(Down payment for the winter courses by the end of registration)
January 2 - 24, 2008
Course Description: This multidisciplinary seminar offers participants both intellectual and physical tours of the Nile River, with emphasis on its role in the development of ancient and modern Egyptian civilizations. The objective is to provide students with a totality of perspectives on the great river, from hydrogeology and ecology to sociology, economy, and culture. The course, taught by experts in their respective fields, explores the interactions between the river, the surrounding deserts, and human society and culture. Key features of ancient Egyptian civilization, as well as contemporary social and economic developments, including environmental, health, and political issues, associated with management of the river are examined first-hand through site visits. The course includes a luxury boat cruise between Luxor and Aswan, calling in at important monuments of ancient civilization and the High Dam and Lake Nasser, plus visits to contemporary agricultural villages, tours of irrigation barrages and dams, and a day at AUC’s Desert Development Center along the desert fringes of the Nile Valley and Delta.
Course Structure
The course runs from Wednesday, 2 January to Thursday, 24 January 2008. When not on field trips, lectures will be given on campus between 10:00am and 1:00pm in room 419, Main Campus. The final exam will be given in class on 24 January. It will consist of multiple-choice questions covering four major subject modules: 1) the river and society, 2) the river and ancient belief systems, 3) water demand and pollution, and 4) water management and hydropolitics. In addition to the final exam, there will be an extended essay to be written in class on 24 January.
Course Readings
The general text for the course is Rushdi Said, The River Nile: Geology, Hydrology, and Utilization. Individual instructors as part of their modules may suggest supplemental readings.
Course Instructors
A team of instructors teaches the course: Dr. Chahinda Karim (Egyptology and Islamic Studies), Dr. Edward Smith (Construction and Environmental Engineering), and Dr. Richard Tutwiler (Anthropology and Natural Resource Management). Dr. Tutwiler is the course coordinator.
Evaluation
Student performance in the course will be evaluated on the basis of four criteria: 1) class participation [10%], 2) a student journal [30%], 3) score on the final exam [30%], and 4) quality of the in-class assigned essay [30%]. Participation includes prompt attendance, attentiveness, and involvement in class discussions. Student journals consist of a written diary of major points covered in lectures and field trips, student reading and research, and student reactions and points-of-view. The journal should be kept on a daily basis. The format of the in-class essay assignment will be provided prior to the final day.
Course Schedule
Jan 2 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 J. Beinin Welcome to the Course; R. Tutwiler Lecture “The Nile: river and people”
Jan 3 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 R. Tutwiler Lecture “Water and Society”
Jan 4-5 Weekend
Jan 6 Fieldtrip 08:30-14:30 R. Tutwiler Visit al-Qanatir & Irrigation Museum
Jan 7 Coptic Christmas Holiday
Jan 8 Fieldtrip 08:30-11:00 R. Tutwiler Visit Agricultural Museum
Rm 419 12:00-14:00 R. Tutwiler Lecture “Nile Development Dilemmas”
Jan 9 Env. Lab 10:00-13:00 E. Smith Managing Nile water quality
Jan 10-12 Islamic New Year and Weekend Holiday
Jan 13 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 R. Tutwiler Lecture “Mega Projects on the Nile”
Jan 14 Fieldtrip 08:00-16:30 R. Tutwiler Visit Desert Development Center
Jan 15 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 Guest TBA The Nile & Environmental Health
Jan 16 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 R. Tutwiler Lecture “Hydropolitics”
Jan 17 Fieldtrip 10:00-13:00 C. Karim Visit Nilometer & Egyptian museum
Jan 18 Weekend
Jan 19 Nile cruise TBA Karim & Tutwiler Luxor
Jan 20 Nile cruise TBA Karim & Tutwiler Luxor to Esna
Jan 21 Nile cruise TBA Karim & Tutwiler Esna to Aswan
Jan 22 Nile cruise TBA Karim & Tutwiler Aswan
Jan 23 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 R. Tutwiler Lecture: “Future of the Nile”
And review for the exam & essay
Jan 24 Rm 419 10:00-13:00 R. Tutwiler Final Exam and Essay
(submit journals)
Additional Information
For additional information please contact the course coordinator, Dr. Richard Tutwiler, Director of the Desert Development Center, The American University in Cairo. His office is located on the 4 th floor, Building 10A, Youssef El-Guindi Street. The telephone number is 797-6611, and the Email is ddcdir@aucegypt.edu.