGR-UH 4011)
Students learn about the process of design with measurable metrics, and how to incorporate appropriate engineering standards and multiple realistic constraints in the design process. Students learn how to clearly frame the design problem and follow the design process to result in an optimized solution. Students perform a review of the relevant literature, develop a preliminary design, generate solution concepts and selection criteria, and review and evaluate the chosen design. Students must consider social, economic, lifecycle, environmental, ethical, and other constraints, and must document the design process and the evolution of their design. This project culminates with a final report and presentation that proposes the actual design selected for further development and/or prototyping and testing in the subsequent semester.
Engineering (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2024)
ENGR-UH 4011-000 (3947)08/26/2024 – 12/10/2024 Fri8:00 AM – 9:00 AM (Morning)at Abu DhabiInstructed by George, Pradeep
ENGR-UH 4011-000 (4045)at Abu DhabiInstructed by George, Pradeep
Re-Design (CADT-UH 1025)
Giorgio Vasari defined Mannerism in terms still used today in Art History: in the wake of the Renaissance masters, copying became the standard way to learn. But what do we really learn by copying? Would a contemporary mannerism fit in today’s world, dominated by visual information? How then does creativity work? How does change happen? Why did we wait half a century before having personal computers in colors other than beige? Why do we seem oblivious to the manufactured filters mediating our observation of nature itself? What are the trade-offs when we delegate creative choices to Google’s algorithms? What separates the artists of the past and the brand consultants of today? This course addresses the role and limits of copying as students explore many facets of graphic design, visual communication, and artistic value. The vibrant visual culture-in-the-making of Abu Dhabi and the UAE provide an ideal background for such explorations. Students will elaborate on the tension (real or perceived) among today’s artists, designers, and scientists, while discussing why a multidisciplinary mind is fundamental for contemporary attempts to re-design the world around us.
Core: Arts, Design and Technology (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2023)
CADT-UH 1025-000 (17329)
Introduction to Cryptography (CSCI-SHU 378)
The study of modern cryptography investigates mathematical techniques for securing information, systems and distributed computations against adversarial attacks. We introduce fundamental concepts of this study. Emphasis will be placed on rigorous proofs of security based on precise definitions and assumptions. Topics include: one-way functions, encryption, signatures, pseudorandom number generators and zero-knowledge proofs. Prerequisite: Algorithms, theory of probability, or permission of the instructor. Fulfillment: Mathematics Additional Electives; Honors Mathematics Electives; CS Electives.
Computer Science (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
CSCI-SHU 378-000 (18506)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Mon,Tue3:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Late afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Guo, Siyao
Natural Language Processing (CS-UH 2216)
The field of natural language processing (NLP), also known as computational linguistics, is interested in the modeling and processing of human (i.e., natural) languages. This course covers foundational NLP concepts and ideas, such as finite state methods, n-gram modeling, hidden Markov models, part-of-speech tagging, context free grammars, syntactic parsing and semantic representations. The course surveys a range of NLP applications such as information retrieval, summarization and machine translation. Concepts taught in class are reinforced in practice by hands-on assignments.
Computer Science (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 7 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2024)
CS-UH 2216-000 (9051)08/26/2024 – 10/11/2024 Mon,Wed2:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Abu DhabiInstructed by Habash, Nizar
Typography (PHTI-UT 1023)
Photography and Imaging (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 8 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2022)
PHTI-UT 1023-000 (14304)10/26/2022 – 12/14/2022 Fri9:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Morning)at Washington SquareInstructed by Richardson, Bobbie
Indesign (PHTI-UT 1021)
This course is devoted to a different level of understanding the design and production of making a book. On the first day of class, students bring in digital versions of their art and decide to translate it into a printed piece. The class we’ll focus on book design. Students will begin to explore InDesign and learn how to use the program to create a publication, deciding on the size nand order of image and where text will go. On the second day of class students learn how to work with type. The class explores how to make type work for you and what typefaces work best depending on your design and art. The class will talk about image pacing and the flow of text throughout a publication. On the third day of class, homework is reviewed and InDesign files are revised if needed. The class then turns to production. We will go over each file and make it as final as possible and ready for print. The class will also discuss the different ways to get your document published and how to do each one. In the beginning of this course the students will walk into the classroom with a loose body of work and leave, after the third day, with their work organized into a book format. This course is charged a lab fee. Graduate course numbers are available on Albert.
Photography and Imaging (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 8 Weeks
Elementary Yoruba I (SCA-UA 182)
Yoruba is a language spoken in West Africa by approximately 20 million people. This course is an introduction to Yoruba language, people and culture and is designed for students without prior knowledge. The main goal is to develop elementary communicative competence in the language. It is designed to enable students read, write, listen to and talk about simple concepts, ensuring that they can minimally understand and be understood in the language, while developing a fundamental knowledge of the Yoruba culture. Emphases are on Yoruba as used by contemporary native speakers in the present day West Africa. Skills are developed through intensive interactive conversations, grammar exercises, and classroom activities designed for a learner to use the language in various daily activities.
Social and Cultural Analysis (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2021)
SCA-UA 182-000 (9690)09/02/2021 – 12/14/2021 Mon,Wed,Fri9:00 AM – 10:00 AM (Morning)at Washington SquareInstructed by Mabayoje, Moses
Introduction to Native American and Indigenous Studies: The Politics of Indigeneity (SCA-UA 747)
This course is a general introduction to the field of Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS). The course will introduce students to the central questions and debates of NAIS, including but not limited to: Native American hidden histories and oral histories; comparative indigeneities; questions of “discovery” and colonialism; the politics and representations of lands, massacres, and museums; and questions of law, gender and sexuality. It begins by asking students to consider the history of the field and weaves throughout questions about the complicated and contested terrain of the term Indigeneity. It ends with discussions about decolonizing research and indigenous futures, thus preparing students to consider theories and methodologies they will encounter in more advanced courses for the NAIS minor. By the end of the semester, students will have gained both historical and ethnographic perspectives on how museums and other forms of representation help us to know and reproduce ourselves and “others,” and how institutions craft, control, and circulate cultural heritage in various social lives.
Social and Cultural Analysis (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
Landcapes of Consumption (SCA-UA 625)
Consumption of objects, images, and places is central to the culture and economy of metropolitan life. The class will explore how the relationship between consumption and cities has developed by examining three key moments—the late nineteenth century and the invention of urban commodity spectacles, post-war America and the rise of suburban consumer spaces, and contemporary America and the selling of the commodity city. The class addresses three questions: Why do we want things? How does landscape organize our consumer desires? How does place become an object of consumption? We will begin with an examination of classic theoretical works that probe the relationships between people, things, and cities. We will then embed these in discussions of changing forms and practices of consumption and urbanism. The empirical cases we will examine range from the development of the department store, to the fashioning of commodity home, to the work of shopping, and to the emergence of a thriving urban debt industry.
Social and Cultural Analysis (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
African American History to 1865 (SCA-UA 795)
Social and Cultural Analysis (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks