INSTRUCTOR
Dr. Todd Scarlett                             Office hours:     Monday         1:30-3:00
Office: 214 Bradley                                                 Wednesday     9:00-11:00 & 1:30-3:00   
Phone: 803-313-7031                
Email: tlscarle@mailbox.sc.edu       

TEXT
 Investigating Biology Lab Manual. By Morgan and Carter, 6th edition, 2008, Pearson.

LAB MATERIALS

• Dissection kit
• Latex gloves for pig dissection
  

COURSE OBJECTIVES
The first objective of the lab is to apply and investigate further the concepts learned in lecture.  The lab environment allows students to delve deeper into important topics, particularly in areas that require a more hands-on approach, such as anatomy.

The second objective of the course is to develop the critical thinking and investigative skills of the student. This objective will be accomplished a variety of ways, such as using models to examine theoretical concepts, conducting short discovery exercises, developing and testing hypotheses, and writing up results of lab investigations in the form of a scientific paper.

• Develop and test a simple hypothesis.
• Explain the importance of controls, replication, and standardization in carrying out a scientific investigation.
• Write up the results of a scientific investigation in the form of a journal article.
• Explain how natural selection, genetic drift, mutation, and gene flow can change allele frequencies in populations.
• Place common plants and animals into the major taxonomic groups they belong using characteristics of those groups.
• Identify anatomical structures associated with the major organs and organ systems of a fetal pig.
• Compare the characteristics of local forest communities in different stages of succession.

ATTENDANCE
Excused and unexcused absences of more than 10% of the scheduled lecture or lab meetings is excessive and will result in the assignment of a grade penalty of one letter grade deficit at the end of the semester. Thus, if a student misses more than 1 lab, their semester grade will drop one letter. Being more than 10 minutes late to class or leaving class early will count as an absence.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR
Students are expected to be respectful and considerate to their classmates and professor. Students exhibiting rude or inconsiderate behavior will be told to leave the classroom. If the behavior is repeated the student will be dropped from the course. Appropriate behavior is particularly important in the laboratory due to the potential hazards inherant in laboratory activities (ie, exposure to chemicals, use of glass containers and hot materials) Inappropriate behaviors include, but are not limited to, use of cell phones or pagers, eating, sleeping, excessive arguing or complaining, insulting or offensive remarks, physical aggression, repeated tardiness, unsafe behaviors. Cell phones, pagers, etc, should be turned off before class. Students sending or receiving calls or messages in the classroom or lab will be told to leave. Students sending or receiving messages during an exam will receive a 0 for that exam.

STUDENT EVALUATION
Lab quizzes will be given weekly on the previous week's lab and will constitute 25% of your lab grade. No quizzes will be given the week of a lab exam. Students will write lab reports for the last two labs in place of quizzes. There will be two laboratory exams that will  make up 55% of the lab grade. An optional lab final will be given. Details will be discussed in class.

POINT BREAKDOWN
 

Lab quizzes	25%
Lab Reports	20%
Lab exams (3 exams)	55%

IMPORTANT DATES
 

January 9	Classes Begin
January 16	MLK Day (no classes)
February 27	Last day to drop without a WF
March 4-11	Spring Break (no classes)
April 23	Last day of classes
April 26	BIOL 102 Lab Final 2:30-5:00

TEXT:   Investigating Biology Lab Manual. By Morgan and Carter, 6th edition, 2008, Pearson.

 

Date	Lab Exercise
Jan 12	Intro, Chi Square (Appendix B) and Hypothesis Testing
Jan 19	Population Genetics I: The Hardy-Weinberg Theorem
Jan 26	Plant Diversity I: Nonvascular Plants and Seedless Vascular Plants
Feb 2	Plant Diversity II: Seed Plants
Feb 9	Animal Diversity I
Feb 16	Animal Diversity II
Feb 23	Plant Anatomy
Mar 1	Lab Exam 1
Mar 8	Spring Break
Mar 15	Vertebrate Anatomy I: The Skin and Digestive System
Mar 22	Vertebrate Anatomy II: The Circulatory and Respiratory Systems
Mar 29	Vertebrate Anatomy III: The Excretory, Reproductive, and Nervous Systems
Apr 5	Lab Exam 2: Pig Practical
Apr 12	Animal Behavior
Apr 19	Ecological Succession