Anthropology 131 Laboratory in Physical Anthropology (Spring 2012) Section 8786 (Wed 11 am – 1:50 pm) Bldg. 30, Room 208 Professor Kate Teffer Email: kate.teffer@gcccd.edu Course Webpage: kateteffer.wordpress.com Course Description: ANTH 131 is a 1-unit laboratory experience designed to familiarize you with the materials and techniques of physical anthropology. You will use physical anthropological methods and tools to solve problems in the areas of genetics, human variation, human osteology, primate biology and behavior, and human evolution. Underlying all this is grounding in scientific fundamentals including the techniques of observation, measurement, and critical thinking. Student Learning Outcomes Once you leave the course, you should be able to do the following: Employing a comparative perspective, analyze cranial and dental features of various species of living primates, fossil hominins and modern humans. Make anthropological laboratory and field observations and measurements in accordance with established scientific protocol. Prerequisite: A “C” or “CR” grade or higher or concurrent enrollment in Anthropology 130 or equivalent. Required text: Exploring Physical Anthropology: A Lab Manual and Workbook, 2nd ed. (2009) Suzanne E. Walker. Morton Publishing Company, Englewood, CO. This edition only (older edition is not acceptable). You must purchase the lab manual in order to complete lab assignments. The lab manual chapters for the first two weeks of class will be available as pdf’s on the course website. After that, you must have bought the lab manual. Access to a current or recent physical anthropology textbook (your Anth 130 textbook or similar). If you no longer have your Anth 130 textbook, there are appropriate textbooks available at the library. 1 Other Required Materials: Three-ring binder (1 ½” to 2” thick) to hold your lab manual and notes. 4 Grademaster forms (#24520) Calculator Clipboard (recommended) Pencils $15 for a Zoo College Study Pass, if you decide to visit the zoo independently. If you go on the designated field trip day, there is no cost to you. Grading Your grade will be based on the following: 12 Lab Exercises (10 points each) There will be lab exercises conducted each week in class. You will turn in 14 labs, but only your 12 highest scores will be counted. Unless otherwise specified, all work must be completed in the lab. Your lowest lab score will be automatically dropped. If you miss a lab, it will count as a dropped score. If you are absent the day of the lab (even an excused absence), you cannot make the lab up--no exceptions. 5 Quizzes (20 points each) Six quizzes will be given: Three multiple choice quizzes on course material. You will need a Grademaster Form #24520 for each of these. You may bring a handwritten, single page of notes into the quiz, but no books. Three practical quizzes consisting of identification of bones and other skeletal features of humans, non-human primates, and extinct hominins. CLOSED book and note. Only your highest 5 quiz scores will be counted; your lowest score will be dropped. If you miss one quiz, it will count as the dropped score. No make-up quizzes are allowed for any reason. Take-Home Final (40 points) Cumulative exam, details TBA. Primate Observation Lab (30 points) Data collection on primate behavior at the San Diego Zoo. You have a choice of going to the zoo with the class on the designated field trip date, or going independently. If you have a medical reason or ethical objection that prevents you from visiting the zoo, you have the option of doing an alternate assignment, but you must contact me by the end of Week 5 to discuss and obtain my approval for an alternative project. Extra Credit (10 points max) Details on the extra credit will be available on the course website. Total Points Possible: 290 2 Grading Breakdown: 5 quizzes (20 pts each) 12 Lab Exercises (10 pts/lab) Zoo field study project Take-home Final Exam 100 points 120 points 30 points 40 points Total points possible: 290 points Grading Scale There is no curve in this class. Your grade will based upon how many points you earn out of 290. There is no plus-minus grading. Your letter grade will be calculated based on the following scale: A: B: C: D: F: 261 + points (90% or greater) 232 – 260 (80-89.9%) 203 – 231 (70-79.9%) 174 – 202 (60-69.9%) 173 or less (59.9% or less) Course Policies Late work and make-up work Missed labs and quizzes cannot be made up (no exceptions). If you come in late, you will not be given extra time to complete a quiz or exam. Attendance and participation Regular attendance is required. This means being on time and staying for the entire class period. At the start of class, I will call roll or pass around a sign-in sheet. If you come in after roll is called, you are tardy. Each tardy and/or early departure will count as ½ an unexcused absence. Two or more unexcused absences will result in you being dropped from the class. However, if you wish to drop, do not simply stop attending. Instead, drop the class officially through Admissions and Records. Otherwise, you could wind up with an “F.” Excused absences include absences for medical, family and legal reasons. If you miss class for any of these reasons, please let me know in writing (email or written note) within a week of returning to class, and I will excuse your absence. However, you will not be able to make up missed laboratory assignments. Laboratory classroom conduct The optimal environment for learning is one of mutual respect, where everyone can listen, participate, share ideas and learn. Be prepared to stay the full lab period each week. If you finish early, use the time to help other students, work on the supplementary material in your lab manual, or study for future quizzes. Lab materials are frequently limited, so share the lab equipment and wait your turn if something is in use. Help clean up your work station and bring out or put away lab supplies as requested by the instructor. Handle all equipment and specimens with extreme care. Hold skulls with both hands over the table as directed by the instructor. 3 Do not bring food into the lab. Drinks with closed containers are acceptable; however, all drinks must be placed at the back of the room while lab materials are on your table. Anyone sleeping, listening to music, carrying on side conversations, leaving the room to take a phone call, text-messaging, failing to silence their cellphone, or any other disruptive act will be asked to leave. Repeat offenders face suspension and the likelihood of being dropped from the course. Do not work ahead by trying to anticipate the lab exercises conducted in class. Anyone damaging or stealing equipment or laboratory materials will be immediately suspended from the class and the matter referred to the campus police and the Dean of Student Affairs. Plagiarism and Cheating The following is the official statement of the Grossmont College Faculty on Academic Integrity: Cheating and plagiarism (using as one's own ideas writings, materials, or images of someone else without acknowledgement or permission) can result in any one of a variety of sanctions. Such penalties may range from an adjusted grade on the particular exam, paper, project, or assignment (all of which may lead to a failing grade in the course) to, under certain conditions, suspension or expulsion from a class, program or the college. For further clarification and information on these issues, please consult with your instructor or contact the office of the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. In this course, there is a zero tolerance policy for cheating and plagiarism, otherwise known as academic fraud. Here are just a few examples of academic fraud: Copying or allowing another student to copy from you during a lab or exam. Altering a returned exam or paper and seeking a better grade. Sharing work with another student on an assignment that is supposed to be your own. Falsifying or misrepresenting data (for example, using the Zoo’s website to write your primate report instead of actually observing the animals at the zoo). **A note about collaborative work: While you are encouraged (and often required) to work together on the lab exercises, your submitted work must be your own. Collaborating on an assignment involves students working cooperatively and sharing ideas. Simply copying answers off another student will result in a zero for the assignment. These or any other violation of the College’s policy on Academic Fraud will result in a score of zero for the exam or assignment. The instructor may report the incident to the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs, a process which could lead to suspension or expulsion from the College. More information can be found online at: http://www.grossmont.edu/copyrightandplagiarism/. It’s imperative that you understand the policies; if you are in violation, pleading ignorance will not be considered a viable excuse. If you have any questions or concerns about academic fraud, please don’t hesitate to talk to me. Statement on Accommodation Students with disabilities who may need accommodations in this class are encouraged to contact the Disabled Students Programs and Services (DSP&S) early in the semester so that reasonable accommodations may be implemented as soon as possible. Students may contact DSP&S in person in Room 110 or by phone at (619) 644-7112 (voice) or (619) 644-7119 (TTY for Deaf). 4 Tutoring Resources on campus Students requiring reinforcement of concepts or additional help to achieve the stated learning outcomes for a course are referred to enroll in IDS 198, Supervised Tutoring. To add these courses, students must obtain Add Codes from the appropriate staff. Please refer to the Tutoring Section in the current class schedule for contact information. Supervised Tutoring courses that may be relevant for this course include ESL, Tech Mall, the Reading Annex, and Biology. All Supervised Tutoring courses are non-credit/non-fee. However, when a student registers for a supervised tutoring course, and has no other classes, the student will be charged the usual health fee. A few final notes… I realize that personal crises such as extended illness and family emergencies can arise during the course of the semester. If you find yourself in difficult circumstances, it is imperative that you get in touch with me as soon as possible. I will look at each individual circumstance and work with you to resolve the issue. If you are personally unable to contact me, have a friend or family member do it. If I don’t hear from you, there is very little that I can do after the fact. I welcome any constructive feedback in helping you achieve a more effective learning experience this semester. Feel free to email me or put an anonymous note in my faculty mailbox to communicate this. 5 Anthropology 131—Semester Schedule Spring 2012 (subject to change; any changes announced in class) Date Topic Jan 25 Feb 1 Physical Anthropology and the Scientific Method DNA structure and function Feb 8 Cell biology 2, 4 Feb 15 Feb 22 Principles of Inheritance Forces of Evolution 5 6 Feb 29 Human Skeleton I 7 March 7 March 14 March 21 March 28 April 4 Human Skeleton II 7 Multiple Choice Quiz 1 Forensic Anthropology 8 Practical Quiz 1 Primate classification 9, 10 Practical Quiz 2 Primate classification & behavior 10, 11 Multiple Choice Quiz 2 April 11 Lab Manual Chapters 1 2 and 3 11 April 25 Bipedalism and comparative ape and human anatomy 13 May 2 Early hominin evolution 13 May 9 May 16 Human brain evolution The genus Homo Read Chap. 1 as soon as possible Chaps 2-3 available on wordpress as pdf’s You must have purchased your lab manual by now! NO CLASS – SPRING BREAK Spring Break Primate Behavior Zoo Field trip—details to follow Primate Evolution April 18 Notes NO CLASS – AT THE ZOO! 12 Handout 14 Practical quiz 3; Primate Observation Lab due Multiple Choice Quiz 3; Last day to turn in extra credit Take-home final due today! *With the exception of Week 1, you should have completed the reading by the corresponding date listed. 6