BI 300

Semester: Spring 2009

M W F: 11:00-11:50 am, MG 131

Instructor

Dr. Michael S. Taylor
Office: Rhodes 217
E-mail: mtaylor@semo.edu
Phone: 651-2357

Office Hours

Mon: 9:00-10:00 am; Wed: 12:00-1:00 pm; or by appointment. If my office door is open, please feel free to inquire whether I am busy with pressing matters; if not, I will be happy to meet with you. E-mail is the most effective way to contact me. I check e-mail regularly during the school week, and will generally provide a timely response. I will also use e-mail to contact the class.

Important Dates

Final Exam: Wednesday, 13 May 2008, 10:00 am. Final exam may be comprehensive.
Last Date to Drop: Wednesday, 8 April 2008.

Text

Evolution (Futuyma 2005). The textbook is required for this class. Homework assignments and test questions may come directly from the assigned readings in the text. You are not required to bring the textbook to class.

Web Site

http://cstl-csm.semo.edu/mtaylor/bi300/
The PowerPoint presentations and study guides will be available online. The PowerPoint presentations will serve as a topical guide and reminder of key points, but they do not substitute for regular attendance. I will also provide PDF files of most assigned readings via the class website. You can also check the current status of your grades online.

Course Description

Evolution is a central theory for all of biology. The biological diversity that we observe stems from evolutionary processes acting over time on both the phenotypic and genotypic level. In this course, we will examine the history of evolutionary study, the evolutionary history of life on earth, and then detail the mechanisms of evolutionary change at the genetic, organismal, and environmental levels.

Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution. - Theodosius Dobzhansky, 1973

Objectives

By the end of this course you should be able to

• Explain the paleontological and genetic evidence for organic evolution
• Explain natural and random evolutionary mechanisms
• Critically evaluate the evolutionary literature
• Apply evolutionary principles to evaluate evolutionary hypotheses

Expectations and Policies - Read This Carefully

Cell Phones and other Electronic Devices Off!

Use of cell phones, Blackberries, or any other type of electronic device in class for voice or text messaging is expressly forbidden. Use of such devices shows complete disregard and lack of respect for both the instructor and your fellow students. Any use these devices will result in an immediate 20 point drop from your total accumulated points for the course. Note that this is equivalent to dropping two letter grades on an exam. If you are caught using a any phone or texting device during an exam, you will be immediately dismissed from class, and receive a grade of zero for the exam. If your cell phone rings during lecture, you will receive a warning for the first violation. Subsequent violations will result in a 20 point deduction from your final grade. Continued violations will double the deduction over the immediately prior violation. If you have a bonafide need to have a cell phone on (vibrate only), you must authorized it with me in advance. Any unauthorized use will be sanctioned as discussed above. These devices must not be out on tables, chairs, floors, etc. during exams, or you will be immediately dismissed and receive a grade of zero on the exam.

Academic Expectations

Academic study at the university level requires scholarly diligence. Your dedication and perseverance will be the primary determinant of your success in class. Your final grade depends solely on the effort that you apply to the course. I strongly recommend regular study and review of the course material. However, you are an adult with the ability to establish your own priorities and make decisions based on those priorities. Consider carefully the choices that you make and balance them against the final grade that you hope to earn.

Attendance

Attendance is not required but will be recorded and reported, per University requirements. Failure to attend class can result in loss of student financial support. The official attendance policy is stated the Undergraduate Bulletin (http://www.semo.edu/bulletin/). Regular attendance will not guarantee success. Lack of regular attendance will almost certainly guarantee failure.

Excused absences must be arranged with the instructor in advance (e.g., for University-sanctioned events), or your absence must be validated by a written doctor's excuse, police report, or other verifiable document. All absences are subject to verification. Missed exams and assignments can only be made up for excused absences (see below). No exceptions.

Due dates are due dates

You have the responsibility of completing all assignments by the expected date and time. Unless specifically stated otherwise, assignments are due at the start of class on the assigned date. Any assignment not turned in at that time is considered late. Late assignments, where allowed (see below), are docked 10% of the total possible points for every 24 hour period past the due date and, for a maximum deduction of 50%. After five days, a grade of zero will be assigned. Forgetting is not an excuse. A printer or computer problem is not an excuse. Manage your time wisely; do not wait until the last minute.

Make-Up Exams

You are expected to take all exams on the appointed date. Failure to do so will result in a grade of zero for the exam, unless you have a valid and verifiable excuse. If I can not verify your excuse, you will not be allowed to take a make-up exam. Make up exams are administered only on Tuesdays from 7:30-8:30 am in my office (RH 217). Make-up exams are typically comprised entirely of short and long essay questions. If you must miss an exam, then have a valid excuse and come extra prepared. After all, you had more time to prepare than did the other students.

Academic Honesty

Honesty is vital to your integrity and success in civilized society. You are expected and required to be honest in all academic endeavors. Any violation of the university policy on academic honesty is subject to disciplinary action. The Undergraduate Bulletin defines academic dishonesty as ...those acts which would deceive, cheat, or defraud so as to promote one's scholastic record..., and states that [v]iolations of academic honesty represent a serious breech of discipline and may be considered grounds for disciplinary action, including dismissal from the university. The Undergraduate Bulletin contains the full statement about academic honesty (http://www.semo.edu/bulletin)

Dishonesty will not be tolerated. You are free and encouraged to participate in group study, but written assignments and exams must result from only your effort. Cheating or plagiarism will result in a grade of zero for the exam or paper, with no opportunity for makeup. You will also be subject to sanction through the University as described in the Undergraduate Bulletin. No exceptions. Information on the University Policy for Academic Honesty is at http://www6.semo.edu/judaffairs/code.html.

Civility and Harassment

Civil discourse between people with diverse backgrounds and cultures is an essential component of a university education. Your successful education in the classroom requires a mutually respectful and cooperative learning atmosphere for students and instructors. Any action that interferes with a civil environment will not be tolerated. Such actions include, but are not limited to, physical or verbal abuse, sexual misconduct, threats, intimidation, harassment, coercion and/or other conduct which (a) submits any person to pain, discomfort or indignity or (b) threatens or endangers the physical or mental health or safety of any person may result in disciplinary action. See Judicial Affairs for more information: http://www6.semo.edu/judaffairs/

Students with Disabilities

Students may obtain official information about disabilities from Learning Assistance and Disability Support Services (http://www.semo.edu/cs/services/lec.htm). The university has many services to assist with your successful education. If you have a special need due to a disability, please notify me at the beginning of the course. Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate special needs.

Grading Policies

I do not give grades; you earn them. Each student begins on the first day of class with a grade of zero. You add to your grade through the exams, written assignments and class participation.

Grade Evaluation

Your grades will be based on the following:

Evaluation	Total Points	Percent
Lecture Exams (3 x 100 pts)	300	50%
Reading Critiques (4 x 30 pts)	120	20%
Timeline Quiz	30	5%
Homework (10 x 15 pts)	150	25%

The minimum number of homework assignments is ten. I may add other home or in-class assignments of varying point values. The total weight of all home and in-class assignments will not exceed 25%, even if the total accumulated point value exceeds 150.

Grade	Percent	Quality
A	≥ 90.00	Outstanding
B	80.0-89.9%	Above Average
C	70.0-79.9%	Average
D	60.0-69.9%	Below Average
F	≤ 59.9%	Failure

Simply performing the minimum that is requested from you will be sufficient to achieve average quality for the course. To achieve greater quality requires correspondingly greater effort on your part. Less effort from you will also be judged accordingly. I reserve the right to adjust downward the lower boundary of each grade level. I will never adjust the lower boundary upward. Extra credit will not be available. No exceptions. Spend your &ldquot;extra&rdquot; time studying the assigned course material.

Exams

Two regular lecture exams and one final exam (100 points each). All exams are comprehensive in nature. Lecture exams will typically consist of fill-in-the-blank, a series of short answer questions, and longer discussion questions. The exams will test your understanding of evolutionary concepts and processes. You must demonstrate your ability to use and apply proper terminology, and to synthesize novel responses from information delivered in class, from the text, and from the assigned readings. The discussion questions are graded on your ability to concisely convey important concepts and original thought, NOT the amount of space occupied by your writing. Your ability to construct intelligent (and intelligible) responses are critical to successful answers.

Prior to each exam (5 days), I will send out a series of discussion questions for you to answer; a subset of these questions will appear on the exam. You may craft your answers by drawing from any available resources, and you may collaborate with your classmates, but you may not bring prepared answers to the exam.

How to succeed: I draw a significant portion of my lectures from the text. You would therefore be wise to review the requisite chapters prior to each lecture, then study both the text and your lecture notes to maximize your understanding. For each lecture, I provide a PDF file of the PowerPoint presentations, usually available prior to the start of class, and a study guide that emphasizes the important concepts of that lecture. Download these and review them. I may also have review sessions prior to each exam. Your best chance for success in this course is to read all assigned chapters and reading material in advance of lecture, regularly review your lecture notes, review the terms and answer questions on the study guide, and attend any review session. Ask questions in class! If you do not fully grasp a topic or concept, ask me to review it.

Written Critiques

30 points each. We will discuss in class four clusters of publications from the recent evolutionary literature. I will provide the publications to you in PDF format via the class website about one week prior to the date of the class discussion. I will also provide a series of questions for you to answer. The questions will help you to understand the relevant points of the papers. These questions may also serve as a basis for similar questions on the exams. You must submit typed answers to the questions on the day of the discussion. We will discuss the papers and the questions in class on the scheduled day. To ensure you answer the questions before our discussion, I will not accept late assignments nor those that are not typed.

Important Note: If I feel that participation in class discussions is lacking, I will end the discussion and adminster a quiz worth 30 points. The quiz will replace the question assignment for this critique. Trust me, you do not want that to happen.

Timeline Quiz

I will administer a 30 point written quiz to you on or around 6 February. This quiz will cover details of the geological time scale.This quiz is designed to ensure that you are familiar with the major geological periods that will infuse our discussions throughout the semester.

Homework

Homework assignments will consist of at least two worksheets, plus questions related to the assigned readings from the text. One worksheet will help you to develop an understanding of phylogenetic tree construction using maximum parsimony. A second workhsheet will consist of a series of questions to help you understand how to apply the Hardy-Weinberg equation. Other assignments will require you answer 1-3 questions from assigned reading sections in your textbook. These questions are designed to get you to read and begin to understand the material before my lecture on the subject. Assignments are due at the start of class. Late assignments lose 10% of the total possible points per 24 hour period after the due date and time. Review the information above on due dates. All homework assignments must be typed.

How Do I Grade?

In a word, tough. However, the real answer is more nuanced. As noted above, an A grade is outstanding, while a C grade is average. Thus, to achieve an A, you need to craft outstanding answers on your exams, write outstanding critiques, and complete outstanding homework. In short, you must demonstrate complete mastery of the material presented in this course. You will earn an above average grade with above average effort; you will earn an average grade with average effort. Bear in mind that the average reflects the work performed by most people in a large group. Some students will do better than average, some will do worse. How will you perform?

Hint: Always answer every question on exams. If you do not answer a question, I have no choice but to give you zero points. If you attempt an answer, you have a chance of writing an answer that is at least partially correct, which means you have a chance of earning some points for the question. Even four points out of a 10-15 point question is better than zero points.

What constitutes an outstanding/above average/average/etc grade? As stated above, this course requires that you communicate clearly and effectively (including spelling and grammatical skills), demonstrate an ability to integrate different forms of information (i.e., evidence), and demonstrate critical thinking and reasoning skills. A person who consistently demonstrates mastery of all of these skills in this course will earn an outstanding grade. If you demonstrate command of two of these skill but are weak in a third (e.g., reasoning and integration is outstanding but spelling is somewhat problematic), you will be more likely to earn an above average grade. If your reasoning is less than clear, and you do not communicate effectively, you are more likely to earn an average grade (or worse).

This class requires that you work hard to earn an A grade. Earning an A is very possible, but you will have to put forth the effort. The grade you earn will reflect the effort you put into this course. Judge accordingly. Cause and effect. I am merely the keeper of your grade.

Do I grade on a curve? When a student asks this question, the implied question is Will you adjust my current score to a more favorable score? After all, the 90%-80%-70%-60% grade scale is already based on a normally-distributed curve, so grades are inherently curved. Still, with the spirit of the question in mind, I may or may not adjust the score of a given exam. Each class, and each exam, is different. Do not rely on curves to improve your score; instead, be prepared. If I do curve, then be pleasantly surprised.