Physiology and Health (B.A.)
Courses
Click on any of the course titles below to see the course’s description:
- PH 101 Physiology Is Consciousness
- PH 260 Self-Pulse Diagnosis
- PH 261 Prevention
- PH 262 Diet, Digestion, and Nutrition
- PH 263 Maharishi Yoga Asanas
- PH 380 Research Methods
- BIO 260 Biology I
- BIO 263 Biology II
- BIO 264 Biology III
- CHEM 201 General Chemistry I
- CHEM 202 General Chemistry II
- CHEM 203 General Chemistry III
- CHEM 311 Organic Chemistry I
- CHEM 312 Organic Chemistry II
- CHEM 313 Organic Chemistry III
- CHEM 350 General Biochemistry
- PHYS 207 Classical Physics
- PHYS 208 Thermodynamics, Harmonics, Waves, Electricity and Magnetism
- PHYS 209 Optics, Quantum Physics, Nuclear Physics, and Elementary Particles
- PH 311 Fieldwork / Internship
- PH 382 MCAT Preparation
Physiology Is Consciousness: Awakening the Cosmic Potential of the Human Brain
The course will explore the new paradigm in science that the “Physiology is Consciousness.” Current concepts of mind and body will be understood in terms of this new paradigm. The human brain is unique in the universe. The unfathomably complex fabric of the brain neuropil rivals the billions of shining galaxies. This course examines the contribution of the Vedic tradition of knowledge to our understanding of brain structure and function, and hence, the potential that lies within every individual. The exponential growth of modern scientific understanding, primarily during the last 50 years, has created a situation in which we have an urgent need to understand the relationship between consciousness and our physiology. This course will present our facts of brain structure and function in light of Maharishi Vedic Science and Raja Raam’s discovery of Veda and Vedic Literature in human physiology. We will examine how our brain constructs reality at every moment and how, from Vedic Science, the transcendental field of life, the home of all the Laws of Nature, is the source of these myriad physiological impulses seamlessly orchestrated to produce what we call human experience. We will study how the experience of unboundedness, the Self of every individual, can transform our physiology and awaken the total creative potential of the brain in enlightenment, the birthright of every human being. (4 credits) Prerequisite: STC 108/109
Self-Pulse Diagnosis: Measuring the Impulses of the Body’s Intelligence and Restoring Balance in the Physiology through the Touch of Three Fingertips
Self Pulse Diagnosis is the most ancient and most natural means of determining the level of balance or imbalance in the mind and body. This course presents Maharishi’s revival of this ancient technology to determine the state of the inner intelligence of the body. Everyone should learn pulse diagnosis to maintain his or her own health. Pulse diagnosis allows one to detect imbalances early, before they manifest as disease. Pulse allows one to precisely determine where the imbalance is and how to restore balance. Furthermore, pulse is therapeutic in itself. Just taking the pulse increases the balance in the pulse and therefore the balance of the whole mind and body. Taking the pulse enlivens the connection between mind and body, consciousness and matter. (4 credits) Prerequisite: STC 108/109
Prevention: Creating Perfection and Avoiding Disorder through the Principles and Practices of Maharishi Consciousness-Based Health Care
The Prevention course presents an overview of the whole discipline of Maharishi Consciousness-Based Health Care. In this course one learns how consciousness expresses as physiology, and how enlivening consciousness through all of the 40 approaches of Maharishi Consciousness-Based Health Care is the basis for restoring balance and creating perfect health. Prevention is much better than cure. Living life according to Natural Law is the means to “avert the danger that has not yet come.” This course gives all the principles and many practical points on how to live according to Natural Law. These include diet, daily and seasonal routine, an introduction to self pulse, Maharishi JyotishSM (the Vedic science of prediction), Vedic Architecture or Maharishi Sthapatya VedaSM, and collective practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programs. (4 credits) Prerequisite: STC 108/109
Diet, Digestion, and Nutrition: Imbibing Intelligence from Food and the Environment — Enlivening Strong Digestion and Selecting a Diet Ideally Suited to the Individual
Diet, digestion and nutrition are fundamental to health. How we metabolize food and drink directly affects the strength, vitality, immunity, and longevity of the physiology. In this course detailed knowledge of the influences of foods on the physiology is described. Also the influence of consciousness on the process of digestion and nutrition is discussed carefully. Different foods are categorized according to their influence on the three principal governing qualities of intelligence in the body: communication and movement, transformation, and structure. The balance of these three principles determines the balance, strength, immunity and health of the body. And that balance is greatly influenced by the food that is taken, and the state of awareness of the one who is eating. This course provides very practical knowledge of what to eat, when to eat, and how to eat to maintain or restore perfect balance. (4 credits) Prerequisite: STC 108/109
PH 263 Maharishi Yoga Asanas: Vedic Exercise to Enliven Mind-Body Coordination to Support Pure Awareness, the State of Yoga
This practical course presents the knowledge and experience of enlivening the unified state of consciousness, or Yoga, through the physiological approach of Yoga Asanas. Maharishi has revived the essential understanding that Yoga means unified level of consciousness or Transcendental Consciousness, and that Yoga, one of the 40 aspects of the Vedic Literature provides the technologies to unfold that experience. The physical postures of Yoga Asanas are traditional positions that enliven the connection between mind and body, consciousness and physiology. When done properly, Maharishi Yoga asanas help dissolve stress and give the experience of settledness and expansion in the direction of the experience of pure consciousness, or Yoga. This unique practical course includes regular practice of Maharishi Yoga asanas as well as the understanding of their specific effects on the mind and body. (4 credits) Prerequisite: STC 108/109
Research Methods
This course introduces the knowledge and objective skills indispensable to scientific research. Topics include the scientific method, logical and practical considerations in experimental design and data acquisition, procedures for conducting literature reviews, selection of research topics, research ethics, and practical research aids such as computer-assisted data analysis. Particular emphasis is placed on clinical research design, including proper choice of control subjects and the prevention of bias in subject selection. (4 credits) Prerequisite: MATH 153
Biology I: Living Systems
How life’s dynamic intelligence applies the principles of biochemistry, cell biology, and genetics to uphold self-organization, maintenance, and evolution of life. This course covers aspects of biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, and evolution. Emphasis is placed on the expressions of intelligence, order, and integration found at different levels of biological organization. (Lab fee $25) (4 credits)
Biology II: Molecular and Cell Biology
This course presents the foundations of Human Biology at the cellular and molecular level. Topics include human DNA and gene expression; enzymes & metabolism; cell components; cell division; and specialized cells and tissues of the body. Students will discover the fundamental themes of natural law in the ordered structures of the cell and the DNA. The DNA is the blueprint of the human physiology. (Lab fee $25) (4 credits) Prerequisite: BIO 260
Biology III: Human Anatomy and Physiology
Human Anatomy and Physiology provides the foundational understanding of how the body’s structure and function maintains life in balance and homeostasis. The integrated functioning of trillions of diverse cells, each with a million chemical reactions per second, gives rise to a healthy, vital human being. We will study tissues, organs, and 8 organ systems and their role in maintaining health and balance. The organ systems are the musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, digestive, respiratory, endocrine/reproductive, immune, and nervous systems.
The human physiology is also a replica of Natural Law expressed in the ancient Vedic Literature. Major areas of the physiology are precisely correlated in structure and function, to the 40 aspects of Veda and the Vedic Literature. Professor Tony Nader, M.D., Ph.D., now Raja Raam, under Maharishi’s guidance, has discovered that every aspect of the ancient Vedic Literature is mirrored by the human physiology. This understanding bridges the gap between the ancient, Vedic understanding of Natural Law and the modern understanding of human physiology and health. (4 credits) Prerequisite: BIO 263
General Chemistry I
Topics include atomic and molecular structure, reaction mechanisms, thermochemistry, and the physical behavior of gases, with special emphasis on problem solving and quantitative reasoning. (Lab fee $25) (4 credits) Prerequisite: MATH 162
General Chemistry II
Topics include covalent bonding, liquids and solids, equilibria, kinetics, and acids and bases. (Lab fee $25) (4 credits) Prerequisite: CHEM 201
General Chemistry III
Topics include coordination compounds, the chemistry of oxidation-reduction reactions, chemical thermodynamics, nuclear chemistry, chemistry of selected elements, and atmospheric chemistry. (Lab fee $25) (4 credits) Prerequisite: CHEM 202
Organic Chemistry I
This course, which is taught with an emphasis on unifying principles, explores both structure and reaction mechanisms of organic compounds. Topics include bonding, spectroscopy, structure, physical properties, synthesis, and reactions of the major classes of organic compounds, including biomolecules. (Lab fee $25 per course) (4 credits)
Organic Chemistry II
This course, which is taught with an emphasis on unifying principles, explores both structure and reaction mechanisms of organic compounds. Topics include bonding, spectroscopy, structure, physical properties, synthesis, and reactions of the major classes of organic compounds, including biomolecules. (Lab fee $25 per course) (4 credits)
Organic Chemistry III
This course, which is taught with an emphasis on unifying principles, explores both structure and reaction mechanisms of organic compounds. Topics include bonding, spectroscopy, structure, physical properties, synthesis, and reactions of the major classes of organic compounds, including biomolecules. (Lab fee $25 per course) (4 credits)
General Biochemistry
This course focuses on the basic chemical structures and chemical transformations that take place in living systems. Topics include the structure, kinetics, and regulation of enzymes; bioenergetics; and intermediary metabolism. (Lab fee $25 per course) (4 credits) Prerequisite: CHEM 313
Classical Physics: Analysis and Synthesis
The course presents classical physics topics including motion, force, momentum, equilibrium, work, energy, fluids, solids, and heat. Included are laboratory sessions, weekly seminar sessions, and reviews of current scientific papers. Case studies will emphasize applications from the life sciences and medicine. Computational skills relevant to scientific literacy will be emphasized. (Lab fee $50) (4 credits) Prerequisite: MATH 162
Thermodynamics, Harmonics, Waves, Electricity and Magnetism: Unity at the Basis of Diversity
The course presents thermodynamics, periodic motion, waves, sound, light and optics. Emphasis is on application over derivation, development of rapid estimating skills, and real-world problem solving applications relevant to the life sciences. Laboratory sessions, weekly seminar sessions and reviews of current scientific papers help students develop a physics sensibility and scientific literacy. (Lab fee $50) (4 credits) Prerequisite: PHYS 207.
Optics, Quantum Physics, Nuclear Physics, and Elementary Particles
The course presents optics, quantum theory, atomic structure, nuclear structure, and physical chemistry. Laboratory sessions, weekly seminar sessions and reviews of current scientific papers help students develop a physics sensibility and scientific literacy. Real-world problem solving applications relevant to the life sciences will be presented. (Lab fee $50) (4 credits) Prerequisite: PHYS 208
Fieldwork / Internship: Expanding the Knowledge of Physiology and Health in the Field
Students observe and work in Maharishi Medical Centers or medical laboratories, schools or health care facilities in various aspects of health care, research, clinical operations patient care, health education, etc. (4 credits — may be repeated) Prerequisites: Consent of the department faculty and the Academic Standards Committee
MCAT Preparation
The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is a standardized national exam required for entrance to medical school. In this course students will have the opportunity to integrate all of their learning in the B.S. in Physiology and Health, and will take practice MCAT exams.
The content of this page was reviewed in June 2011.
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