#  2024-2025 Course Information for First-Years Interested in Mind Brain Behavior 

 



   
Mind Brain Behavior (MBB) academic programs consist of tracks embedded in existing concentrations or the independent secondary field. First-year students interested in MBB are advised to take Psychology 1, Introduction to Psychological Science, this year. It is offered both semesters.  
  
Exceptions to students we recommend take Psychology 1 are students who expect to pursue the computer science or neuroscience tracks, or who might pursue the MBB secondary and have an AP score of 5. CS and neuro students will instead take a more advanced psychology course later in their studies. And students who have a Psych AP 5 may petition to take a more advanced psychology course instead; see [Secondary Field Course Petitions | Mind Brain Behavior (harvard.edu)](/secondary-field-course-petitions) for details. Students do not need to submit petitions until they have declared their secondary field (in the sophomore year or later).  
  
First-years might also consider a variety of General Education courses and Freshman Seminars that address topics in mind/brain/behavior. Although Freshman Seminars do not usually count for concentration or secondary field credit, and General Education courses may or may not count, they can still be a great way to explore your interests.  
  
First-Year Seminars, Fall 2024 (application deadline: 11 a.m., Monday 19 August)  
 25N, Finding connections: Perspectives on psychological development and mental illness  
 26K, Transformative ideas in brain science: War, technology, and disease pioneered discovery  
 49N, Measurements of the mind: The creation and critique of the psychological test  
 51C, Science in the age of artificial intelligence  
 71Y, Ritual and living the good life  
 73C, Race science: A history  
  
General Education Courses, Fall 2024  
 1025, Happiness  
 1056, Human nature  
 1102, Making change when change is hard: The law, politics, and policy of social change  
 1179, Psychotherapy and the modern self  
  
First-Year Seminars, Spring 2025  
 22T, Why we animals sing  
 23K, Insights from narratives of illness  
 23S, The Seven sins of memory  
 24K, The surprising science of happiness  
 24U, “How did I get here?” Appreciating “normal” child development  
 51X, Changing Perspectives: The science of optics in the visual arts  
 52U, Machine muse: The intersection of AI and human creation  
 52Z, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Myths, media, and meaning  
 63E, Religion, neuroscience, and the human mind  
 73G, The emotions – How do they arise? How can (and should) we manage them?  
  
General Education Courses, Spring 2025  
 1024, Pride and prejudice and p-values: Scientific critical thinking  
 1038, Sleep  
 1046, Evolving morality: From primordial soup to superintelligent machines  
 1064, Brains, identity, and moral agency  
 1188, Rise of the machines? Understanding and using generative AI