Science as a Way of Knowing

Biology 009, a Teacher-Advisor Program (TAP) course

Fall 2006

    Section A:  10:10-11 MWF, MLS 105

Linden Higgins, Ph.D.

email  Linden.Higgins@uvm.edu
Office:  Marsh Life Science 115

Office hours:  Wednesdays and Fridays 9-10 am, or by appointment.
Schedule of topics and calendar of due dates

Course description:

The TAP courses were developed to help students during their first year in making the transition to a more active learning environment -- to read critically, recognize and explore (if not answer) interesting questions, and communicate your ideas effectively.  In Science as a Way of Knowing, I hope to also leave you with a new, powerful tool at your disposal:  the scientific method.  We will not spend much time learning about the great advances of present, or past, scientists, but rather learning how science is done, and how these methodologies can help you in your own careers and personal decisions. 

Each of us is faced with difficult decisions.  Although it sometimes seems easier to let others (government, the university administration, your parents) make these choices, learning how to make such decisions at a personal level, such as whether to get the flu vaccine this fall, can later help you to get involved in community decisions such as whether floride should be put into the drinking water, whether a paper factory should burn shredded tires, or whether the farmer next door should plant genetically modified crops.

As a motivating topic, I've choosen to address the questions surrounding transgenic (or genetically modified) organisms.  We will explore how genes work, how domesticated crops and animals have been traditionally changed by humans, and how scientists are now utilizing modern molecular techniques to move genes from one organism to another.  The calendar is fairly set for the early part of the semester, but later on you will have the opportunity to help choose topics for reading and discussion.

There is no text in the bookstore for this course.  I am using an on-line text self-published by Craig Pease and James Bull, Science for Business, Law and the Liberal Arts.  There are also a range of web sites by reputable sources which I'd like you to explore.  Some of these provide back-ground information or refreshers and tutorials for topics we have discussed in class.  Others provide alternative view-points to some of the texts we will be reading.  The texts, apart from Pease & Bull, will all be extracted from either commentaries and short communications in scientific journals and articles published in the New York Times.

Grading:

Class participation:  The main goal of this class is to get you comfortable expressing yourself and discussing science.  After the first day, I will expect you to have read the material assigned before coming to class, and come prepared to analyze and discuss the readings.  Your class participation grade will be based primarily upon your four presentations, described in detail in the schedule of topics.

Quizzes:  There will be three quizzes, covering the "factual" content of the course and examining how well you have understood the basic premices of the scientific method.  Study questions will be posted to the web so that you can practice answering the kinds of questions likely to appear on these quizzes, and I will hold brief review sessions before each quiz.  On the Pease & Bull web site, there are also self-graded multiple choice questions that can help you to read more critically and recognize components of the scientific method in written documents.

Final paper:  instead of a final exam, there will be a final paper, on a topic of your choice involving transgenic organisms or some aspect of policy, risk, or use of the technologies involved.  There will be time during class where we discuss potential topics, and dates will be set for you to hand in intermediate stages of the paper, such as the introduction.  The paper will be short, and should present a novel problem and a protocol for testing some hypothesis related to this problem.
component
 points
 % final grade
quizzes
 50 x 3 = 150
 30%
class participation
 4 x 50 = 200
 40%
final paper
 150
 30%



total
 500

Academic Honesty:  University policies on academic honesty are described in the Student Handbook.  I encourage you to read this policy, and expect you to follow it.

I hope that you will read widely for this class, discussing the readings and sharing editing with your fellow students, but I expect you to do your own writing for quizzes and the term paper.  Each paper should be unique, and plagarism of any sort will not be tolerated.  We will discuss what constitutes plagarism of published articles, and how to properly cite sources.  I also expect you to write a new paper for this class, and not use one produced for another course.  If you wish to use the same topic for this and another course, you must discuss this with me and with the other faculty member.  Failure to follow these guidelines will be grounds for failing the term paper and potentially failing the class.