Biology 17 – Neurobiology & Behavior (Fall 2012)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Instructor: Mark Cooper
Phone: (909) 274 - 4548
School e-mail: mcooper@mtsac.edu
Website: instruction2.mtsac.edu/mcooper
Office: 60-2102
Office Hrs: T: 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
W: 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Instructor: Tim Revell
Phone: (909) 274 - 4231
School e-mail: trevell@mtsac.edu
Website: instruction.mtsac.edu/trevell
Office: 60-2102
Office Hrs: T: 9:45AM – 11:15 AM, 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Th: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
IMPORTANT DATES
Holiday’s
Other Dates
Sept. 3
Labor Day
Sept. 07
Last Day to add
Nov. 12
Veteran’s Day
Sept. 10
Last Day to withdraw without a “W”
Nov. 22-25
Thanksgiving Holiday
Nov. 02
Last day to withdraw with a “W”
Field Trip: Friday: October 19th - SDZSP
GRADING: Your course grade will be comprised of the following:
3 Midterm Exams (100 pts each).........................................
1 Final Exam........................................................................
Homework…………………………………………………
Quizzes ……………………………………………………
Fieldtrip/Activity Assignments.........................................…
Total Possible Points
300 pts
150 pts
35 pts
90 pts
50 pts
______
625 pts
A = 100 – 90%
B = 89 – 80%
C = 79 – 70%
D = 69-60%
F = 59% or Below
POLICY ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Cheating and Plagiarism are violations of the college's policy
and are considered serious offenses. The Department of Biological Sciences takes all incidences of academic
dishonesty seriously and acts accordingly. We reserve the right to give an "F" for the class and the matter
will be brought up to the Director of Student Affairs as stated in the school's current College Catalog. In
other words, "DON'T CHEAT OR PLAGIARIZE"!!!!!!
GRADES ON EXAMS, QUIZZES AND HOMEWORK - Students will be given all assignments and exams back in a timely
manner. If there is a grading error of any sort, the student has one week to notify the instructor and solve the problem from the date in
which the exam/quiz/assignment was handed back to the class. If you do not meet with the instructor within that one week period, the
original grade is final. The one week period begins when we hand the exam/quiz/assignment back to the class; not necessarily when
you receive it (i.e., if you are absent and do not pick up the exam for three weeks, you have missed you opportunity to negotiate your
score. We keep ALL exam and quiz questions. YOU MAY NOT, under any circumstances, take one of our exams or quizzes home
with you. YOU MAY NOT zerox, copy, or photograph any of our exams or quizzes. Failure to follow these rules may result in an "F"
in the course.
POLICY ON CELL PHONES: Cell phones and cell phone etiquette has become a problem
in the last several years. Ringing cells phones in class have become a major distraction to
your fellow students and to me. I am now imposing a policy where if your cell phone goes
off, you will be asked to leave the room and not allowed to return until the next class break.
If you must leave it on for emergency situations, you need to inform me before class.
TURN OFF YOUR PHONES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
LECTURE ASSIGNMENTS – Each week you will be required to turn in a lecture assignment. Lecture assignments are assigned by
week. Each assignment is due the following week. For example, during the first week of school you should be learning and
completing the assignment for week one and you will turn in this assignment at the beginning of week 2. Late work will be accepted
but points will be lost.
IN CLASS QUIZZES – Each week you will take a quiz based on the material in the book, reading material given in class, or topics
discussed in class. Quizzes with be worth 15 points each and may consist of true/false, multiple choice, matching and short essay
style questions. No make up quizzes will be given. All quizzes will be given in the first 10 minutes of class only. If you are late, you
will not be allowed to take the quiz.
MIDTERMS AND THE FINAL EXAM -The midterms and final exam will be in the same format as the regular class quizzes. The
lecture midterms only cover material for each section. The final exam will be cumulative and will therefore cover information from
the entire semester. The final exam will be worth 150 points and there will be no make up exams for the final or midterm! Do not miss
the final exam or midterm!
OTHER INFORMATION YOU NEED TO KNOW:
1) Attendance: Students are expected to attend all classes and are expected to stay for the entire length of the class without exception.
If you leave early, you must inform the professor and you lose points as mentioned above.
2) Check your Mt. SAC email OFTEN!!!! We will often send important information out via the Mt. SAC email system. We will not
send email to any other account!
3) The attached lecture schedule is intended to assist you in planning your readings for this course. We will expect you have read the
appropriate text sections prior to class. We will make every effort to maintain this schedule. Modifications, however, may be
necessary. It is your responsibility to attend all classes and be aware of any changes we announce.
4) All assignments are due at the beginning of class. If you are given an assignment and do not have it ready to turn in at the beginning
of class on the day it is due you may turn it in but you will receive ½ credit for the assignment. If you do not do this, it will not be
accepted and you will receive a zero. You have one week to complete late assignments. After that, no credit will be given.
5) Note: It is the student’s responsibility to drop a course officially if the student wishes to avoid an “F”. The instructor MAY drop
students for non-attendance, but this is discretionary. Students who do not drop but do not complete the work will receive an“F”.
6) Note: All papers will be returned to the student as soon as possible. It is the student’s responsibility to keep these records. No
reconsideration of any grade is possible without evidence, and it is the student’s responsibility to demonstrate the basis of any grade
change. Students have one week after an assignment is returned to bring any grading error to the instructor’s attention. After one
week, no grade will be changed.
7) Attitude and success: This is a college level biology course and it is a difficult course. The study of biology, even at a general level,
is very complex. I teach this class at a college level and I expect that you will study and prepare at a college level. I will not lower my
standards just to make the class easy for you. If you have the attitude that this class (or the professor) is “not fair” or its “too hard”
then your negative attitude will probably prevent you from passing our class. We also believe, if you always work hard, show up every
day, come to my office hours if you need help, etc. that you will pass our class with no problems. Remember, if nobody is passing the
class, then it is probably our fault. But if YOU are not passing (but bunches of other people are) then it is probably your fault!
8) The instructor reserves the right to make any necessary changes to this syllabus or to any part of the class without prior warning.
9) Please notify the instructor immediately if you have a particular situation that requires special accommodations (such as a
health issue or disability).
TO SUCCEED IN THE COURSE: Your study of biology will be an exciting and rewarding experience. We will
cover a variety of topics that can be both interesting and useful in improving your life. However, do not make the
mistake of taking your study of this course too lightly. To succeed in this course you MUST attend class regularly,
study often AND effectively, and live a life that is conducive to learning (for example, you need to sleep, eat, work,
etc. within your means!). Failure to meet these basic requirements will make success difficult for most. Again,
Biology is an exciting but challenging class. DO NOT just memorize your notes. We expect you to UNDERSTAND
biology. To understand biology you need to ask questions, think, and analyze the material we give you. Forming
study groups is often a beneficial method of attack, but only if your groups is serious about studying!
Required Text: Animal Behavior Ninth Edition, 2009
Author: John Alcock
Dates
Topic
Reading
8/27
9/3
9/10
9/17
9/24
10/1
10/8
10/15
10/19
10/22
10/29
11/5
11/12
11/19
11/26
12/3
12/10
History/Study Skills
Holiday: Labor Day
Neurology/Endocrine
Genetics /Brain/Learning
Exam 1
Communication
Sex/Mating
Parental Care
Field Trip: SDZSP
Exam 2
Feeding/Habitat
Antipredator/Survival
Holiday: Veteran’s Day
Sociobiology/Human behavior
Special Topics
Exam 3
Final
Ch. 1, Ch. 2
Ch. 4, Ch. 5
Ch. 3
Ch. 9
Ch. 10, Ch. 11
Ch. 12
Ch. 7, Ch. 8
Ch. 6
Ch. 13, Ch. 14
Assignment