BSC-2023L Human Biology Laboratory
Summer Semester 2003
TA(Add your TA’s name here)
E-mail(Add your TA’s address here)
Biology office phone #- 348-2201 OE 167
Office hours- (Add your TA’s office hour slots here)
Class time- Section 2- 12:30 to 3:15; Tuesday (CHANGE!)
Section 3- 3:30 to 6:15; Tuesday (CHANGE!)
Human Biology web address: http://bioserv.fiu.edu/~biolab
Requirements:
1. Lab Manual for Human Biology by Sylvia Mader (7th Edition).
2. Protective goggles or glasses is mandatory.
3. Lab coat or old dress shirt is mandatory.
Grading Policies:
1. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of every class. Unexcused absences
will result in a 5 percent deduction off of your final human biology laboratory
grade.
2. Exams and lab reports will be graded and the results will be returned to
students as soon as possible, which is almost always the next lab period.
3. Exam grades will not be dropped! Final grades will be based on a standard 10
point scale grading system with no + or - grades assigned. Grades are not curved.
4. CHEATING or PLAGIARISM WILL NOT BE TOLERATED!!! Students caught
cheating during an examination or plagiarizing will be removed from the exam and
given an "F" for the course.
5. Laboratory reports and notebook checks are to be turned in at the very
beginning of class. Late work will be subjected to a 10 percent mark off the graded
quality of the late paper. For every additional day the assignment is late a 10
percent mark off the graded quality of the paper will ensue.
* Late assignments that are turned into my mailbox in the biological science office
(OE 167) must be logged in by a Biology secretary (Anna or Claudia) with the date &
time received.
6. THERE WILL BE NO MAKEUP EXAMS!!! All exams will be given at the very
beginning of class. If you are forced to miss an examination due to an emergency,
please contact me before the examination via E-mail or phone message. Leave a
message that includes the reason for your absence. You will be asked to provide a
written excuse (doctor's note, accident report, etc.) before a missed exam will be
forgiven.
* Makeup labs are under the same policies as makeup exams.
7. Your laboratory workbench must be clean and sterilized with all instruments put
away in their proper place at the end of class! Failure to do so will cost you 2
percent off your final grade every time you fail to follow these instructions.
Grading Breakdown:
POINT SCALE
100 - 90 = A
89 - 80 = B
79 - 70 = C
69 - 60 = D
59 - 0 = F
* 33% - Weekly Quizzes. There will be a quiz at the beginning of each class on
the material from the previous and current lab. Each quiz will count 3% of your
total grade and your TA will drop your lowest quiz score from consideration. If you
are not present at the beginning of class you will miss the quiz. No makeup quizzes
will be given!
* 30% - Practical Examinations. Two lab practicals will be given (midterm &
final) on the dates provided in your syllabus. Each will count 15% of your grade.
* 10% - Lab Report . There will be one lab report due during the course. The
lab report will count 10% of your grade. The lab report will be based on an
experiment performed during lab and will be due at the next lab scheduled. The
laboratory report is to be completed individually!
* 15% - Research Paper. There will be one research during the course. The
research paper will count for 15% of your grade. The research paper will be based
on Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD’s). The research paper is to be completed
individually!
* 12% - Participation Grade (Class participation / E-mail / Notebook). This
grade will be assigned based on the following: your class participation, E-mail
assignment, and completion of all the chapters that are on the syllabus of your lab
manual. For class participation you will be required to take part in class discussion,
and show respect to your fellow lab partners and assigned TA. All students are
required to obtain E-mail accounts. FIU provides E-mail accounts free to students
for those who don't already have an account.
Drop & Add Policy:
If you need to add or drop this laboratory section for any reason, make sure you
do so at the registrar's office. Please note that the last day to drop this
laboratory section is July 1st (Summer C) and July 22nd (Summer B)
Dissections:
The best way to comprehend the organization and makeup of an organism’s body is
through the dissection of that organism. In the human biology laboratory,
dissection is an essential part of the learning process and is therefore required. If
you are unable to dissect an animal, you may not be excused from that lab that day.
You will be excused from the actual dissection procedure.
Minority Student Services:
There is help for students who feel that their writing ability or study habits need
improvement. Students receive such help via contacting the FIU minority student
services department or the English department's writing lab.
E-mail Account:
All Human Biology laboratory students are required to have an E-mail account! If
you don't already have an E-mail account you can obtain one for free from the
University computing center. If you don't already have an E-mail account, its a
good idea to buy the "Electronic Information Resources At FIU," guide at the book
store. This guide will help you set up you E-mail account at the computer rooms on
the 4th floor of the PC building. All students are to e-mail their Teacher Assistant
(TA) with their name, section, & e-mail address before the second laboratory class.
Lab Manual Check:
Your lab manual will be randomly checked on two different occasions throughout
the semester. It must always have the review questions completed. This is
required. You may carry all the relevant documents inside a separate folder (any
kind) or permanently attached to your lab manual, consisting of the following: first
include the laboratory syllabus and then the following in chronological order: Lab
safety rules; How to write a lab report ditto; notes from each laboratory exercise;
questions at the end of each experiment; quizzes; and lab reports. Your name,
course title, & section number will be written on the outside front cover of your
notebook. Failure to follow the exact guidelines may result in a lower lab manual
grade!!!
Lab Reports:
The laboratory report must be typed and received on time. Spelling and
grammatical errors are penalized. Plagiarizing is not acceptable! Guidelines for the
Laboratory report will be followed in the exact format presented by ML Sullivan,
"How to write a lab report in the format of a scientific paper." This you will find
available on the net, under the Human Biology web page. Lab reports will be graded
on 25% format & 75% content. All lab reports are to be done individually! Failure
to follow the exact guidelines may result in a lower lab report grade!!!
Research Paper:
The research paper must be typed and received on time. Spelling and grammatical
errors are penalized. Plagiarizing is not acceptable! To avoid plagiarizing you must
cite every idea or piece of information that is not your own or “common knowledge.”
Unless you are writing a direct quote that must be cited you must write all
information in your own words. The STD research paper will be 5 pages long. It
should include a half page introduction, and a half page conclusion. There will be 3
pages forming the body of the paper. Each page will focus on a different STD.
One page will focus on a viral STD, but not HIV. The next page will focus on a
bacterial STD. The next page will focus on a eukaryotic STD. Finally, the last page
will consist of a reference page that will include 4 journal articles, 1 citation from a
book, & 4 citations from legit web sites. Do not copy anything directly from a web
page. This is a serious offense and will be reported to the Dean.
Plagiarizing:
Your TA will introduce you to Plagiarism and how to avoid it in your papers this
semester. Please take note of what your TA tells you because failure to do so will
result in getting an “F” for the paper with serious considerations to dismissal from
the course and possibly the university. Each TA is supplied with software that is
sensitive to any level of Plagiarism and if you submit something that you have
copied directly the computer will find it. Please be sure to talk to your TA if you
are unsure whether you have Plagiarized and how to cite references.
Recorder-checker:
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Records data
Performs drawings, sketches,
Graphs, tables.
Writes the answers to questions.
Maintenance manager
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
Ensures that the group is
functioning cooperatively.
Ensures that the supplies, materials,
equipment, media, (resources), etc.
are in place to perform the prescribed
tasks.
Makes sure the group is performing
lab hygiene.
Protocol manager:

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Encourager:
Follows the step-by-step procedures

and ensures that the others are also
following (this includes the questions). 
Ensures that the group can relate
What they are learning to the

Questions in the book or those given
by the TA.

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Initiates each task. Motivates to
begin, continue, and finish the task.
Ensures that the group can relate
procedures with principles.
Makes sure the group can see the
"big picture" which involves tying
everything together.
Finishes up each task with a
synopsis of the objectives and their
relevance.
Checks to make sure the group
performed the task and its
objectives completely and correctly
"Professors don't give grades, students earn them."
* Due to unforeseen circumstances, this syllabus may be subject
to change!!!