Course objectives: 1) You will build a precise understanding of the physical nature and metabolism of the genetic material, patterns of inheritance of traits, and basic approaches of recombinant DNA technology; 2) You will learn to approach genetic issues in society with a critical mind and educated perspective; and 3) You will learn first hand via original laboratory experimentation how research works and how classical and molecular genetics intertwine.

Required textbooks:
iGenetics: A Molecular Approach, 2nd edition by Peter Russell (Pearson/Benjamin Cummings, 2005). http://www.aw.com/geneticsplace/ The web site contains the same activities and animations as the textbook CD-ROM. The solution manual will be on reserve in the Biocenter (Dana 211).
A Short Guide to Writing about Biology, 6th edition, by J. Pechenik, Addison-Wesley, 2006.

Office hours: While my official hours are Monday 2:00-3:00 PM and Thursday 11:00 AM -12:00 PM, you are most welcome to stop by any other time my door is open. Feel free to make an appointment in advance; simply email me a few possible times, and I'll get back to you.

Email: You are responsible for all information I send by email, so check your messages each day.

Grading: Your final course grade will be calculated as follows:

Attendance and Participation: Laboratory sessions are mandatory. Each unexcused absence from lab will result in a full letter grade deduction from your course grade. I do not record attendance in lecture, but I will notice if you are not there. Your absences will also be apparent from the daily quiz results. Your participation grade depends upon the extent to which you participate in classroom and laboratory dialogue as well as in Blackboard discussions.

Reading/listening/viewing assignments and problem sets: Each assignment and problem set on the syllabus relates to the topic of that day. A few assignments are specifically designated to be completed before class; however, in most cases you may choose whether to read and work problems before or after you encounter the material in class. Problem sets will not be collected. You may work together on the problem sets, and solutions are available in the solution manual on reserve in the Biocenter (Dana 211).

Discussion board on Blackboard: I expect each member of the class to participate in the discussion forums on Blackboard. Topics are listed on the lecture schedule below and directly on Blackboard. I will post various questions to which you should respond. In order to receive a passing grade for the semester, you must make a substantive contribution to at least half of these discussions during the semester. To count, your posting must be submitted by 10 AM on the subsequent lecture day. In addition, you can post your own questions in the open forum to invite class conversation on anything from ethical issues to particular problems from the book. The quality of your discussion board participation determines a portion of your participation grade.

Quizzes and Reviews: There will be a short quiz on recent previous material at the beginning of class on some days. You may have one "pass" day for which your daily quiz grade does not count. Reviews will be take-home, closed book, and closed notes. They will be posted on the web from links on this syllabus. You may view/print a review only when you are ready to start it. You can choose to hand write or type your answers, butI will sometimes ask for word counts for a given answer, so typing may be more efficient. Each review is designed to be completed in roughly one to two hours, but you will have twelve hours from when you start until when you must finish. The final exam (also take home) will be designed to take two to three hours. I strongly recommend using old reviews as a primary way to study. Old reviews are here: 2004 Rev#1 , Rev#2 , Rev#3, Final exam; 2005: Rev#1, Rev#2, Rev#3, Final Exam.

Project: You will complete a term project for which you may choose the topic and format. You will submit a detailed proposal ahead of time. See the bottom of the syllabus for possibilities, details, and due dates. This project is separate from and unrelated to our laboratory research project.

Lab notebook and report: You will maintain a laboratory notebook, and you will turn in a short lab summary at the end of each lab meeting. You will write a formal lab report at the end of the semester. See lab syllabus for details.

Penalty for late assignments: Ten percent per day or part thereof. The full ten percent penalty applies starting at the beginning of each day that the assignment is late; for example, an assignment that is one hour late will have a ten percent penalty applied.

Disabilities: I will do my best to provide accommodations for students with learning or physical disabilities. If you have a learning disability documented by Davidson College, please let me know during the first week of class so that arrangements can be made. I encourage students with other disabilities to self-identify (confidentiality guaranteed) so that we may explore ways to enhance your learning.

Honor Code: You are to affirm your respect for and compliance with the Davidson Honor Code on every review and paper by writing out the entire pledge and signing your name. The full Honor Pledge reads as follows: "On my honor I have neither given nor received unauthorized information regarding this work, I have followed and will continue to observe all regulations regarding it, and I am unaware of any violation of the Honor Code by others." Plagiarism is an Honor Code violation and is defined as representing another person's words and ideas as one's own. Please carefully read the Davidson Department of Biology statement on plagiarism for comprehensive information on what constitutes plagiarism and how to avoid it.

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Choose from among the following seven formats. For the nontraditional formats, the scope of the project should at least be equivalent to researching and writing a 1200-1800 word paper. See below for details on each option.
1. Paper: write a critical analysis of an ethical issue related to genetics, as illustrated in a recent news item.
2. Paper: write a critical analysis of depictions of genetics in a fiction book
3. Create a detailed Wikipedia page on a genetics topic not already covered there, or perform substantial revisions of an incomplete or inaccurate existing page.
4. Compose and record a series of songs that enhance learning of a particular topic(s) in genetics.
5. Create a video or animation that enhances understanding of a topic in genetics.
6. Paper: write a critical analysis of online educational resources on a particular topic in genetics.
7. Paper: summarize and synthesize several original research papers (from academic journals) on a genetics topic.

A project proposal and annotated bibliography (worth 7% of your course grade) is due September 24th. Write a page explaining your chosen format, your general topic, your thesis (where applicable), and your overall approach. Then list your sources, and include a few sentences for each to explain specifically how that source will contribute to your project. You must demonstrate that you have spent significant time actually reading your sources. Your grade will be based on the specificity and novelty of your proposed project, the breadth and quality of the sources you have found, and the depth with which you have read and understood your sources.

Citing sources: Proper citations of sources is your responsibility! Paraphrasing (taking another person's sentences and changing a few words here and there) can be considered plagiarism under some circumstances, even when the source is cited. Study carefully the following web page for detailed information on paraphrasing and citing sources: Davidson Department of Biology statement on plagiarism.

Naming files for electronic submission: When submitting assignments by email, please title the file with your last name and the nature of the assignment (e.g. Halesproposal.doc). This instruction refers to the file itself that you are attaching to the email, NOT to the subject line of the email. You will be penalized two points for not following this instruction.

More information on format choices
1. Paper: write a critical analysis of an ethical issue related to genetics, as illustrated in a recent news item. Pick a news story from September 2006 or later from the New York Times, BBC, or other reputable news source whose articles typically go into some depth. Critically analyze how the issue fits within a broader context and how it intersects with societal concerns. You will need to do additional research in order to find more sources on the topic. You may not use Wikipedia or other online or print encyclopedias as cited sources, though you may refer to them initially to point you to primary sources. For other web sources, consider carefully their reliability. You may choose whether to approach your paper as an opinion piece or as an impartial examination of all sides of the issue. Your paper should be 1200-1800 words not including references. Follow guidelines in Chapter 8 of Pechenik ("Writing essays and review papers"), and use the citation style described in Chapter 5.
2. Paper: write a critical analysis of depictions of genetics in a fiction book. Choose a fiction book (must be approved by me) whose plot centers heavily on genetics topics. See me for recommendations. Read the book (taking notes as you go) and write a critical review (1200-1800 words) exploring the accuracy of the depiction of genetics, the use of genetics ideas as literary devices (and the meaning thereof), and the potential effects on how the general public perceives genetic issues. Discuss reasons (valid or not) for the author's diverging from reality. You should follow MLA citation style, using direct quotations in the text of your paper, along with page number references.
3. Create a detailed Wikipedia page on a genetics topic not already covered there, or perform substantial revisions of an incomplete or inaccurate existing page. Find a topic in genetics that is important enough to required detailed coverage in Wikipedia but that is currently not covered or covered poorly. Save a copy of any page that exists initially. Research the topic, compose a detailed entry, and post it. You must cite all sources according to Wikipedia's format. Be sure to obtain appropriate permissions for posting any images that you do not create. Save and submit to me copies of all intermediate stages of your project. Also document if anyone else makes changes to the page while you are working on it.
4. Compose and record a series of songs that enhance learning of a particular topic(s) in genetics. Setting words to music is a useful way to promote learning, since people more easily memorize songs than spoken words. Create original lyrics that are factually complete and accurate on a topic(s) of your choice, and compose melodies to accompany the lyrics. Record and submit the songs in mp3 format, with or without instrumental accompaniment. If you don't sing well, you're welcome to convince a friend to do the actual singing, as long as you have been the creative force behind the effort. Also submit a written document listing all outside resources consulted, in proper bibliographic format (see Chapter 5 of Pechenik).If you pick this project option, you must be willing to share your songs with other genetics students (this year and in future years) at Davidson.
5. Create a video or animation that enhances understanding of a topic in genetics. Your approach can be serious or humorous; regardless, your video or animation must be factually complete and accurate, with a substantial amount of information. All text or spoken words must be original. You must obtain permission to use any images that you did not originally create. The following videos would not be acceptable, as they each include very little information, some information is completely wrong, and production quality is bad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnTTH3YzGjs and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgUxtlVWmJY. The following video would be a good start, but it would need a lot more content: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvR_Sdm1orU . If you pick this project option, you must be willing to share your work with other genetics students (this year and in future years) at Davidson.
6. Paper: write a critical analysis of online educational resources on a particular topic in genetics. Pick a topic and find at least ten educational web sites and/or videos that contain substantial information on a genetics topic. Evaluate them all carefully with regard to accuracy, completeness, and effectiveness. Explain how each could be improved. You must do enough background research to have the knowledge base to analyze each online resource with authority. Your paper should be 1200-1800 words, not including references.
7. Paper: summarize and synthesize recent original research papers from academic journals on a genetics topic. Pick this option if you're interested in learning about a particular genetic disease or another genetic phenomenon. This assignment is essentially to write a "review" paper; see Chapter 8 of Pechenik.Use PubMed to find at least three very recent (i.e. 2005 or later) original research papers on your topic. Use interlibrary loan to obtain journal articles for which the library does not already provide online or print access. Be sure to distinguish between research papers and review papers as sources. "Review" papers (like the one you will be writing) are often included in journals but do not contain original results; they just summarize other people's work. You can read older review papers to give you background information, but the bulk of your paper should be focused on explaining original research papers. Your paper should be 1200-1800 words, not including references. Your explanations should reflect your own internalization and intellectual synthesis of the concepts, making it clear that you have a full understanding of the information. A simple paraphrasing of each paper would not be acceptable. Use the citation style described in Pechenik, Chapter 5.

Project grading: Your project counts as 100 points, or 10%, of your course grade. The grading rubric is as follows: originality, 15 pts; scientific accuracy and completeness, 35 pts; scope/depth within topic, 20 pts; organization of ideas, 15 points; quality of writing/production, 15 points.

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last modified January 11, 2008 by K. Hales