BISC 1403 R04 Fall 2024 V2

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Introductory Biology I

BISC 1403 R04


Fall 2024
Instructor: William Gault, Ph.D.
E-mail: wgault@fordham.edu (please include class section
and/or meeting day/time in every email)

Class Meetings: LH170


Time: Mon, Thurs; 2:30pm – 3:45pm

Information and Policies:

Required Materials:
 Freeman Biology, 7th Edition, Quillin, et al.
 Pearson’s Mastering (study platform from Pearsons.com)
 Find book options at the Fordham bookstore:
https://fordham-rosehill.bncollege.com/shop/fordham-rosehil/page/find-textbooks

Office Hours:
 Mon and Thurs, 10:30am – 12:30pm (Larkin Hall Room 370A), or outside of specified time by
appointment (please email).
 I encourage you to email me with any questions that arise during your reading/studies as soon
as possible.

Course Description:
 Introductory Biology I lecture will focus on topics including the following (Learning
Modules/Units):
1. The Molecular Origin and Evolution of Life
2. Cell Structure and Function
3. Gene Structure and Expression
4. Evolutionary Patterns and Processes
5. The Diversification of Life

Intro Biology I Learning Objectives:


 Demonstrate broad content knowledge in Biology, from molecules to cells to organisms to
evolution.
 Develop a foundational framework to learn to think critically and scientifically - skills to use after
the semester is over and into your careers/lives.
 Build community and hopefully find colleagues who may share similar interests and challenges
in Biology and, for the time being, in the online learning setting.
 I am hoping to encourage you to not only learn what you read or what I mention in lectures, but
to develop your own process of learning that relies heavily on your curiosity, imagination, and
knowledge.
 Whether you are focused on a career in medicine, biotechnology or ecology, I encourage you to
find relevance in all the topics covered.

Student’s Responsibilities and Expectations:


 Students must attend all classes.
 All students are required to read any posted material and complete any assignments that
appear on Bb and Mastering by their respective deadlines.
 Where applicable, students are individually responsible for verifying accurate and correct
assignment submissions. Confirming accurate and timely submission of assignments
is always the student's responsibility, never the professor's responsibility. Students who do not
submit an assignment as instructed in this syllabus, class, and/or course announcements are not
eligible for any credit for that assignment.
 General rule: you should spend two hours of study time, minimum, per hour of class time.

Bloom’s Taxonomy:
Throughout the semester, keep in mind what is referred to as Bloom’s Taxonomy: a classification of the
different outcomes and skills that educators set for their students (learning outcomes).

Bloom’s taxonomy includes the following six levels of learning, which will be used to structure the
learning outcomes, lessons, and assessments of the course:

1. Remembering: Retrieving, recognizing, and recalling relevant knowledge from long‐


term memory.
2. Understanding: Constructing meaning from oral, written, and graphic messages
through interpreting, exemplifying, classifying, summarizing, inferring, comparing,
and explaining.
3. Applying: Carrying out or using a procedure for executing, or implementing.
4. Analyzing: Breaking material into constituent parts, determining how the parts relate to one
another and to an overall structure or purpose through differentiating, organizing, and
attributing.
5. Evaluating: Making judgments based on criteria and standards through checking and critiquing.
6. Creating: Putting elements together to form a coherent or functional whole; reorganizing
elements into a new pattern or structure through generating, planning, or producing.
Bloom’s is hierarchical, meaning that learning at the higher levels is dependent on having attained
prerequisite knowledge and skills at lower levels (the pyramid above).

In BISC1403 Intro Biology I Lecture, learning outcomes, lessons, and assessments will focus on
Remembering, Understanding, Applying and Analyzing. That means lecture discussion preparation and
exam preparation should not only involve memorizing facts, but your ability to understand what the
facts mean, application of the facts to solve problems, but also being able to break down concepts into
their individual components. Keep this in mind when preparing for the class lectures and assessments.

Assignments and Exams:


 Assignments will be posted and turned in via Bb or Mastering – these may include pre and/or
post lecture questions to help you understand and apply the new concepts.
 Reading assignments are questions assigned based on articles (posted or linked in Bb), which
will provide you an opportunity to dig into the applied aspects of the biological concepts you are
learning.
 Exams will be taken in a timed in-person format and will include multiple choice and short
answer style question. You will have the entire class meeting time to complete exams.
 The final exam (exam 4) will be approximately 60% new material and 40% past material.
 There will be no make-up exams unless an excused absence is approved by the Dean’s office

Mastering Biology (Electronic Resources from Pearson’s, the book publisher)


 Along with your eBook or textbook (or purchased separately) is an access code for Mastering
 Website: http://MasteringBiology.com

Mastering Course ID: gault84356


 Mastering Biology contains a glossary and some interesting graphics and animations as well as
supplementary questions in the Study Center for testing your knowledge.
 I will inform you of the specific problems that must be completed and when, but you are more
than welcome to explore all features of Mastering.
 Mastering’s Dynamic Study Module questions are a popular source of additional practice for
students, which if completed will be worth a few points towards exams.

Grading:
 Your final course grade is based on your performance on exams and assignments as follows:

 Exam 1 – 3 ……………………………….….45%
 Final/Exam 4…………………..………..…20%
 Mastering Assignments………………...8%
 Quizzes/Class Assignments.………...15%
 Reading Assignments…………………..12%

 Exams 1 - 3 are worth the following percentage of the final lab grade:

 Lowest Exam.…………….………….…….10%
 Median Exam.…………….………….……15%
 Highest Exam.………………..…….........20%

Please note that there will be NO “extra credit” assignments offered!

 The standard Fordham University grading scale will be used in grade attribution: A= 100-93%, A-
=92-90%, B+= 89-87%, B= 86-83%, B- = 82-80%, C+= 79-77%, C= 76-73%, C- = 72-70% D= 69-60%,
F= 59-0%.

Students with disabilities:


 If you have a disability that requires accommodations contact Office of Disability Services:
https://www.fordham.edu/info/20174/disability_services. Questions about testing
accommodations or any accommodations for their courses, please call 718-817-0655 or email:
disabilityservices@fordham.edu.

Lecture Schedule:
Meeting Topic Text Chapter*

Module 1: The Molecular Origin and Evolution of Life

8/29 Introduction, Bio: Study of Life 1

9/2 - Mon University Closed - Labor Day


9/4 - Wed Bio: Study of Life; Chemical Basis of Life 1, 2

9/5 Protein Structure and Function 3

9/9 Nucleic Acids 4

9/12 Carbohydrates 5

9/16 Lipids Membrane Structure 6

9/19 Lipids Membrane Function 6

9/23 Exam Review/Class Activity

9/26 EXAM 1

Module 2: Cell Structure and Function

9/30 Inside the Cell 7

10/3 Inside the Cell/Energy and Enzymes: Intro to Metabolism 7, 8

10/7 Energy and Enzymes/Cell Respiration & Fermentation 8, 9

10/10 Cell Respiration & Fermentation 9

10/14 - Mon University Closed - Columbus Day

10/17 Photosynthesis 10

10/21 Exam Review/Class Activity

10/24 EXAM 2

Module 3: Gene Structure and Expression

10/28 Mitosis 12

10/31 Meiosis 13

11/4 Mendel and the Gene 14

11/5 - Tues University Closed -Presidential Election

11/7 DNA and the Gene: Synthesis and Repair 15

11/11 How Genes Work; the Central Dogma 16, 17


11/14 Exam Review/Class Activity

11/18 EXAM 3

Module 4: Evolutionary Patterns and Processes

11/21 Evolution by Natural Selection 22

11/25 Evolutionary Processes 23

11/27 – 12/1 University Closed – Thanksgiving Break

Module 5: The Diversification of Life

12/2 Speciation; Phylogenies and the History of Life 24, 25

12/5 Viruses, Bacteria and Archaea 33.1- 33.2; 26


Diversification of Eukaryotes 27

12/12 – Thur No Classes - Reading Day: Exam Review/Class Activity

12/16 1:30 - 3:30p Final EXAM

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