PZ Myers. 2007 Jan 13. Welcome to Biology 3101, Genetics!. <http://genetics.pharyngula.org/gen/commentswelcome_to_biology_3101_genetics/>. Accessed 2008 Aug 20.
Posted on M00o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr on Saturday, January 13, 2007
Welcome to Biology 3101, Genetics!
BIOL 3101 - Genetics (SCI-L)
(4.0 cr; Prereq-2111 or #; spring, every year)
Principles and mechanisms of inheritance and variation, including cytological, organismal, and population genetics; mechanisms of evolution; and the genetic problems of humans. (two 65-min lect, one 120-min lab)
Your instructor
I am Dr Paul Z. Myers, Associate Professor of Biology. I don't stand on formality, though, so I'd prefer that you addressed me as Paul, or by my nickname, PZ. If you insist on calling me Dr Myers, I'll feel obligated to call you by your last name, too…which is OK, if you'd rather. If you want to know more about me, there was profile written last year, but I suspect you're going to get more of me in class and lab than you want to know anyway.
My office is in room 2390 Science; my formal office hours are MW, 1:00-2:00, immediately after lecture. I'll often be there in the mornings from 9:00 to just before class/lab, and if my door is open, feel free to charge in. I much prefer many interruptions and lots of questions to giving out lots of poor grades on the exams.
I can also be reached by email, but I get a lot of email. I'll announce a special email address just for you genetics students in class that will get your messages special priority. You can also find me on AIM as , or on Jabber as
Lectures
Lectures are on MW, 11:45-12:50, in 1020 Science.
This is one of those courses, where someone stands at the front of an auditorium and lectures at you. I won't even be taking attendance, so you can skip class without me noticing…but please don't. The lectures are intended to help explain that great mass of information you'll find in the textbook, and I also urge you to interrupt me at any time; my goal is not to meet a quota of words and pages covered, but to get everyone to understand the essential concepts of genetics as deeply as possible.
I store the lecture slides online. You will need a password to get to those, which I will give out to everyone on the first day of class.
Textbook
Concepts of Genetics (8th Edition) by William S. Klug, Michael R. Cummings. Prentice Hall, ISBN 978-0131918337.
Homework
I will be assigning problem sets from the textbook almost every week. I will not be collecting or grading them, but do them anyway. These are the kinds of problems I will be putting on the exams, and you need to practice.
If you are hoping for a good grade in this course, the most important thing is to keep up with the reading and the problem sets. Letting the work slide and trying to cram the weekend before the exam is a recipe for disaster—not only is it nearly impossible to acquire the concepts and the skills in one short burst, but you won't be able to ask me questions to help clarify some of the tricky stuff.
Exams
There will be three required exams:
Exam I: 14 February
Exam II: 28 March
Exam III: 2 May
I have a very strict policy on makeup exams. The only time slot for making up a missed exam, if you have a reasonable excuse, is the Monday following the exam, at 7AM. Miss that, and you'll have to take a zero on the test.
If you have a scheduled conflict, such as participation in extracurricular sports, I'm more flexible about arranging an exam before the scheduled date.
Pop quizzes: ???
I reserve the right to throw a 10 point pop quiz at you at any time. There are no make-up quizzes, so don't miss class!
Optional Final: 11 May, 11:00-1:00
That's right, the final exam is entirely optional; even better, if you choose to take it, your score on the final will only be averaged with the other 3 exam grades if it will improve your final grade. Your grade can't be hurt if you take this exam. On the downside, it will be difficult and it will be cumulative, so it isn't likely to improve your grade, unless you're trying to compensate for an unfortunate disaster in a previous exam score.
Labs
There are 3 lab sections—Tues 12:00-2:00, Tues 3:00-5:00, and Thurs 12:00-2:00, all in Sci 3160. Since some of the sections are fairly full, please only show up for your scheduled lab time; if special circumstances come up, though, let me know and I can let you attend another section.
Once we start working with the flies, there will be a few weeks where there will be no scheduled lab. Instead, I'll expect you to come in at a time of your convenience (and the flies'!) to sort flies, count mutants, set up new crosses, etc. I'll announce these times in lab, lecture, and here on the web—be flexible! There will be weeks when the lab work is quick and easy, and others where you'll need to put in extra time staring into a microscope until you're crosseyed.
The lab will make up 30% of your final grade. It will be based on regular attendance, maintenance of a notebook, and on a final lab report which will constitute 50% of your lab grade.
Grades
This is not an easy class. Based on past years' performance, about 10-15% of you might earn an A or A-, and between 5 and 10% will fail or withdraw from the course. The only way to succeed is to work hard, keep up with the assignments, and ask questions. Genetics is often conceptually tricky, and if you don't stop me I'm quite capable of assuming you understand everything and zooming through a lot of material very, very rapidly—I encourage you all to wave your hands and ask me to repeat or expand on anything at anytime.
I do not grade on any kind of curve. I normalize exam scores to the highest grade in the course, but otherwise, you need 90% or better for an A, 80% or better for a B, 65% or better for a C, and 50% or better for a D.
I will post your grades on WebCT Vista. There will be a column titled "Current Grade" that will give you an idea of your status relative to the other students in the course, but please keep in mind that it isn't very meaningful early in the course—you will have many opportunities to blow it or improve it! I also include a column titled "Maximum Grade", which uses your grades so far and assumes that you'll get perfect scores on all subsequent exams; if this drops to a "D" or less you ought to withdraw from the course, but don't get cocky if it says "A" if you've got straight "B"s to date. This column will be particularly useful when you have to make that decision about whether to take the optional final or not; if your current grade is a "B", for instance, and the maximum grade you could get by taking the final is "B+", it'll be your decision about whether that's worth the effort of studying for.
Various standard disclaimers and policies
Senate student academic workload policy
For undergraduate courses, one credit is defined as equivalent to an average of three hours of learning effort per week (over a full semester) necessary for an average student to achieve an average grade in the course. For example, a student taking a four credit course that meets for four hours a week should expect to spend an additional eight hours a week on course work outside the classroom.
Accommodations for students with disabilities
It is University policy to provide reasonable accommodations to students with disabilities. This publication/material is available in alternative formats to persons with disabilities upon request. Please contact the Disability Services office, 589-6163, Room 362 Briggs Library to discuss accommodation needs.
Classroom conduct
Students are expected to interact with the instructor and other students with respect and courtesy. Students should attend every class session prepared to learn and work. Participation in class is expected, which includes both speaking up and listening. Give class your full attention while here. Complete all assignments including the reading -- in a timely fashion. Do not bring cell phones or recording equipment to class without the instructor's consent. Students whose behavior is disruptive either to the instructor or to other students will be asked to leave. Students whose behavior suggests the need for counseling or other assistance may be referred to counseling services. Students whose behavior violates the University Student Conduct Code will be subject to disciplinary action.
Academic misconduct
Scholastic dishonesty means plagiarizing; cheating on assignments or examinations; engaging in unauthorized collaboration on academic work; taking, acquiring, or using test materials without faculty permission; submitting false or incomplete records of academic achievement; acting alone or in cooperation with another to falsify records or to obtain dishonestly grades, honors, awards, or professional endorsement; altering forging, or misusing a University academic record; or fabricating or falsifying data, research procedures, or data analysis. In this course, a student responsible for scholastic dishonesty can be assigned a penalty up to and including an "F" or "N" for the course. If you have any questions regarding the expectations for a specific assignment or exam, ask.
Sexual harassment
University policy prohibits sexual harassment as defined by the University of Minnesota Regents' policy.