This course critically examines the archaeology of Ireland during the high medieval period from c.1100 until the mid-14th century. The background to the coming of the Anglo-Normans to Ireland in 1169 and the impact they had on the landscape are discussed in depth in the first part of the course. Themes for this section of the course will include the role of castles, the manorial economy, trade, the foundation of villages, rural boroughs and towns by mostly English immigrants and the growth of certain cities. Dispersed settlement in Anglo-Norman parts of eastern Ireland will also be explored. In particular, in the first part of the course, the interplay between castle, town and countryside in Anglo-Norman Ireland is examined in detail. It must also be remembered that large parts of Ireland remained in some way under the control of Irish (Gaelic Irish) princes and lords. The Norman conquest in Ireland in the years after 1169 was only partial, unlike England in 1066 which saw the complete takeover of that country by William the Conqueror. Lectures in this section of the course will examine the nature of Irish settlement in the period under review and will argue that while there was much change, continuity from the pre-Norman early medieval period was seen too. Themes in this part of the course will include the late use of crannogs, ringforts, the Irish adoption of moated sites as princely residences and native agricultural practices. The course will also deal with the changes of the 14th century and the virtual collapse of the Anglo-Norman colony across large parts of Ireland at this time. The last lecture will be a summary of the course outlining the main points made. In particular, it will compare and contrast the landscapes of Gaelic and Anglo-Norman Ireland. Questions such as the recognition of ethnicity and cultural interface in the archaeological record will be addressed in this last lecture.

This module is an introduction to the prehistoric communities who inhabited Ireland and Europe, from about 20,000 BC to AD 400. Archaeologists divide this long period of time into the Paleolithic (Old Stone Age), Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age), Neolithic (New Stone Age), Bronze Age and Iron Age. We begin with the earliest modern human inhabitants of Europe, their hunter-gatherer way of life, their art and their relationship to the Neanderthal communities who preceded them. We look at evidence for the first hunter-gatherers who settled in Ireland and later the settlements and rituals of the first communities to develop agriculture and build megalithic tombs. We move on to examine changes in how these communities organised themselves and their rituals over thousands of years, including their adoption of bronze and iron metalworking. The course ends with a look at the history of the study of prehistory and the significance of prehistoric sites in contemporary society.

This module will provide an overview of Irish writing in Irish and in English from the literary and cultural revivals of late nineteenth-century Ireland to the present. It will introduce the work of some of the most outstanding modern writers in both languages, with a particular emphasis on the ways in which issues such as gender, nationalism, sexuality, politics, religion and social class are represented in literature. Students are expected to provide a survey of Irish writing in Irish and in English from 1892 to the present, critically examine the work of the most significant writers in modern and contemporary Ireland, assess the role of the writer in modern Irish society, and explore connections between the dual language traditions of writing on the island of Ireland. Students will develop key critical reading, research and writing skills

The overall objective of this course is to introduce students to key concepts and research in the study of developmental psychology, with particular focus on cognitive development, social and emotional development, moral development and gender development. Students are expected to be able to describe the features of a life-span perspective on development, understand and explain the interaction of biological and environmental influences on development, evaluate factors that contribute to developmental change, synthesise competing perspectives on cognitive and psychosocial development. Students will discuss change and growth as ongoing processes and the ecology of development.

A full experimental coursewhere students will isolate and characterise biopolymers / Fabricate and characterise implantable devices (biopolymer and / or synthetic polymer based and tissue grafts), develop experimental hypothesis, design and fabricate biomaterials for various tissue engineering applications, Design and carry out in vitro and/or in vivo assays to assess the potential of an implantable device for an unmet clinical need. Students are expected to statistically analyse data to ensure reproducibility, use various software (e.g. reference, statistical) at high level, work individually and as part of a team and also assess health and safety and ethical issues associated with research.

This course aims to provide students with the key molecular concepts of the biology of living cells. The basic structure and organisation of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells will be described, with an emphasis on understanding the similarities and differences between cells from these main domains of life. The composition, structure and importance of the four major groups of biomolecules will be reviewed. Fundamental topics on genomes and genome organization will also be covered. At the end of the course students as expected to be able to describe the main structural and organizational similarities and differences between Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cells, discuss the key features of different types of Eukaryotic cells, e.g. fungal, plant and animal cells, identify the functions of the major subcellular structures and organelles, describe the role of water and the importance of pH in living cells, explain the basic chemical bonds and interactions that underpin the chemistry of biologically important reactions, detail the general molecular structure and (bio)chemical features of the main biomolecules in living cells and explain their cellular functions, and compare and contrast genome structure and organization in prokaryotes and eukaryotes

This course draws on a variety of subfields in psychology to impart an understanding of how psychological factors contribute to and are affected by health, illness, and health care. The course is organised into the following sections: introduction to health psychology and the key models of health and illness; stress and its impact on health and illness, including moderators of the stress experience; health-related behaviour, the factors that influence it and the ability of health-behaviour models to predict it; pain and its management; doctor-patient communication, styles of communication and their impact on patient satisfaction and compliance; and current issues in applied health psychology.

In European Human Rights Law – Systems & Themes I the focus will be on the historical evolution of systems for the protection of human rights in the Council of Europe and European Union with a particular emphasis on the background to the European Convention on Human Rights (and related instruments) and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights as well as the institutional arrangements provided for under both instruments. The role of the European Court of Human Rights and Court of Justice of the European Union will be examined focusing on issues like subsidiarity, techniques of interpretation, admissibility rules, margin of appreciation etc. The status of the ECHR and EU Charter in domestic Irish law will also be analysed as will the ongoing issue of EU accession to the ECHR. (Language of instruction: English)

Learning Outcomes
1. Have a strong understanding of the substantive doctrine of the EU Charter and ECHR as developed by the CJEU and ECtHR
2. Have a strong understanding of the techniques of interpretation and relevant procedural rules used in the application of the EU Charter and ECHR
3. Appreciate how the EU and Council of Europe systems for the promotion and protection of fundamental and human rights co-exist and inter-operate
4. Understand the relevance of both major European instruments to domestic human rights litigation and practice
5. Appreciate the potential of future evolutions in the relationship between the Luxembourg and Strasbourg systems

The main objective of this course is to learn how the techniques and theories of microeconomics can be used to explain how firms and consumers behave. A secondary objective is to understand when the behaviour of firms and consumers is efficient from society’s perspective. The emphasis throughout the course is on problem solving. (Language of instruction: English)

Learning Outcomes
1. Use the supply and demand model to analyze competitive market outcomes.
2. Use the consumer choice model to analyse consumer choices.
3. Show the basic relationships between technology, production decisions, and costs. 4. Use demand functions, cost functions, market structures, and game-theoretic concepts in the analysis of a firm’s decisions. 5. Analyse how firms can use various pricing strategies to maximize profit. 6. Analyse decisions that involve risk and asymmetric information.

This course deals with traditional cultural forms as they existed in the 16th and 17th centuries, particularly in Western Europe; the emerging differences between elite and popular culture; changes within popular culture caused by economic, religious and political developments; and the discovery of popular culture as an object of study in the late-18th century. (Language of instruction: English)

Learning Outcomes
1. Demonstrate familiarity with an approach to cultural history which is materially and socially grounded
2. Understanding better the worldview and ritual life of the majority of the population of Europe before the industrial revolution.
3. Show an appreciation of the relationships between economic change and developments in cultural forms, such as the growth of a literate culture and the manifestations of that culture in the religious reformations and other developments.
4. Use indirect sources and inferential reasoning in the process of reconstructing the material conditions and attitudes of the majority of the population in the past.

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