BIOL 220L (SEC. 1&2): HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY LABORATORY (2)

FALL SEMESTER, 2003

 

Instructor:

            Dr. Morgan Wilson

            Phone:              362-6549

            Email:               mwilson@hollins.edu

            Office hours:     M, W, F  9:00 – 10:00 AM and by appointment*

T, TH     9:00 - 10:00 AM and by appointment*

*Please feel free to stop by my office at any time. If I am available, I will be happy to meet with you; however, if it is not a good time for me, we can set up a time to meet that is convenient for both of us.                

 

Course Information:

            Laboratory:       Dana 209          Wednesday (Section 1)  1:30 – 4:30 PM

                                                            Thursday     (Section 2) 1:30 – 4:30 PM

           

Laboratory Manual:       Handouts for each laboratory exercise will be posted on Blackboard each week.

 

Course Objectives and Goals:

The objective of this laboratory course is to teach you some of the tools and techniques used in the study of physiology, as well to provide you with the opportunity to employ these tools and techniques in order to understand physiological processes and the essentials of scientific writing.  In addition, it is a goal of this course to help you to develop, explore, and master your ability to take in information, process it, and then present or apply it in a meaningful way.  You will be asked to solve problems using physiological data alone or as a member of a group, design and conduct experiments to collect physiological data, analyze these data using statistical methods, and present and discuss your findings in written form.  In addition, you will be asked to draw from the current scientific literature to support your findings.

 

Grading:

The grade you will earn in this laboratory will be based on your performance on weekly quizzes, your laboratory notebook, your general laboratory skills and participation, and two formal laboratory reports.  Short laboratory quizzes, given during the first 10-15 minutes of each laboratory, will be formed from the material and specific activities covered in the previous laboratory as well as the laboratory to be covered on that day.  Your laboratory notebook will consist of formal entries made for each laboratory experiment we conduct.  Your performance in laboratory will be evaluated throughout the semester by informal oral quizzes and observation of your skills.  Finally, to enhance and your scientific writing skills and understanding of the process of laboratory science, you will be asked to prepare formal laboratory reports on two of the experiments we conduct.

 

Points Available:

Laboratory Quizzes (10/drop 2)                          80

Laboratory Notebook (checked 2x)                    80

Laboratory Performance                                                40

Formal Laboratory Report 1                               40

Formal Laboratory Report 2                               60

            Total Points    300*

 

*Please Note: I do not grade on a curve, nor to I have any preconceived ideas about how many A’s, B’s, C’s, D’s, or F’s should be assigned. The number of points you earn out of 300 possible points will determine your semester grade.  Remember, everyone starts with an “A” in this course; it’s your job to keep it there!

 

 

Laboratory Policies, Responsibilities of Students, and “How to do well in this Course” . . .

 

1.       If you have special needs, please make me aware of these needs as soon as possible.

 

2.       You are expected to attend ALL laboratory meetings.  You will be expected actively participate and have a command of the material covered in each laboratory meeting.  I will not always take attendance formally; however, I will pay close attention to who does not attend class.  Missing one or more laboratories is very likely to have a negative effect on your grade.  You must attend laboratory on the day (Wednesday or Thursday) you are scheduled to unless you have made arrangements with me ahead of time. 

 

3.       The laboratory is where much of your learning about how physiological processes really work will occur.  You will be asked to work as a group to collect data.  In most cases, groups will then compile their data such that the class as a whole will have a data set in which to analyze.  Therefore, work as a team to make sure you are collecting information in the proper way – the entire class is relying on you to do so!

 

4.       Read all handouts that correspond to the material to be covered in each laboratory.  Be prepared to begin a laboratory exercise when you enter the laboratory.   In most cases, I will give some introductory remarks and some specific instructions or modifications to the laboratory.  However, you should have a good understanding of the premise of the laboratory exercise before you come to class. You will be held responsible for all handouts and announcements made in laboratory or by email.

 

5.       Clean up after yourself in the laboratory – leave it as clean (or cleaner!) than you found it. 

 

6.       Missed laboratory quizzes will not be made up (remember that I drop your lowest two scores on laboratory quizzes).  Weekly laboratory quizzes are given during the first 10-15 minutes of each laboratory.  If you are more than 15 minutes late to laboratory, you will not be allowed to complete the quiz. 

 

7.       Written assignments (laboratory reports and notebooks) will be collected at the beginning of the laboratory period on the day on which they are due (see schedule for details).  Points will be deducted for any assignment turned in late.

 

8.       You are bound by the Hollins University Honor Code at all times.  Please pledge all work.

 

9.      Enjoy!  While some of the material we will cover this semester may be demanding, try not to lose sight of the fact that learning about the intricacies of how the human body functions should be enlightening and rewarding experience!

 

WK

DATE

TOPIC

ASSIGNMENT

1

W/Th Sept 3/4

Laboratory Introduction; Keeping a Laboratory Notebook

 

2

W/Th Sept 10/11

Data Analysis and Statistical Techniques

quiz 1

3

W/Th Sept 17/18

Chemical Digestion*; Writing Laboratory Reports                                           

quiz 2

4

W/Th Sept 24/25

Neurophysiology*

quiz 3

5

W/Th Oct 1/2

Human Sensory Physiology                                                                        

quiz 4

6

W/Th Oct 8/9

No Laboratory – Fall Break (Oct. 9-10)

 

7

W/Th Oct 15/16

Human Performance: Respiratory (formal laboratory report 1)                                                             

quiz 5; Notebooks due

8

W/Th Oct 22/23

Human Performance: Cardiac

quiz 6

9

W/Th Oct 29/30

Frog Cardiac Response 

quiz 7; Formal Report 1 due

10

W/Th Nov5/6

Frog Muscle Physiology

quiz 8

11

W/Th Nov 12/13

Renal Physiology*

quiz 9

12

W/Th Nov 19/20

Salivary Cortisol ELISA (formal lab 2); Endocrine Physiology*

quiz 10; Notebooks due

13

W/Th Nov 26/27

No Laboratory – Thanksgiving Recess (Nov. 24-28)

 

14

W/Th Dec 3/4

Hematocrit, Blood Type, and Blood Oxygen Carrying Capacity

 

15

W/Th Dec 10/11

Formal Laboratory Reports

Formal Report 2 due