BIOL 182 Syllabus, Spring 2014

Professors Stephen Devoto and Fred Cohan

 

Meetings: MWF, 10-10:50 am, ESC 150

Office hours (SHD): Tu, 3-4 pm (Shanklin 306); W, 11-12 (Pi Cafˇ), 4-5 (ESC137); Th, 4-5 (ESC137)

                       

Required readings: 

Chapters from Life: The Science of Biology, 10th edition by Sadava et al. Other required and optional readings will be articles made available through links on the Biology 182 webpage, postings on Moodle, or WesFiles.

Road map for the semester:

This course will cover the biology of organisms and of populations. The first half will focus on animals from a systems perspective, we will use molecular biology, biochemistry, and cell biology from 181 to study organismal homeostasis, the nervous system, and developmental biology. The second half will focus on population biology while drawing on the foundation of molecular genetics and comparative animal biology to introduce evolution and ecology.

Laboratory:

The lab (192) and the course (182) have separate enrollment, separate grading, but both address the same principles. The hands-on, real organism experience will add to your understanding of the same material you are learning in lectures and readings.

Requirements and Policies:

1. Weekly problem sets. 10% of your grade will be determined by completion of problem sets that will be made available each Friday on Moodle, and will cover the material of the next week. They will be due the following Friday. The correctness of your answers to the problems will NOT be graded. Although completing these problem sets makes but a small part of your overall grade, they are guaranteed to help you prepare for the exams. Late problem sets will NOT be accepted.

2. Exams. There will be four closed book exams. Exams will focus on material discussed in class. We will post examples of exam questions. The first three exams will be on Wednesday evenings, the fourth during finals week. These will be designed as 1-hour exams, but you will have 2 hours to take each one. Although each exam focuses on the most recent material, the course builds on what you have already learned. Therefore, you should have a good understanding of previous material in this course as well as in BIOL/MB&B 181. NOTE: we will only test you on what we cover in the lectures.  This will be almost always from the textbook, which you should use as your main source to learn the material. If you cannot take an exam due to extenuating circumstances, you must talk with your instructor -- if ill, we will need a doctor's note. Any other reasons will need a note of explanation signed by the Dean's Office.

 

3. Regrade Policy: If you think an error has been made in grading or scoring your exam, you may submit your exam, with written explanation of the error you think was made, to the instructors within seven days of the date it was returned in class. Exams written in pencil cannot be regraded. We reserve the right to regrade any question on the exam.

 

Grading:

points

date

covering

Problem Sets (x12)

4 each

Every Friday

Each week

1. Exam 1

113

Feb. 12, 7PM

Lectures 1-8

2. Exam 2

113

Mar. 5, 7PM

Lectures 9-17

3. Exam 3

113

Apr. 16, 7PM

Lectures 18-28

4. Exam 4

113

Registrar, TBD

Lectures 29-39

Total

500

-

-

 

How to do well in this course:

Disability Resources

Wesleyan University is committed to ensuring that all qualified students with disabilities are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from its programs and services. To receive accommodations, a student must have a documented disability as defined by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, and provide documentation of the disability. Since accommodations may require early planning and generally are not provided retroactively, contact Disability Resources as soon as possible.

 

If you believe that you need accommodations for a disability, please contact Dean Patey in Disability Resources, located on the 2nd floor of North College, or call 860-685-5581 for an appointment to discuss your needs and the process for requesting accommodations.