BIOLOGY: PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS
BIOL 100 – Fall 2013
COURSE SYLLABUS
Instructor: Kevin Badik
Office hours: M 2:00-4:00pm, Th 2:00-4:00pm; Meeting space is FA 120
Email: kbadik@unr.edu
Website: WebCampus Learn BIOL 100.1002 (https://wcl.unr.edu/)
Class Schedule:
Time: M,W 5:30pm-6:45pm
Location: ????
Laboratory:
Time: Tuesday 6-9pm
Location: ?????
Four laboratory exercises are required!
Course Description:
Welcome to Biology! This course is designed to introduce students to the basic
concepts and ideas that unify biology. We will start with the basic building blocks of life:
atoms, molecules, and cells, and learn their structure and function. In the next section,
we will focus on genes and gene products, genetic inheritance, and cellular division.
The last section will focus on mechanisms of evolution and an introduction to ecological
concepts.
Core curriculum science course; cannot be used for credit toward field of concentration
in biology. Prereq(s): Completion of the Core Curriculum Mathematics requirement or
an ACT of 27 or SAT of 610 OR Coreq(s): MATH 126 or MATH 127 or MATH 128 or
MATH 176 or MATH 181.
Course Goals:
My goal for this course is to bring students to understand the fundamentals of biology.
Students will learn the scientific process and how biological knowledge is gained. I hope
that in the process, students will gain an appreciation and curiosity for the world of
biology that will continue after the course is over. The three core objectives are:
1. Learn the organization and function of the basic building blocks of life.
2. Learn the mechanisms for inheritance and reproduction of life.
3. Learn the mechanisms of evolution and basic concepts of ecology.
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Course Topics:
Module 1: Science as a way of knowing
Module 2: Cell Biology
Module 3: DNA—Structure, Function and Applications
Module 4: Genetics and Evolution
Module 5: Ecology
Required materials:

Textbook: What is Life?, by Jay Phelan.
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/phelan1e/default.asp#t_498639____

Biology 100 Laboratory Manual. Available online. Click on the Laboratory icon
on the homepage of WebCampus.
Recommended Materials:
A computer with internet capability to access notes and a flash drive.
Course Requirements and Details:
Exams:
 Three lecture exams during the semester, and one cumulative final exam.
o Exams will be based on material covered during class time and material
from the textbook.
o A missed exam will be replaced with the score from the final cumulative
exam. No make-up exams will be given.
Quizzes:
 A total of 10 quizzes worth 20 points each are required. Quizzes will be taken
through the online quiz site accompanying the textbook, Prep-U (www.prepu.com).
o To access the quizzes, use the activation code from the front of the
textbook. If you have a used textbook and the activation code is already
used, you can access the website for $9.99 for the semester.
o Once you have gained access, create a username and password, then
click on “join a class”.
o The class code is: smilanich3965
o Once you are enrolled in the class, you can take practice quizzes
whenever you like. Assigned quizzes will appear in your assignment box
prior to quiz due date.
o On-line quizzes are due by 11:59PM on the scheduled due date.
o The lowest quiz score will be dropped.
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In-class Participation
 Throughout the semester, we will have class discussions on a variety of topics
that are pertinent to the lectures. There will be a total of 4 class discussions
worth 25pts each.
o For each discussion, the class will split into groups, given questions to
discuss within each group, and then these questions will be discussed
with the class as a whole.
o Dates for the class discussions will be announced in class.
Extra-credit
 Extra Credit Seminars:
o In order to receive extra credit points, you must attend the seminar and
turn in a one paragraph summary of the speaker’s talk. Each seminar
write-up that you turn-in will be worth 10 pts. Most of these seminars are
on Thursday at 4pm in the Davidson Mathematics and Science Building
(DMS) Room 103. Follow the link below (or copy and paste in your
browser) to the EECB webpage, then click on the Colloquium link for a full
list of speakers and dates.
 http://environment.unr.edu/eecb/index.html

Extra Credit Reports:
o Using library search engines, such as Web of Science, Biosis, or BioOne,
find recent (2000 – present) on topics that we are discussing and you are
learning about in lecture and lab. You can put key words into these search
engines, and it will produce a list of primary literature published on the
subject. You can also find science stories written my science journalists
from one of the websites below. Once again, you can write a one
paragraph summary of the paper. Each summary will be work 10pts.
 http://knowledgecenter.unr.edu/materials/articles/databases.aspx
 http://news.discovery.com/
 http://news.sciencemag.org/
 http://sciencefriday.com/

You can receive up to 70 pts extra credit, but no more than that.
Laboratory
 Four laboratory exercises are required. Click on the Laboratory icon on the
Webcampus Homepage for lab materials.
 Lab assignments will be collected one week following each lab. The dates will be
determined by when your lab is scheduled and will be posted.
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Grading Scale:
Letter grades will be determined as follows:
Points
Exam 1,2,3
Laboratory
Final Exam
Prep-U On-line Quizzes
In Class Participation
Total
300
200
200
200
100
1000
Letter grades will be assigned as follows:
90-100
80-89
70-79
60-69
0-59
A
B
C
D
F
Academic Honesty:
Absolutely no cheating will be tolerated. The first instance will lead to a warning
and a zero for that particular work, the second to failure in the class. The official UNR
policy is to report the offense to the Office of Student Conduct. You are expected to
know what constitutes cheating, or academic dishonesty. UNR defines it as:
“Academic dishonesty is defined as: cheating, plagiarism or otherwise obtaining
grades under false pretenses. Plagiarism is defined as submitting the language,
ideas, thoughts or work of another as one's own; or assisting in the act of
plagiarism by allowing one's work to be used in this fashion. Cheating is defined
as (l) obtaining or providing unauthorized information during an examination
through verbal, visual or unauthorized use of books, notes, text and other
materials; (2) obtaining or providing information concerning all or part of an
examination prior to that examination; (3) taking an examination for another
student, or arranging for another person to take an exam in one's place; (4)
altering or changing test answers after submittal for grading, grades after grades
have been awarded, or other academic records once these are official.”
For more information, please refer to the Student Conduct Information at:
http://www.unr.edu/stsv/acdispol.html
or Academic Standards for Students at:
http://www.unr.edu/sjmas/Academicstandards1.htm
Classroom Rules of Conduct: To be determined during the first class period
Disability Statement:
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If you have a disability and will be requiring assistance, please contact me or the
Disability Resource Center (Thompson Building Suite 101) as soon as possible to
arrange for appropriate accommodations.
Academic Success Services:
Your student fees cover usage of the Math Center (784-4433 or
www.unr.edu/mathcenter/ ), Tutoring Center (784-6801 or www.unr.edu/tutoring/ ) and
University Writing Center (784-6030 or www.unr.edu/writing_center ). These centers
support your classroom learning; it is your responsibility to take advantage of their
services. Keep in mind that seeking help outside of class is the sign of a responsible
and successful student.
Advice for Success:
1. Read the chapter BEFORE lecture and come to class with questions on material you
did not understand. BE AN ACTIVE LEARNER – participate, discuss, engage, and
ask questions!
2. Study consistently. Review notes from the previous class that night or the next day.
Go back to the chapters and re-read anything that didn’t make sense in class. See
how you can fill in holes in your notes from the text.
3. Begin studying for exams well ahead of time. Get to know your classmates and form
study groups. This way if some members understand one topic better than you and
vice versa, you can benefit from each other.
4. Make note of figures that I go over in class. Figures are used to illustrate a point and
are often similar to ones that are on the exams.
5. Read labs ahead of time and do lab questions before lab whenever possible, and
use lab time to do lab experiments. Lab time is your only chance to do them!
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