Barbara May, Ph.D.

College of St. Benedict/St. John's University

Department of Biology

BIOL121: Introduction to Cellular and Molecular biology

Fall 2006 syllabus:

Class schedule:

Lecture: 1-3-5: 9:40-10:50 (NSC146)

Lab: you MUST have signed up for one of 20 lab sections

Instructor: Barbara May (Office: NSC 204)

            email: bmay@csbsju.edu

            phone: x3173 home: 763-258-0798 cell: 763-443-4477

            office hours: 1-3: 1:30-3pm,

                                  4: 10-11am,

          6: 10:30-12:00

          or by appointment

Goals of our course:

The goals of the course are listed above.  I would like you to think about the following questions as we go through this semester:

1.      What primary components are necessary for life as we know it?

2.      How does the structure of the cell allow it to function?

3.      What major mechanisms are necessary for the cell to survive and why are these mechanisms so important?

4.      Inheritance plays a key role in survival.  How is life able to pass on all of its info??

5.      What is the role of a scientist?  How do I become a better one?

Attendance policy:

I EXPECT you to attend lecture. PLEASE BE ON TIME. This is where the exam information comes from.  Some information may not come from the text.  Laboratory attendance is required.

IF there is an extreme emergency and you cannot make an exam, please contact me in person and we may be able to work something out (EMAILS ARE UNACCEPTABLE).

GRADE BREAKDOWN:

Assignments                                                                   Points:                                    

Hand in a question                                                                 10    (2%)

3 “surprise” quizzes                                                                15    (3%)

Exams (3 @ 75 points each)                                                   225  (45%)

Nonscience literature assignment                                         25    (5%)

Lab (breakdown discussed in lab)                                         125  (25%)

Final                                                                                       100  (20%)

Total                                                                     500

 I keep an extra 10 points (on top of the total 500) for those students who may have made significant progress and may be on the border of a grade.  I reserve the right to “help” with these 10 points, but will not take any points away that have been earned. You will NOT earn these points if you do not regularly attend class and do not demonstrate that you are making an effort in class and lab.

 The standard scale as shown above will be used.  I reserve the right to adjust the scale downwards if necessary.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

Disabilities: If you have a documented disability that will impact your work in this class, please contact me or the Advising Office immediately to discuss your needs.  All such discussions will be confidential.

Email: I plan to send any reminder or things I forgot to mention in class via email.  Please make sure you check your SJSB account on a regular basis.

Additional information: I will plan to have any powerpoints or additional readings available to you via the web.  I will let you know where you can access this information.

HINTS TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS COURSE:

-Be prepared. Be prepared.  Be prepared.  What does this mean? Read AHEAD of class. Know what you understand, what you don’t understand.  That way when it is discussed in class you are ready to ask questions or can use it as a review.

-Go over your notes after class.  Make sure it all makes sense. Don’t memorize but make sure you UNDERSTAND the material.  Try to explain it to someone or write about the concept in full detail or write it out in a journal format.  If you can do this, you likely are comprehending the information at hand.

-There will be a lot of new vocabulary in your biology classes.  You will need to know these terms and be able to apply these terms to questions on exams.  Exams will consist of short answer, multiple choice, some essay, fill in the blank, etc… they are geared towards “applying” what you have learned to a biological concept or issue.  Therefore, it is not only important to know the information but understand it as to how it might affect the world around us!

Biology 121 schedule

(additional readings may be handed out throughout the course)