FRS 002Y — Sec. 001 — (2 units) — CRN 76194 — W 1:10-3:00pm — 175A Physics/Geology
Hollywood Goes Back in Time

Instructor: Kenneth Verosub, Department of Geology, College of Letters and Science

Description: Interest in time travel probably arose only shortly after humans first became conscious of time itself. This interest extends to Hollywood where dozens of films have been made dealing with traveling back to the past. But all stories about time travel have to come to terms with one irreducible problem; how does one travel back in time and interact with the past without changing the future. In this seminar we will examine how this issue has been addressed in relatively recent films, such as Terminator, 12 Monkeys, Millennium and Back to the Future. We will also look at some older films that deal with time travel to assess whether the modern solutions are more satisfying or more sophisticated than the older ones. Ultimately, we will seek to answer the question of whether any film has successfully addressed the fundamental paradox of time travel and will determine what, if anything, that tells us about the possibility or impossibility of traveling back in time. The primary goal for student learning will be to demonstrate that films, which students have probably only considered as a means of entertainment, can be the subject of serious discourse and analysis. A secondary goal will be for students to discover how films address fundamental scientific questions. Both of these goals will help awaken in first-year students an understanding of the possibilities inherent in looking critically and analytically at the world around them.

Format: The class will be taught as an informal discussion. At times the instructor will lead the discussion; at other times, the students will lead or will make more formal presentations. Viewing of films will take place, for the most part, outside of class. Class time will be spent discussing short clips that will be shown in class. Students will be expected to view at least one full-length film before each meeting of the class and to prepare for a discussion about it. They will also be expected to illustrate the points they make in class by showing short clips from the film. For this reason, access to a DVD player is useful, but not required. Grading: Half of the grade will be based on the extent and quality of participation in the class discussions. The other half of the grade will be based on the quality of an oral audio-visual group presentation that students will be required to make at the end of the seminar.

About the Instructor: Ken Verosub is a professor in the Geology Department and the former director of the Davis Honors Challenge. In his research he uses the magnetic properties of sediments and soils as tracers of paleoclimate and other environmental processes. He has been fascinated with the paradox of time travel ever since he read Mark Twain’s A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court as a child, growing up in New Jersey.