As we go about our lives in families, communities, societies, and civilizations,
we leave traces of ourselves in our interactions with others. Our habits
and traditions form patterns that can be discerned, measured, and understood.
The social sciences reveal these patterns and weave the threads into the
tapestry of human life. Through disciplined investigation of the social,
economic, and political aspects of our behavior, students explore the
diversity of human culture and discover the common ground of human nature.
Such understanding is essential to our future as the world draws closer
to a global village, and we in turn emerge as world citizens.