Office: 1150 LFSA
Email: bdknotts@eiu.edu
Phone: (217) 581-7285
Section 3: Tues., Thurs.
Office
hours: Tues.
Wed.
Thurs.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: (3-0-3) A study of the
interrelationships of the living and non-living components of the environment,
the ecology of humankind, and the interaction of humans with the environment.
The course emphasizes current environmental issues and possible solutions and
courses of action. Course does not count towards the Biological Sciences major
or minor. Credit for BIO 2002G will not be granted if the student already has credit
for or registration in BIO 2092G or BIO 3850. Credits: 3
TEXTBOOK: Withgott, J., and S. Brennan
(2007) Environment: The Science Behind
the Stories, 2nd Ed., Pearson Education
ACCOMPANYING WEBSITE: http:// www.aw-bc.com/withgott
From here, you
can access useful study aides including quizzes, animations, electronic
flashcards, internet activities, etc.
Some homework may be assigned from this site as well.
CD-ROM: There is also a CD-ROM in your textbook with
similar tools. Just be sure to return it
to Textbook Rental along with your textbook.
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: If you have a documented disability and wish to
discuss academic accommodations, please contact me as soon as possible, or call
Disability Services at 581-6583.
ACADEMIC
DISHONESTY: Students will be expected
to complete assignments and tests on their own unless otherwise
stated. In addition, plagiarism will not be tolerated. Copying
sections of a book or article without proper referencing of the source is a
form of plagiarism. Paraphrasing ideas
or statements is also plagiarism unless the source is referenced to indicate
that it is not your own idea or interpretation.
Any instances of plagiarism or copying from another student or from any
outside source will be reported to
Judicial Affairs and the student may
receive an “F” for the course.
ABSENCES: Absentees who do not meet the requirements for
waivers laid out in the undergraduate catalog (illness, emergency, accident, or
participation in an official university activity) will be given zeros for exams
and in-class assignments; however, those with acceptable excuses will be given
make-up exams. Notify me in advance of the absence, if possible.
GRADE
DISPUTES: You will have one week to dispute the grade
received on a test or assignment. After this period, all grades become final.
You are advised to keep all tests and assignments to make sure that I
have entered your grades correctly, to keep track of your cumulative grade, and
to study them for tests and the final exam.
EXAMS
There will be three 50-minute exams and a
two-hour final exam. The fifty-minute exams will be worth 100 points
each and the final will be worth 200 points. The final will be
approximately 50% new material and 50% comprehensive. As some material builds upon information
learned earlier in the course, each exam will be comprehensive to some extent.
Each test will include multiple choice, matching, and short essay or
diagramming questions.
As stated in the undergraduate catalog,
students with three final exams on the same day may change the date of
one of the final exams with approval of the instructor. You must request a
change of date at least 5 working days prior to the first final exam period.
TEST Schedule:
TEST I (9/18), TEST 2 (10/16), TEST 3 (11/13)
Final Exam: Mon., Dec. 15th,
|
Exams: |
500 points |
74% of grade |
|
Journal: |
50 points |
7% of grade |
|
Assignments: |
125 points |
19% of grade |
|
TOTAL: |
675 points |
100% of grade |
GRADE ASSIGNMENTS:
A = 89.5-100
%, B = 79.5-89.4%, C = 69.5-79.4%, D = 60-69.4%, F = less
than 60%
NOTE:
THERE WILL NOT BE
ANY EXTRA CREDIT ASSIGNMENTS OR CURVED
TESTS!
JOURNAL
You will need a three-ring
binder to keep a journal in. You
will also need loose-leaf notebook paper. The journal will be worth 7% of your
course grade.
PART 1
First, you will be
asked to collect 6 enironmentally-related articles from approved
sources - newspapers, magazines (National
Geographic, Time, Newsweek, Scientific American, Discover), or TV network
news sites (CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, BBC).
You may use the internet versions of printed newspapers or
magazines. Scientific journals are not
allowed! Do not use unapproved
websites!
Cut out or print each article, and type a
double-spaced page containing the following:
1.
A summary of the main points in the article
2.
How the article relates to the environment
3.
How you, your community, the environment, the world, etc. might be
affected by this topic
4.
If there is an issue involved, state your position.
5.
If appropriate to the topic, describe what might be done to address this
issue
6.
Include the proper references to identify the source of your article
For the print version of an article:
Author
1 (Last name, First name), and Author 2 (First name Last name). “Title of the Article”. Title of the magazine or newspaper,
date:pages.
Splat, Jack, and Joe Schmoe. “What a Crock
This Is!” Give Me a Break Magazine,
For the on-line version of an article:
Author 1 (Last name,
First name), and Author 2 (First name Last name). Date of article:pages.
“Title of the Article”. Title
of the magazine, date viewed, <website address>.
Splat, Jack, and Joe Schmoe. Aug. 2008:17-21.
“What a Crock This Is!” Give Me a Break Magazine,
Due dates:
Articles 1, 2 and accompanying typed
statements (9/30)
Articles 3, 4 and accompanying typed
statements (10/27)
Articles 5, 6 and accompanying typed
statements (11/20)
PART 2
In addition to
the newspaper/magazine articles, your journal will also contain lecture
comments. After each lecture,
you should write a few sentences about that day’s lecture. Write down any questions that you had about
the material. You can also write down
any connections you could make between the day’s lecture and your
personal experiences, an article that you read, or a show that you watched,
etc. These lecture comments will be turned
in at the end of that class or the beginning of the next one.
HOMEWORK and IN-CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
Nineteen percent of your overall course grade will come from homework assignments or in-class
exercises. Some of these assignments may require you to access my web site
at http://www.ux1.eiu.edu/~bdknotts
or the web site maintained by the publishers of your textbook http://www.aw-bc.com/withgott .
RECYCLABLES
Anyone caught throwing paper, aluminum cans, or #1 plastic
bottles in the trashcan will lose 5 points!
|
DATE |
TOPICS |
CHAPTER |
|
8/26 (T) |
Intro, syllabus, study
skills, book |
|
|
8/28 (R) |
Levels of biological
classification, “environment”, “environmental
science”, “environmentalism”, organisms change their
environment, how humans change their environment , renewable/nonrenewable
resources |
CH
1 |
|
9/2
(T) |
Human pop. growth, social
impacts, differing perspectives, lessons from environ. sci. |
CH 1 |
|
9/4 (H) |
Nature
and process of science, paradigm shifts, state of environment |
CH 1
|
|
9/9 (T) |
How ethics, economics,
culture, and values influence our choices |
CH
2 |
|
9/11 (H) |
Approaches to environmental
policy |
CH 3
|
|
9/16 (T) |
Chemistry of living and
non-living things |
CH 4 |
|
9/18 (R) |
TEST 1 |
8/26-9/16 |
|
9/23
(T) |
Origin of life, tree of
life |
CH 4 |
|
9/25 (R) |
Evolution |
CH 5 |
|
9/30 (T) |
Evolution |
CH
5 |
|
10/2 (H) |
Population ecology
|
CH 5
|
|
10/7 (T) |
Community ecology
|
CH 6
|
|
10/9 (R) |
Biomes |
CH
6 |
|
10/14 (T) |
Nutrient cycling |
CH
7 |
|
10/16 (R) |
TEST 2 |
9/23-10/9 |
|
10/21 (T) |
Dead zones, ocean
ecosystems and humans impacts |
CH
7, 16 |
|
10/23 (R) |
Ocean ecosystems, cont. |
CH
16 |
|
10/27 (T) |
Freshwater resources
– ecology, human impact, and conservation |
CH 15
|
|
10/29 (H) |
Freshwater, cont.
|
CH 15
|
|
11/4 (T) |
Global warming
|
CH 18
|
|
11/6 (R) |
Global warming, air pollution
|
CH 18, 17
|
|
11/11
(T) |
Acid rain
|
CH
17 |
|
11/13 (R) |
TEST
3
|
10/14-11/11 |
|
11/18
(T) |
Fossil fuels
|
CH
19 |
|
11/20
(H) |
Alternative energy sources |
CH
20 |
|
11/24-11/28 |
THANKSGIVING BREAK |
|
|
12/2
(T) |
Renewable energy sources |
CH 21
|
|
12/4
(H) |
Renewable energy sources |
CH 21
|
|
12/9
(T) |
Agriculture, biotechnology,
future of food |
CH 10 |
|
12/11
(H) |
Cont. |
CH
10 |
|
12/15 (Mon.) |
FINAL EXAM: |
about 50% new,
50% comprehensive
|