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Biology 115: Organismal Biology Syllabus
Instructor:
Spring 2005
Donna M. Bruns Stockrahm, Ph.D.
Biology Department
Office: 104 King Biology Hall
Office Phone: 477-5000
Home Phone: 1-218-937-5280 (Rollag, MN)
Office Hours: M 10-11, 3-4; T 11-4, W 10-11, 3-4,
F 10-11
Email: stockram@mnstate.edu
Classroom: Science Lab Building (Lecture = Room 104,
Lab = Room 110
web.mnstate.edu/stockram/index.htm
Course Description: This course is designed for biology majors. Course will address
biological diversity, primarily in plants and animals. Organismal diversity will be
presented within an evolutionary context. Relationships between form and function as
well as relationships of organisms to their environments will be addressed. Three, 1-hr
lectures and 1, 3-hr lab each week. Prerequisite: BIOL 111 or permission of instructor.
Required Text: Campbell, N. A., and J. B. Reece. 2002. Biology. 6th Edition.
Benjamin Cummings, NY.
Course Objectives/Student Learning Outcomes:
1)
To gain an understanding of the general concepts of evolution, natural
selection, and speciation.
2)
To gain an understanding of and appreciation for plant and animal diversity as
well as their phylogeny.
3)
To gain an understanding of the basic information about form and function of
plants and animals and how this relates to environmental adaptations.
4)
To gain an understanding of introductory ecological concepts.
Readings listed below are chapters from Campbell and Reece (2002).
Course Outline (Lecture Schedule):
Week
Week 1
Topic
Evolution
- Darwinian View
- Natural Selection
- Evidence of Evolution
Readings
Ch. 22, 23
2
Week 2
- Evolution of Populations
Origin of Species
Tracing Phylogeny
Early Earth and Origin of Life
- Major Lineages of Life
24
25
26
Week 3
Prokaryotes and Origins of Metabolic Diversity
27
- Bacteria and Archaea
Origins of Eukaryotic Diversity
28
- Protists (including slime molds, diatoms, algae)
Week 4
EXAM I
Plant Diversity I: Colonization of Land
- Origins of plants
- Bryophytes, Vascular Plants
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Plant Diversity II: Evolution of Seed Plants
- Gymnosperms
- Angiosperms
Fungi
Plant Form and Function
- excerpts from these chapters:
29
30
31
35-39
Introduction to Animal Evolution
- Overview of Animal Phylogeny and Diversity
Invertebrates
- Parazoa
- Radiata
- Acoelomates
- Pseudocoelomates
- Coelomates : Protostomes vs. Deuterostomes
32
Week 8
Invertebrates (Continued)
EXAM II
33
Week 9
Vertebrate Evolution and Diversity
- Jawless Vertebrates
- Fish
- Amphibians
- Reptiles
- Birds
- Mammals
34
Week 10
Spring Break – no classes
33
3
Week 11
Vertebrate Evolution and Diversity (Continued)
34
Week 12
Animal Form and Function
- excerpts from these chapters:
40-49
Week 13
Animal Form and Function (Continued)
EXAM III
40-49
Week 14
Introduction to Ecology
Population Ecology
50
52
Week 15
Community Ecology
Introduction to Ecosystems
53
54
Week 16
Conservation Biology
55
12 May
FINAL EXAM (Noon)
Course Outline (Lab Schedule):
Lab Number
Lab Topic
Week 1
No Lab
Week 2
No Lab – work on WEB assignment on your own
(Martin Luther King Day on Monday)
Week 3
WEB assignment due
Evolution Lab
Start planning experiments (Investigative Lab)
Week 4
Plant Diversity
Start setting up experiments
Week 5
Plant Form and Function
Finish setting up experiments
Week 6
Protista
Invertebrate Diversity I
 Sponges
 Cnidarians
 Flatworms (Acoelomates)
 Roundworms (Pseudocoelomates)
Week 6
LAB EXAM I (Friday – 18 Feb)
(Test on material up to and including Week 5)
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Week 7
Invertebrate Diversity II
- Coelomates (Protostomes)
 Mollusks
 Annelids
 Arthropods
- Coelomates (Deuterostomes)
 Echinoderms
Week 8
Vertebrate Diversity I
- Jawless Vertebrates
- Fish
- Amphibians
- Reptiles
Week 9
Vertebrate Diversity II
- Birds
- Mammals
Week 10
No Class – Spring Break
Week 11
LAB EXAM II (Friday – 25 March)
(Test on material from Week 6 up to and including
Week 9)
Week 11
Vertebrate Tissues
Vertebrate Dissection
Week 12
Vertebrate Dissection (Continued)
Week 13
Ecology Lab
Week 14
Behavior Lab
Week 15
LAB EXAM III (Friday – 22 April)
(Test on material from Week 11 up to and including
Week 14)
Week 15
Work on Posters from Experiments
Week 16
Student Presentations on Posters
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Course Requirements:
EXAMS: There will be 3, 1-hour lecture exams and final lecture exam as well as 3
lab exams during the semester.
INTERNET ASSIGNMENT:
Each student will look up information on the internet about the following topics:
-
an interesting fungus
a Protist that causes a disease
an endangered Gymnosperm
an endangered Angiosperm
endangered mammal
endangered bird
endangered invertebrate
a parasite
marine fish or coral reef
deformed frogs in Minnesota (or elsewhere)
For this assignment you will hand-in a 1-2-page typed summary (no-longer) that
includes:
a) title of what you looked up for each category
b) web address for each one: http://
c) 2-3 sentences summarizing interesting facts you learned about each
topic
To save paper, you do not have to print out all the pages and turn them in to me - just
turn in your summary page(s).
LAB ASSIGNMENTS: During some labs, a short report or worksheet will be required.
INVESTIGATIVE LAB POSTER: Early in the semester, each lab group will design
and set up an experiment to test a hypothesis. Throughout the semester, data will be
gathered. Near the end of the semester, data will be analyzed and a complete, scientific
poster will be completed. Posters will be presented orally to the members of your lab
during the last scheduled lab session.
Evaluation Standards/Course Grading Scale:
Lecture Exam 1
100 pts
Lecture Exam 2
100 pts
Lecture Exam 3
100 pts
Lecture Final
150 pts (new + some cumulative material)
Lab Exam 1
100 pts
Lab Exam 2
100 pts
Lab Exam 3
100 pts
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Internet Assignment 5 pts
Lab Assignments
20 pts
Poster and Oral
Presentation
50 pts
90 - 100 %
80 - 89 %
70 - 79 %
60 - 69 %
< 60 %
=
=
=
=
=
A
B
C
D
F
Attendance Policy:
Lab attendance is mandatory and lecture attendance is expected and encouraged. If
you know in advance that you will miss a lab (only in the case of an excusable absence),
make arrangements beforehand to attend another lab session during that same week.
Labs generally cannot be made up the following week as the lab materials will not be
available. You are also expected to take examinations at the announced time. In the case
of an anticipated, excusable absence on an examination date, you should make
arrangements for a make-up examination before the absence. In the case of an
unanticipated, excusable absence, you should contact the instructor as soon as
possible to make arrangements for a make-up examination. Make-up examinations are at
the discretion of the instructor and may differ in content and difficulty from the original
examination. See MSUM Student Absence Policy, Student Handbook:
http://web.mnstate.edu/shandbook/POLICY/index.htm
Academic Honesty: All students are expected to be honest in all their work for this
class. In the event of joint projects, all students working on the project are expected to
contribute equally to the final product. See MSUM Student Handbook address above.
Special Accommodations: Students with disabilities who believe they may need an
accommodation in this class are encouraged to contact Greg Toutges, Coordinator of
Disability Services at 477-2652 (voice) or 477-2047 (TTY), CMU 222 as soon as
possible to ensure that accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.
Bibliography:
Hickman, C. P., Jr., L. S. Roberts, and A. Larson. Integrated Principles of Zoology. 12th
ed. McGraw-Hill, NY.
Raven, P. H., and G. B. Johnson. 2002. Biology. 6th ed. McGraw-Hill, NY.
Ruppert, E. E., R. S. Fox, and R. D. Barnes. 2004. Invertebrate Zoology: A Functional
Evolutionary Approach. 7th ed. Brooks/Cole – Thomson Learning, Inc., US.
Starr, C., and R. Taggart. 2000. Biology: the Unity and Diversity of Life. 9th ed.
Wadsworth Publishing Company, Belmont.
Vodopich, D. S., and R. Moore. Biology: Laboratory Manual. 6th ed. McGraw-Hill,
NY.
Revised by DMBS on 4 January 2005
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