For many students, BIOL 11 will be the entrance course to the major. To help students determine if they are sufficiently prepared to enter a foundation course directly, the Biology department has established an online self-assessment exam for students. Students who have any concerns about their preparedness should take BIOL 11 before enrolling in a foundation course. BIOL 11 may be counted toward the biology major if it is taken either during the first year or as the as the first biology course counted toward the major. Only one offering of BIOL 11 may be taken for credit.
To help students determine if they are sufficiently prepared to enter a foundation course directly, the Biology department has established an online Biology placement/advisory exam for students (available in Canvas). Students who have any concerns about their preparedness should take BIOL 11 before enrolling in a foundation course.
Emerging infectious diseases, which have shaped the course of humanity and caused untold suffering and death, will continue to challenge society as long as humans and microbes co-exist. This course will explore why infectious diseases emerge and re-emerge. The viruses, bacteria and eukaryotes that cause these diseases continually evolve in response to their hosts. Dynamic interactions between rapidly evolving infectious agents and changes in the environment and in host behavior provide such agents with favorable new ecological niches. In addition, dramatic increases in the worldwide movement of people and goods drive the globalization of disease. Guerinot
Cooperation and conflict are universal themes that arise when considering how entities at various levels of organization interact. This is particularly true in biology, from atoms interacting within a molecule, molecules interacting within a cell, or cells interacting within a multicellular organism, individuals interacting within groups, disease organisms interacting within their host, or nations interacting with one another. We will explore how the concepts of game theory apply at the biochemical, cellular and organismal levels to explore how groups of entities at these various levels interact, and how groups transition to individuals. All along the way we will discuss a lot of biology and see how biologists apply what they know to new problems. Calsbeek
This course seeks to introduce students to the wonders of the brain and how it works through its basic cellular unit: the neuron. Importantly, this course is intended for students with no prior knowledge interested in indulging their curiosity about basic biology and neuroscience. We will first establish some fundamental principles of the biology of the neuron. Next, we will examine how neurons connect with one another, change and learn, and control behavior. Finally, we will explore our current understanding of neurobiology in disease and neurotechnology. The class will consist of lectures with weekly quizzes and culminate with a cumulative final exam. Ghosh