Splash Spring 2022
Course Catalog

Having trouble starting to draw an idea for a game? Want to learn about the basics of art techniques and how they apply to not only general art but also video game art? Find out more about the fundamentals of art, principles of animation, and basic ideas about user interface.
Being taught for the second time!

Have you ever wondered what is it like to study mechanical engineering? Would you like to work at companies such as Tesla or NASA? If so, Mechanical Engineering might be the field for you. This class will teach you what to expect during you undergraduate studies as a Mechanical Engineer from the first year all the way to forth. There will be a few simple problems to solve and there will be time to ask any questions you may have.

In this class, we'll take a brief look at the history of cryptography and some famous unsolved codes and ciphers. Then we'll check out the math and computer science algorithms involved in making and breaking them. No prior knowledge required! We'll also learn about different ways to write codes, and try writing our own!

Make your own website! You'll be making a very simple custom website using HTML and CSS. This course is intended for beginners, even if you've never written code before!


Prerequisites
No experience required!

Can something be on and off at the same time? Yes! Kind of... In the modern age of technology, quantum computers offer a fast alternative to the computers we know and love today. This course discusses the basics of quantum information theory and applications like cryptography, communication, "teleportation", and more.


Prerequisites
High-school math is helpful, but not required

Ever wondered how many different sounds make up all of the world's spoken languages? In this class you'll find the answer! After an introduction to the International Phonetic Alphabet, we'll dive into the phonetics of English in comparison to other languages.

Does your pet reptile love you? Did Koko the gorilla really know sign language? Are the crows in your backyard smarter than your dog? We'll address all these questions and more as we explore animal cognition and psychology from an evolutionary perspective. We'll also discuss some interesting experiments and topics such as anthropomorphism and theory of mind.

In this class we will explore the basics of how the modern internet works, and discuss what the flaws and consequences of the design might be. From there we will move on to talking about real-world government surveillance made possible by the ideas we've discussed, and we'll conclude by talking about what impacts these policies might have on citizenship, society, and the idea of democracy.

Interested in the brain and what happens during a chemical imbalance? Come join our session to learn about what causes depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and epilepsy to learn about the different areas and chemicals of the brain responsible for these areas!

Interested in environmental science? Come learn about a niche topic in the field - fisheries! Get an overview on what fisheries do, some issues with them and what defines a sustainable fishery!

A comprehensive overview of how human beings have influenced natural history -- from breeding domestic animals and plants to poaching and overfishing to climate change. These topics will be discussed within the context of natural selection and evolution. Students will be able to make predictions about the long-term effects of human activity, gain a better understanding of our species' biological footprint, and think about ways we can reduce it in the future.


Prerequisites
High school-level biology and/or AP biology

Where do humans fit into the tree of life? How did we come to be the amazing and weird animals that we are? This class will introduce the evolutionary thought process, and use it to tackle these questions. We will look at some milestones in our evolution and theories of our ancient ancestors' behavior and changes since our split from our closest primate relatives.


Prerequisites
Introductory biology preferred but not required.