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GENERAL BIOLOGY

- - -General Course Goal (set by the instructor) - - -

Since our ancestors evolved the capability to walk on two legs, and walked out of Africa, humankind has been trying to understand the natural world -- the real world, and the planet housing this world.

We interact with the natural world -- we observe it, we ask questions about it, scientists test answers and come up with conclusions about it, we use resources from it, and we misuse it. The natural world is like a gigantic puzzle, and the more we learn about it -- the more pieces of the puzzle we fit together, the bigger and more complex the puzzle gets.

This class will provide you with knowledge about biological principles of the internal and external environment, integrating information from various disciplines of the natural, cultural, and technological worlds -- as related to ourselves and the real world we are living in, instilling a responsibility to get involved and try to do something about the problems we have created.

This class will challenge you to use critical and reflective thinking about the problems humankind is facing because of our interaction with the natural world, to come up with your own opinion -- your own understanding of the puzzle -- based on facts about the real world.

You will be able to participate more effectively in a democracy, not walk away from the problems, if you have gained knowledge about the natural world, the puzzle, so that you can make better judgments, speak out, and vote intelligently on questions that involve the real world, including biological principles and human welfare.

Dr. Nilsson



Course Learning Outcomes - BIOL 1408 (non-majors - set by the STC Biology Department )

CLO 1: List steps of the scientific process and utilize laboratory equipment including microscopy to conduct biological experiments, collect and analyze data, employ scientific reasoning to make informed decisions in the laboratory, and communicate results.

CLO 2: Describe the characteristics of life, properties of biomolecules, and basic metabolic pathways including photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

CLO 3: Describe the characteristics of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, and outline cell reproduction, meiosis, and the function of the plasma membrane and organelles.

CLO 4: Recall basic chromosome structure, DNA replication, transcription of DNA into RNA, translation of RNA into protein, and biotechnology; match these processes to principles of inheritance; and reproduce simple genetic crosses and pedigree charts.

CLO 5: Distinguish the evidence for evolution through natural selection, understand the link between unity and diversity of life and relatedness through common descent, and state the importance of the theory of evolution in unifying biological study.

Course Learning Outcomes - BIOL 1406 (majors - set by the STC Biology Department )

CLO 1: Apply steps of the scientific process and utilize laboratory equipment including microscopy to conduct biological experiments, collect and analyze data, employ scientific reasoning to make informed decisions in the laboratory, and communicate results.

CLO 2: Explain the characteristics of life, properties of biomolecules, and basic metabolic pathways including photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

CLO 3: Contrast the characteristics of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, and outline cell reproduction, meiosis, and the function of the plasma membrane and organelles.

CLO 4: Break down basic chromosome structure, DNA replication, transcription of DNA into RNA, translation of RNA into protein, and biotechnology; match these processes to principles of inheritance; and reproduce simple genetic crosses and pedigree charts.

CLO 5: Analyze the evidence for evolution through natural selection, understand the link between unity and diversity of life and relatedness through common descent, and state the importance of the theory of evolution in unifying biological study.

Course Learning Outcomes - BIOL 1409 (non-majors - set by the STC Biology Department )


CLO 1: List steps of the scientific process and utilize laboratory equipment including microscopy to conduct biological experiments, collect and analyze data, employ scientific reasoning to make informed decisions in the laboratory, and communicate results.

CLO 2: Recall basic knowledge of natural selection, microevolution, macroevolution, and principles of inheritance, and distinguish between classification schemes and phylogeny.

CLO 3: Identify anatomical, physiological and adaptive characteristics of major phyla with an emphasis on plants and animals, including basis for classification, evolutionary history, asexual and sexual life cycles, and ecology.

CLO 4: Describe animal physiology and homeostasis as maintained by organ systems, and compare and contrast the physiology and strategies for homeostatic maintenance by major phyla.

CLO 5: Recognize the relationships between geologic and climatic change, extinction, and evolutionary trends.
Course Learning Outcomes - BIOL 1407 (majors - set by the STC Biology Department )

CLO 1: Apply steps of the scientific process and utilize laboratory equipment including microscopy to conduct biological experiments, collect and analyze data, employ scientific reasoning to make informed decisions in the laboratory, and communicate results.

CLO 2: Interpret modern evolutionary synthesis including natural selection, microevolution, macroevolution, and principles of inheritance, and differentiate between classification schemes and phylogeny.

CLO 3: Analyze anatomical, physiological and adaptive characteristics of major phyla with an emphasis on plants and animals, including basis for classification, evolutionary history, comparizon of asexual and sexual life cycles, and ecology.

CLO 4: Explain animal physiology and homeostasis as maintained by organ systems, and compare and contrast the physiology and strategies for homeostatic maintenance by major phyla.

CLO 5: Discriminate the relationships between geologic and climatic change, extinction, and evolutionary trends.