Big History

FaculteitFaculty of Geosciences

NiveauBachelor

Studiejaar2026-2027

Beschrijving

Course goals

ATTENTION:
The course information in the study guide is binding
This is the Big History Course for the NWI program. There is a different course with the same name from the History (and SGPL) department, which you can find under course code GE3V22005. Please make sure that you enroll in the correct course!

After completion of this course the student will have

Understanding of the scientific building blocks underlying many contemporary sustainable development goals. We deepen an understanding of key historical and scientific concepts and facts; use these in constructing explanations.
The ability to address the epistemological perspectives associated with the varying degree of complexity of different themes and topics. The course provides understanding how thresholds of increasing complexity, differing scales of time and space, and epistemological perspectives help us understand historical, current, and future events as part of a larger narrative.
Integrated perspectives from multiple disciplines to understand the history of the Universe and Universal change.
Understanding how our own place, and humanity as a whole fit into and impact Big History’s narrative.

Content

We currently face unprecedented challenges on a global scale. These problems do not neatly fall into disciplines. They are complicated, complex, and connected. In this course, we take an epic journey of 13.8 billion years starting at the Big Bang and travelling through time all the way to the future. We learn how our universe and our world has evolved from incredible simplicity to ever-increasing complexity and we discover the important links between past, current, and future events.

This Big History course thus provides a tailor-made overview of relevant natural scientific insights for students of NWI from an interdisciplinary perspective. Big History provides an overview from the birth of the universe and the formation of the stars, galaxies, our solar system and Earth via the origins and evolution of life on Earth and the origins of humankinds and the emergence of civilization to modern and contemporary eras, and then look to the near future of humans. Students will be provided with scientific building blocks for understanding many contemporary issues and the course addresses key concepts as well as the epistemological perspectives associated with different themes and topics in physics, chemistry, biology, transitions, emergence, evolution, complexity, and systems.

By drawing on wide range of scientific fields, students will learn a range of theoretical concepts for understanding the complex nature of our global challenges. And the students will learn to apply these frameworks to different problems.

Reviews0 reviews

Nog geen reviews voor dit vak. Wees de eerste!

Heb jij dit vak gevolgd?

Deel je ervaring met toekomstige studenten. Inloggen met je Universiteit Utrecht mailadres duurt één minuut.

Schrijf een review