Biology 101: Life on Earth

Lecture: MWF 1 pm-1:50 pm in 423 HT; Lab: Tu 3-4:50 pm & 6:00-7:50 pm in 409 HT
Instructor: Kevin S. Baldwin Office: 405 HT Phone: 457-2148 email: kbaldwin@monm.edu
Website: http://www.monmsci.net/ ~ kbaldwin
Office Hours: MWF ???, 405 HT, & by appointment
Teaching Assistants: Katie Clarizio & Sahar Haghighat
Lab Instructor & Manager: Ms. Kathy Mainz

Course Schedule:

Week of	Topics	Readings	Lab Topic
25 Aug	Biology, Science, & Ethics	Ch. 1	No Lab
1 Sept	DNA	Ch. 2	Le Suer Prairie Walk
8 Sept	Human Genetics	Ch. 3	Measurement, Accuracy, & Precision
15 Sept	Genetic Engineering & Genomics	Ch. 4	DNA Models
22 Sept	Evolution	Ch. 5	Natural Selection
29 Sept	Classifying Nature	Ch. 6	Caminalcules
6 Oct	Human Variation	Ch. 7	Organismal Diversity
13 Oct	Sociobiology	Ch. 8	Fall Break
20 Oct	Population Growth	Ch. 9	Evolutionary Psychology
27 Oct	Nutrition & Health	Ch. 10	CDC Investigation
3 Nov	Agriculture	Ch. 11	Grocery Store
10 Nov	Development & Cancer	Ch. 12	Ecobeaker
17 Nov	Nervous System, Drugs, & Addiction	Ch. 13 & 14	Project
24 Nov	Mind, Body, HIV, & AIDS	Ch. 15 & 16	Project/ Thanksgiving
1 Dec	New Infectious Threats	Ch. 17	Project
8 Dec	Biodiversity, The Biosphere, Final Thoughts	Ch. 18 & 19	Project Presentations
15 Dec	Final Exam: Tues 16 Dec, 1 pm

Text: Eli C. Minkoff & Pamela J. Baker. 2004. Biology Today: An Issues Approach, 3rd ed. Garland Science.

Course Description: This course is intended to be an introduction to the biological sciences for non-majors.

Exams: There will be three midterm exams (100 pts. each) spaced about 4 weeks apart, and one cumulative final exam (200 pts.). There will be no make-up exams given except for cases of extreme illness, which must be documented by a physician, or family emergencies, which must be documented in some way.

Labs: Many labs will have small exercises associated with them collectively worth 150 points. Readings for the labs will be made available as a packet by the end of the first week of class.

Group Project: As part of practicing the scientific method, you will conceive and execute a small project (in groups of up to 4) in the latter half of the class. You will present your results in front of the rest of your lab section. The proposal, execution, & presentation will be worth 100 points.

Grades: Marks will be assigned on the basis of a curve such that: greater than 90% of the highest score in the class = A; 80-89% = B; 70-79% = C; 60-69% = D; and less than 60%= F.

Your Responsibilities: You are expected to attend lectures & labs and do the associated readings. I strongly suggest that you get to know a few people in the class, so that you can cover for one another, and study together. The best way to learn something is to have to explain it to somebody else.

The syllabus is not written in stone. Additional readings may be assigned as they become available. Documents available on the internet may be added as well. Depending on class interest, topics may be changed or moved. Exam days may change. It is your responsibility to be aware of these changes.

Academic Honesty: As responsible adults, you are expected to do your own work on assignments and exams and make sure that your classmates do likewise. Violations of the above are contrary to the pledge you took at Matriculation and will be reported to the Dean.

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On 30 Aug 2008, 12:46.