BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p.

1
Syllabus
Biology 141, Fall 2014 (TuTh)
(08/20/2014)

Dates Topics* Readings** Instructor
Aug. 28 Sep. 2 Introduction, Cell Theory, Evolution,
Case Studies in Science (Intro to
Mastering Biol due 9/2; RQ1 due 9/4)
1 PGS

I. Cell Organization; Energetics; Cell
Cycle

Sep. 4 11 Membrane Biology (RQ2 due 9/9) 6 PGS
Sep. 11 16 Cell Structure and Function 7 PGS
Sep. 16 18 Cellular Respiration 8.1-8.2, 9 PGS
Sep. 18 23 Photosynthesis 10 PGS
Sep. 25 Mitosis and the Cell Cycle 12 PGS
Sept. 30 (Tues.) Exam 1 (Lectures Aug. 28 Sept. 25)

II. Meiosis; DNA; Central Dogma
Oct. 2 7 Meiosis 13 EF
Oct. 9 14 Genetic Material, Genetic Code and the
Central Dogma of Molecular Biology
15.1, 16.1-16.3 EF
Oct. 16 21 DNA Synthesis, Mutation and Repair 15.2-15.5, 16.4 EF
Oct. 21 30 Transcription, Translation 17 EF
Nov. 4 (Tues.) Exam 2 (Lectures Oct. 2 - Oct. 30)

III. Plant Physiology
Nov. 6 11 Plant Growth, Reproduction, Life Cycle 37.1-37.2, 41 PGS
Nov. 11 Last Day to Drop a Class w/ a W
Nov. 11 13 Chemical Signals in Plants 40 EF

IV. Animal Physiology
Nov. 18 20 Nerve Cells and the Nervous System 46 PGS
Nov. 27 30 Thanksgiving Break
Nov. 25 & Dec. 2 Digestive System 44 EF
Dec. 4 (Thur.) Exam 3 (Lectures Nov. 6 Dec. 2)
Dec. 9 Review session and important
information about the Final Exam
PGS
Dec. 16 (Tues.)

Cumulative Final Exam, (8:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.; final exam will cover all
lectures Aug. 28 Dec. 9)

BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 2
*Topic assignments are tentative.
**Chapters in Textbook: Freeman, Biological Science, 5th Edition, Pearson 2014. Note: It is
expected that textbook chapters will be read before the lecture(s) in which a topic is covered,
and not just the night before an exam. To help you remember to read ahead, Reading Quizzes
(RQs) will be given online on Mastering Biology. They will be due at 12:00 noon on the day a
new topic is started in lecture.
BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 3
General I nformation: BIOL 141, Foundations of Biology: Cells, Energy and Organisms is a
course designed for individuals who have completed high school biology and chemistry. This
course is required for students majoring in Biology and Biochemistry and for pre-professional
Allied Health students intending to enroll in BIOL 251. However, students from all disciplines
are welcome. Much of what you learn this semester should be applicable to many areas of your
own major. If you feel your high school background in biology and chemistry is not adequate for
this course, you should consider enrolling instead in a non-majors coursewith a lab such as
SCI 100, BIOL 106, or BIOL 109. NOTE 1: BIOL 141 does not include a lab.


Goals of the course:

One goal of BIOL 141 is to present an overview of foundational concepts in
contemporary biological science. A corollary of this goal is for students to understand and be
able to apply these concepts. The Syllabus lists basic topics in four broad categories preceded by
Roman numerals. You will need to understand these concepts in order to answer specially
developed Pre-Exam Study Questions related to the Topics listed in the Syllabus. One of your
learning objectives is to be able to answer these questions and the exam questions derived from
them by the time of each midterm Exam.

A second goal for BIOL 141 is to sustain a classroom environment that promotes active
learning. In addition to lectures you will be exposed to a number of different teaching approaches
designed to make this class a learning experience that is personal, student-centered, interactive
and relevant. These approaches are being used at a number of colleges and universities around
the country in addition to UMBC, and there is ample evidence that they improve student
understanding and retention. Some of you will have had experience with one or more of them.
Many of you will not. If you find yourself uncomfortable with these methods, be patient. You
will become accustomed to learning in new ways and will be amazed to find yourself learning
more than you realize.

A third goal for BIOL 141 is to help students become more familiar with the questioning
and interactive side of science. A typical view of "science" is that it consists of a large body of
hard-to-remember and difficult-to-understand "facts" discovered by scientists who worked alone.
However, as practicing scientists, we know that science is driven by the questions that scientists
ask. The process of science involves working together with others to find answers to those
questions, and then persuading the broader community of scientists that the answers are valid.
We will not simply ask questions in this class, but will encourage you to ask questions of your
own. We will also challenge you to find answers to your own questions, as well as ours.


Instructors:
Dr. Phillip Sokolove BS 459 410-455-2147 sokolove@umbc.edu
Dr. Elizabeth Feeser BS 458 410-455-3289 efeeser@umbc.edu
(Dr. Sokolove and Dr. Feeser have Office Hours by appointment. Appointments must be
scheduled by email. Your email should describe the purpose of the requested meeting and
provide 2 or 3 times to meet (dates and times) that would be convenient for you.)

BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 4

Graduate TAs:
Lucas Horn Head Teaching Assistant lhorn1@umbc.edu
Mariann Gabrawy Sec. 08 (Th 1:00-1:50pm, SOND 107) gabrawy1@umbc

Undergraduate Teaching Fellows:
Raissa Dantas Sec. 02 (Mo 2:00-2:50pm, FA 015) raissa1@umbc.edu
Skylar Dewees Sec. 03 (Mo 3:00-3:50pm, PAHB 108) sdewees1@umbc.edu
Sheetal Chopra Sec. 04 (Tu 1:00-1:50pm, SOND 112) chosh1@umbc.edu
Alyssa Florwick Sec. 05 (Tu 2:30-3:20pm, SOND 208) aflor1@umbc.edu
Patricia Hoang Sec. 06 (We 2:00-2:50pm, FA 015) phoang1@umbc.edu
Lisa Dang Sec. 07 (We 3:00-3:50pm, ACIV 013) lisad1@umbc.edu
Sanchari Ghosh Sec. 09 (Th 2:30-3:50pm, PAHB 107) ghoshs1@umbc.edu
Nichol Rangos Sec. 10 (Fri 11:00-11:50am, SOND 205) nrangos1@umbc.edu
Michael Ishak Sec. 11 (Fr 2:00-2:50pm, SOND 207) ishak1@umbc.edu

BIOL 141 Grading: Total end-of-semester (EoS) points possible = 500 EoS points

Exams
Exam 1 (9/30) \
Exam 2 (11/04) (2 highest hour exams)
Exam 3 (12/04) /
Two highest exams each weighted at 20% of total pts = 40% 200 EoS pts
Final Exam weighted at 20% of total pts (12/17/12) = 20% 100 EoS pts
Reading Quizzes = 15% 75 EoS pts
Discussion Section Evaluation** = 15% 75 EoS pts
Turning Technologies participation (TP clicker exercises) = 10% 50 EoS pts
Total = 100% 500 EoS pts

**Assigned by weekly Discussion Section TA for participation, attendance, performance and
assessment of student behavior, engagement and involvement.

BIOL 141H Grading: Two top Hour Exams + Final + RQs + TP = 75% 375 EoS pts
141H Discussion Sect (Dr. R. Wolf) = 25% 125 EoS pts

Make-up Exams: There arent any. All exams must be taken on the date and time they are
scheduled. Hour exams will be administered during regular class time.
Check your calendar NOW to make sure there are no conflicts.

Make-up exams will NOT be given for missed hour exams. The first hour exam that you miss
will be counted as your lowest exam score. If a second hour exam is missed due to a
documented medical emergency (i.e., you must be able to provide an official written document,
signed and dated, from a physician or hospital), a make-up essay exam may be given within one
week after the date of the missed exam. To be eligible for an essay make-up exam, either Dr.
Sokolove, Dr. Feeser or the Biology Department Office (410-455-2261) must be notified in
advance, 2 hours or more prior to the time of the exam you will be missing.
A Comprehensive Final Exam covering the entire semester will be administered on Tuesday,
BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 5
December 16, 2014, from 8:00 a.m. 10:00 a.m. NO MAKE-UP EXAM WI LL BE
PERMI TTED FOR THE FI NAL EXAM, AND NO ONE WI LL BE ALLOWED
TO TAKE THE FI NAL ON A DI FFERENT DAY.

Discussion Sections: Your Discussion Section accounts for one of the 4 credits earned in BIOL
141 and the number of points you can earn in your discussion section (75 pts) will comprise
15% of your final course grade. Your discussion section score will be based on the assessment
of your overall performance (including attendance, homework, quizzes and active participation)
by your TA. You are expected to attend every weekly session of the discussion section for
which you are registered. Attendance will be taken and there will be no make-up or extra-
credit quizzes or exercises! Approval to attend a different section in a given week will be at the
discretion of the TA, but this can only be done twice during the semester. There will be no
special review sessions scheduled prior to quizzes or exams.


Turning Point (TP) Clickers: We will be using an in-class voting technology developed and
supported by Turning Technologies (TT).

Turning Point (TP) clickers are inputs to an in-class communication system that uses wireless,
radio-frequency (RF) transmitters (called response cards, or clickers) to allow students to send
answers to questions posed by the instructors during class. Responses from all students are
recorded, tallied and used as the basis for discussions and/or problem-solving.

* We will use this system in every class period, and you are required to participate to earn a
significant fraction (10%) of your course points.

* You will be able to earn 2 clicker points for every day that you participate in all TP
activities provided you answer the first TP clicker question of the day correctly. The first
question will be one of the questions from the preceding Reading Quiz. If you miss the RQ
clicker question at the beginning of class, or do not answer it correctly, you can only earn 1
clicker point for that day (unless there is a high-stakes group question, see below). You can
miss ONE (1) additional TP question for example, due to clicker malfunction and still earn 1
point for that day. On days that a high-stakes group clicker question is posed, you can earn up
to a maximum of 4 clicker points that day, if and only if all members of your team who are
present in class that day select the correct answer choice. All clicker points earned during the
semester will be used to calculate your TP score at the end of the semester using the following
formula:

TP score = [(total clicker pts earned)/(total clicker pts possible including RQ starting
questions and group high-stakes clicker questions)]*50 points toward final grade

One clicker question will be given exactly at the beginning of every class (i.e., at exactly
4:00 p.m.). The beginning-of-class clicker question will be the same as, or very similar to
a question from the previous Reading Quiz. It will be worth 2 clicker points. TP
participation in the first question of the day, the last question of the day and a majority of
the other clicker questions will register your attendance in class on that day.

BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 6
After a TP question is posed and you have voted, you may be encouraged to discuss the
answers with your neighbors (or teammates) before voting for a second time. Both the
initial and follow-up votes for all the students who voted will be compiled and displayed
for class discussion.

The serial number of your TP clicker must be registered on the BIOL 141
Blackboard (Bb) web site w/in 24 hrs after purchase through either the UMBC
Bookstore, or online through the Mastering Biology web site

DO NOT LOSE OR MISPLACE YOUR CLICKER. If you lose your clicker, you will
need to purchase a new one.

PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE TAPED A NOTE ON THE BACK OF
YOUR CLICKER WITH YOUR NAME AND A PHONE NUMBER WHERE YOU
CAN BE REACHED in case you lose/misplace your clicker.

Student Tips for Using Clickers in the Classroom are available on
Blackboard for downloading.

The first clicker question will be given in lecture on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2014. Be sure to
bring your own, registered TP clicker to class. No student may use another students
registered clicker. If you do not register your own clicker, you cannot earn any TP credit
during the semester. The drop dead deadline for registering your TP clicker through
Bb is September 11, 2014.


Regarding the Textbook: Your textbook is a reference book that is intended to help you learn
about biological concepts, ideas, facts and experiments that may or may not be covered in class.
Freeman et al., Biological Science, 5
th
ed. will be your textbook for both BIOL 141 and
BIOL 142.

It is expected that textbook chapters will be read before the lecture(s) in which a topic is covered,
and not just the night before an exam. To help you remember to read ahead, Reading Quizzes
(RQs) will be given online on Mastering Biology. They will be due at 12:00 noon on the day a
new topic is started in lecture.

Unlike most high school courses in which the content of the textbook determines the content of
the course, in this class (as in most college classes) We will not simply explain the text.
Sometimes the text will provide a general background for details covered in class; other times
the reverse will be true, with the class topics being more general and the text more detailed. The
text may present a point of view that is opposite to that presented in class, or it may deal with
totally different material than is covered in class, but material that supplements the class.

The readings on the Syllabus outline are entire chapters or sections of chapters that contain
material related to the topics listed on the Syllabus. They are not always adjacent chapters, nor
are they necessarily listed in sequential order (we have tried to list the most appropriate
chapter(s) first). You may read them in any order you wish. The topics we cover in this class
BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 7
will not depend entirely on your instructors, nor will we slavishly follow the Syllabus. Quite
often we will focus on questions of interest to students. These are NOT digressions. In such
cases, you will have to decide what sections of the textbook are relevant to each study question --
and read those sections of the textbook. Hint: Refer to the Study Questions for Exam X to
determine exactly what topics will be asked about on Exam X. There will be one
question on Exam X for each study question.

Typewritten answers to pre-exam Study Questions will probably be required by your Discussion
Section TA as homework to be handed in at the beginning of the following Discussion Section or
submitted as an email attachment. YOUR ANSWERS WILL BE GRADED FOR
COMPLETENESS, so be sure to answer every part of each study question question. Do NOT
copy someone elses answers. That is plagiarism. Plagiarism is equivalent to cheating on an
exam, and will incur the same penalty: zero credit for the exercise, and a report filed to the
Academic Conduct Committee. Two such infractions will result in an F in the class.

Some of you, particularly those who have had a rigorous AP biology course in high school, may
find that Freeman, et al. is not as comprehensive and detailed as you would like. You may
purchase a different textbook, if you prefer -- or if you own a copy of your AP text (such as
Campbell), you may use it as the class text. However, if you do not wish to use the 5th edition
of Freeman, you are responsible for determining for yourself what you need to read.

Try to make sure at least one person in your team brings a copy of the textbook to every
class to use as an in-class reference.


Academic Integrity: According to the Provost of UMBC, "Each of us has an obligation to
act with integrity in our scholarship and general academic work. This is an obligation to
ourselves, our colleagues, and the UMBC community. This statement reflects UMBCs
unequivocal goal to establish and maintain a community of scholars who share an ongoing
commitment to honesty and integrity in academic and scholarly life and work. Consistent with
this strong commitment, any evidence of cheating or plagiarism (representing someone elses
work as your own, or enabling another student to represent as his or her work the work of
someone else) will be dealt with firmly under the Student Academic Conduct Policy (for a
complete statement of the policy go to http://www.umbc.edu/integrity/students.html and click on
UMBC Undergraduate Student Academic Conduct Policy).

I f you are observed or reported to be cheating during an examination, quiz, or clicker exercise,
(1) your exam and answer sheet (or quiz or clicker) will be confiscated, (2) you will receive a
score of zero for the exam, quiz or daily clicker points and (3) you will be reported to the
Academic Conduct Committee. In the case of a second infraction the Chair of the Academic
conduct Committee will be consulted regarding a more severe penalty, including but not limited
to a grade of F in the class, and both the first and second infractions will automatically be
reported to the Provost to be reviewed for possible administrative action such as suspension or
expulsion. This policy on cheating will apply to all examinations, quizzes and TP clicker
activities in this course.

**Only people attending class may take part in a TP clicker activity. Taking part for someone
BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 8
not in the room is dishonest and is a violation of UMBCs academic integrity policy. Violators
will be handled the same as if they had been caught cheating on an exam.

By enrolling in this course, each student assumes the responsibilities of an active participant in
UMBC's scholarly community in which everyone's academic work and behavior are held to the
highest standards of honesty. Cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, and helping others to commit
these acts are all forms of academic dishonesty, and they are wrong. Academic misconduct
identified in this class will result in disciplinary action that may include, but is not limited to,
suspension or dismissal. To read the full Student Academic Conduct Policy, consult the UMBC
Student Handbook, the Faculty Handbook, or the UMBC Policies section of the UMBC
Directory, or go to http://www.umbc.edu/integrity/ACC_final.pdf


Letters of Recommendation: Written only for students who have TAed in BIOL 141. Letters
are never written for any student who has violated UMBCs Academic Conduct policy.


Cell Phone Policy: Students are expected to turn off their cell phones and smart phones
before they enter the classroom. Any student sitting next to a student whose cell/smart phone
goes off during class will be expected to stand up and publicly apologize to his/her classmates
for the interruption. Class will be halted until the apology is given and accepted by the class.
There will be no exceptions to this cell phone policy.


Laptop Computer Use Policy: Students are not allowed to use laptop computers, tablets,
smart phones or other electronic devices in class for any reason whatsoever.

Exception: Only students with a documented disabilities waiver i.e., a formal, written letter
from Student Support Services that documents the need for the student to use an in-class, laptop
computer to take notes will be allowed to use a laptop computer in the lecture hall. Any other
laptop use (i.e., playing solitaire, gaming of any type, texting with or without multiple windows
open, emailing your best bud, watching a movie, etc.) is distracting to students sitting nearby and
disrupts the learning environment that we try to maintain in the classroom. Therefore,

Any student with a documented disability waiver who brings to class and uses his/her laptop
during class time for any purpose other than taking notes, will have his/her laptop computer
immediately confiscated, and the student will be denied the privilege of using a laptop
computer in class for the remainder of the semester.

There will be no other exceptions to the ban on computer use in BIOL 141.



BIOL 141 Syllabus, Fall 2014 (TuTh), p. 9
BIOL 141 Blackboard:

Blackboard (Bb) is the course management system that is maintained by the department of
Instructional Technology at UMBC. We use the system not simply to record and display exam
scores for individuals. Instructors and TAs can view the entire Blackboard gradebook, but
students cannot. Only the student who takes an exam can view his/her own exam score by means
of the My Grades link under the Student Tools menu (Student Tools is a menu button on the
left side menu of most Bb web pages).

Every student is expected to view the Announcement page on BI OL 141 Bb each day. That is
how we will communicate with this class regarding assignments and general information.

Materials that in other courses might normally be handed out in hard-copy form will be
available in electronic form on BIOL 141 Bb. Examples: Syllabus (most recent version); Pre-
exam Study Questions (most recent version); TP (clicker) Questions (listed by class session
date, but w/o correct answers)

Every student should also access the Discussion Board at least once a day to read the most recent
entries on the two main forums (one forum deals with Content Questions; the second deals with
Procedural Questions; there is also a third forum where students can communicate with each
other about their answers to the Pre-exam Study Questions). It is not necessary to post a
comment in order to participate on a Discussion Board forum. Reading others questions and
comments is also a form of Discussion Board participation.

At the end of the semester, any student who is in the top 10% of Discussion Board users (as
determined by the number of accesses of the Content Questions forum) and whose semester
point total is on a letter grade borderline will automatically receive the higher letter grade. Those
who are not in the top 10% will NOT receive the higher letter grade.