(Department of Biology)

Genetics
Last Revision Date: 04/25/2016
I. COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE:
Semester & Year: Fall 2016
Course Start and End Dates: August 23 December 6
Course CRN & Section: BIOL 3600 EV1 (20360)
Meeting Days and Times: Lecture: Tuesday 6:00-8:30 pm Lab: Thursday 6:00-8:45 pm
Building and Room: Lecture TBA, Lab Parker Building 219
II. INSTRUCTOR:
Name: Lubov Nathanson, Ph.D.
Email: LNathanson@nova.edu
Phone: 954-262-2872
Office Hours: by appointment
This course is administered by the Department of Biology. If the instructor cannot be reached,
please contact the Department of Biology at 954-262-8424.
III. COURSE DESCRIPTION:
BIOL 3600 Genetics/Lab (4 credits)
Genetics/Lab: Review of principles of Mendelian and quantitative inheritance considered at a
morphological and molecular level, including a survey of population genetics, theories of natural
selection, the study of amino acids, and nucleotide substitutions as "evolutionary clocks."
Prerequisites: BIOL 1500, CHEM 2310, and MATH 2020
IV. LEARNING OUTCOMES:
A. Explain the fundamentals of transmission genetics
B. Describe the composition of genetic material, the structure of genes, mutational events, the
genetic code, and protein synthesis
C. Describe the mechanisms regulating gene expression
D. Describe the basics and applications of recombinant DNA technology
E. Demonstrate the ability to use molecular databases, sequence analysis programs, and other
bioinformatics tools
F. Describe the basic principles of molecular evolution and population genetics
G. Apply the principles outlined above to a broad range of biological fields including
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medicine, agriculture, environmental sciences, and forensics.

V. REQUIRED TEXTS AND MATERIALS:
Title: Genetics: A Conceptual Approach.
Author: Pierce, Benjamin A.
Publisher: W.H. Freeman, New York, NY
Edition: 5th
ISBN-13: 9781464192685.
VI. COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

Attendance is required at all lectures, labs, and exams. Absence from class will
adversely affect your grade since you will not be present to hand in assignments and you
will miss course material. There will be no make-up laboratories unless exceptional
conditions occur as defined in the College catalog. In the case of a truly exceptional
condition, PRIOR permission from your professor is required.
Contact me as soon as possible if you have an emergency that is causing you to miss
a lab, test, or you may be unable to make up the missed work. Expect to provide
documentation of your emergency. It is University policy.
All assignments are due at the beginning of the class as indicated in either lecture or
laboratory sessions. LATE ASSIGNMENTS WILL HAVE POINTS DEDUCTED.
Remember: If you take materials (text or figures) from a source, be SURE you cite the
source and if it is an exact passage, put the text in quotation marks. You do not want to
end up experiencing the consequences of cheating/plagiarism especially as a result of
your laziness or sloppy techniques!!
Please feel free to ask questions during class when you don't understand something.
Interaction during the lecture not only makes the class more enjoyable and informative
for both of us, other students may also be unclear about the same thing you are.
Alternatively, come see me or send me a note via e-mail if you need a little help. You
should never feel that a question is too trivial (especially if you have tried to study it on
your own for a little while first).
A great strategy for success in this course is to attend every class meeting, pay attention
during lecture, take careful notes and review your notes to be sure that they are clear and
consistent. Its a good idea to rewrite your notes or make flash cards from your notes
with the material worded in the form of questions. It is also a good idea to write yourself
practice tests using the course material and then take them without looking at your notes.
This gives you practice taking tests (and may help you overcome anxiety if you get
nervous taking tests).
Be considerate to me and your fellow students. Since it is very disruptive to me and the
other students when someone comes in late or leaves early, do your best to be on time to
lecture and lab. As stated earlier, you will not be given extra time to take quizzes or tests
because of tardiness. Also, please turn off/silence cell phones before class. No text
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messaging will be allowed in lecture or lab! If I see you doing so, you will be asked to
leave the class and marked as absent. Although laptops are allowed in class, they should
be used for taking notes or supplementing the lecture. It is highly recommended that you
not waste class time surfing the web! Lastly, please respect other students' opinions and
viewpoints when involved in lecture and lab discussions. If you are being disruptive to
the class, you will be asked to leave and be marked absent!

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7.

Academic Honesty Policy

Academic dishonesty is unfair to all students as well as the instructor and WILL NOT BE
TOLERATED.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:
Cheating on an examination or quiz, taking information or allowing information to be
taken from your test or assignments.
Receiving help from others in work to be submitted; if contrary to the rules of the course.
Plagiarizing the ideas, writings, or work of another (including but not limited to your
textbook and the Internet) without citing the source.
Stealing or illegally using examinations or course material from current or past semesters
or classes. Giving or selling answers to test questions and informing another student of
specific questions that appears or have appeared on course examinations.
Misrepresentation is an act of omission with intent to deceive the instructor or University
employee. It includes but is not limited to, lying about family circumstances,
employment conflicts, or other personal problems in order to gain academic advantage
for oneself or others; changing answers on graded materials; having another person
complete an assignment or take an examination in ones place.
DO NOT GIVE ANYONE YOUR WORK IN WRITTEN OR ELECTRONIC
FORM Assistance with writing and biological concepts are available from the
instructor and from professional tutors through Academic Services located on the first
floor of the Parker Building.
Assisting anyone to do any of the above.
Partners in the lab can only share the data they jointly produce, but each student
needs to complete the lab report, including data analysis and report writing,
independently and individually. Producing the lab report in any joint effort or
fashion by lab partners will be considered plagiarism.
Academic honesty is required and expected. In the event that you are suspected of
classroom cheating, plagiarism, or otherwise misrepresenting your work, you will be
subject to University-level disciplinary action, and you may fail the course.
What You Can Expect of Me: My overall goal is to create a comfortable, interactive, and
supportive learning environment. In doing this, you should expect that I would be well
prepared for both the lecture and laboratory sessions that I am clear about my
expectations for you and the criteria that I use in assigning grades, and that everyone in
the class is treated with consideration and respect. If you feel that I am not living up to
these expectations, please bring it to my attention ASAP; you will not be penalized for
helping me become a better teacher. I want to help you become an active learner.

VII. COURSE SCHEDULE AND TOPIC OUTLINE:

Class schedule subject to modification, but not without prior notification.
DATES

CLASS LECTURE

CHAPTERS
COVERED

8/23

Introduction
DNA structure
DNA replication
Transcription
RNA processing
Translation
UNIT EXAM 1
DNA mutation and repair
Chromosomes and cellular reproduction
Mendelian Genetics
Extension and modification of basic
principles
Sex determination
Chromosome variation
Pedigree analysis, applications
MIDTERM EXAM
Follow Course Schedule listing:
http://www.fcas.nova.edu/coursewizard/
Control of gene expression
DNA technology
DNA technology
Genomics and Proteomics
Genomics and Proteomics
Populations Genetics
Evolutionary Genetics
Wrap up and Review
FINAL EXAM;
Follow Course Schedule listing:
http://www.fcas.nova.edu/coursewizard/

Chapters 1 and 10

8/30
9/6
9/13
9/20
9/27
10/4

10/18
10/25
11/1
11/8
11/15
11/22
11/29

Chapters 12, 13
Chapters 14 and 15

Chapter 18
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 5
Chapters 4, 6, 9 and 11

Chapters 16 and 17
Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 20
Chapter 25
Chapter 26

The lab schedule will be announced the first week of class

VIII. GRADING CRITERIA:

Final Course Grade:
Your final grade is determined by your performance on a number of different tasks:
Unit exams (2 exams)
40%
Quizzes
15%
Lab notebook and participation
15%
Lab final exam
10%
Final exam
20%
TOTAL
100%
Grading Scale:
Percentage
93%
90-92%
87-89%
83-86%
80-82%
77-79%
73-76%
70-72%
67-69.9%
60-66.9%
<60%

Final Grade
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
F

IX. UNIVERSITY-WIDE POLICY STATEMENTS

Students should visit www.fcas.nova.edu/about/policies.cfm to access additional required
college-wide policies. It is your responsibility to access and carefully read these policies to
ensure you are fully informed. As a student in this class, you are obligated to follow these
college-wide policies in addition to the policies established by your instructor.
The following policies are described on this website:
Academic misconduct
Last day to withdraw
Email policy
Student course evaluations
Student responsibility to register
Student responsibility for course prerequisites
Additional Academic Resources: Nova Southeastern University offers a variety of
resources that may aid in student success. Among these resources are:
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Accommodations for students with documented disabilities: For more information about
ADA policy, services, and procedures, students may call the Office of Student Disability
Services at 954-262-7189 or visit http://www.nova.edu/disabilityservices.
Tutoring and Testing Center: Free tutoring services: Students are encouraged to use the
free, individualized tutoring services offered by the Tutoring and Testing Center (TTC).
TTC provides a supportive atmosphere in which tutors and students work collaboratively on
improving students writing, math and/or science skills. To set up a tutoring appointment, call
(954) 262-8350 or (800) 541-6682, ext. 28350 or stop by the Tutoring and Testing Center in the
Student Affairs Building, 2nd floor. For additional resources, as well as information about
tutoring at the regional campuses visit the Tutoring and Testing Center web site at
http://www.nova.edu/tutoring-testing/index.html