BME5: Introduction to Biotechnology
Wendy Rothwell, Ph.D. (Rothwell-Lopez) Spring 2008
rothwell@soe.ucsc.edu T Th 10:00 am-11:45 am
Office Location: 405A PSB Thimann Lecture 1
Office Hours: 12:15-1:15 pm T Th
Office Phone: (831) 459-1623
Course Description
Lecture course providing an introduction to the tools and applications of biotechnology in the fields of medicine, agriculture, the environment and industry.
TA and Discussion Sections (attendance is not mandatory)
James Durbin- james@soe.ucsc.edu
office hours TBA
Section Class # Day Time Location
1A 63885 T 6:00-7:10pm Engineering 2 room 192
1B 63886 T 7:30-8:40pm Engineering 2 room 192
Text and other sources
Text: Introduction to Biotechnology, Thieman and Palladino (2004) (available on reserve in the Science and Engineering library)
Companion website (Bookmark this!): www.aw.com/biotech
WebCT account: see WebCT Instructions at the end of the syllabus.
National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI): http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
Grades will be based on performance on 8 homework assignments (lowest score of 9 dropped), 2 exams and one research paper describing a newly developed biotechnology approach or tool. Weighting of each component in the grade is shown below.
assignment number points each total points % of grade
Homework 8 10 80 40%
Exams 2 50 100 50%
Paper* 1 20 20 10%
* Please refer to the Paper Handout (available on WebCT) for details regarding format, etc.
Homework assignments are due every Tuesday at the start of class.
The research paper is due at the start of class on Tuesday, 5/20
The final exam is not comprehensive and will be given on Monday, June 9 from 4-7pm in Thimann 1.
Course Organization
As I give the lectures I will be filling in lecture outlines that have been previously prepared.
Copies of each of these outlines will be made available on the WebCT course Website prior to each lecture and will be formatted such that students can fill them in with the information as I lecture. Therefore, it will be important for students to have these printed out and ready to fill in at the start of each lecture.
Whenever possible I will use figures from your text in my lectures. However, on many occasions I will be using other sources from the Web and I may also utilize handouts. Links to the Web sources will be provided within the text in each lecture outline. Handouts, if I use them, will be made available on the WebCT course Website.
Exams
The format of the exams will include short answer, matching, true-false and multiple choice questions. No scantrons or bluebooks will be needed. Also, no electronic devices (calculators, etc) will be needed or allowed. Bring 2 sharp pencils with erasers.
No make-up exams will be provided.
Disability Resource Center (DRC) Accommodations
Anyone needing DRC accommodations needs to let me know, and submit an Accommodation Authorization as early in the quarter as possible in order to ensure enough time to set up the accommodations. Contact DRC at 459-2089 (voice), 459-4806 (TTY).
Academic Integrity
Behaviors considered to constitute academic misconduct (cheating, plagiarism, or aiding others in cheating) will be taken very seriously and will result in anything from a zero score on the assignment to failing the class. The “Official University Policy on Academic Integrity” can be found at http://www.ucsc.edu/academics/academic_integrity/undergraduate_students/
Note that plagiarism means the act of presenting someone else’s words/ideas as your own. This involves not only taking text, word-for-word from another source but also includes moving words around to make a “new” set of sentences based on someone else’s text = paraphrasing. Failing to reference the source of findings described within a publication is another form of plagiarism.
Excellent information regarding plagiarism, what it is and how it can be avoided can be found at: Indiana University Writing Tutorial Services. I urge you all to visit this site.
http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml#plagiarized
Lecture Schedule (subject to change with fair notice)
T (4/1) The History, Promise and Challenges of Biotechnology (Lecture 1)
Th (4/3) Genes, Genomes, Chromosomes and Cells (Lecture 2)
T (4/8) Recombinant DNA Technology and PCR (Lecture 3)
Th (4/10) Lecture 3 Continued
T (4/15) Producing and Isolating Proteins (Lecture 4)
Th (4/17) Lecture 4 Continued
T (4/22) Microbial Biotechnology (Lecture 5)
Th (4/24) Lecture 5 Continued
T (4/29) Lecture 5 Continued
Th (5/1) Engineering Plants and Animals (Lecture 6)
T (5/6) Exam 1 (covers information through 4/29 lecture)
Th (5/8) Lecture 6 Continued
T (5/13) Biotechnology and the Environment (Lecture 7)
Th (5/15) Aquatic Biotechnology (Lecture 8)
T (5/20) Medical Biotechnology I: Diagnosis and Treatment of Disease (Lecture 9)
Research Paper Due
Th (5/22) Lecture 9 Continued
T (5/27) Medical Biotechnology II: Regenerative Medicine and Bioethics (Lecture 10)
Th (5/29) Lecture 10 Continued
T (6/3) Lecture 10 Continued
Th (6/5) Biotechnology Regulation (Lecture 11)
M (6/9) Final Exam from 4-7pm in Thimann Lecture 1 (covers information from 5/1-6/5 lectures)
WebCT Login Instructions
Go to http://ic.ucsc.edu/services/learning_management_system/login.php (instructions/information about WebCT)
Click on the Check Browser button and make sure that your system will support WebCT. If not, make the necessary alterations (contact me if you have difficulty with this)
Login to WebCT using the same user ID and password as the ones used for your campus email account. Note that you will not have access to the WebCT account if you are not registered for the class.
Further instructions and help, if needed, can be obtained from the login guide (http://ic.ucsc.edu/services/learning_management_system/student_info.php) or by contacting me at rothwell@soe.ucsc.edu.