BIOL 111: PRINCIPLES OF BIOLOGY I
Fall 2008
Updated:  October 29, 2008
Course Description and Schedule
Instructor: Dr. Stan Eisen

Lecture topics

Office: 321-3447; FAX 321-4433

e-mail: seisen@cbu.edu

Textbook: Biology with MasteringBiology™ (8th Edition) (MasteringBiology Series) (Hardcover), by Neil A. Campbell (Author), Jane B. Reece (Author)

 

Supplemental text:  Science as a Way of Knowing: The Foundations of Modern Biology (Paperback), by John A. Moore (Author)

Scope of the Course:

BIOL 111 (Principles of Biology I) is the first half of a comprehensive study of contemporary biology, covering cytology, basic chemistry, chemistry of organic chemistry, cellular transport, enzyme kinetics, energy metabolism, cell division, Mendelian, molecular and population genetics, evolution, systematics, and taxonomy of viruses, monerans, protists, fungi, and plants.

Grading protocol:

Grading will be based on the following:

  • Four exams given during lecture periods. These exams will cover the material from the previous exam. The format will include multiple-choice, short answer, and essay questions.  Each exam is comprehensive and will count 1/8 towards your final grade;
  • Approximately twelve quizzes given at the beginning of selected discussion sections, as indicated in the course schedule.  These quizzes will cover the previous week’s material, and will collectively count 1/8 towards your final grade;
  • An oral presentation based on a selected chapter from Science As a Way of Knowing.  Each student (or pair of students, if the number of students exceeds the number of chapters) is responsible for analyzing a selected chapter from this text, and will present a discussion on one or two concepts which “jump out at them” and get their attention.  Each student will prepare a 1-paragraph summary of their presentation and will hand out copies of the class at least one day in advance.  This oral presentation and matching 1-paragraph summary will count 1/8 towards your final grade;
  • A final exam scheduled during final exam week.  This exam will count ¼ towards your final grade.

Each exam, quiz, and oral presentation will be graded on a 4-point grading scale in which:

A = 4 points, for outstanding work, showing sparks of brilliance;
B = 3 points, for good solid work, but perhaps lacking in critical thinking;
C= 2 points, for an adequate answer, but with major omissions or mistakes in content or logic;
D = 1 point, for a barely passing answer; and
F = 0 point, in which you completely missed the point, or left the answer blank. 

I will compute a final numerical average, and will award final grades on the basis of the following:

A = 3.5 to 4.0
B = 2.75 to 3.49
C = 2.00 to 2.74
D = 1.00 to 1.99
F < 1.00

Attendance:

Attendance will be recorded in both lecture and discussion. Any student who misses more than 8 lectures may be withdrawn from the course or given an 'F". Students must be present for exams. I will return all quizzes and exams EXCEPT the final exam.

Classroom Management Details

I assume that you have the intention of learning something when you attend class.  Therefore, I would appreciate it if you would do the following:

  1. Arrive on time.  During quiz and exam dates, I shall close the door to prevent late-comers from disrupting the administration of the quiz/exam;
  2. Mute or turn off your cell phone prior to the beginning of class.  If you don’t, then I reserve the right to answer your phone.  (I promise I’ll be civil.);
  3. Restrict your use of laptop computers to note-taking, or if requested, to access appropriate web sites to acquire information that is directly pertinent to the class.  If you’re more interested in using the computer for inappropriate uses, such as instant-messaging your friends on Facebook during class time, then you don’t have to suck up valuable oxygen that the rest of us can use in the classroom.

Presenter Schedule: 
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/PresenterScheduleFa2008.htm

SO, how was Dr. Pifer’s lecture?
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/HowWasDrPifersLecture.htm

Schedule for Fall 2008

 Day

Date

Topic

Relevant chapter in textbook

M

8/25

Introduction to course,
Chronology of selected discoveries
Eukaryote Organization
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/SelectedEventsBiologicalSciences.htm

1, 6.  Intro; Cell structure

 W

8/27

Prokaryote Organization

2.  Chemistry 

Th

8/28

Quiz 1;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 1 and 2: 
1.  The Antecedents of Scientific Thought
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/QCard01.htm
2.  Aristotole and the Greek View of Nature
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/QCard02.htm

 

 F

8/29

Atoms and Molecules

3.  Water

 M

9/1

NO CLASS (LABOR DAY)

 

 W

9/3

Characteristics of Water

4.  Carbon

Th

9/4

Quiz 2;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 3 and 4:
3.  Those Rational Greeks?
4.  The Judeo-Christian Worldview

 

 F

9/5

Chemistry of Organic compounds

5.  Macro-molecules

 M

9/8

Biological Membranes and transport

7.  Membrane

 W

9/10

Energy and Metabolism

8.  Metabolism

Th

9/11

Quiz 3;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 5 and 6:
5.  The Revival of Science
6.  Figur’d Stones and Plastick Virtue

 

 F

9/12

Characteristics of Enzymes
http://bioweb.wku.edu/courses/Biol114/enzyme/enzyme1.asp

8, cont’d 

 M

9/15

Cellular Respiration 1: Glycolysis

9.  Respiration

 W

9/17

Cellular Respiration 2: Krebs cycle, electron transport, chemiosmosis

9, cont’d

Th

9/18

Quiz 4;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 7 and 8
7.  The Paradigm of Evolution
8.  Testing Darwin’s Hypotheses

 

 F

9/19

***EXAM 1***

  

 M

9/22

Photosynthesis

10.  Photosynthesis

 W

9/24

Chromosomal Structure

11.  Cell Communication

Th

9/25

Quiz 5;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 9 and 10
9.  In the Light of Evolution
10.  Life over Time

 

 F

9/26

Cell cycle - Mitosis , or:
http://www.le.ac.uk/ge/genie/vgec/he/cellcycle.html

Cell cycle

 M

9/29

Cell cycle, cont’d

Cell cycle, cont’d

 W

10/1

Rosh Hashanah 2:  No class

 

Th

10/2

Quiz 6;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 11 and 12
11.  Pangenesis
12.  The Cell Theory

 

 F

10/3

Cell cycle - Meiosis , or:
http://www.le.ac.uk/ge/genie/vgec/he/cellcycle.html

13.  Meiosis

 M

10/6

Mendelian Genetics Laws
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/MendelianGenetics/

“Hairy ears” or ear tufts is a gene on the y-chromosome:
Radhakant Bajpai holds the Guinness record, you know:
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/3777385/10360990

14.  Mendel

 W

10/8

DNA structure
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/DNAStructure.htm

15.  Chromosomes

Th

10/9

Yom Kippur:  No class

 

 F

10/10

DNA replication
DNA transcription

16.  Molecular basis

 M

10/13

DNA translation & the genetic code
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/T/Translation.html

Messenger RNA editing:
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/R/RNA_Editing.html

17.  Gene to protein

 W

10/15

Sukkot 2:  No class

  

Th

10/16

Quiz 7;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 13 and 14
13.  The Hypothesis of Chromosomal Continuity
14.  Mendel and the Birth of Genetics

 

 F

10/17

***EXAM 2***

  

WEEK OF OCTOBER 20: FALL BREAK!!

http://dealnews.com/features/How-to-eat-for-free-on-Election-Day/259259.html

Despite Title IX, even if women COULD compete, I don’t think they SHOULD:
http://www.worldbeardchampionships.com/

 M

10/27

Gene regulation:
http://www.emunix.emich.edu/~rwinning/genetics/eureg.htm

Operon theory:
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/L/LacOperon.html

Animation of lac Operon function:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBwtxdI1zvk&NR=1

 

18. Gene regulation

 W

10/29

Viruses

19. Viruses

Th

10/30

Quiz 8;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 15 and 16
15.  Genetics + Cytology 1900-1910
16. The Genetics of the Fruit Fly

 

 F

10/31

Biotechnology, and Genetic engineering

20. Biotechnology

 M

11/3

Genomes & Their evolution

21. Genomes 

 W

11/5

Genes & Development

 

Th

11/6

Quiz 9;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 17 and 18
17.  The Structure and Function of Genes
18.  First Principles

 

 F

11/7

Descent with Modification:  Darwinian Evolution

22.  Descent…

 M

11/10

Evolution of Populations:  Population Genetics

23.  Population genetics

 W

11/12

Origin of species

24. Origin

Th

11/13

Quiz 10;
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 19 and 20
19.  The Century of Discovery
20.  Descriptive Embryology

 

 F

11/14

***EXAM 3***

  

 M

11/17

History of life on Earth

25. History…

 W

11/19

Evolution of Primates

 

Th

11/20

Quiz 11
Science as a Way of Knowing, Chapters 21 and 22
21.  The Dawn of Analytical Embryology
22.  Interactions during Development

 

 F

11/21

Phylogeny and the Tree of Life

26. Phylogeny

 M

11/24

Archaea

27. Bacteria…

 W

11/26

Bacteria

27, cont’d

Th

11/27

Thanksgiving break – No class

 

 F

11/28

Thanksgiving break – No class

  

 M

12/1

Protists I: Some are animal-like

28. Protists

 W

12/3

Protists II: Some are plant- or fungus-like

 

Th

12/4

Quiz 12

 

 F

12/5

How plants colonized land

29.  Plants I

M

12/8

The evolution of seed plants

30. Plants II

 W

12/10

Fungi

 

Th

12/11

Course Review

 

 F

12/12

***Exam 4***

 

THE FINAL EXAM WILL BE GIVEN DURING FINAL EXAM WEEK