Biol 4170 Spring 2014 Developmental Genetics Syllabus 1

Biology 4170: Developmental Genetics Spring 2014

Lectures 11am to 12.15pm, Tuesday and Thursday WO 3246A

Instructor 1: Dr. John Gray Office: WO Wolfe Hall 3232 Office Phone: 530 1537 email: jgray5@utnet.utoledo.edu Lab phone 530 1538 Office Hours: TBA (WO3232)

Website: All lectures note sand other materials will be posted on the Blackboard website provided for this course

________________________________________________________________ No Required Text for this course: Required readings and notes will be provided. It is strongly recommended that you find a good basic genetics and development textbooks for reference. Here's a cheap suggestion: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?db=Books Several older edition but still useful books are available online through the National Library of Medicine's Bookshelf such as - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9983/?term=gilbert%20developmental%20biology

Important Dates:

T 1/28 1st Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 1/7 – 1/23) T 2/11 2nd Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 1/28 - 2/6) T 2/18 3rd Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 2/6 – 2/13) R 2/27 4th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 2/18 – 2/25) T 3/25 5th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 3/11 – 3/18) T 4/8 6th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 3/20 – 3/27) T and R (4/22-4/24) Group presentations 20% of points R 5/1 Final Exam 10.15 - 12.15 am 32% of Points (8% on Topic 7 4/1 to 4/17 and 24% as comprehensive on all topics covered in class) WHAT IS BIOL 4170 ? Biol 4170 is a 3 credit hour lecture course with the following functions: 1: To teach you the fundamental concepts underlying modern developmental genetics including the basic principles and methods of investigation. To provide you with an introduction to the practical application of modern developmental genetics. 2: To teach you the modern understanding of how the genetic program is regulated and expressed in the lifecycle of multicellular eukaryotic organisms. Model animal organisms will include the invertebrates C. elegans and Drosophila melanogaster and the plants Arabidopsis thaliana and Zea mays. 3: To provide you with an insight into how modern developmental genetic studies provide a window into evolutionary processes of form and function in living organisms. 4: To provide you with an opportunity to increase your scientific expression skills by working in a small group to create a short (15-20 min) presentation on a developmental genetics paper of your own choice.

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GETTING THE MOST OUT OF BIOL 4170: Where did you come from as an individual? One of the first areas of serious scientific inquiry has been the study of formation of new individuals. Descriptions of embryos can be found in the writings of the ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians. Aristotle opened bird eggs at different stages and is often considered the first true embryologist. Although the question of the formation of individuals fascinated many the topic languished and in the 20th century most advance in this area was mainly by description. However in the past 25 years or so there has been an absolute revolution in biological sciences that has grown form the application of molecular approaches to embryology and the focus of genetics on embryology. In BIOL 4170 you will learn about the amazing advances that have been made in the past few decades towards understanding the amazing process by which a complex organism can develop from a fertilized egg. The current state of our knowledge is very rich although many exciting details remain to be discovered. You will be introduced to much new information and although there may seem to be many details, time limitations will actually allow us to only briefly examine the topics that we will explore. The information that you will receive will serve as an important foundation for your future studies in biology and also will aid greatly in your understanding of modern life where many new opportunities and dilemmas are presented. In order to appreciate and avail of these opportunities, and to tackle thorny bioethical dilemmas it will be important not only to learn the factual information presented but also to understand the underlying concepts and some of the (current) limitations of our knowledge and abilities. In order to succeed in this course you should attend each lecture in a fresh state of mind. Lectures are at 11 am each morning and a good nights sleep is an obvious requisite for being receptive to the new information presented. You should be prepared to take notes but all lecture notes will be provided online. You should take notes that highlight information that is stress by the lecturer but the classroom provides an opportunity for a dynamic interaction. CLASSROOM DYNAMICS: The format of this class will be interactive. We will center lectures around some major papers which will be provided to you ahead of time (on class website) and which you will be expected to have read at least briefly before class. In particular you may have part of the paper assigned to you to explain to others e.g. you may be assigned to explain a particular figure or table from a paper so you must be sure that you understand that figure or table before you come to class – or give your best explanation. In this way we hope to discover the material in an interactive way and this will help you also to develop questions which is an important part/way of learning science. Most students are reluctant to ask questions in class and the reasons vary from fear of sounding ignorant to not wanting to appear overenthusiastic in front of others. However the dangers in not asking questions are many. It is very likely that if you don’t understand a particular point then there are many others that do not also - by asking the question you assist the teacher in identifying areas that need to be reinforced, reemphasized or in some cases dropped out of the material. Your questions also assist the teacher to determine if the material is being presented too fast or in an unclear fashion - on a rare occasion (hopefully never) you may be able to spot an error in the information being presented and thus you provide a great service in preventing the propagation of inaccurate knowledge.

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Finally by not asking questions you will miss the dynamic process of vocal and mental interaction that is an essential part of the scientific process. In the workplace you will learn much of your new knowledge from colleagues by word of mouth and you need to be able to query and verify that new knowledge by asking questions. At scientific meetings there is a danger that people will simply accept information without a rigorous questioning of the methods by which that information was obtained. Communication is an essential skill in science today and the successful scientist uses that skill to attract interest and funding to his/her area of investigation. So, I urge you to not be hesitant in asking questions in BIOL 4170. If however you are still reluctant to ask questions then be sure to visit us during office hours and feel free to email your questions to us ahead of time so we may even be able to provide you with some extra information. Powerpoint Presentation At the end of the course you will be asked to present a short powerpoint presentation on a developmental genetics topic that is interesting to you. This year this presentation will be done as a small group (of 5 students). You should meet and come up with a topic and discuss it with the lecturer before spring break – you should turn in a title and brief (100 words) abstract before spring break. Then make sure to visit the lecturer to discuss the topic and you may be given some pointers for background reading to help you along. This exercise is meant to be an enjoyable one so pick a topic that you genuinely find interesting. You should open a free Google Drive account if you do not have one already. I will make a folder in which group members can collect materials and make drafts of their presentation. I will also be able to access and help guide you in your preparation. You can also use the biology student cluster in Bowman-Oddy 1099 to meet and work online. As it gets close to the time (at least 1 week ahead of time) of your presentation you should again make an appointment with me to run through your slides briefly and you should also practice the timing of your presentation (15 minutes) to leave some time for general discussion. Hopefully you will then present an interesting presentation that is enjoyable to the class. For your efforts you will be awarded 20% of the available points in the course. This is an easy 20% if you approach the presentation enthusiastically and deliver an informed and clear presentation. You will of course increase your presentation skills which are an essential part of all professional development today. STUDYING AT HOME AND AS A SMALL GROUP: Many studies have shown that long-term memory requires re-exposure to the facts at hand so it is best to review the handouts and your notes regularly. There is no required textbook for this course but we will provide plenty papers for you to read and lists of other reading (not required but worthwhile). We will also provide some sample genetics questions where relevant throughout the course. You should do these at home and check that you have the right answer. We encourage you to form small study groups and work on these problems together – this is also a preparation for today’s workplace where one most often works in a group than alone. If you are having trouble please be sure to visit during office hour. In today’s world there is a constant need to keep up to date with new developments and many people end up changing career directions in mid-flight in response to shifting job markets - in this climate there will not be time to re-learn material - it is important to focus now on building a strong foundation of knowledge which will allow you to be adaptive in the future. If you study the material provided and find that it is easy then questioning the material and bring

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those to class. Sometimes this is hard to do but it is the true measure of how well you understand the material. HOW YOUR PERFORMANCE IN BIOL 4170 WILL BE GRADED: Because of the small number of people in the course we do not grade on a curve but on an absolute scale. The breakdown of marks is tabulated below: T 1/28 1st Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 1/7 – 1/23) T 2/11 2nd Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 1/28 - 2/6) T 2/18 3rd Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 2/6 – 2/13) R 2/27 4th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 2/18 – 2/25) T 3/25 5th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 3/11 – 3/18) T 4/8 6th Quiz 8% of points (On lectures 3/20 – 3/27) T and R (4/22-4/24) Group presentations 20% of points R 5/1 Final Exam 10.15 - 12.15 am 32% of Points (8% on Topic 7 4/1 to 4/17 and 24% as comprehensive on all topics covered in class) Most (but not all) quizzes are on a Tuesday (except Feb 27th and the final) so I suggest that you take the weekend preceding an exam to study well and do not leave studying until the night before. Format of quizzes and exams: The exams will be mainly short answer with some true of false, multiple choice, fill in the blanks, and diagram type questions. Powerpoint presentation – see top of page three. GRADING SCALE: Grade equivalents will be assigned as follows (we would expect that most of you will earn a B for doing a decent job and those of you who make a special effort can earn an A). This scale is based on the assumption that knowledge of 50% of the material is needed to pass this course. % of available marks Grade Standard ______________________________________________________________________________ 90-100 A Achievement of outstanding quality 88-89 A- Achievement of slightly less than outstanding quality 85-87 B+ Achievement of slightly more than high quality 78-84 B Achievement of high quality 75-77 B- Achievement of slightly less than high quality 73-74 C+ Work of slightly more than acceptable quality 64-72 C Work of acceptable quality 62-63 C- Work of slightly less than acceptable quality 61-62 D+ Work well below the average quality 52-60 D Poor but passing 50-51 D- Barely above failing ______________________________________________________________________________

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Course Policy on Absences: This is a small class but the expectations are similar to those for a large class. You are expected to participate in all lectures. In the event of an unanticipated absence at an exam due to illness or emergency, documented and dated evidence of the necessity of the absence must be provided in the form of a doctor’s letter or equivalent i.e. a contactable supervisory adult that will substantiate the necessity of your absence. Any unaccounted for absence will result in no points awarded for that quiz. For anyone that has substantiated to us satisfactorily that they had to miss an exam due to illness or emergency - we will work with them to create a makeup test which will be in an essay type format. Makeups will only be considered where INDEPENDENT proof of the necessity of the absence is presented. Course Policy on Cheating: Don’t even think about it! - Please read article on taking responsibility for your own education at the end of this syllabus. See also the Statement of Academic Dishonesty on the Blackboard homepage. Evidence of cheating in an exam or assignment will result in a failing grade being assigned and a report of the incident to the Biol. Sci. Dept. Chair and the College Dean. Plagiarism (presenting the writings or work of others as your own) in the form of direct copying of text from a website or manuscript constitutes another (and unfortunately growing) form of cheating which will be dealt with as indicated above.

Take responsibility for your education ! (its never too late)

Take responsibility for your own education. Here’s the part where college distinguishes itself from high school. Students are in high school because they have to be. Students are in college because they want to be. You are paying dearly for your college education, so you should go out and get it. Don’t wait for someone else to hand it to you; it won’t come. Taking responsibility for your own education means going to the dictionary when you run across a word you don’t know. It also means asking your professor to read a draft of your essay, or raising your hand in class to ask for a difficult point to be repeated. But taking responsibility for your education means more than this. It means seeking out challenging courses and difficult professors, for only if you push yourself by taking hard courses will you improve your academic and intellectual skills. It means engaging your friends in the dormitories and coffee shops about what you are learning in the classroom. It means holding yourself to higher standards than you professors hold you. If you take only easy courses and sit passively through them, you will fail to gain the very education that you are paying so dearly for. Taken from: College is more than job training (The Blade: Toledo, Ohio Saturday Sept 30, 2000)

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Class Schedule