Why are people superstitious? Why do people blush when they are embarrassed? What is intelligence (and are IQ tests a good way to measure it)? Why don't psychopaths feel guilty when they harm others? How reliable are childhood memories? Why do we laugh? Do violent video games make people act violently? Why do some people seem instantly trustworthy and others seem creepy? How do we choose whom to sleep with, date, or marry? How does stress affect our body? While questions like these have been asked for centuries, psychology has begun to provide answers to these - and other questions about the human mind - by applying the tools of scientific investigation. In this course you will receive a broad introduction to the science of psychology: from the history of the field and its major advances, to the latest research on topics such as perception, memory, intelligence, morality, sexuality, mental illness, religion, language, and creativity. You will also learn about the tools and methods psychologists use to investigate the mind, such as observing how the mind of a child changes and develops over time, looking at people across cultures, measuring brain activity, and experimentally manipulating everything from the shape of a figure presented on a computer screen, to the smell of a room, or the attractiveness of the experimenter.

Full details for PSYCH 1101 - Introduction to Psychology

This course provides an introduction to the science of the mind. Everyone knows what it's like to think and perceive, but this subjective experience provides little insight into how minds emerge from physical entities like brains. To address this issue, cognitive science integrates work from at least five disciplines: Psychology, Neuroscience, Computer Science, Linguistics, and Philosophy. This course introduces students to the insights these disciplines offer into the workings of the mind by exploring visual perception, attention, memory, learning, problem solving, language, and consciousness.

Full details for PSYCH 1102 - Introduction to Cognitive Science

Introduction to Human Development provides a broad and foundational overview of field of human development, starting from conception and ending through process of death and dying. The course will start with an outline and explanation of the lifespan perspective in human development. The biological beginnings of life and prenatal development will serve as the start of the discussion of human development, followed by an exploration of physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development at each subsequent stage within the lifespan (e.g., infancy, early childhood, middle & late childhood, etc.). Discussion of each developmental stage will highlight major research findings and their real-world application.

Full details for PSYCH 1131 - Introduction to Human Development

Environmental Psychology is an interdisciplinary field concerned with how the physical environment and human behavior interrelate. Most of the course focuses on how residential environments and urban and natural settings affect human health and well-being. Students also examine how human attitudes and behaviors affect environmental quality. Issues of environmental justice and culture are included throughout. Hands-on projects plus exams.

Full details for PSYCH 1500 - Introduction to Environmental Psychology

Over the centuries, artists in a wide variety of media have employed many approaches to the creative process, ranging from the philosophical to the mechanical to the virtual. This course unravels some of the mysteries going on inside software used for art and music. It looks at ways of breaking things apart and sampling and ways of putting things together and resynthesizing, and explores ideas for creation. This course does not teach software packages for creating art and music. The course complements ART 2701 and MUSIC 1421. (MT)

Full details for PSYCH 1650 - Computing in the Arts

Research, theory, and application in sport psychology. An interdisciplinary approach which applies social and personality psychology, motivation, clinical psychology, exercise physiology, and biochemistry to the study of competitive domains. Topics will include: achievement motivation, extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, group and team dynamics, leadership, aggression, stress, and youth sports. Where possible, fieldwork experiences will be conducted in exercise physiology and exercise testing, as well as biofeedback.

Full details for PSYCH 1990 - Sports Psychology

Introduction to psychology from a biological perspective, which focuses on brain mechanisms of behavior. Topics include the structure and function of the nervous system, physiological approaches to understanding behavior, hormones and behavior, biological bases of sensation and perception, learning and memory, cognition, emotion, and communication.

Full details for PSYCH 2230 - Intro to Behavioral Neuroscience

Children who grow up in multilingual environments have a profoundly different experience compared to monolingual children. In this course, we examine the nature and impact of this experience on the socio-emotional, cognitive, and linguistic development of young children, focusing on the complex multilingual and multicultural reality in Israel as our main case study. Specifically, we explore the multilingual development of children from several minority and immigrant groups in Israel: Arabs, Former Soviet Union (FSU) and Ethiopian immigrants, Israeli-born children of labor migrants, deaf communities, among others.

Full details for PSYCH 2350 - Multilingualism and Multiculturalism in Early Childhood

What is personality? How is it scientifically studied and measured? To what extent, do biological, social, and cultural factors shape personality? Is personality an expression of our genetic make up and biology, the culmination of social influences, the interplay of both, or the result of random events? In this course, we will review the major theoretical paradigms of personality psychology, discuss contemporary research, theory, and methodology, and learn about key historical debates in the study of personality.

Full details for PSYCH 2750 - Introduction to Personality

Introduction to research and theory in social psychology. Topics include social influence, persuasion, and attitude change; culture, social interaction and group phenomena; evolution, altruism, and aggression; stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination; everyday reasoning and judgment.

Full details for PSYCH 2800 - Introduction to Social Psychology

How do we form and change our first impressions of other people? What kinds of events put us into happy versus sad moods? What explains why we persist in holding stereotypes of groups? Can we explain why we think an act is immoral? This course addresses these types of questions (and many more!) using social and cognitive psychological theory and methods. Using a variety of sources - from empirical journal articles, textbooks, TED talks, and blog-posts - we examine cutting-edge psychological research on the causes and consequences of our own and other people's judgments, feelings, attitudes, and behaviors. We use different teaching methods to accomplish these learning goals, including lectures, group activities, and small group discussions.

Full details for PSYCH 3800 - Social Cognition

The intricate relations between language and thought have stirred a heated debate from ancient philosophy to the era of modern science. Does language precede thought or vice versa? Do different languages create a different understanding of one's physical and social environment? In this course we will examine some leading theories and empirical studies on the interconnections between these two complex abilities of the mind; and explore their developmental trajectories and interactions from infancy to adulthood.

Full details for PSYCH 4382 - Language and Thought

PSSP Chemical Concepts introduces foundational topics at the level of rigor students will encounter in General Chemistry at Cornell. In a collaborative and active learning environment, students will develop chemical intuition in the areas of atomic structure, introductory quantum mechanics, stoichiometry, and basic reactions. Through problem-solving activities and guided practice, students will learn to apply multiple approaches to challenging questions, report answers with correct significant figures, and master essential skills like conversions, balancing reactions, and drawing molecular structures. This course emphasizes growth mindset strategies and fosters a supportive community of learners.

Full details for CHEM 1001 - Chemical Concepts

CHEM 1008 reviews material presented in CHEM 2080 lectures and also provides problem-solving strategies and practice.

Full details for CHEM 1008 - Academic Support for CHEM 2080

Introduction to organic chemistry concepts with emphasis on structure, reactivity, and mechanisms of carbon compounds relevant to the life sciences.

Full details for CHEM 1570 - Introduction to Organic and Biological Chemistry

CHEM 2070 is the lecture component of General Chemistry I. Covers fundamental chemical principles, with considerable attention given to the quantitative aspects and techniques important for further work in chemistry. Main topics include chemical transformations and equations, periodic trends of the elements, electronic structure of atoms, chemical bonding, and the collective behavior of molecules.

Full details for CHEM 2070 - General Chemistry I

This is the laboratory component of CHEM 2070 General Chemistry I. Covers fundamental chemical principles, with considerable attention given to the quantitative aspects and techniques important for further work in chemistry. Main topics include chemical transformations and equations, periodic trends of the elements, electronic structure of atoms, chemical bonding, and the collective behavior of molecules.

Full details for CHEM 2071 - General Chemistry I Laboratory

CHEM 2080 is the lecture component of General Chemistry II. Covers fundamental chemical principles, including reaction kinetics, thermodynamics, and equilibrium. These principles are presented quantitatively and explored in the laboratory. Considerable attention is given to the quantitative calculations and techniques important for further work in chemistry.

Full details for CHEM 2080 - General Chemistry II

CHEM 2081 is the laboratory component of General Chemistry II. Covers fundamental chemical principles, including reaction kinetics, thermodynamics, and equilibrium. These principles are presented quantitatively and explored in the laboratory. Considerable attention is given to the quantitative calculations and techniques important for further work in chemistry.

Full details for CHEM 2081 - General Chemistry II Laboratory

Introduction to the synthesis, separation, characterization, and handling of materials, including chromatography, extraction, crystallization, infrared spectroscopy, and others. An experiment is performed the first week of lab. Students need to enroll in the course Canvas site and complete the appropriate pre-lab assignments outlined on that site before coming to the first lab.

Full details for CHEM 2510 - Introduction to Experimental Organic Chemistry

Study of the important classes of carbon compounds-including those encountered in the biological sciences. The course emphasizes their three-dimensional structures, mechanisms of their characteristic reactions, their synthesis, methods of identifying them, and their role in modern science and technology.

Full details for CHEM 3570 - Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciences

The course emphasizes the important classes of organic compounds, with particular emphasis on their three-dimensional structures, mechanisms of their characteristic reactions, their synthesis, methods for their identification, and their applications in modern technology and medicine.

Full details for CHEM 3580 - Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciences

A thorough review of pre-calculus: linear, power, exponential, logarithmic, and trigonometric functions; solving equations; working with graphical representations of common functions; foundational statistical skills. Emphasis on core numeracy skills used in the variety of quantitative courses students may find themselves in at Cornell. Each student will have opportunities to engage with the material at a depth that is appropriate to their math background.

Full details for MATH 1001 - Core Reasoning and Skills for STEM Courses

This course helps students connect mathematics to real-world applications across multiple disciplines. Designed for those exploring majors or seeking deeper understanding, the course emphasizes problem-solving and reasoning rather than rote procedures. Students will work in small, collaborative groups using an inquiry-based approach. Each week introduces foundational concepts from different fields such as Sociology and Statistics, followed by large-scale problems that require applying these ideas in authentic scenarios. The course aims to develop a flexible mindset and the ability to synthesize concepts, while strengthening core math skills.

Full details for MATH 1004 - Scaffolding Understanding Through Mathematical Systems

We will review material from differential calculus and introduce topics from integral calculus to prepare students for MATH 1910. The first half of the course reviews limits and continuity, differentiation, and linear approximation. The second half of the course introduces antiderivatives, definite and indefinite integrals, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, integration techniques (e.g., substitution and integration by parts), and some applications of integration.

Full details for MATH 1900 - Introduction to Calculus for Engineers

Essentially a second course in calculus and the first in a sequence designed for engineers that assumes familiarity with differential calculus at the level of MATH 1110. Topics include techniques of integration, finding areas and volumes by integration, exponential growth, partial fractions, infinite sequences and series, tests of convergence, and power series.

Full details for MATH 1910 - Calculus for Engineers

Introduction to multivariable calculus. Topics include partial derivatives, double and triple integrals, line and surface integrals, vector fields, Green's theorem, Stokes' theorem, and the divergence theorem.

Full details for MATH 1920 - Multivariable Calculus for Engineers

An introduction to ordinary and partial differential equations. Topics include first-order equations (separable, linear, homogeneous, exact); mathematical modeling (e.g., population growth, terminal velocity); qualitative methods (slope fields, phase plots, equilibria and stability); numerical methods; second-order equations (method of undetermined coefficients, application to oscillations and resonance, boundary-value problems and eigenvalues); and Fourier series. A substantial part of this course involves partial differential equations, such as the heat equation, the wave equation, and Laplace's equation. MATH 2930 and MATH 2940 are independent and can be taken in either order; they should not be taken in the same semester.

Full details for MATH 2930 - Differential Equations for Engineers

Linear algebra and its applications. Topics include matrices, determinants, vector spaces, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, orthogonality and inner product spaces. Applications include brief introductions to difference equations, Markov chains, and systems of linear ordinary differential equations. May include computer use in solving problems. MATH 2930 and MATH 2940 are independent and can be taken in either order; they should not be taken in the same semester.

Full details for MATH 2940 - Linear Algebra for Engineers