What are myths and what do they do? In “Myth and the Ancient World” you will explore how the Ancient Greeks used myths to make sense of the world and their position in it. The module covers a time span of some 900 years, from the time of Homer and Hesiod to the late Hellenistic era. You will study a selection of well-known and less well-known myths from different perspectives; this may include themes such as home and identity, suffering and loss, male and female. You will be introduced to a range of written and non-written sources and learn to analyse them as evidence of their social, cultural, and political climate. All texts will be studied in an English translation.
The module brings together a range of ideas, subject-matter and methods of making, as an introduction to the scope and potential of contemporary art practice. There is an emphasis on phenomena.
Taking the death of Franco and the Spanish democratic transition as a starting point, this module analyses the key social and political transformations that Spain has undergone in the last four decades.
The module will discuss all important issues related to scaling down the transistor size into the nanometer regime, such as high-k dielectrics and FINFETs. The teaching will be complemented with a finite element simulation of the MOS scaling which will bring into practice many of the above improvements. Silvaco TCAD tools are used: industry-standard software to simulate semiconductor processing and device operation (Technology Computer-Aided Design).
The module will discuss all important issues related to scaling down the transistor size into the nanometer regime, such as high-k dielectrics and FINFETs. The teaching will be complemented with a finite element simulation of the MOS scaling which will bring into practice many of the above improvements. Silvaco TCAD tools are used: industry-standard software to simulate semiconductor processing and device operation (Technology Computer-Aided Design). This module is taught together with ELEC3207 Nanoelectronic Devices. ELEC6256 has higher requirements on the desired learning outcomes, which will be assessed by a different examination. This module is taught together with ELEC3207 Nanoelectronic Devices. The two modules are mutually exclusive and you may not take both modules.
This course consists of two parts: 'Nanofabrication' deals with the fabrication of structures that are smaller than 100 nm, while 'Microscopy' concerns the visualisation of such small features. Advanced optical lithography concepts are illustrated by a computer simulation lab with the industry-standard software "GenISys LAB". We start with a general overview of nanotechnology, explaining why the properties of materials are so different at the nanoscale compared to the microscale. The difference between top-down and bottom-up fabrication is explained and the ultimate industrial nanofabrication process (CMOS) is outlined, including the technological issues related to further scaling according to Moore's Law. After introducing general microscopy concepts such as magnification, resolution, depth of field and contrast, it is discussed how image formation is achieved in optical microscopy. Many of the principles of optical microscopy also apply to the next topic. Optical lithography is crucial for top-down nanofabrication (and CMOS scaling) because it defines the smallest feature size that can be fabricated. The historical development of optical lithography is presented, up to the present state-of-the-art and looking forward to future developments of this patterning technique. We then switch back to the microscopies: transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy enable visualisation of nanoscale structures but image formation, resolution, contrast mechanism and sample preparation are quite different. The images of MOSFET cross-sections will be explained. These particle beam techniques are also used in fabrication: e-beam writing is a serial lithography that enables ~10 nm patterns, while focused ion beam milling has numerous applications in nanofabrication. We finish the nanofabrication component with a brief description of bottom-up processes such as the chemical synthesis of carbon nanotubes, silicon nanowires and gold nanoparticles. This is put in the context of fabricating nanoelectronic devices by a mix of top-down and bottom-up fabrication processes. For example, carbon nanotubes can be grown in between micro-electrodes by patterning these with a catalyst material. Similar examples from the recent literature will be highlighted. The computer lab sessions involve simulations of photoresist exposure for different optical lithography techniques and explores various resolution enhancement methods that enable nanometer scale patterning in general and advanced CMOS scaling in particular. As part of the lab you will design your own photomask. The GenISys LAB lithography simulation software is used in commercial nanofabrication facilities and is only available for this module because of a special agreement with the company. Please note that ELEC6206 Nanofabrication and Microscopy (see the Notes directory for info slides) does not deal with fabrication techniques that are essentially the same as for microfabrication. Etching, deposition and process flow are explained in detail in ELEC6201 Microfabrication, and this module is a prerequisite for ELEC6206 Nanofabrication and Microscopy.
This course aims to provide you with an insight into some of the current research in nanoscience and an understanding of the underlying nanophysics. The field of nanoscience is multidisciplinary covering materials science, photonics, chemistry and biology amongst other disciplines. It is not possible to cover all aspects of this field in a single course. Therefore, topics have been chosen based upon their importance and to enable us to exploit research ongoing at the University of Southampton to give a real feel for the cutting edge.
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) may have been a tyrant in life but he proved to be a surprisingly malleable figure after death. This module traces the emergence in France and Britain of Napoleon’s reputation, whether as tyrant, martial hero, saviour of the French nation or destroyer of French liberty. Napoleon was a superb publicist and we will see that during his life time – before and after the seizure of state power in 1799 and the coronation as emperor in 1804 – he carefully cultivated an image of himself as both authoritarian and a ‘man of the people’. In reading the memoirs of Napoleonic soldiers, and in considering British caricature and other sources published during the revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, we will attempt to prise apart Napoleon’s self-presentation from the attitudes of others. Furthermore, through an encounter with Napoleon’s own correspondence and personal effects we will try to disentangle the private man from the public figure, and ask how defeat and exile at the hands of the British may have changed him. Most of all, we will examine how a cult of Napoleon was created and reshaped in subsequent contexts, focusing in particular on its instrumentalization in political and historical writings. Because Napoleon could represent the populism and liberty of the revolution without the anarchy of the Terror; reconciliation with the Catholic Church without clerical reaction; and order and hierarchy without a return to the despotism of the ‘old regime’ he was an appealing figure to a whole array of monarchists, liberals and republicans in France over the entire 19th century. That is why the liberal July Monarchy (1830-1848) did so much to make the Napoleonic cult official by completing the Arc de Triomphe in his honour (1836) and by re-interring his remains in the mausoleum at Les Invalides in 1840. In the process of tracing the Napoleonic cult through these years to the early 20th century, you will see how difficult it has been in France to disentangle the memory and status of the general from that of the revolution; and you will come to understand how Napoleon’s reputation as a ‘great man’ could survive the catastrophic defeats of 1814-15. In historicising the cult of Napoleon in this way, you will grasp the importance for historical practice of seeing the past and present in a continual dialogue where the former is mobilised in a struggle to master the latter.
Writing is inherently an interdisciplinary art. From novelists to poets to narrative non-fiction writers, writers tend to delve into fields that are not their own. Ian McEwan shadows neurologists for several years as he was researching Saturday; Hilary Mantel writes about Thomas Cromwell in her Wolf Hall trilogy; Seamus Heaney wrote about the “Troubles” in countless poems. In narrative non-fiction, this is almost exclusively the case. Truman Capote spent years researching four murders in a small town in Kansas for In Cold Blood. Antony Beevor delves into World War II to bring Stalingrad to life. Susan Sontag explores the art of the camera in On Photography. This module will offer you the chance to explore the world of narrative non-fiction, allowing you to research a field that you wish to investigate – be it art, medicine, history, biology or current events. At the same time, you will learn both how to conduct research (through documents, observations, interviews, etc.) as well as the fundamental techniques of telling a true story. You will also look at memoir, especially as it engages with the outside world. The module will consist of lectures that address techniques in narrative non-fiction as well as the structure and techniques in particular narrative non-fiction texts, while also including talks from lecturers in different disciplines who write about their work for an audience outside their own field. The seminars will consist of workshops in which student work is critiqued, interlaced with discussions of issues in creative non-fiction such how to tell a story that creates characters, places and suspense without straying from the truth, when to use first person, the role of the writer as character, and whether it is ever acceptable to alter details to construct a story. The module is aimed at both MA Creative Writing and MA English students who might have an interest in writing about their own subject for a non-specialist audience. The skills required for writing creative non-fiction is helpful in any mode of creative writing and in any field, so this module will help you to develop as a writer whatever your plans and ambitions may be. While you will practice non –fiction writing during the term, the assessment may, upon consultation with the module convenor, be made into a fictional piece or a series of poems – recognizing the interdisciplinary quality of creative writing.
This module investigates how cultural narratives have been produced, disseminated and consumed across national boundaries since the mid-twentieth century. Through examination of a range of narrative forms, including fiction, essay, memoir, film and photography produced by artists and thinkers from across the world, the module seeks to deepen your understanding of transnational models of hybridity, migration, cultural translation and ideas of place and displacement. Throughout, we will engage closely with critical approaches that consider the implications of class, race, gender, disability and other forms of identity, and the role of centres and peripheries in their formation.
This module offers an in-depth exploration of three concepts that have shaped the modern world: nation, culture, and power. Drawing on staff expertise in cultural and critical theory, the module will investigate the key questions that worldwide thinkers and activists have asked about the fluid concepts of nation, culture, and power, and the theories they have proposed to understand our place within them. Specific topics might include, for example, cultural identity, patriotism and nationalism, racism and empire, gender and feminist thought, queer identity, disability and political resistance. Seminars and individual tutorials are centred on locating your own academic interests within these worldwide theories and concepts. In this way, the module provides you with new and exciting ways of approaching your studies, enhancing your research in other modules and in your dissertation. In addition, the module will significantly strengthen your transferable skills of critical thinking, analysis, debate, and communication of complex concepts, which will serve as an ideal foundation for both advanced study and entrance into the workplace.
This module gives students an introduction to natural language processing (NLP) algorithms and an understanding of how to implement NLP applications.
Nature Based Solutions (NBS) – actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems – can play a critical role in mitigating not only climate change, but also increasing other benefits from nature (ecosystem services) that humans depend on. Indeed, the IUCN estimates that Nature-based Solutions can contribute up to 37% of the mitigation required to meet the Paris climate goal of keeping warming to 1.5°C. meeting Paris climate goals. Key NBS include actions such as reforestation, but also restoring natural flood defences and re-wetting peatlands, as well as techniques such as no-till agriculture which reduces soil erosion. As such, NBS can play a critical role in the monumental challenge humanity faces in achieving a sustainable future. However, to achieve their potential, NBS must be carefully deployed – not all locations are ecologically suitable or socially desirable for a given NBS. Geographers are uniquely well-placed to help meet the challenge of effectively deploying NBS, as identifying such locations is an inherently geographical issue driven both by social, and ecological factors. In addition to gaining an understanding of Nature Based Solutions students will gain an ability to critically assess NBS in terms of their social and ecological trade-offs. These skills will be assessed through both lectures as well as a self-directed independent essay, and a written final examination. Students will also be given the opportunity to gain an understanding of practical application of NBS in the field via at least one field trip. Field trip(s) will include teaching by by expert external staff who have delivered these interventions (i.e. a guided tour of reforestation at National Trust Slindon by NT rangers was done in 2022). The critical assessment of potential solutions to environmental problems is an important transferable skill that will likely be valued by many employers both in government and private industry working within the growing environmental sector. In addition, the ability to present a critical summary of evidence both in written and oral format is an important transferable skill applicable to a very wide range of potential employers.
The waters of the world have frequently served to connect rather than divide communities, leading to water transport becoming of vital importance to society. The remains of ships and boats thus constitute a key primary source for maritime archaeology. The processes involved in their design, construction, use and disposal were dynamically linked to society as a whole. Therefore they cannot be seen simply as interesting technological phenomena, merely as passive ‘reflections’ of that society, or of a segregated ‘maritime’ community. Ships usually had a high symbolic profile and were involved in many social mechanisms such as trade and exchange, warfare, projection of status, or simply coastal subsistence strategies. Ships and boats are therefore directly or indirectly implicated in almost all strata of society. This module aims to examine watercraft from an archaeological perspective, encompassing their technological features, tools of production, sequences of building, operating environment and contexts of use. But, the sources consulted are not restricted to archaeology, and draw in historical, ethnographic and experimental data to provide the fullest possible evidence base. Understanding the influences underlying their technological characteristics will allow a more valuable and interpretative understanding of ships and boats as ‘active’ material culture. Teaching is conducted through lectures, seminars, practical sessions and fieldtrips. By the end of the module you will be familiar with the scope, potential, central tenets and resource base of nautical archaeology. You will have gained key skills in the interpretation and recording of watercraft, and in the production of material to express this knowledge and skill base.
