Biology 124 - Introduction to Physiology & Ecology

Course homepage | Schedule | Online Resources | Last Revised: January 7, 2008

Instructor: Dr. Binney Girdler
Office: Dow Science 307
Phone: 337-5977
Email: girdler "at" kzoo.edu
Office hours:Mon, Tues, Weds 10 – 11:30 am, or by appt.
Class meeting time: MWF1:15-2:30 PM, Dow226

Course Description (Please see the syllabus for more details)

The major subject areas to be covered in this course are organism-level physiology (both plants and animals) and an introduction to some attributes of higher levels of biological complexity — namely populations, communities and ecosystems.  The underlying theme during the next ten weeks will be organisms interacting with, and adjusting to, their environments.  With this course we hope to draw your attention to the connections between the physiology and the ecology of organisms.

While BIOL 112 (Evolution & Genetics) is not a prerequisite for this course, and you don’t necessarily have to understand everything taught in that course to succeed in this one, the fields of Ecology and Evolution certainly are complementary to each other.  Biologists (especially evolutionary biologists) have taken to heart T.H. Dobzhansky’s statement that “Nothing in biology makes sense, except in the light of evolution.”  Much of the integration in the field of biology exists because of evolutionary relationships among all organisms.  Many biologists also agree with Begon, Harper, and Townsend, who assert in the preface to their Ecology textbook that “Equally, very little in evolution makes sense, except in light of ecology – that is, in terms of the interactions between organisms and their physical, chemical, and biological environments.”  We invite you to explore with us the ways in which organisms interact with the various facets of their environments, and we hope that your exploration will help you see better how these interactions influence, and are influenced by, the evolutionary histories of the organisms.

ASSESSMENT

Your final course grade will be based on your performance in both the lecture and laboratory portions of this course.  There will be a total of 1000 points available.  The grading scale shown below may be adjusted somewhat depending on the performance of the entire class, but it may be a useful approximation of your progress in the course.

                                                Grade                                      Points
                                                     A                                        900-1000
                                                     B                                         800-899
                                                     C                                         700-799
                                                     D                                        600-699
                                                     F                                         <600

The lecture portion of your grade is worth 63 % of the total possible points and the laboratory will account for the remaining 37 % of your final grade.  The breakdown of the 1000 points will be as follows:

            Lecture                        Exam 1                                                                        180
                                                Exam 2                                                                        200
                                                Final Exam                                                                  250
            Laboratory                   Lab Reports                                                                 162
                                                (write-ups, drawings, answers to questions, etc.)
                                                Pop-quizzes on protocols                                            8
                                                Write-up of Paramecium project                                    50
                                                Discussion Worksheets (6 @ 15 points each)             90
                                                Lab practicum                                                             60

            TOTAL                                                                                                          1000

PLEASE NOTE:  All tasks performed for this course are to be carried out within the bounds of the Kalamazoo College Honor System.  Lab reports (at times based on data shared by the entire class) will be shared write-ups, but discussion worksheets and the lab practicum are to be completed by individual students.  Copying work of others is not acceptable.  If it is found that the work a student submits has been copied from another author, then the student will receive a grade of zero points for that work and the Dean of Students will be notified of the Honor System violation..