Course Syllabus- SC 111- General Biology I for Non-Majors- Fall 2005

 

Lecture Time:  MWF 12:00-12:50

Location:          CAMP 177

Instructor:       Jenna Brown

Office:             SC 143

Office Hours: MWF 10:00-11:30 and by appointment

Contact:           Phone- 268 3843  email- generalbiology@gmail.com

 

Course Description: This course is intended for the student who wishes to gain an understanding of biology using the human organism as the principal focus.  This course will develop that understanding at the cellular, organ, organismal and evolutionary level.  Related social and ethical issues will be addressed relative to current advances in biotechnology and medicine.

 

Required Text: Biology Today and Tomorrow.  Cecie Starr. 2004.

Paperback with Physiology, CD-ROM, and InfoTrac  ISBN: 0534467326

Grades and Evaluation: Success in this course depends upon mastering the material presented in the lectures and the assigned reading in the text and accompanying materials.  Each chapter of the Starr book begins with discussion of a current issue, and includes illustrated chapter overviews and key points, and these key points will largely form the basis of quiz and exam questions.  Grades for this course will be based on a possible 500 points, broken down as follows:

Quizzes- 10 pts each for a total of 100 pts.  multiple choice. (I will be giving a quiz each week on Wednesday.  There will be 12 quizzes total, of which I will drop the two lowest grades.  Should you do well on all 12 quizzes, you may use the two “extra” quizzes for extra credit.  No makeup opportunities for quizzes will be given, you will receive a zero for any quiz for which you are absent.)

Exams- 100 pts each for a total of 300 pts.  Multiple choice.  (I will be giving 3 exams during the semester, including the final exam.  There are no “A” exemptions for the final.  The final exam will not be comprehensive. Makeup exams will be granted for a valid doctor’s excuse and other exceptional circumstances.)

Project- 100 pts (explanation, pg 2)

Explanation of Semester Project:

 

The Semester Project is worth 50 points of your total grade for this course.  You may form groups of up to 5 (no more than 5) people or you may choose to work alone.  All group projects are due on November 18th.  Please do not ask for an extension, due to the number of students in this class we will need sufficient time to grade these.

 

Biology is an experimental science.  Many non-science majors will complete college without ever really designing, running, and analyzing an experiment.  But in SC111, each student will have the chance to demonstrate her/his understanding of the scientific method.

 

Instructions:

  1. choose an interesting question to explore
  2. do some background research to see what is already known about your subject
  3. construct a testable hypothesis
  4. test your hypothesis by experiment and gather data on the results
  5. analyze your data
  6. provide the instructor with the final write up of your experiment

 

your write up must include the following sections for full credit:

  1. Title- make the title informative and specific.  Your title should indicate the major focus of your experiment.
  2. Introduction- the introduction places your work in a broad theoretical context and give readers enough information to appreciate your objectives.  You may find that the introduction is easier to write after you have drafted the “materials and methods”, “results”, and “discussion” sections and have a clearer understanding of just what you are introducing.
  3. Materials and Methods- Include enough information so that your study could be repeated. For “materials” give complete taxonomic information about the organisms you used, if you use human subjects, give their age, sex or other pertinent characteristics.  Describe your tools, sampling devices, measuring devices or other equipment.  For “methods” describe the procedures in detail, including things like sampling methods, conditions, duration of observation period, sampling dates, and the methods used to collect and analyze the data.
  4. Results- Summarize and illustrate your findings.  Include here any graphs or charts relevant to your data.  This should be a straightforward report of your data.  Do not interpret or draw conclusions in this section.
  5. Discussion- Interpret your results here, supporting your conclusions with evidence.  Now is your chance to tell the reader what you think your findings mean.  Refer to your data, citing tables or figures where necessary.  Discuss also the findings of other researchers, are your results consistent with theirs?

 

A minimum five page report will be necessary for full credit.

 Semester Schedule (subject to change)

 

Date

Day

 

Topic

 

Reading

 

Aug 29

Monday

Intro, Syllabus

None

Aug 31

Wednesday

What is Biology and Why do I Care?

Chap 1

Sep 2

Friday

What is Biology and Why do I care?                 

Chap 1

Sep 5

Monday

Sorting Junk from Science

none

Sept 7

Wednesday

Some Current Issues in Biology

none

Sept 9

Friday

Molecules of Life                                       

Chap 2       

Sep 12

Monday

Cell Structure

Chap 3-6

Sep 14

Wednesday

Cell Structure

Chap 3-6

Sep 16

Friday

Cell Structure                                         

Chap 3-6

Sep 19

Monday

Genetics 1

Chap 7-9

Sep 21

Wednesday

Genetics 1

Chap 7-9

Sep 23

Friday

Genetics 1                                                

Chap 7-9

Sep 26

Monday

Genetics 2

Chap 10-11

Sep 28

Wednesday

Genetics 2

Chap 10-11

Sep 30

Friday

Genetics 2                                                

Chap 10-11

Oct 3

Monday

Fall Recess-NO CLASS

none

Oct 5

Wednesday

Review for Exam 1

Chap 1-11

Oct 7

Friday

Exam 1- multiple choice

 

 

Oct 10

Monday

Tissues and Organs

Chap 20

Oct 12

Wednesday

Tissues and Organs

Chap 20

Oct 14

Friday

Endocrine Control                                              

Chap 26

Oct 17

Monday

Endocrine Control

Chap 26

Oct 19

Wednesday

Endocrine Control

Chap 26

Oct 21

Friday

Circulation and Respiration                               

Chap 22

Oct 24

Monday

Circulation and Respiration

Chap 22

Oct 26

Wednesday

Circulation and Respiration

Chap 22

Oct 28

Friday

Immunity                                                       

Chap 23

Oct 31

Monday

Immunity

Chap 23

Nov 2

Wednesday

Immunity

Chap 23

Nov 4

Friday

TBA                                                                 

 

Nov 7

Monday

Review for Exam 2

Chap 20, 22, 23, 26

Nov 9

Wednesday

Exam 2- multiple choice

 

 

Nov 11

Friday

Reproduction and Development

Chap 27

Nov 14

Monday

Reproduction and Development

Chap 27

Nov 16

Wednesday

Reproduction and Development

Chap 27

Nov 18

Friday

Neural Control and the Senses                          

Chap 25

Nov 21

Monday

Neural Control and The Senses

Chap 25

Nov 24 and Nov 26

Wednesday and Friday

NO CLASS- Thanksgiving Recess

none

Nov 28

Monday

How Animals Move                                             

Chap 21

Nov 30

Wednesday

How Animals Move

Chap 21

Dec 2

Friday

Digestion, Nutrition and Excretion

 

Dec 5

Monday

Digestion, Nutrition and Excretion                   

Chap 24

Dec 7

Wednesday

Digestion, Nutrition and Excretion

Chap 24

Dec 9

Friday

Review for Exam 3 (final)

Ch 21, 24, 25, 27