IR Seminar (Spring 2013) - Undergraduate

The purpose of this course is to provide a broad survey of the debate about American power and influence in international affairs, and to provide sufficient background for students to do a major research paper on the topic. Some view the American role today as creating an empire, while others view U.S. influence as just a reflection of the wealth and military might that Americans command. There are many other thoughtful perspectives as well. 

In this seminar, there is a substantial amount of reading necessary; and, since much of this is in recent articles, there is no single text for the course. The course will be taught, to the maximum extent possible, in seminar fashion, so you must do the reading before coming to class. We will be covering a broad range of controversial topics which involve a combination of factual and ideological questions. There are also obvious moral considerations in many of the topics. This course will not focus on any one perspective and the seminar is designed to encourage a lively interchange of views.

The Political Economy of the Pacific Basin (Spring 2013) - Graduate

This is a graduate seminar designed to provide students an opportunity to survey political, economic and military trends in one of the world’s most critical regions. For our discussion, the region will be defined as all nations whose borders touch on the Pacific, but the reading will concentrate on Asia. Students in both politics and economics should be able to explore the inter-relationship between theory and policy choices in several areas of current controversy.

 

Relevant Sources  

American Economic Review

Brookings

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

China Quarterly

DoD: The Military Power of the PRC

Economist Intelligence Unit

Far Eastern Economic Review

Foreign Affairs 

IMF: World Economic Outlook

International Negotiation

International Security

KEI: Korea's Economy

Naval War College Review

Pacific Affairs

Survival

Taiwan Institute of Economic Research

The National Interest

The Washington Quarterly