Fundamentals of Biology: Fall 2012
Lectures:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday
9:00-9:50 am in Textor 102
Labs: Varied days/times, see below
Course web site:
Sakai
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Instructor: |
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Center for Natural Sciences 213A |
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Contact: (607) 274-1086, jhopple@ithaca.edu |
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Office Hours: |
Tuesday, Thursday - 12:10 - 1:00 p.m., Friday - 10:00 -10:50 a.m., or by appointment. |
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Required Lecture Text and Equipment: |
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Textbook: |
Biology:
the Diversity of Life 13e (Custom Edition) by C. Starr, R. Taggart, C. Evers, and
L. Starr.
Cengage Learning, Mason, Ohio.
2013.
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Lab Manual: |
Mader, Sylvia S.
2011. Customized Laboratory
Manual
“Inquiry into Life” - 13th edition,
Wm.
C.
Brown
Pub.
Chicago (ISBN 9780077459239) |
| Clickers: |
ResponseCard NXT personal response system. Turning Technologies (available at the IC bookstore). |
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Student TA/Tutors: Review Sessions, TBA -- announced in class |
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TBA |
| Laboratory Sessions: | |
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Monday 1:00 pm |
....CNS 102 (John Hopple, CNS 213A,
jhopple@ithaca.edu)
Section 02 ....CNS 105 (René Borgella – rborgella@ithaca.edu) Section 13 |
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Tuesday 9:25 am |
....CNS 102 (Amy Lyndaker, CNS 165, alyndaker@ithaca.edu) Section 03 .... CNS 105 (Jayasri Srinivasan, CNS 213B, jsrinivasan@ithaca.edu) Section 04 |
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Tuesday 1:00 pm |
....CNS 105 (Nancy Jacobson – jacobson@ithaca.edu
/ Maya Patel – mpatel@ithaca.edu)
Section 05 ....CNS 102 (Amy Lyndaker, CNS 165, alyndaker@ithaca.edu) Section 06 |
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Wednesday 1:00 pm |
....CNS
102 (John
Hopple – jhopple@ithaca.edu)
Section 07 |
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Thursday 9:25 am |
....CNS
102 (Jayasri Srinivasan, CNS 213B, jsrinivasan@ithaca.edu) Section
08 |
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Thursday 1:00 pm |
....CNS 102 (Amy Lyndaker, CNS
165, alyndaker@ithaca.edu) Section 09 |
Course Description: This
is the first semester of the introductory biology series
for non-major students.
It is a survey of biology for physical and
occupational therapy, exercise science, and other
health-related majors. General topics covered include cell
structure, cellular respiration, mitosis and meiosis,
genetics, DNA structure and function, and animal physiology. Lectures
will present information through a variety of formats
including blackboard work, PowerPoint, videos, and
“clicker” questions.
During lectures students should be actively thinking
in addition to taking notes.
Lecture: Students are expected to attend all lectures with the exception of health emergencies, religious holidays, court appearances, or college-authorized extracurricular events. If you miss a lecture for one of the above reasons please convey the reason and date to Dr. Hopple in person or by email. If you miss a lecture for any reason, it is your responsibility to get the notes from a classmate. Do not assume that all lecture material is covered in the text. Do not ask Dr. Hopple for missed notes. Understand that poor attendance generally correlates with poor grades.
Lecture assessment: Understanding of lecture material will be assessed through four exams. Exams will consist of multiple-choice and short answer questions. The first three exams are scheduled during regular lecture periods. Make-up exams will be given only in special situations (see above) and may be of a different format that regularly scheduled exams. Requests for make-up exams must be made one week ahead of the regularly scheduled exam time. Unexplained absences will result in a grade or zero for that exam. The final exam will be given during finals week (see Lecture Schedule.pdf). The final exam will cover material from the last quarter of the course (100 pts.) and cumulative material from the entire semester (100 pts.). Material for the exams will be drawn primarily from the lectures.
Reading assignments are found in the Lecture Schedule. Students should keep up with the readings as listed. To get the most out of the lectures, students should study the appropriate readings before the class when they will be discussed. Reading assignments are mandatory unless otherwise noted. Additional readings may be added that are not listed. Readings that are not part of the textbook will be posted on sakai.
Lecture participation: Students will be graded on lecture participation through the use of personal response systems (clickers). There will be three to five timed clicker questions asked each lecture. Attendance will also be assessed via clickers. Clicker enrollment into the system will take place during the third lecture and clicker questions will begin the fourth lecture. The lowest three lectures will be dropped from the student’s participation score.
Clickers may be
purchased at the bookstore.
Be aware that between spring 2012 and fall 2012
Ithaca College changed clicker vendors (see above). Students are
responsible for maintaining their clickers in working
condition. To
that effect, do
not come to Dr. Hopple to complain that your clicker
isn’t working. Again,
clicker maintenance is the responsibility of the student. Also do not come to
Dr. Hopple to complain that you forgot to bring your
clicker to class. It
is the student’s responsibility to bring their clicker to
class. Lastly, do not
attempt to share clickers.
Behavior: As
this is a large class it is critically important that talk
between students during class be kept to a minimum unless
otherwise encouraged by the professor. Cell phones and
iPods (and other music players) may not be used during
lecture, labs, or exams. You
may bring a laptop or iPad-like device to lecture to take
notes but neither should be used for other reasons during
class. Inappropriate
behavior during class could be cause for dismissal!
Laboratory: Laboratory
attendance is mandatory
(see Laboratory
Schedule.pdf).
If you miss your lab, please arrange to attend
another lab section during the same week. You must notify
both your regular lab instructor and the instructor of the
make-up lab section (see above). Lab absences will
result in a loss of 20 points per missed lab if labs are not
made up. Students
will be dropped from the course if they miss two labs.
Lab assessment: In addition to your lab exercises, ten quizzes will be given during regular lab
time. Quizzes will occur at the beginning of the lab period and will cover material from the previous lab(s). Quizzes will be made up of short answer questions. The last two laboratories will be assessed from a lab practical quiz based on actual specimens from labs ten and eleven. In addition there will be five short assignments worth a total of ten points during the semester.
Dissection policy: We will dissect a fetal pig during the last two lab periods. The pigs are a by-product of the meat industry and are not bred specifically for our dissection. If a student has a compelling, valid reason for not performing the pig dissection (ethical, religious, medical) they must inform us in writing within the first two weeks of classes and arrange a meeting with the course instructor. In the letter the student should explain the exact reasons for requesting an exemption. Requests will be evaluated and an alternative exercise with testing will be assigned.
| Points Summary |
Grading Scale | ||||
| examination I |
= 50 pts | 93-100% | A |
73-76% | C |
| 90-92% |
A- | 70-72% | C- |
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| examination II |
= 100 pts. | 87-89% | B+ |
67-69% | D+ |
| examination III |
= 100 pts. | 83-86% | B |
63-66% |
D |
| examination IV | = 200 pts | 80-82% | B- |
60-62% | D- |
| lecture participation |
=
30 pts.
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77-79% |
C+ |
below 60% |
F |
| lab | = 120 pts. | ||||
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| Total |
600
pts. |
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There will be no extra-credit
assignments in this course!
Academic
Conduct: Familiarize
yourself with Ithaca College’s Standards of Academic Conduct
(visit the Division of Legal Affairs web site (http://www.ithaca.edu/policies/vol7/volume_7-70104/).
Academic conduct:
As is
stated in the Standards of Academic
Conduct “Academic honesty is a
cornerstone of the mission of the College. Unless it is
otherwise stipulated, students may submit for evaluation
only that work that is their own and that is submitted
originally for a specific course.” Please make yourself
aware of the College’s definition of plagiarism. Further “According to traditions
of higher education, forms of conduct that will be
considered evidence of academic misconduct include but are
not limited to the following: conversations between
students during an examination; reviewing, without
authorization, material during an examination (e.g.,
personal notes, another student's exam); unauthorized
collaboration; submission of a paper also submitted for
credit in another course; reference to written material
related to the course brought into an examination room
during a closed-book, written examination; and submission
without proper acknowledgment of work that is based
partially or entirely on the ideas or writings of others.
Only when a faculty member gives prior approval for such
actions can they be acceptable.” Academic
dishonesty can result in a grade of zero on an assignment
or test, academic code probation, suspension, or expulsion
from the college depending on the outcome of a judicial
hearing by the academic conduct review board
Course Evaluation: At the end of the term,
you will be asked to provide feedback evaluating both your
experiences in lecture and in lab. Student input is
highly valued and is important in maintaining high quality
instruction. As a department, we are
moving to online course evaluations. At the end of
the term, we will provide you with the website link. It is the
department policy that the online course evaluations
are mandatory and must be completed by the date
indicated by your instructor. An incomplete
may appear on your transcript if it is not submitted by
that time. The
evaluation will be submitted to the Department Assistant. She will verify
that you have submitted the form. Once that has
been checked, your identification will be removed and will
not be printed with the comments.
Students with
Disabilities: In
compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, reasonable
accommodation will be provided to students with documented
disabilities on a case by case basis. Students must
register with the Office of Academic Support Services
(607-274-1005, TDD 607274-7319, acssd@ithaca.edu) and
schedule an appointment with their instructors as soon as
possible to discuss their needs.
Visit the Biology home
page.
Visit the Ithaca College
home page.
Page maintained by Nancy Pierce