ANSC 203 - Bigfoot Stole My UFO!: Critically engaging with Science, Pseudoscience, and the Paranormal

Credits: (3)

Instructional Method: Three hours lecture.
Prerequisites: ENGL 112 or HNRS 103.
Develops student’s skills in critical thinking by examining paranormal and pseudoscientific claims such as encounters with Slender Man, psychic powers, and ancient alien visitors. Students will engage with sources from both believers and skeptics in order to learn how to recognize, analyze, and evaluate scientific and pseudoscientific arguments. The course will challenge students to refine their information literacy skills by asking them to research a paranormal phenomenon and uncover data supporting or debunking that phenomenon. Finally, students will develop their critical thinking skills by writing a proposal to explore a paranormal phenomenon, and their oral communication skills in reporting the results of that exploration.

Note(s): This course has been approved for University Core A credit in Topics in Critical Inquiry.