Magicians have been known to perform seemingly impossible tricks from an ordinary deck of cards, but what the public often doesn't know is that most tricks are based off of a small selection of "sleights" or techniques put together in new combinations. In order to confuse and fool, magicians practice these fundamental sleights for years, honing every motion. In this class, I hope to show you the sleights that eventually become tricks that blow away spectators. What you eventually do with this information is entirely up to you! Grab a deck of cards, and join me for an hour of craziness with cards!

Learn the fundamentals of chess strategy from one of the Nation's best chess players! We'll cover middle-game strategy, calculation and puzzles, and tips for continuing to improve (and have fun while you're doing it!)


Prerequisites
Knowledge of how to move the pieces.

Bughouse is a crazy, fun twist on chess for two teams of two where every piece you take can be used by your partner anywhere on their board! Learn from a pro and watch the pieces fly(literally!).


Prerequisites
Knowledge of how to play regular chess.

I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse: if you take this class, I'll teach you an amazing party game that your friends and family will love.

Mafia is a logic and psychology game for 8-14 players. Everyone playing is part of a town, but some of the townspeople are members of the mafia. It's the townspeople's job to find the mafia before the mafia kills off everyone in the town. Can you figure out who it is?

This is a short introduction in how the college application process works . We will be going over essays, extracurriculars, financial aid, and the application itself.

12 years of essay writing culminates in this ultimate masterpiece. The college application. Learn how to craft the best college application essay and to stand out from the ever-increasing applicant pool. You will get advice from current Cornell students on essay writing, completing the Common Application, and successfully navigating your way into your dream school --Cornell! We will be holding a short workshop session at the end to help streamline your essays if you bring them in. Everyone, not just high school seniors, is welcome!

Have you ever wondered how to make a piece of paper into a flower, crane, or box? Well now you can! This class will be an introduction to the ancient art of origami. We will go over the basic folds and make origami that you can take home! No experience necessary!

Glidis, O studans! When you pick up a fantasy or sci fi novel, do you flip to the back to look at the glossary for that alien language? Do you think the world would be a much better place if there were one, neutral, easy-to-learn language that we all could speak? Maybe you've made a code or cypher for you and your friends. Or maybe you think language is too imprecise and really wish there were some unambiguous way of communicating. If any of these statements describe you, congratulations! You might just have what it takes to be a conlanger, someone who makes languages, for fun (and for profit!). In this practicum, we'll create our own language, for fun (not for profit!), learning some interesting facts about conlangs and linguistics along the way.

Have you ever noticed how strikingly different some buildings look from each other? Wondered what exactly makes old buildings look "old" or new buildings look "new"? Or heard a building described as "Gothic" but didn't know what that really meant? In this class, you'll learn to identify the features of buildings that make them unique and interesting. In addition, you'll see how buildings with similar features can be grouped into named categories, such as "Victorian Gothic" and "Art Deco." Next time you're walking through a college campus or a historic downtown, this class will help you recognize the architectural styles you see around you.


Prerequisites
Curiosity and interest in the appearances of buildings.

Up beat hip hop dance class. No prior dance background needed. If you have prior dance background we would love to have you. Get your body moving, and have some fun!

Come learn calligraphy! Try out different styles, pens, inks, and papers. Write anything your heart desires - I will show you the basic strokes and swashes and you can take it from there. We will also be using gold leaf for embellishments!
Your natural handwriting does not need to be "good" to do calligraphy, and no experience is required.

Most of us know or have heard about people who need new organs, whether it be a heart, a kidney, or a skin graft, and through this, have learned about how difficult (and expensive) it is to attain them. However, doctors, scientists, and engineers are currently on the brink of developing the technology needed to eradicate this problem completely.

In this class, we will talk about current research on and applications of tissue engineering and artificial organs, and what the future of biomedical engineering looks like. We will also look briefly at the feasibility of related fictional technologies in the real world.


Prerequisites
High school biology will be helpful, but is not necessary.

How would you go about building a computer? What would your shopping list look like? What would it cost? How would you know that you're getting the best parts for the best price? How would you know that you're buying the best laptop for your price range? $$\\$$
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We'll be learning about computer hardware! Topics and skills covered include: $$\\$$
- Basic Computer Hardware $$\\$$
- Computer Performance (what makes a computer "good" or "fast") $$\\$$
- Walking into Best Buy like you own the place

Silicon electronics has ruled the world for the last 50 odd years. But, it is almost certain that silicon will reach its maximum capability in the near future. In this course we will discuss the limitations of the presently existing silicon electronics, the needs of the future, wide-bandgap material alternatives to silicon and their present & future applications.


Prerequisites
Curiosity to learn about a new, upcoming field will suffice

Silicon has ruled the world economy for atleast the last 2 decades. It is hard to imagine a world without silicon devices.
But, we will reach the threshold of this technology in the near future.
In this course we will talk about Materials and how their study influences electronics. We will also talk about alternatives to silicon, their applications and scope for the near future. Emphasis will be given to semiconductors that are actually being researched upon at laboratories in Cornell.


Prerequisites
Curiosity to learn about a not-so-familiar subject.

With the musical "Hamilton" taking Broadway by storm, the American Revolution and the life of Alexander Hamilton have been hot topics. Now that Hamilton has taken center stage, it’s time for him to share the spotlight with his closest companion during the war – John Laurens.

John Laurens served alongside Hamilton in the Revolutionary War as both a soldier and an aide to George Washington. The two fought together, engaged in duels, and helped secure the American victory at the Battle of Yorktown. But perhaps the most significant part of Laurens’s life was his efforts to abolish slavery. Despite being a member of the South Carolina elite and the son of a wealthy slave owner, Laurens openly condemned slavery. He tried to bring about the end of the practice by proposing a plan to lead a regiment of slaves and grant them freedom after their service.

In this lecture, I will present a biography of the life of John Laurens, with a focus on his years serving in the Revolutionary War and his anti-slavery efforts. Through this class, you can learn about who he was, what he did, and why he deserves to have his story told.

Do you love to read and write? Do you think you could be the next J.K. Rowling, John Green or Suzanne Collins? Would you like to learn how to write a novel in 30 days (or less)? Come join us as we discuss how to take our stories to the next level through writing prompts/"word sprints", peer editing, and fun discussion. Plus, learn how to join the global event that is National Novel Writing Month (and if you've already started your novel, spend some time increasing your word count)!

“Our lives are the sum of our memories. How much are we willing to lose from our already short lives by … not paying attention?” - Josh Foer.

The role of memory is changing in our society. We don't worry about forgetting our childhood memories because we can access them on iPhotos - all of human knowledge held by the Internet.

So what of our own memories? How do these changes affect how we remember and forget, how our personal identities interact with the past?

This course is an introductory seminar into the nascent field of memory studies, a powerfully interdisciplinary field composed of psychology, neuroscience, sociology, poetics, politics, philosophy, and medicine. Contemplating memory has something to offer for everyone, academically and in day to day life.

Ever wondered how musicians make money, or why you're allowed to jailbreak a phone but not a game console? Both of these are related to copyright, a form of intellectual property that protects literary and artistic works as well as software. We'll talk about the origins and constitutional basis of United States copyright law, what it is, the fair use and first sale exemptions, and how they affect a broad range of industries from film to video gaming. We'll focus on recent developments in copyright law such as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), the open source software and free culture movements, the controversial 2011 bills SOPA and PIPA, and the proposed copyright rules in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). We'll spend the last 10-15 minutes of class debating these issues or copyright law in general.

The slideshow from this class will be available online under a Creative Commons license.


Prerequisites
None -- just an open mind and some interest in copyrights, patents, or trademarks.

Enjoy a break for lunch with your friends! Please register for at least one lunch period on each day of the program.

This is an invitation and an introduction to the fascinating world of knot theory: the study of knots. We discuss questions such as when two knots are the same and how hard it is to tell?. I will then describe some of the current research problems that are surprisingly easy to understand.
Unlike the title seems to suggest, this will be a fun course for every student, and even more so if you look for mathematics in every thing you do.


Prerequisites
None.

The axiom of choice is deceivingly straightforward: "Let L be a collection of nonempty sets. Then we can choose a member from each set in that collection.". However this statement cannot be proved, or disproved and hence the name 'axiom'. While the axiom of choice seems intuitively true, it can lead to bizarre consequences, like the Banach Tarski Paradox which says you can break up a sphere into finitely many parts and re-glue them to form 2 spheres of the same size!. We look at other bizarre consequences in a world where this axiom is true. We then look at what could happen if it was not.


Prerequisites
Knowledge of a what a set and a function is. Having some idea about countable and uncountable infinity is beneficial, but will be defined in the course.

Groups are among some of the most interesting topics in modern mathematics. They have implications far beyond just the abstract; in this course, we will explore how groups in mathematics are at the very foundation of modern music. Here's a sample list of topics we might cover:

+ Basic abstract algebra (groups, sets, transformations, and geometric representations)
+ Music meta-theory (intervals, temperaments, waves, frequency)
+ Music theory (transpositions, inversions, chords, arpeggios)
+ Relationships and connections between the two
+ Modern research about the two fields

If you're a music aficionado and want to learn more about the math behind why certain things work, this class is for you. You don't have to be a math whiz to understand why modern music works!


Prerequisites
Students must be musically literate with music written (classical or otherwise) for the piano. Students should also be familiar with the material covered in a standard geometry course and in a second (advanced) course in algebra at the high school level. Understanding basic proofs and being able to reason logically will be among the most important skills necessary outside of musical literacy.

What would you do with $1,000,000? Can you even hope to make that much? Get ready to learn math-backed personal finance strategy to get us to our million. We will be focusing on reliable strategies that have been proven to have surprisingly good results.


Prerequisites
You should understand exponents and graphs. If you have taken an algebra course then you should be more than qualified. Those seeking higher level math concepts are still welcome as the world of personal finance is a rewarding course of study no matter how much you already know.

Write a word in your own handwriting and watch as a 3D printer draws it for you! We will be using SketchUp, a computer-aided design (CAD) software, to model your handwritten word as a 3D object. Then, we'll attach a Sharpie to a 3D printer (because who doesn't love a good hack), and we'll watch as the 3D printer "writes" your word. You can also just draw whatever your heart desires! No experience with CAD software is necessary, as all tools will be demonstrated.

4 billion years of evolution have allowed microbes to penetrate every environment on Earth, ranging from deep sea thermal vents where temperatures reach beyond the sea level boiling point of water to the thin upper atmosphere to acidic drainage sites where the pH can reach below 0. In this course, we'll survey how organisms can survive extremes of temperature, pH, radiation, and pressure, how we study them in the first place, and ponder what this all means in the search for life elsewhere in our solar system.


Prerequisites
Basic biochemistry (types of biological macromolecules, basic membrane function, fundamentals of cellular respiration)

Whether you think they're cool or scary, reptiles are an amazing group of animals with an array of characteristics that have made them the successful group they are today. In this class, you'll learn about their evolutionary history, their shared characteristics, and unique traits that help to specialize the main groups of reptiles.


Prerequisites
Be able to understand basic evolutionary concepts If you are afraid of snakes, do not take this course *will have LIVE reptiles*

What do the Crazy Cat Lady stereotype, and the Alien from the iconic sci-fi horror franchise have in common? Parasites! Whether you like it or not, they are practically everywhere, and in fact, some might be infected with some right now. In this class, we'll explore the somewhat grim and gruesome (but always fascinating) world of parasite biology, highlighting some that have made their way into pop culture.


Prerequisites
Have general biological knowledge and be able to watch some clips of parasites being super weird.

This class will take a hypothesis-based approach towards understanding how CRISPR/cas (An "adaptive immune system" used by bacteria and archaea) was discovered. You'll analyze data from real bacterial genetics and molecular biology experiments related to the CRISPR/cas system to learn how scientists approach new problems. We'll also touch on the applications of CRISPR/cas, including gene editing!


Prerequisites
Basic understanding of DNA and RNA synthesis, enzymes, and characteristics of prokaryotic cells.

We will be manipulating the densities of various liquids to create a density cylinder of floating objects, such as a nail, a popcorn kernel, beads, a soda cap, and a ping pong ball.

Physics has come a long way in the past couple centuries, the physics being studied today may seem alien compared to what you will learn in high-school and even the first few years of college. This class aims to give insight into what physicists are studying right now without the advanced math requirements.
Topics will range from General Relativity and Blackholes to Quantum Field Theory and Particle Accelerators.


Prerequisites
Some amout of knowledge of recent events in physics (i.e. Higgs Boson). Also please come to class with a question you would like answered.

Since the advent of manned flight, the military applications of aircraft have posed significant ethical concerns. This course will employ case studies from history to foster discussion about what constitutes the "just" use of military airpower, given the different objectives and strategic concerns of each actor.

2.3 million people are held in the American criminal justice system, but has this made our society safer? Is this what justice looks like? Why have we shaped our criminal justice system around punishment instead of rehabilitation? In this class we will discuss the factors that have led to high incarceration rates in the US, and whether or not it is possible to build a world without prisons. Students should come with an open mind and a willingness to engage in debate.

Forged from the ashes of the Second World War, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was, in the words of an influential European statesman, "to keep the Germans down, the American in, and the Soviets out". This class will discuss how NATO functioned to this end during the Cold War, and how the alliance has responded to the security challenges of today.

Why are we so obsessed with the Kardashians, Dance Moms, The Real Housewives, and The Bachelor? This course will answer this question by looking at the various psychological mechanisms which underlie our obsession with watching other people's lives. Clips from your favorite reality television shows will be shown!

In this class, students will be introduced to the basic ideas of game theory. Game theory uses mathematical modeling to predict behavior when individuals are either cooperating or competing with one another.