HOUSTON COMMUNITY COLLEGE
SPRING BRANCH CAMPUS
BIOLOGY 2416 /GENETICS/
SPRING 2014, COURSE NUMBER 77567
Instructor: Dr. Jessica A. Moody
Jessica.Moody@hccs.edu
TEXTBOOK: Russell, Peter J. 2010, iGenetics: A Molecular Approach, San Francisco: Benjamin
Cummings Publishers, 3rd Ed. Please bring your book to each class. You must also bring a bound
composition notebook (for lab).
LECTURES:
Tuesday:
Room 528 11:00 am-2:00 p.m.
LABS:
Thursday:
Room 529 11:00 am-2:00 p.m.
OFFICE HOURS: By appointment only
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Study of the principles of molecular and classical genetics and the function
and transmission of hereditary material (DNA). Will include genetic engineering (manipulation of DNA
in the lab to produce a useful product). May include population genetics (study of genetic variation
within populations) and quantitative genetics.
EMAIL: You will need an email account. Outside class, I will communicate primarily by email. You
are responsible for checking your email frequently. Free internet access is available at TCSC 110
and Westgate 228. Enrollment at HCC automatically triggers a free email account:
first.last@student.hccs.edu.
PREREQUISITE: BIOL 1406 (General Biology I)
GENERAL GUIDELINES
1. ATTENDANCE: Roll will be taken, and I expect students to attend all classes. Good class
attendance is absolutely essential to do well in this course! I reserve the right to drop a
student after missing in excess of 12.5% of the hours of instruction. It is a good idea to
exchange names and phone numbers with others in the class so that you can obtain the
information you missed as quickly as possible. In case of a prolonged absence (2 or more
class meetings), the instructor should be notified. In the event you are absent, it is your
responsibility to check for information you missed as a result of your absence. Please do not
contact me to find out what material was covered.
2. NOTES: Notes for each lecture will be posted prior to class on the Learning Web. It is your
responsibility to access and print the notes. You MAY NOT share these files with anyone
outside of class without express permission of the instructor, nor may you post any part online.
Bring the notes to class with you to serve as a discussion outline. You must take your own
notes and read the textbook to do well in this class! Anything that I discuss in class is fair
game for an exam.
3. EXAMS: Exams will be given at the beginning of class time and you will have 90 minutes to
complete the exam. After the first exam has been completed, submitted, and that student has
left the room, no more exams will be passed out. DON’T BE LATE TO AN EXAM! Restroom
breaks are not allowed during the exam. No make-up lecture exams or quizzes will be offered.
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4. DUE DATES: If you are absent for any reason, you will not be allowed to make up missed inclass assignments or quizzes from that day. Quizzes are generally given at the beginning of
the class period. If you are late to class, you will not be given extra time to complete your quiz.
If you arrive after the quiz has ended, you will receive a zero for that quiz. Late homework/lab
assignments will be accepted up to the next class meeting and are penalized 50%. I DO NOT
accept assignments via email.
5. All phones and beepers must be turned off or be in silent (courtesy) mode. You may not leave
the room during a test to answer a phone call. Should this occur your test will be taken up
immediately. There will be no use of cell phones in the laboratory. I will allow the use of
laptops in class, but only if you are using them for note taking purposes.
6. LAB NOTEBOOK: You must maintain your own bound lab notebook in accordance with
industry rules. I will explain what that entails in class. The notebook MUST be brought to
every lab session. The notebook will be graded at the end of the semester, and will total 5%
of the course grade.
7. LAB REPORTS: You will have to write a formal lab report for most lab exercises based on
the raw data recorded in your lab notebook. Lab reports are due as shown on the tentative
schedule. Beware lab exercises may take more than one lab session to complete. We will go
over the lab report format in class. Although you may discuss data with your lab partner, each
lab report must be an individual effort (NO copying) and must be turned in separately when
due (NOT in the lab notebook). The lab reports will total 10% of the course grade. Unstapled
lab reports and other assignments will not be accepted.
8. LABORATORY SAFETY. Students are expected to abide by the rules of safety at all times
during the laboratory exercises.
9. RESEARCH PAPER: An original paper (a minimum of 1500 words, turned in as a hardcopy)
will be due week 15. Topic areas may include 1) a biography of a famous geneticist detailing
his/her contribution to the field of genetics, 2) a commercial biotechnology product involving
genetics, 3) a genetic disease. Or 4) genetics in the news (in 2012-2013). To avoid duplicate
topics, or topics that are too broad to cover in 1500 words, you must submit two potential
paper topics for review by week 6. A one-page outline is due week 11 and will be graded as
an assignment. For full credit, papers must include a minimum of five references from at least
three different types of resources (book, popular magazine, scientific publication, newspaper,
personal communication with an established scientist, or (reliable!) web source). The paper
will total 20% of the course grade.
10. SCHOLASTIC DISHONESTY: Students caught cheating will receive a grade of ZERO for the
exam. Repeat cheaters will receive a letter grade of F for the course. Papers may be checked
electronically for plagiarism. Plagiarized papers will be awarded a grade of ZERO.
11. STUDENT CONDUCT. Abusive language or disruptive behavior by a student(s) will not be
tolerated. Talking and sleeping in class during lectures is distracting to the professor and to
other students. It will not be tolerated.
12. STUDENT HANDBOOK- important information for all students. Also contains the mission
statement of the Houston Community College System (available online at HCCS home page.)
13. DISABILITIES: Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric,
vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the
Disability Services Office at the respective college at the beginning of each semester. Faculty is
authorized to provide only the accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services
Office.For questions, contact Donna Price at 713.718.5165 or the Disability Counselor at your
college. To visit the ADA Web site, log on to www.hccs.edu, click Future Students, scroll down the
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page and click on the words Disability Information.
District ADA Coordinator – Donna Price – 713.718.516
Central ADA Counselors – John Reno – 713.718.6164,
Martha Scribner – 713.718.6164 Northeast ADA Counselor – Kim Ingram – 713.718.8420
Northwest ADA Counselor – Mahnaz Kolaini – 713.718.5422
Southeast ADA Counselor – Jette Friis – 713.718.7218
Southwest ADA Counselor – Dr. Becky Hauri – 713.718.7910
Coleman ADA Counselor – Dr. Raj Gupta – 713.718.7631
14.
CORE CURRICULUM. Essential to the learning process are six basic intellectual
competencies. Among the objectives covered in this course the following components will be
addressed such as reading, writing, speaking, listening, critical thinking and computer literacy.
15.
As mandated by the Texas State Legislature students who repeat a course for a third or more
times may soon face significant tuition and fee increases at HCC and other Texas public
colleges and universities. Please ask your Professor or Counselor about opportunities for
tutoring or other possible assistance prior to considering course withdrawal or if you are not
receiving passing grades.
GRADE DETERMINATION:
Your grade will be
determined by the
following
Lecture Exams*
Details
4 Exams: T/F, short answer, multiple
choice, essay
Comprehensive
Departmental Final
Percent
of Final
Average
55%
5%
Homework/Quizzes
Various times throughout the
semester; lecture & lab
5%
Lab Reports
Secrets of the Rainforest; Restriction
Digest; Crime Scene Investigator PCR
10%
Paper
Research paper- details to be
discussed in class
20%
Lab Notebook
Due at the end of the semester
5%
Total:
100%
*LOWEST EXAM GRADE WILL BE DROPPED
LETTER GRADE ASSIGNMENT:
Letter Grade
A
Final Average in Percent
> 89.5
B
79.5 – 89.5
C
69.5 – 79.5
D
59.5 – 69.5
F
< 59.5
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Tentative Instructional Outline: *Note: Subject to Change*
Week
Number
1
JAN 14
Syllabus
JAN 16
LECTURE: CH1: Genetics: An Introduction.
CH2: The Genetic Material.
LAB: Overview
2
JAN 21
LECTURE: CH3: DNA Replication.
CH4: Gene Function.
JAN 23
LAB: Lab Safety; How to Keep a Lab Notebook; How to write a lab report; Genes in a
Bottle
3
JAN 28
LECTURE: CH5: Transcription.
CH6: Translation.
JAN 30
LAB: Online micropipetting; Micropipetting and microcentrifuge practice lab.
4
FEB 4
Access Excellence ACTIVITY and WORKSHEET and Micropipetting Practice
Sheet due @ 11am
LECTURE EXAM 1
LECTURE: CH7: DNA mutation, repair, and transposable elements.
FEB 6
LAB: Secrets of the Rainforest: Part 1
5
FEB 11
LECTURE: CH8: Mapping and Sequencing of Genomes.
CH9: Functional and Comparative genomics.
FEB 13
LAB: Secrets of the Rainforest: Part 2
6
FEB 18
2 PAPER TOPIC SUGGESTIONS DUE @ 11am.
LECTURE: CH10: Recombinant DNA Technology.
FEB 20
LAB: Secrets of the Rainforest: Part 3
7
FEB 25
LECTURE: CH12: Mitosis and Meiosis.
CH11: Mendelian Genetics.
FEB 27
LAB: Catch-up day
4
Week
Number
8
MAR 4
LECTURE EXAM 2
MAR 6
Lab Report- Secrets of the Rainforest due @ 11am
LECTURE: CH13: Extensions of Mendelian Genetics.
9
MAR 18
SPRING BREAK!!!!
LECTURE: CH14: Gene Mapping in Eukaryotes
MAR 20
LAB: Restriction Digest and Analysis of Lambda DNA
10
MAR 25
MAR 27
LECTURE: CH15: Genetics (gene mapping) of bacteria and bacteriophages.
CH16: Variations in Chromosome Structure and Number.
LAB: Crime Scene Investigator PCR: Part 1
APR 1
LAST DAYFOR ADMINISTRATIVE WITHDRAWALS- 4:30 pm MAR 31
One-page paper outline due @ 11am.
LECTURE: CH 17: Regulation of Gene Expression in Bacteria and Bacteriophages.
APR3
Lab Report- Restriction Digest and Analysis of Lambda DNA due @ 11am
LAB: Crime Scene Investigator PCR: Part 2
11
12
APR 8
LECTURE EXAM 3
LECTURE CH18: Regulation of gene expression in Eukaryotes
APR 10
LAB: PV92 Informatics: Part 1
13
APR 15
APR 17
14
APR 22
APR 24
15
APR 29
LECTURE: CH19: Genetic Analysis of development.
CH20: Genetics of Cancer.
Lab Report- Crime Scene Investigator due @ 11am
LAB: PV92 Informatics: Part 2
LECTURE: CH21: Population Genetics.
CH22: Quantitative Genetics
PAPER DUE @ 11 am
Review/Catch-up
LECTURE EXAM 4
5
Week
Number
MAY 1
NOTEBOOK DUE @ 11 am.
LAB: PV 92 Informatics: Part 3
16
MAY 6
Final Exam- 11 am
IMPORTANT DAYS
See calendar for exact date and time/ withdrawal, drop, holidays…etc.
1/12/14
Last day drop/add/swap
1/27/14
Official date of record.
3/31/14
Last day for administrative withdrawals-4:30 pm
5/4/14
Instruction ends
HCC Course Withdrawal Policy
The State of Texas imposes penalties on students who drop courses excessively. Students are limited
to no more than six total course withdrawals throughout their educational career at a Texas public
college or university.
In order to withdraw from your class, you MUST first contact your professor, PRIOR to the
withdrawal deadline to receive a “W” on your transcript. After the withdrawal deadline has
passed, you will receive the grade that you would have earned. Zeros averaged in for required
coursework not submitted will lower your semester average significantly, most likely resulting in a
failing grade of an “F”. It is the responsibility of the student to withdraw from the class; however,
your professor reserves the right to withdraw you without your request due to excessive absences. If
you do not feel comfortable contacting your professor to withdraw, you may contact a counselor.
However, please do not contact both a counselor and your professor to request a withdrawal; either
one is sufficient.
The final withdrawal deadline for regular term is 3/31/14 at 4:30pm. Classes of other duration
(mini-term, flex-entry, 8-weeks, etc.) may have different final withdrawal deadlines. Please review
HCC’s online “Academic Calendars by Term” or contact the HCC Registrar’s Office at 713.718.8500
to determine mini-term class withdrawal deadlines.
It’s your responsibility to contact me regarding withdrawal prior to the withdrawal deadline;
your absences or disappearance from the class doesn’t mean you will receive a (W). You will
receive a (W) only if you contact me prior to the deadline.
EGLS3 -- Evaluation for Greater Learning Student Survey System
At Houston Community College, professors believe that thoughtful student feedback is necessary to
improve teaching and learning. During a designated time, you will be asked to answer a short online
survey of research-based questions related to instruction. The anonymous results of the survey will be
made available to your professors and division chairs for continual improvement of instruction. Look
for the survey as part of the Houston Community College Student System online near the end of the
term.
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