Bio 108 Plants and Society

Spring 2010 Bio 108 Plants and Society

Instructor -Peter S. Brown E-mail: peter.brown@ mcmail.maricopa.edu

Office: Nursing Building, South end, room 181

Office Hours: M-Th 1:30-2:30 PM . Friday by appointment. In general, after lab or lecture is a great time to talk.

Office Phone: 480-461-7034

Web site: www.mc.maricopa.edu/~brown/

Lecture: Room LS 201, MWF 11-11:50 AM

Lab: Room M 8-10:50 AM in LS 202 , or F 8-10:50 AM in LS 206

Textbook (required): Plants and Society, 5th edition by Levetin and McMahon

Laboratory manual (required): Plants and Society, 7th edition, fall 2008 (Brown and Dinchak)

Description: The study of plants in relation to humans; as a source of food, fiber, drugs, and other products; for aesthetic value, survival and energy. Prerequisites: None

This course is intended for non-biology majors and transfers as follows:

ASU	NAU	U. of A
PLB 08 (SQ)	Bio 100 & 100L (LAB)	ECOL 108

Grading*:

Category	Points	Percent
Exams (4 exams x100 points. Final exam** is optional and replaces your lowest exam grade).	400	52
Labs (13 labs x 15 points) (Mon.13 scheduled labs. Fri.14 scheduled labs, 1 dropped)	195	25
Lecture assignments in-class (20 assignments x 4 points)	80	10
Textbook assignments (4 assignments x 12 points)	48	5
Medicinal plant preparation and essay (28 point essay + 8 points in-class sharing)	36	4
Ethnic grocery (10 point worksheet + 6 points in-class sharing)	16	2
Total	775	100
Extra credit (if you miss a lab or just need extra points) Boyce Thompson Arboretum assignment is worth all 25 points. Other assignments will be available as announced in-class.	Maximum 25	about 3%

*The instructor reserves the right to make changes in this grading scheme.

**Final exam is comprehensive over exams 1-4. It will replace your lowest grade.

Makeup exams: No makeup exams will be given although I can usually arrange for the exam to be taken in advance. The optional final exam is comprehensive over exams 1-4 and will replace your lowest exam grade.

90%=A

80%=B

70%=C

60%=D

<59%=F

Lecture attendance: Regular attendance of lecture is expected. Attendance will be taken, but it will not count towards your grade. Lecture assignments will be given about once a week for about 10% of your grade. You must be in lecture to receive these points.

Lab attendance: Lab attendance is REQUIRED.. No make-up laboratory assignments will be given. Students arriving late to laboratory or leaving early will have points deducted at the instructor’s discretion. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of lab. Students arriving late must stay after class to let the instructor know they are present. Students attending fewer than 10 laboratories will be withdrawn from the course regardless of their overall grade.

Withdrawal policy: I will withdraw any student who has not attended a lecture or lab the 1st week. Student withdrawal without instructor’s signature is permitted until the date specified in the college calendar. After that, you are responsible for notifying me that you would like to withdraw at 461-7034. Any student who notifies me will receive a "W" (withdrew passing). Any student who stops attending without notifying the instructor will receive a "Y" (withdrew failing).

Academic dishonesty: Academic dishonesty will result in a zero for that assignment. Subsequent instances of academic dishonesty will result in an "F" or "Y" for the course and be reported to the academic dean of students.

Disabilities: Reasonable accommodation will gladly be made for those with disabilities, learning or otherwise. Please talk with me, and to the Special Services office, 461-7448. The Special Services office will provide written documentation regarding the necessary accommodation.

MCC Early Alert Program (EARS)

Mesa Community College is committed to the success of all our students. Numerous campus support services are available throughout your academic journey to assist you in achieving your educational goals. MCC has adopted an Early Alert Referral System (EARS) as part of a student success initiative to aid students in their educational pursuits. Faculty and Staff participate by alerting and referring students to campus services for added support. Students may receive a follow up call from various campus services as a result of being referred to EARS. Students are encouraged to participate, but these services are optional.

Early Alert Web Page with Campus Resource Information can be located at: http://www.mesacc.edu/students/ears.

Date	Topic	Textbook	Lab
Week 1 Jan. 18-22 Holiday Mon. Jan. 18	How do people use plants?	p. 1-8, p.170-179, Ch. 12, 13, 14, p.237-242	NO LAB
Week 2 Jan. 25-29	How do people use plants? (continued)	Continue reading from last week	Section 1: Welcome to the biology lab
Week 3 Feb. 1-5	Different kinds of plants, plant diversity, fossil record.	p. 134-136	Section 2: What is science?
Week 4 Feb. 8-12	Monocots and dicots Classifying living organisms Fri. Feb. 12: Exam 1 and text 1	p. 89-92 (fig. 6.2), p.36-37 (fig. 3.5-3.7), p. 41 (fig. 3.10 c), p. 76 (fig. 5.3), p. 123-124 Ch. 9	Section 3: How are plants classified?
Week 5 Feb. 15-19 Holiday Mon. Feb. 15	Roots, stems and leaves	p. 35-47123-124	Section 8: Plant cells
Week 6 Feb. 22-26	Flowers and fruits	Ch. 5 (skip p. 77-81, meiosis and gametophytes) Ch. 6	Section 4: Flowers
Week 7 March 1-5	Medicinal, poisonous, allergy plants	Ch. 19, 20, 21	Section 9: Desert Botanical Garden
Week 8 March 8-12	Wed. March 10: Herbal Medicine Paper and Oral Report Fri. March 12: Exam 2 and text 2	Continue reading from last week	Service Projects: Science Day and Planting Succulent Garden
Week 9 March 15-19	SPRING BREAK		SPRING BREAK
Week 10 March 22-26	Desert plants	p. 478-482	Section 5: Leaves Section 6: Fruits
Week 11 Mar 29-April 2	Cells	Ch. 2	Section 10: Landscaping
Week 12 April 5-9	Chemistry, water, molecules of life Wed. April 7: Ethnic grocery store assignment due	p. 8-18	Section 11: Gilbert Riparian Area
Week 13 April 12-16	Wed. April 14: Exam 3 and text 3		Section 7: Plant Propagation
Week 14 April 19-23	Metabolism and photosynthesis Respiration	p. 54-64p. p. 64-70	Section 12: How do leaves respond to external stimuli?
Week 15 April 26-30	Genetics	Ch. 7	Section 13: How are traits related to genes?
Week 16 May 3-7	Mon. May 3: Extra credit (optional) due Wed. May 5: Exam 4 and text 4		Video and Discussion
Monday May 10th at 11 AM	Final exam (optional)

*This schedule may change at the discretion of the instructor

** Bring a Green Scantron and pencil to each exam. No makeup exams.

Syllabus Questions

1. Who is Peter?

2. True or False: If you are a biology major wishing to fulfill a science requirement, this is the appropriate course.

3. What is the name of the textbook and laboratory manual you need? Where can you buy them?

4. Assume you have dyslexia and need extra time on the exams. What must you do?

5. You have missed 2 labs. How will this affect your grade? What can you do to help your grade?

6. Explain how coming to lecture will help your grade.

7. You are a poor test taker. What other activities will help boost your grade in Biology 108?

8. If you have any questions about the class your instructor has not discussed, talk to him after class or write it below and pass it in.