⊙⊝⊜ ⟭⟬ Malia⁷ ⟬⟭

Namjooning is now being offered as an actual course in Stanford University Course Description Kim Namjoon, better known as RM, is the leader of BTS, the groundbreaking South Korean music group that has become a global cultural phenomenon (and which performed at Stanford in May 2026). Namjoon is also an avid art collector and will co-curate an exhibit at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art starting October 2026. Although renowned as a musician, song writer, and performer, Namjoon is also frequently quoted for his approaches to mental health and well-being. This IntroSem is fundamentally about practices to support mental health and well-being, and we will take inspiration from RM wherever we can. Topics will include nature, biking, art, and literature (collectively known by some fans as Namjooning); sleep, anxiety, and creative block; self-love and self-awareness; medications and substances, diet and exercise; nutritional supplements; psychotherapy and coaching; and others. In this class, however, it will not suffice to simply extol the entirely sensical advice, for example, to “get plenty of sleep!”, but rather we will use quantitative approaches to understand what is “plenty”, whether all sleep is created equally, and the impact of lack of sleep on well-being—what does the research say, how does one actually achieve good sleep, and what remains controversial? We will read fiction and analyze scientific papers. We will view art and YouTube videos. Assignments will include brief in-class presentations, brief writings, some quantitative reasoning, and a final project inspired by RM’s Indigo. Prerequisites for this class are a desire to flourish at Stanford and in life, an appetite for data, and a healthy respect for BTS. zurl.co/B5ICJ