Truth, Nature, and Wonder

Now that Winter 2025 registration is open, we asked some of our Honors faculty to share some details about what you can expect from their Unexpected Connections courses next semester. Take a look at what some of our professors have said about what you could learn from their classes!

What does it mean to preserve the experience of being in nature?
(Honors 223 section 001)
Have you ever snapped a picture of a sunset, only to leave you feeling frustrated that you were unable to accurately capture its beauty? Or have you ever pondered the costs and benefits of bringing your smartphone into the wild? Drs. Jarica Watts and Mike Jones will teach a class where nature lovers can explore these questions and learn how to make the outdoor experience more meaningful—with or without technology.

Students will discover how they can best preserve the experience of being in nature using concepts in user experience design and literature, a truly unexpected connection. “I think if you're wanting to find—truly, truly find an unexpected connection, or you’re willing to just be exploratory in your thoughts, this is the class,” Watts explained. “You are not going to find two professors with more disparate disciplines.”

Although the disciplines may seem disconnected, Watts said they are actually deeply connected in this class. She said they dive into the language of coding and the language of words. Students in the class will have ample opportunities for hands-on, experiential learning. Along with class hikes, there are other enrichment assignments where students have a chance to experience nature as they never have before. In the past, some of these included hiking for 20 minutes without ever looking at a watch, taking a picture every six minutes while in nature, and picking a blank spot on a map and going there. “I hope [students] come away asking the question, how is technology changing the way that I engage with reality, for better and for worse?” Jones said.

Finding Truth: Disagreement and Engagement in a Complex World
(Honors 223 section 002)
Life is full of controversial, difficult questions, and quite a lot of disagreements too. Drs. Ryan Christensen and Karl Warnick help students navigate these complexities through physical science and letters. Warnick explained that in prosperous societies, when basic problems like food and shelter are taken care of, what’s left are “higher order, more challenging problems” that aren’t so black and white. This class provides an opportunity to confront such issues, and learn how to deal with them in a peaceful manner.

The class was first taught during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many of these complicated discussions were very relevant. Students were able to track the spread of COVID-19 and collect data for other issues regarding the pandemic. “Once I have that tool to look at numbers, I have a powerful way to look and cut straight through a lot of the misinformation, confusion, distortions that might exist,” Warnick said. “So we're kind of giving students tools to help them look at the world in a hopefully accurate way.”

The class is a great way to take relevant, current issues, and learn practical skills for understanding the truth behind them. It’s a way for students to look at problems through a gospel lens, and to positively respond rather than just becoming angry. “Teaching and creating this Honors class was a way to sort of take ideas from my field, ideas from gospel teachings, from the teachings of Jesus Christ, and sort of putting that together to create a way of looking at the world that I think might be beneficial for students and for me, too,” Warnick said.

The Experience of Wonder
(HONRS 290R section 001)
Whether you love math or hate it, by the end of this class, you may think math is beautiful. Drs. Amy Tanner and Carl Sederholm challenge students to experience the wonder of the unconventional through film and mathematics. “There are a lot of people who have experiences with mathematics that leave them a little cold. And I liked the idea of maybe doing something different than that and showing people how you can find joy and beauty in mathematics,” Tanner said.

In the class, each person chooses something that they think is beautiful that others may not find beautiful, and throughout the semester everyone shares with the class. As the semester draws to a close, everyone works on a project in pairs to combine their two objects into one creation. The last time the class was taught, one student had a scar on her finger that she hated when she was young, but as she got older, she learned to appreciate its beauty. This is what she decided to share with the class. At the end of the semester, she and her partner had forged a ring with a scar on it. “It's a great opportunity to step outside yourself and learn how to step into things that are uncomfortable for you and find the value in those things,” Tanner explained.

Although it may feel uncomfortable, Tanner expressed that those who are nervous about mathematics should be in the class since it’s an opportunity to gain the skill of looking at the world from a different and unexpected perspective.

You can see all course descriptions on the Honors website, and remember, you must be a committed Honors student who has completed HONRS 110, HONRS 120 and WRTG 150 to register for the Unexpected Connections courses. Have questions about registration? Contact an Honors advisor at honors@byu.edu.