AI Ain’t Magic – Karishma Sekhon Edgar FULL
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a captivating field that continues to evolve and transform our world. From self-driving cars to virtual assistants, it is making a significant impact in various aspects of our lives. But, what truly is AI, and what fuels the widespread enthusiasm surrounding it? This two-week course aims to illuminate these questions. Our journey begins with exploring the historical foundations of AI and progresses to a comprehensive understanding of its underlying mechanisms. The first week will be dedicated to gaining a solid foundation in Neural Networks (NN), a fundamental AI architecture. We’ll learn how NNs encode data, make predictions, and are trained. Furthermore, we will contrast AI with natural intelligence, examining the intricacies of both through examples ranging from simple organisms (slime molds!) to the intricacies of the human brain. After acquiring a robust grasp of Neural Networks and model training, the second week will focus on advanced AI architectures and their diverse applications. We’ll delve into the intricacies of renowned AI models like DALLE 2 and ChatGPT4, discussing their innovations and potential implications. Additionally, we will address ethical and copyright issues concerning AI and emphasize responsible uses of the technology. By the end of this course, you will walk away with a nuanced understanding of AI, as well as an appreciation for the fact that “AI ain’t magic” – it is meticulously designed models engineered to accomplish complex learning tasks.

Biophysics: From Physics through Biology to Medicine – Ari Gafni FULL
From its humble beginning in the early 19th century in explaining the mechanics of steam  engines, the branch of physics called thermodynamics evolved to provide a foundation on  which the scientific discipline called biophysics was built. Current biophysicists use a variety of  concepts and tools from physics chemistry and biology to address important problems in basic,  applied, and medical sciences. In this course we will discover how biophysicists approach  scientific problems, what tools they use in their research, and highlight several interesting  areas of current research. The lectures will begin by reviewing the rules of thermodynamics in  a clear and intuitive way, including demonstrations and lab experiments. We will then move to  discuss the intriguing and complicated question of how a protein molecule, initially produced as  a long linear chain of amino acids devoid of biological activity, undergoes metamorphosis into  a precisely folded structure that is perfectly designed to fulfill its specific function. This  question, called the protein folding problem, has been studied by both theoretical and  experimental approaches and therefore serves as an excellent introduction into biophysics.  Using hemoglobin as our protein example, we will explore its biological function in transporting  oxygen from the lungs to tissues and discuss how it performs this task with great efficiency.  We will learn how hemoglobin’s structure was solved and how this knowledge has been used to explain in detail its mechanism of function. Finally, we will see how using purely biophysical  approaches led to the discovery of the molecular origin of the devastating disease sickle cell  disease, a disease that involves an aberrantly folded hemoglobin molecule. This discovery led  to the development of a therapeutic approach to this disease. We will end by discussing  several other protein folding diseases where research to explain their molecular origin is still at  the forefront of biophysics.

Climbing the Distance Ladder to the Big Bang: How Astronomers Survey the Universe  – Dragan Huterer FULL
The furthest objects that astronomers can observe are so distant that their light set out when the Universe was only 800 million years old; the light from these objects has been traveling to us for about 13 billion years. Even the Sun’s neighborhood – the local part of our Galaxy, where astronomers have successfully searched for planets around other stars – extends to hundreds of light years. How do we measure the distance to such remote objects? Certainly not in a single step! Astronomers construct the so-called “Distance Ladder,” finding the distance to nearby objects, thus enabling those bodies to be understood and used as probes of yet more distant regions. This class will explore the steps in this ladder, using lectures, discussions, field trips, and demonstrations. Students will learn basic computer programming, culminating in a project to model the motion of massive bodies interacting gravitationally. We will go to a nearby “mountain” near Ann Arbor to do night-time observing, guided by members of a local amateur astronomers’ club. We will cover concepts involving space, time, and matter that go far beyond the distance ladder, and involve some of the most fascinating mysteries in cosmology and astrophysics: What is it like inside a black hole? What is the Dark Matter? What is the Dark Energy that makes the Universe expand faster and faster? Is there other life in the Universe? The class is recommended for students with solid high-school mathematics background, including some exposure to vectors.

Graph Theory –  Doug Shaw FULL
Ignore your previous knowledge of algebra, geometry, and even arithmetic! Start fresh with a simple concept: Take a collection of points, called vertices, and connect some of them with lines called edges. It doesn’t matter where you draw the vertices or how you draw the lines – all that matters is that two vertices are either related, or not. We call that a “graph” and you’ve taken the first step on the Graph Theory road! Graphs turn up in physics, biology, computer science, communications networks, linguistics, chemistry, sociology, mathematics- you name it! In this course we will discuss properties that graphs may or may not have, hunt for types of graphs that may or may not exist, learn about the silliest theorem in mathematics, and the most depressing theorem in mathematics, learn how to come up with good algorithms, model reality, and construct some mathematical proofs. We will go over fundamental results in the field, and also some results that were only proved in the last year or so! And, of course, we will present plenty of currently unsolved problems for you to solve and publish!

Human Identification: Forensic Anthropology Methods –  Isabel Hermsmeyer FULL
Forensic anthropology methods are used to aid in human identification with skeletal remains. Applications of forensic anthropology lie in the criminal justice system and mass disaster response. In this course, we will address questions such as: What are important differences between male and female skeletons? Utilizing skeletal remains, how would you tell the difference between a 20-year old and an 80-year old? How do you distinguish between blunt force and sharp force trauma on the skull? In this hands-on, laboratory-based course, you will become familiar with human osteology (the study of bones] and bone biology. Through our exploration of forensic and biological anthropology methods, you will learn how to develop a biological profile [estimates of age at death, sex, ancestry and stature], assess manner of death, estimate postmortem interval, investigate skeletal trauma and pathology, and provide evidence for a positive identification from skeletal remains. Additionally, we will explore various forensic recovery techniques as they apply to an outdoor complex, including various mapping techniques. Towards the end of the course, you will work in small groups in a mock recovery of human remains and analyze the case utilizing the forensic anthropological methods learned throughout the course.

Introduction to Quantum Computing – Vanessa Sih FULL
The development of quantum physics at the beginning of the 20th century made possible current technology, including computer chips, solar cells, and flat screen displays.  We are now at an exciting time when quantum computers are being developed that could more efficiently solve some problems than existing “classical” computers.  However, quantum physics is mysterious and predicts behavior that is not intuitive.  What does it mean for a particle to tunnel through a barrier?  How can objects exist in a superposition like the Schrodinger’s cat, which is both dead and alive?  How is a quantum computer different from a “classical” computer?  This course will introduce students to quantum theory and its applications in modern technology and quantum computing and incorporate a mix of group problem solving and hands-on activities, including demonstrations, laboratory activities, and simulations.

Mathematics of Decisions, Elections and Games –  Michael A. Jones FULL
You make decisions every day, including whether or not to sign up for this course. The decision you make under uncertainty says a lot about who you are and how you value risk. To analyze such decisions and provide a mathematical framework, utility theory will be introduced and applied to determine, among other things, a student’s preference for desserts and for the offer the banker makes to a contestant in the television show Deal or No Deal. Our analysis will touch on behavioral economics, including perspectives of 2017 Nobel Prize winner Richard Thaler. Elections are instances in which more than one person’s decision is combined to arrive at a collective choice. But how are votes tallied? Naturally, the best election procedures should be used. But Kenneth Arrow was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1972, in part, because he proved that there is no best election procedure. Because there is no one best election procedure, once the electorate casts its ballots, it is useful to know what election outcomes are possible under different election procedures – and this suggests mathematical and geometric treatments to be taught in the course. Oddly, the outcome of an election often stays more about which election procedure was used, rather than the preferences of the voters! Besides politics, this phenomenon is present in other settings that we’ll consider which include: the Professional Golfers’ Association tour which determines the winner of tournaments under different scoring rules (e.g. stroke play and the modified Stableford system), the method used to determine rankings of teams in the NCAA College Football Coaches poll, and Major League Baseball MVP balloting. Anytime one person’s decisions can affect another person, that situation can be modeled by game theory. That there is still a best decision to make that takes into account that others are trying to make their best decisions is, in part, why John F. Nash was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994 (see the movie A Beautiful Mind, 2002). Besides understanding and applying Nash’s results in settings as diverse as the baseball mind games between a pitcher and batter and bidding in auctions, we’ll examine how optimal play in a particular game is related to a proof that there are the same number of counting numbers {1, 2, 3, } as there are positive fractions. We will also examine the Gale-Shapley algorithm, which is used, for example, to match physicians to residency programs and to match students to colleges (the college admissions problem). Lloyd S. Shapley and Alvin E. Roth were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2012 for their work on matching.

Organic Chemistry 101: Orgo Boot Camp – Kathleen Nolta FULL
This course will introduce you to the techniques and concepts taught in the first term of organic chemistry at the University of Michigan. The emphasis is on lecture-based learning, small group learning, and independent presentation of problems that you have solved. While laboratory exercises will be done, they are not the main focus of the course. Topics to be covered include nomenclature and how molecules are organized structurally, including their connectivity, options for stereochemistry, and conformational manipulation. We will also explore chemical transformation by learning how to draw complete curved arrow mechanisms for some of the most fundamental reactions in organic chemistry: acid-base chemistry, nucleophilic substitutions, electrophilic additions, eliminations, and electrophilic aromatic substitutions. The emphasis will be on exploring concepts through problem solving (there will be lots of practice problems to do!), and you will have an opportunity to take examinations given to college students. Students will be able to explore the chemistry in various laboratory applications; we will also be covering the basics of infrared spectroscopy and NMR. By focusing on the concepts and trying some of the techniques, students will gain a better understanding of what organic chemistry is and how to enjoy it.