This special topics course will walk students through the principles of geovsiualization and geovisual analytic systems, with a focus on interactive components, digital cartographic design, geostatistical functionalities and display, and software UI configuration. 

Readings and activities in this class will substantially depend on the set of students who enroll and what will best suit their geovisualization-related studies. We will seek suggestions and input throughout the semester as a class on the software we evaluate and explore and the articles we read.

The "Cinema and City" course explores how cinema uses the urban scene as a landscape of the imagination. The assumption underlying this effort is that films help structure our understanding of urban affairs, influence public perception, and reflect our collective societal attitudes toward city life. Movies can tell us much about our urban pasts, presents, and futures and provide insights into our collective hopes, fears, fantasies, and phobias. The course focuses on a number of complementary and competing images of our cities in cinema over the last century.

The "City and Its Technology " course offers an in-depth exploration of the profound impact of modern technology on urban development and living. Students will explore core principles of tech-driven urban spaces, innovations reshaping urban transportation, and digital solutions

promoting urban sustainability. This curriculum covers technology's pivotal role in urban health,

security, environmental monitoring, and introduces developments like smart grids, self-maintaining infrastructures, and renewable energy solutions. As artificial intelligence and technological

advancements will rapidly change cities, students will engage in discussions on ethical, legal, and societal challenges, preparing them as informed leaders in urban technology. By the end of this course, students will understand the relationship between technology and urban development, with the aim to become ethical, innovative leaders in urban technology.

The objective of this course is to help you understand how planning affects your profession and life. We will explore how cities are designed. We will address the reasons why some cities are sustained and others decline. The class will also present who plans, sets policies, and manages our cities. This class will describe how planning influences the design and development of human settlements. We will explore planning theory, research and practice and try to understand how planners, working with and for government, developers, and citizens, control and influence development.

The objective of this course is to help you understand how planning affects your profession and life. We will explore how cities are designed. We will address the reasons why some cities are sustained and others decline. The class will also present who plans, sets policies, and manages our cities. This class will describe how planning influences the design and development of human settlements. We will explore planning theory, research and practice and try to understand how planners, working with and for government, developers, and citizens, control and influence development.