What happens inside our brain when we think and act? Is addiction really a brain disorder? And which genes play a role in brain diseases?
This minor aims to acquaint students with different disciplines within the field of Neuroscience. Students will become familiar with the workings and functions of different types of brain cells and brain areas, and will learn how this knowledge can be used to understand characteristics of the healthy brain (e.g., perception, attention, learning and memory), of the developing brain (pre- and postnatal), and of the diseased brain (e.g., depression, addiction, eating disorders).
Furthermore, students will be introduced to the recent developments and discoveries from the field of human genetics, learn to think critically about study design and participate in nature-versus-nurture debates. Finally, this minor provides an introduction to recent technological advances in brain-machine interfaces, brain modelling, and artificial intelligence in the context of Neuroscience. The integration of disciplines such as biology, psychology, sociology, and genetics, is central to this minor. Students learn to think critically about how knowledge of the brain and the human genome can be applied to tackle societal issues.