Cascade 2022 Spring
Course Catalog

This course will examine happiness through the lens of philosophy, psychology, and literature in an attempt to answer questions such as “What is happiness?,” “How can we achieve it?,” and “Should we even be striving for it at all?” For each class, we will discuss a multitude of works including fictional novels, economic papers, philosophical works, and visual media. We want the course to be grounded in student participation and exchange of ideas, but will lecture to introduce relevant topics and motivate discussions.

How do I value a company? What is investing? In this course, you’ll learn the basics of value investing, developing financial accounting and valuation skills. No prior experience necessary!

I entered high school as a relatively normal teen: alternating wildly between an inflated ego and zero self-esteem, bottling up my emotions until they exploded, and being mad at my mom for reasons both very valid and incredibly petty. 4 years and a lot of therapy later, I've come out the other side as a mostly-functional adult with an endless list of things I wish I'd done differently in high school. I'm going to be honest: I can’t magically solve any of your problems, won't fix any of the relationships in your lives, and can't change any of the circumstances in your life. What I hope this class will do is help you by teaching you some of the skills and lessons that would've made me happier, more emotionally aware, and secure in my own skin.

While I have a list of certain topics that I am especially acquainted with and could easily talk about (to name a few: attention/focus difficulties and ADHD, emotion processing and suppression, anxiety and social anxiety, body image issues and self-judgment, supporting friends through validating listening and setting boundaries), I’d love to hear from you and maybe answer some of your questions in future classes.

What makes a successful presidential candidate?

This course hopes to answer that question by examining presidential campaigns and elections. As an introduction, we will cover how elections work. We will then build up to the crux of the course: analyzing how various candidates attempt to appeal to the American public, and how their strategies may have changed over time. In order to investigate, we will be watching clips from famous candidate speeches and presidential debates, as well as looking at campaign slogans. Finally, we will be looking at election results to determine which strategies worked, which didn’t, and what qualities make for a winning candidate.

The greatest speculative fiction stories come from a strong sense of world-building. The greatest world-builders can be found in our ancient history, and the mythologies we love to read about. In this class, we'll explore ancient myths from the Norse, the Greeks, and the Egyptians before exploring the mythology of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-Earth. All the while, we'll be working on building out own worlds, culminating in you having your own mini-world build to use however you want.

Have you ever wondered why scientists are able to develop numerous technologies and procedures that advance the field of medicine on a seemingly daily basis? From vaccinations to protein engineering and computer simulations, it seems that the medical world is moving at lightning speeds. Such advanced applications require a deep understanding of the fundamental sciences underlying them. In particular, thermodynamics plays a critical role in the development of new drugs and medical technologies. Starting from the ground up, this course aims to provide students with a robust overview of thermodynamics in physical and chemical systems and how they can be applied to biological systems and medicine. By the end of the course, students will have an increased appreciation for thermodynamics and how it can be applied to so many disciplines.

This course will cover a broad overview of prehistoric life in the Phanerozoic, beginning with the Cambrian Radiation and ending with the Pleistocene. Familiarity with paleontology is not required. The course will also include fossils and fossil replicas which students can examine.

Learn why chemistry is central to understanding the world around us through theory and applications in medicine, biochemistry, technology, and energy!
In Week 1, we will learn the basics from a molecular
picture to describing chemical reactions.
In Week 2, we will study medicine via the mechanisms of
antibiotics, gene editing, and photo-dynamic therapy
In Week 3, we will explore biochemistry via ATP production,
N2 fixation, and photosynthesis.
In Week 4, we will cover technology and examine how chem-
istry powers our phones, computers, and modern-day lives.
In Week 5, we will examine energy production and storage,
such as nuclear, solar, fuel cells, and artificial photosynthesis.


Prerequisites
Just a general interest and curiosity in science and a willingness to learn! Taking an intro chemistry class is helpful but not required.