Biology 4 focuses on how our current understanding of genetic mechanisms at a molecular level has led to new biological insights and to the development of powerful technologies with far reaching implications for our society. It is the aim of this course to provide a solid understanding of the mechanisms of molecular genetics and to discuss implications of genetic engineering and related technologies to our every day lives. Although the course will focus on the science, we will also consider the ethical, political, human, and economic impact of these technologies. Several guest lecturers will provide personal perspectives based on their experiences. The ultimate goal of the course is to provide you with an understanding of the biology along with the technology so that you can make informed decisions on issues that continually and increasingly arise in our society.

The lectures will draw on material in the textbook, but will also contain material not included in the text ­ notably the first few lectures. Conversely, the lectures will not cover everything in the textbook. Especially for the discussions involving implications of the technologies, exam material will be drawn mostly from the lectures. Attendance at lectures is therefore very important. The textbook should serve as a reference to the lecture material.

During class, you are encouraged to ask questions. If something is not clear to you, it is likely not to be clear to someone else in the class. If something is said that triggers a question related to a different topic, please ask your question. I would rather spend class time discussing in more depth the topics that you find most interesting than cover additional topics. Class discussion is particularly important to topics such as ethical implications of technology.

Special Note: If you have any suggestions on how to improve the course in any way, please don't hesitate to stop in and share your ideas with me. There are always ways to improve any course and your input is valuable in pointing out how this may be accomplished. Also, if you find something that you like, please tell me about that as well. All the feedback you provide will contribute to improving the course during this term as well as in the future.

We will be using "Dealing with Genes: The Language of Heredity" by Berg and Singer, University Science Books, 1992. This book covers basic molecular genetics and genetic engineering. It is available at the Dartmouth Bookstore and through Wheelock Books.

A number of Cell and Molecular Biology textbooks are also being placed on reserve in the Dana library. You can refer to these for more detailed information than what is being covered in class.

I am not setting up any formal office hours. Please feel free to drop in to ask questions at any time. My office is Remsen 210. If I am free when you stop in I will be glad to help you right then. On the other hand, if I am busy, please don't take it personally if I ask you to come back at another time - it just means that I am busy. This "open door" policy will hopefully work best for all of us. If you prefer to set up an appointment, please call (x6-2059) or Blitz to see when I will be available.

Your grade will be determined from your performance on the exams and from class participation. Each of the exams will cover material from about one third of the course. The take home final will draw from all aspects of the course, including the guest lectures. Class participation will help boost you up a grade if you are on a border between two grades. The breakdown is as follows:

First Exam 35% Jan 24 (Wed.), 7 - 9 PM

Second Exam 35% Feb 14 (Wed.), 7 - 9 PM

Take Home Final 30%

Note that the exams will be given on Wednesday evenings and will include material from the previous day's lecture.

X-hour review sessions are also being held on the Wednesdays of the exams. You should have had a chance to study the material by then and this is an opportunity for you to make sure you are clear on any remaining points that might be confusing to you.

I encourage students with disabilities, including "invisible" disabilities like chronic diseases and learning disabilities, to discuss with me after class or during my office hours appropriate accommodations that might be helpful to them. For information about disabilities, please contact the disabilities coordinator, Nancy Pompian, by email.

Study groups and tutoring are available for this course. If you would like to have a tutor or to become part of a study group, please go to Collis 301 to fill out a form. For more information you can email "academic skills center" or "asc".

The list that follows provides an outline of the course content. Although specific dates are listed, they should be thought of more as guides for the order of topics presented than as actual scheduled lectures. We will cover the topics in the order presented and will, in general, be close to the listed topics on any given day. However, there will be times that we are ahead and times that we are behind the listed schedule. This is a feature and not a bug in the course! Not every topic can be fit exactly into a two hour chunk of time.

Notice that there are required X-hours scheduled on January 10th and January 17th in which videos will be shown. These two videos illustrate some of the reasons why we need to understand genetic mechanisms and biotechnology in order to be able to make informed decisions as citizens ­ this is why the course is being offered.

Jan 4 Thu Genetics and Inheritance

Jan 9 Tue The Cell I

Jan 10 Wed Required X-hour:Burden of Knowledge (54 mins)

Jan 11 Thu The Cell II

Jan 16 Tue Chromosomes, Chromatin, DNA Replication and Repair

Jan 17 Wed Required X-hour: Who Are You? (60 mins)

Jan 18 Thu Genes and Their Expression

Jan 23 Tue Protein Synthesis, Processing and Targeting

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Jan 24 Wed Optional X-hour: Review for Exam#1

Jan 24 Wed 7:00 PM · Exam#1 (covers material through Jan 23)

Jan 25 Thu Regulating Gene Expression I

Jan 30 Tue Regulating Gene Expression II

Feb 1 Thu Eukaryotic Genes/Genetic Engineering I

Feb 6 Tue Impact of Genetics on the Health Care in the U.S. (Dr. C.

Everett Koop, Director, Koop Inst..)

Feb 8 Thu Genetic Engineering II

Feb 13 Tue Genetic Engineering III

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Feb 14 Wed Optional X-hour: Review for Exam#2

Feb 14 Wed 7:00 PM · Exam#2 (covers material from Jan 25 - Feb 13)

Feb 15 Thu Cancer

AIDS (Dr. Ford von Reyn, Dartmouth Medical School)

Feb 20 Tue The Human Genome Project (Dr. George Cahill, Biology)

Feb 22 Thu What Does it Really Cost to Institutionalize Individuals? (Bruce

Pacht, Director Upper Valley Development Services)

Feb 27 Tue Agricultural Biotechnology (Dr. Mary Lou Guerinot, Biology)

Feb 29 Thu Biological Clocks (Jay Dunlap, Biochemistry)

Mar 5 Tue The Immune System and Antibody Production