FRS 001X - Sec. 001 - (2 units) - CRN 83069 M 6:10 - 9:00 pm - 3138 Meyer
Chocolate: Integrated Perspectives from the Humanities, Social Sciences and Biological Sciences

Instructors: Carl Keen, Robert Rucker and Louis Grivetti, Department of Nutrition, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences

Description: This seminar will examine the history and medical/dietary uses of chocolate from antiquity through the 21st century. Readings will include a variety of publications that include ancient Aztec and Mayan documents, 16th-19th century medical/dietary accounts, and current scientific literature on healthful aspects of chocolate. The seminar will stress critical thinking and will demonstrate the integration of information available from the humanities, social sciences, and biological/medical sciences, as applied to research questions. The goals of the seminar are to 1) introduce participants to both historical and scientific resources that document chocolate use through the ages; 2) Encourage and develop critical thinking, deductive reasoning skills, and application of scientific methods to chocolate-related research questions; 3) Demonstrate the integration of social science and biological science approaches and methods used to investigate and solve key research questions; and 4) Develop and refine oral presentation and writing skills.

Format: The seminar will continue for eight weeks. During weeks 1-6, the seminar will meet once a week in the evenings for three hours (6:00-9:00 PM). The first week of instruction will review course objectives/requirements, background literature, and introduce the approaches, methods, and techniques used to identify and evaluate historical and scientific documents relating to chocolate. During weeks 2-6, the first hour will be spent in review and discussion of assigned papers; the second hour will be used to present selected examples that illustrate key issues, problems, methods in analysis or interpretation of chocolate-related data; the third hour will be used to discuss, integrate information, and draw conclusions. During weeks 7-8 participants will meet for 2 hours to present 10 minute oral summaries of their research papers. There is no meeting during week 9. During week 10, the instructors will host a chocolate-tasting session, followed by a pizza dinner for the seminar participants. Grading: three criteria will be used: 1) Contribution to discussion (20%); 2) Quality of oral presentation (30%); and 3) Style and content of written seminar paper [5-6 pages +references] (50%).

About the Instructors:

Louis Grivetti has been a Professor of Nutrition at UC Davis for more than 25 years. He teaches courses related to food and culture taking the approaches of anthropology and geography. His interests include art of ancient Mediterranean civilizations, the archaeology of ancient Egyptian and Classical Greek food, and family genealogy. His current research projects include study of nutritional survival during drought, especially in Africa; the historical development of Mediterranean diets; and the dietary/medicinal uses of chocolate through the ages.

Robert Rucker has been a Professor of Nutrition at UC Davis for over 30 years. He teaches courses related to nutritional biochemistry and its medical applications. His interests cross the spectrum from the humanities to science, from enjoyment of Classical music and modern art to laboratory experiments and history of science. His current research projects focus on biochemical mechanisms important to explaining nutritional relationships associated with normal human growth and development. He also studies the health benefits of selected naturally occurring substances in foods, among them chocolate.

Carl Keen has been a Professor of Nutrition at UC Davis for nearly 20 years and currently is Chair of the Department of Nutrition. He teaches courses related to the biology of human development and trace mineral nutrition. His interests are broad, from Japanese art and symbolism of traditional ceremonial masks, to contemporary current events. His recent research projects focus on the importance of trace minerals in human development, the biology and prevention of human birth defects, and the medicinal-biological properties of key foods, among them chocolate.