Moodle@Warwick

Principal aims

To develop a firm understanding of the principles of modern design, maintenance and assessment of healthcare technologies, including: medical devices, novel treatment and therapeutic technologies, technologies for a healthy life-course, systems and environments for care delivery. This module will provide the student with a firm grounding in methods and tools for design, management and assessment of health technologies for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation.

Principal learning outcomes

At the end of the module, students will be able to • Understand the physical and physiological principles that underpin complex medical devices for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Compare and contrast the main aims, principles and components of these four categories of medical devices • Characterize, describe, explain, identify, locate and recognize the main components of the principal healthcare technologies for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation using functional diagrams and block diagrams. • Apply methods to systematically evaluate, design and manage advanced healthcare technologies • Critically assess the appropriateness of innovative health care technologies by reading a health technology assessment report. • Participate in multidisciplinary studies aiming to critically evaluate the technological feasibility and cost-effectiveness of a new medical device. Identify, classify, prioritize medical or epidemiological needs and participate in studies aiming to identify the most suitable technological solutions to satisfy those needs • Participate in multidisciplinary working group for the systematic design and development of innovative medical devices

Timetabled teaching activities

20 lectures (4 using eLearning platform), 6x1hr seminars, 1x2hr site visit, 2x1hr examples classes (total 30 hrs), 1 hr project supervision per group

Departmental link

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/eng/eso/modules/year4/

Other essential notes

Advice and feedback hours are available for answering questions on the lecture material (theory and examples).

Module assessment

Large-language model (LLM) artificial intelligence (AI) systems are evolving and expanding rapidly and dramatically— in terms of technological capabilities, practical applications, and roles in people's lives. Applied linguists are uniquely positioned to shape LLM AI and to influence the ways that people act and interact with, through, about, and because of LLM AI. Indeed, applied linguists arguably have a responsibility to engage with LLM AI, as scholars who can offer insights into language structure, communicative interaction, knowledge and truth, teaching and learning, ethicality, and social justice. This module will probe the intersections of applied linguistics and AI to prepare students to understand LLM AI, and to engage, challenge, critique, improve, and apply these systems as scholars and professionals. Following a symposium approach, module content will evolve according to research and teaching activities within Applied Linguistics at Warwick, giving students exposure to active innovations in LLM AI and applied linguistics.

This module is devoted to understanding the origins, development and decline of Italian Neorealism, a cinematic movement that broadly lasted from 1942 to approximately 1952 (although its influence continued long afterwards). The focus will be on a diverse group of films and the cultural, social and political context in which they were made and exhibited, namely Italy during the final years of Mussolini’s Fascist regime and in the years following the end of World War Two.

This module aims to provide students with an understanding of the complextieis associated with the protection and management of global natrual resources, and to identify a path forward towards their sustainable use  
We will use a combination of social, economic and environmental frameworks and theories to discuss the issues and process of establishing and managing different conservation initiatives, integrating four case studies from around the world in order to provide a real world context.

You will examine the way in which the modern notions of identity we have today, be they gendered or ethnic identities, were forged in the past by intellectual, social, scientific and aesthetic processes and movements ranging from the Enlightenment, through Romanticism and beyond. Moved by the concept of reason, the Enlightenment envisioned ongoing social and cultural progress for all of humanity. Yet feminist, postcolonial and orientalist theories of culture have shown how the criteria for progress were often geared against so-called ‘others’ of reason, which ultimately meant the exclusion of women, non-whites, non-Christians and non-Europeans from that ideal future.

In this module you will examine a range of German-language texts written by men and women. We will treat themes such as Jewish identity, Islam, race and skin colour, slavery, gender and sexuality against the backdrop of a critical study of 'power' and 'hierarchy', Empire and colonialism. We will refer to key texts by writers such as Ute Frevert, Sigrid Weigel, Edward Said and Frantz Fanon.

The culture of the period can be used to illustrate ways in which the gendered and ethnic aspects of human identity were given at times progressive, at times limiting, conservative and even oppressive treatments throughout the period from 1750 to 1830. The more restrictive models of subjectivity, sexuality, gender and ‘race’ we will find in this historical material, as well as the creative challenges put to them by writers of this period, all remain relevant: studying these texts and these ideas deepens our understanding of the historical processes that led to how we understand ourselves and our others today.

Module Outline

Mannerism defines a key historical period in European arts, bridging the Renaissance and Baroque periods, which is characterised by a shift towards an increasingly more artful, idiosyncratic approach to artistic invention and practice. The term itself, however, is controversial, as it was forged by modern critics on the basis of the Italian sixteenth-century expression maniera (‘manner’, ‘style’). The broad aim of this module is to bring to the fore a number of critical issues raised by the many-sided notion of Mannerism, provide an in-depth examination of a large body of artists and artworks (drawings, paintings, sculptures and architecture) associated with it. The module is based on student-centred seminars, and structured in such a way that students will be invited to reflect on how their understanding of the concept of Mannerism changes throughout. It focuses on how theorists and artists developed new ways of conceiving of artistic practice, by placing unprecedented emphasis on the individual’s inventiveness and talent, and taking the ideal of beauty well beyond the rules of classical art that had prevailed in the High Renaissance. The analysis of theoretical principles elaborated by Italian treatise writers such as Vasari and Lomazzo is combined with an extensive survey of artistic practices and stylistic features that spread from Italy across Europe in the sixteenth century.

Sample Syllabus

Module Format

This module consists of both lectures and seminars. Seminars are student-centred; you should be prepared to contribute to the discussion in order to reap the benefits. Seminars may vary in format, and will entail a variety of in-class group activities including occasional group presentations.

Module Aims

By the end of the module you should be able to understand and compare/contrast:

• Demonstrate critical understanding of how Mannerism impacted on the development of Western art and how it has been discussed in modern scholarship.
• Learn how to deal critically with periodisation, stylistic categories and complex theoretical concepts.
• Demonstrate a grasp of the main lines of Mannerism-related artworks and the notion of Mannerism in contemporary art theory
• Demonstrate detailed knowledge of the works studied and their contexts
• Deploy these ideas critically in relation to other forms of art

Moreover, you should be able to:

• Make use of primary sources to contextualise the material;
• Improve your analytical skills and incorporate visual analysis in your work;
• Frame artists and artworks in their historical contexts and situate them in a broader art historical discourse;
• Deal with theoretical issues and historiographical concepts related to the Renaissance.

Workload

2 x 2-hour lecture/seminar per week

1 x Field trip

You should carry our a minimum of 7 hours preparatory reading and independent research per week

Assessment

3,500 word Portfolio including both documentary evidence and reflective writing (50%)

Slide test Assignment (20%)

1,500 word Essay (30%)

Introductory Reading

Essential

Giorgio Vasari, Lives of the Painters, Sculptors and Architects (ed. 1568), translated by Conaway, J., and Bondanella, P. (Oxford, 1991), ‘Preface’ to Part 3. [http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b2952624~S1]

Robert Williams, ‘Italian Renaissance Art and the Systemacity of Representation’, in Elkins, J, and Williams, R., Renaissance Theory (New York: Routledge, 2008), pp. 159-184 [http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b2344574~S1]

Michael Levey, High Renaissance (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1975), esp. Ch. 1, pp. 15-63.

Walter Friedlaender, Mannerism and Anti-mannerism in Italian Painting (New York: Columbia University Press, 1990).

John Shearman, Mannerism (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1967).

Philip Sohm, Style in the Theory of Early Modern Italy (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001), pp. 86-114Chapter 4, 'Giorgio Vasari: Aestheticizing and Historicizing Style'.

Robert Williams, Art, Theory, and Culture in Sixteenth-Century Italy: From Techne to Metatechne (Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 1997), pp. 29-72 (ch. 1, ‘Vasari's Concept of Disegno’), and pp. 73-122 (Ch. 2, ‘Style, Decorum and the Viewer’s Experience’)

Further

The concept of Mannerism in modern scholarship

Anthony Blunt, Artistic Theory in Italy, 1450–1600 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1962).

Arnold Hauser, Mannerism: The Crisis of the Renaissance and the Origin of Modern Art (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1965).

Enrst H. Gombrich, ‘Mannerism: The Historiographic Background’, in Norm and Form: Studies in the Art of the Renaissance (London and New York: Phaidon, 1966), pp. 99-106.

Hessel Miedema, ‘On Mannerism and Maniera’, Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art, Vol. 10 (1978–1979), No. 1, pp. 19-45.

Jeroen Stumpel, ‘Speaking of Manner’, Word and Image, Vol. 4 (1988), No. 1, pp. 246-264.

Introduction to more specific themes

Sydney J. Freedberg, Painting of the High Renaissance in Rome and Florence (New York: Hacker Art Books, 1985).

Linda Murray, The High Renaissance and Mannerism: Italy, the North, and Spain, 1500–1600 (London: Thames and Hudson, 1977).

Wolfgang Lotz, Architecture in Italy, 1500-1600 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995).

Marcia B. Hall, After Raphael: Painting in Central Italy in the Sixteenth Century (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999)

Bastien Eclercy (ed.), Maniera: Pontormo, Bronzino and Medici Florence, exh. cat. (Munich, London, New York : Prestel, 2016).

Michael Cole, Cellini and the Principles of Sculpture (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002).

David Franklin, Painting in Renaissance Florence, 1500–1550 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001).

Henri Zerner, Renaissance Art in France: The Invention of Classicism (Paris: Flammarion, 2004).

Thomas Da Costa Kaufmann, The School of Prague: Painting at the Court of Rudolf II (Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1988).

This 30 CATS first-year undergraduate option module examines the history and politics of the modern Middle East through a series of questions and problems that have shaped its development. The module is divided into four sections. The first part of the module briefly questions the usefulness and origins of the term Middle East as a geographical area and unit of analysis. It raises questions about how historical and anthropological knowledge, western media, and academic scholarship in the social sciences have helped define the modern Middle East. The next section of the module offers a historical overview of the Ottoman past through the colonial and postcolonial periods, i.e. the period from the sixteenth century through the colonial period in the nineteenth century and to the present post-colonial period in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The module will then move to address more specifically some of the most important contemporary issues that have historically affected modern Middle Eastern politics along with the role of outside forces such as Britain and the United States. These include: the Arab-Israeli conflict; the history of oil in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Iran; the role of political Islam; questions of democracy, development, and human rights; the Gulf War, and the 2003 U.S. invasion/occupation of Iraq; the Arab Spring and the current war on terrorism.

The module is designed to be attractive to students interested in the histories, cultures, and societies of the Middle East, the history of empire, state formation, community and nation, and questions of democracy. It encourages students to rethink historical and political analysis. We will use a wide range of materials including diplomatic documents, short stories, scholarly texts, and photographs and videos, to explore the many different ways people in the Middle East have come to define and shape their world and also how outsiders have attempted to control and shape this world.

This 15CAT second-year early modern option module will explore the attempts of early modern monarchs and governments to gain hegemony over the British Isles and establish an imperial dominion beyond the Atlantic. It will focus on the connections between the kingdoms between the reigns of Elizabeth I and Charles I, and show how relations across the British Isles were affected by conflicts over the powers of crown and church, and challenged by splits between rival religious communities. These tensions, as the module will highlight, were grafted onto ancient national, cultural and ethnic fault lines. The module will look at how the experience of civil war, unrest and revolution took place within a larger international setting, studying the impact of civil and religious divisions on the development of the overseas empire, and highlighting the competing European affinities that impinged upon subjects of the three kingdoms. The module will focus on the experiences of the different religious, national and ethnic groupings within the British Isles and British America, and will encompass the history of culture and ideas, as well as religion and politics. While following a chronological structure, it will examine the longer underlying themes of religious and national consciousness, and consider how the question of British, English, Irish, Scottish or Welsh identity was explored by poets, scholars and artists within the period. The aim will be to fix the events under consideration within wide horizons, with students encouraged to assess the British kingdoms and empire in a comparative framework, alongside the experiences of other European states. Students will explore accessible primary sources, while entering into critical examinations of the rich historiography underlying the module.

The years between the two world wars (1918-1939) in Europe saw the rise of radical political movements, both on the extreme right and extreme left. At times, those defending democracy were able to hold their opponents at bay, but more often than not did radical movements, mostly on the right, succeeded in taking over the state and implemented their political programs. This module will discuss radical political movements, their struggle against each other, while democracy could prevail in others. Finally, we will consider how radical movements that took power implemented their politics. While the module will draw upon national case studies, it aims at understanding radical politics in the interwar period as a genuinely European phenomenon. Themes will include the Russian Revolution and its impact on the European working-class movement; the rise of fascist and other radical rightist movements; the struggle for democracy in the era of Popular Fronts, and implementation of fascist regimes in Italy and Germany. Further national case studies will include Romania, Hungary, Austria, France, and Spain.

Today we are used to thinking of Germany as a peaceful, prosperous and stable democracy, at the heart of Europe politically and economically as well as geographically. But for much of its modern history the picture was very different. A comparative latecomer to statehood, in the 170 years of its existence as a nation-state Germany experienced a dramatic transformation from a maverick to a model state which took in war, dictatorship, occupation and division, as well as rapid industrial development (twice), a dynamic civil society and intense cultural and intellectual experimentation.

This 30 CATS optional second year undergraduate module examines the history of Germany from Unification in 1871 to the Berlin Republic of Angela Merkel. Students will consider the political, social and cultural history of modern Germany from a variety of historical perspectives in order to understand why in Germany the past is so important to an understanding of the present. We will look at the rise and fall of political ideas and regimes, economic developments, issues of citizenship and ethnicity, attitudes towards gender and sexuality, and how all these affected the lives of ordinary Germans. Along the way, students will have the opportunity to conduct their own research and write a piece of Germany's history.

Today we are used to thinking of Germany as a peaceful, prosperous and stable democracy, at the heart of Europe politically and economically as well as geographically. But for much of its modern history the picture was very different. A comparative latecomer to statehood, in the 170 years of its existence as a nation-state Germany experienced a dramatic transformation from a maverick to a model state which took in war, dictatorship, occupation and division, as well as rapid industrial development (twice), a dynamic civil society and intense cultural and intellectual experimentation.

This 30 CATS optional second year undergraduate module examines the history of Germany from Unification in 1871 to the Berlin Republic which came into being after reunification in 1990. Students will consider the political, social and cultural history of modern Germany from a variety of historical perspectives in order to understand why in Germany the past is so important to an understanding of the present. We will look at the rise and fall of political ideas and regimes, economic developments, issues of citizenship and ethnicity, attitudes towards gender and sexuality, and how all these affected the lives of ordinary Germans. Along the way, students will have the opportunity to conduct their own research and write a piece of Germany's history.

This 30 CATS final-year undergraduate advanced option deals with one of the most significant episodes in world history: the French Revolution. Promethean and tragic, it has inspired and haunted imaginations throughout the modern era. 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times', wrote Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities, and, indeed, historians still argue over its paradoxical legacies. For while it inaugurated human rights, universal manhood suffrage and civil equality, it also unleashed terror, authoritarianism and empire. The French Revolution is especially challenging to study since it bequeathed the very terms we use to analyse it. Debates about liberal and social forms of democracy, the viability or dangers of Enlightenment ideals, and the necessity or gratuitousness of violence in efforts to bring about democratic justice all grew out of the French Revolution itself. Studying the French Revolution invites us  to scrutinise our own values and explore the possibilities and pitfalls associated with them.

This module treats the origins, course and legacies of the French Revolution, including that of its slave colony Saint Domingue (the Haitian Revolution). It draws on a wide range of sources: primary, scholarly, literary and cinematic. Themes include Enlightenment ideas, emotions, inequality, freedom, capitalism, slavery, gender, race, colonialism, religion, terror and war. It is inspired by the belief that studying the French Revolution can help us better understand the challenges of modern democratic and capitalist societies. By making modernity more legible, it can make our future more navigable.

This 30 CATS final-year undergraduate advanced option deals with one of the most significant episodes in world history: the French Revolution. Promethean and tragic, it has inspired and haunted imaginations throughout the modern era. 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times', wrote Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities, and, indeed, historians still argue over its paradoxical legacies. For while it inaugurated human rights, universal manhood suffrage and civil equality, it also unleashed terror, authoritarianism and empire. The French Revolution is especially challenging to study since it bequeathed the very terms we use to analyse it. Debates about liberal and social forms of democracy, the viability or dangers of Enlightenment ideals, and the necessity or gratuitousness of violence to bring about democracy all grew out of the French Revolution itself. To study the French Revolution is to put our own conceptual categories and values into question.

This module treats the origins, course and legacies of the French Revolution. It draws on a wide range of sources: primary, scholarly, literary and cinematic. Themes include ideas, emotions, inequality, freedom, capitalism, gender, race, colonialism, religion, terror and war. It is inspired by the belief that studying the French Revolution can help us better understand the challenges of modern democratic and capitalist societies. By making modernity more legible, it can make our future more navigable.

100 years after the end of the First World War, one might be tempted to ask if there is anything left to say about this conflict. Yet, the contemporary relevance of an historical topic is unusually clear in the case of First World War studies. The conflict continues to intrude on the public sphere of former belligerent societies, and in many instances, historians have been called upon to engage in controversies that have produced more heat than light. Indeed, it seems that World War I has gained in importance since the 1990s. The growing interest in commemoration and the increased ‘social demand’ addressed to professional historians account, to a certain extent, for the dynamism of First World War studies. Indeed, as we conclude the centennial commemorations of the war, the history of what George F. Kennan called “the great seminal catastrophe of the twentieth century” remains a vibrant field of investigation. 

Sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile, always complicated, the relationship between Britain and Germany has been of central importance to the United Kingdom’s relations with continental Europe since the end of the nineteenth century. No other modern European state has inspired such a variety of responses – fear, admiration, envy, and revulsion – or been regarded by turns as such a valued partner or deadly enemy. Nor has any other relationship had such an enduring fascination for historians.

This 30 CATS undergraduate final year module will explore the development of Anglo-German relations between 1871 (the unification of Germany) and 1945 (the end of the Second World War) with the aim of showing why the relationship between Britain and Germany was so important to the histories of both nations. Students will use a wide range of primary sources to survey a variety of Anglo-German encounters and interactions in the political, social and cultural spheres and examine the ways in which personal contact and relationships shaped wider public attitudes and official policy. This will include an examination of travel and tourism, family ties, professional associations and cultural exchange. We will also look at the creation and perpetuation of stereotypes and the role that these played in defining national identities. In this way students will examine the complexity and ambiguity of the Anglo-German relationship as it developed over a period of dramatic political, economic and social change and be encouraged to consider the ways in which it continues to inform British attitudes towards Germany and Europe.

Sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile, always complicated, the relationship between Britain and Germany has been of central importance to the United Kingdom’s relations with continental Europe since the end of the nineteenth century. No other modern European state has inspired such a variety of responses – fear, admiration, envy, and revulsion – or been regarded by turns as such a valued partner or deadly enemy. Nor has any other relationship had such an enduring fascination for historians.

This 30 CATS undergraduate final year module will explore the development of Anglo-German relations between 1871 (the unification of Germany) and 1945 (the end of the Second World War) with the aim of showing why the relationship between Britain and Germany was so important to the histories of both nations. Students will use a wide range of primary sources to survey a variety of Anglo-German encounters and interactions in the political, social and cultural spheres and examine the ways in which personal contact and relationships shaped wider public attitudes and official policy. This will include an examination of travel and tourism, family ties, professional associations and cultural exchange. We will also look at the creation and perpetuation of stereotypes and the role that these played in defining national identities. In this way students will examine the complexity and ambiguity of the Anglo-German relationship as it developed over a period of dramatic political, economic and social change and be encouraged to consider the ways in which it continues to inform British attitudes towards Germany and Europe.

Content Note

Please be advised that, while many historical subjects involve distressing themes, this module—focusing on the history of racial slavery—will frequently engage with material that is especially painful and violent in nature. Violence, in its many forms, is central to the history we will study.

We will approach this material with care, respect, and sensitivity toward the lives of the individuals and communities we examine. Please also be aware that some primary sources may contain profane or offensive language, and older historical writing may use outdated or harmful terminology. These terms will not be spoken aloud in our discussions.

Module Overview

Through the study of contemporary documents and nuanced scholarship, this module traces the development of racial slavery from the colonial U.S. through to the Civil War. Students will examine the social, cultural, religious, and economic strategies African Americans used to survive under slavery.

This is an intensive, source-based course that engages deeply with a focused set of historical problems. Students will gain hands-on experience working with a wide range of primary sources, developing key skills in historical analysis.

We will also situate U.S. slavery in a broader hemispheric context, considering connections such as the illicit slave trade with Latin America. The course explores slavery as a system deeply embedded in industrial capitalism, and examines both violent and non-violent forms of resistance.

Students will engage with diverse perspectives, including those of White enslavers and non-slaveholding poor Whites. Finally, we will follow the path by which debates between abolitionists and proslavery advocates ultimately fractured the nation and led to war.

The aim of this module is to introduce students to the discpline of Hispanic Studies and to foster a critical engagement with written and visual texts via the study of three key themes that each in different ways pose questions about studying other languages and cultures. Students will reflect on the nature and range of Hispanic Studies, and then engage with travel writing, images and stereotypes of the Hispanic world, and representations and interpretations of the Spanish Civil War. In each case, emphasis is placed on close textual analysis to foment (i) linguistic ability acquired in language modules; (ii) critical reading skills; (iii) management and understanding of source materials where relevant. 

The aim of this module is to develop an understanding of the ways in which contemporary Britain has been and is actively being shaped by its Empire, focussing on South Asia. To do so this, the module 

• focuses upon the way in which historically Britain's relationship with South Asia has shaped its contemporary economic, social and political life. 
• uses inter-disciplinary perspectives from the fields of History, Sociology, Gender studies, law and literature to highlight the various ways in which the Britain’s Empire continues to shape its contemporary socio-political and cultural landscape.   
• will bring to together South-Asia focussed teaching expertise within the University of Warwick tohighlight multiple themes around 'South Asia in Britain'- mobilities and migrant flows, cultural and material lives of migrants, encounters with the legal system, gender and race regimes, workers’ rights, resistance movements and so on.  
• engage students with innovative and active learning to not only broaden their understanding of the British Empire, but also to historcise and problematise taken for granted assumptions about it.  
• embed a variety of innovative pedagogic practices and engage with a variety of academic and non-academic material to enhance their learning experience