INTS 2302 - Representations of Nature

As humans, we create representations of nature in a wide range of media and for many different purposes. Examples in the creative arts include travel writing, landscape painting, field recordings of birds, and wildlife documentaries. Representations of nature for the purposes of scientific understanding include the naming of plant and animal species and illustrations of biological processes. Scientific theories have emerged alongside photographs captured with powerful microscopes and telescopes. By looking carefully at representations of nature and asking how and why they were created, we will tackle big questions: What are the limits of human perception? Is it only humans who represent the natural world? How has human technology aided us in perceiving and representing other species? Students will undertake interdisciplinary projects to consider their own questions on this topic. 3 credits.