Clare
102 Syllabus
Inquiry in the Natural
World is
one of the Core Area Courses in the Clare College core curriculum at Saint
Bonaventure University. Your Clare College courses are designed to give you a
well-rounded liberal arts education to complement the specialized training you
are getting in the courses that make up your major. Inquiry in the Natural World introduces
you to the mode of inquiry that is used in the natural sciences.
Inquiry in the Natural
World is
not a run-of-the-mill science course. We know that you have already had a number
of years of science courses in high school, and we don’t expect a one-semester
college course will be able to introduce the content of modern science in much
more depth than you have already had it.
Instead, we will
be focusing on the process of
scientific inquiry. We will be using key discoveries in the history of Western
science as examples through which we can explore how scientific advances happen.
Since we are focusing on process, there will be a minimum of traditional
lectures. Instead, you will be
actively involved in discussions and group projects in class. And your
performance in this work in class will have an effect on your overall course
grade.
Inquiry in the Natural
World is
organized in 13 one-week modules. Each module will start with a large lecture in
Dresser Auditorium, attended by all sections of the course. The next two
meetings will be in smaller sections and will emphasize class discussions and
group work.
In
each keynote lecture, you will receive a description of the discussions and
group learning assignments that are planned for the remainder of the week. These
activities will require preparation on your part, as described in the handout
for each week. This preparation is an essential part of your participation in Inquiry in the Natural World. If you do
not prepare to participate in class, your grade will suffer. These topic objectives can also be found
on the course webpage.
There will be three
examinations during the semester and one comprehensive final examination. The
examinations will be administered in each section. You are expected to take the exams
at the scheduled times, unless you have spoken to your
instructor far in advance about other arrangements. If you have non-academic
conflicts with the scheduled exam times, you should resolve them now or speak to
an instructor ASAP. An unexcused
absence from any of the exams will result in a score of 0 points being
entered in the course record. There will be NO makeups given for
unexcused exam absences. You will only be permitted
to make up a missed examination if your
absence was due to documented illness or emergency
and
if you have informed an instructor in a timely manner (i.e.
email or phone your instructor within 24 hours of your missed
exam). Unlike past semesters, this
rule will be strictly enforced. If
you have reason to miss an exam, it is your responsibility to contact your
instructor. Failure to do so
will result in a zero for the exam.
The
examinations will be divided 50/50 between scientific content (found mostly in
the textbook) and reflections and concepts regarding how science works (explored
mostly in class). Very little class time will be spent covering our current
understanding of scientific topics that can be found in the textbook. You will
be responsible for reading this material for yourself!
Attendance in classes is
strongly encouraged. The material covered in the large lectures will
usually go beyond what is covered in the textbook, and so it would be unwise to
miss them. Most of the smaller section meetings will include group learning
exercises for which a written product will be handed in and graded. You are expected to attend
class and be present for these active learning exercises. If you cannot attend class, it is
your responsibility to contact your instructor and make other
arrangements. You will receive a zero on
any assignments on days that you missed.
Roll will be taken
intermittently and will be used in determining the final grade. Attendance will
also be reported to such authorized persons as academic advisors, student
counselors, and parents.
The
final grade for this course is determined as follows:
Examination
1 (topics 1,2,3,4)
100 points
Examination
2 (topics 5,6,7)
75
Examination
3 (topics 8,9,10,11)
100
Comprehensive
final examination
(topics 12,13 + all earlier
topics)
125
Group learning
assignments and quizzes
75
Class
participation
25
A
total of 500 points is available. Your final grade will be calculated as
follows:
A more than 465 points
B- 400-414 points
D+ 335-349
points
A- 450-464 points
C+ 385-399 points
D 315-334
points
B+ 435-449 points
C 365-384 points
D- 300-314
points
B 415-434 points
C- 350-364 points
F less than 300
points
A few
notes:
Midterm grades are assigned
for a reason. This usually
indicates the direction your grade is approaching and should not be taken
lightly. However, your final grade
is based upon the above criteria.
Your laboratory grade
is a separate value determined by the lab instructor. Though the content of lecture and lab
are related, the grades do not depend on each other.
Withdraw policy
According to
University policy, the official withdraw date is April 4th .
The instructors will stick by these dates, so please be aware of it if
this becomes a necessary step. You
must have your course instructor sign the appropriate forms. If you drop the lab, you must have your
lab instructor sign the forms.
Lecture
Instructors
Dr.
Adam Brown
Room B49
Plassmann
375-2316
abrown@sbu.edu
Dr.
Walter Budzinski Room 21
De La Roche
375-2669
wbudzins@sbu.edu
Dr.
David DiMattio Room 21
De La Roche
375-2007
ddimatti@sbu.edu
Dr.
George Lapennas Room 219
De La Roche
375-2639
glappena@sbu.edu
Prof. James Miller Room 207A De La Roche 375- 2632 http://web.sbu.edu/physics/faculty/dimattio/Fall02/CLAR102/coordinator/jmiller@sbu.edu
All
instructors have regularly scheduled office hours, which are posted on their
office doors and which they will announce in class. All instructors are eager to
discuss any and all aspects of the class as well as go over any questions you
may have. Please visit them during office hours. If you are not available during
any of your instructor’s scheduled office hours, please make an appointment to
see your instructor at another time.
Required
Textbooks
James Trefil and Robert
Hazen, The Sciences: An Integrated
Approach, 3rd edition,. John Wiley & Sons: New York.
Please note: The page numbers for the new edition
(3rd) and the older (2nd) do not match. If an older edition is used, it is the
student’s responsibility to find what material might be omitted.
A
considerable number of other readings, for use in the laboratory and in class
discussions, will be handed out as photocopies during the semester. The total
charge for photocopying in this course (including the laboratory) will be
$20. This will be collected during the first week of laboratory. Please
bring a check made out to “St. Bonaventure University”. Please be aware that if payment is not
made, the student will be assigned an incomplete for the course. This is a mandatory charge.
http://web.sbu.edu/physics/faculty/physics.dimattio.html
The schedule of topics on the following page lists what
will be covered each day in class, as well as when the examinations are and what
material will be contained in each examination. Each week, you will be given a
handout that describes the specific pages we will expect you to cover in your
reading of the textbook, as well as what we would like you to think about as you
read the supplemental readings. Remember that the textbook contains only some of
the material for this course! Each topic is covered in three class meetings;
the first meeting is as a large lecture (all sections combined) in Murphy
Auditorium and the second and third meetings are as individual
sections.
[a detailed calendar of the semester
has been deleted here]
M= Murphy
Aud.
Topic 1 – How do we find out about the world? (Dr. DiMattio)
Topic 2 – Where are we in the Universe? (Dr. Budzinski)
Topic 3 – Why do things fall and planets revolve? (Dr. Budzinski)
Topic 4 – What is energy? (Dr. Budzinski)
Topic 5 – What is matter? (Prof. Miller)
Topic 6 – What are atoms? (Dr. Brestensky, Chemistry Dept.)
Topic 7 – What is light and what are electrons? (Dr. DiMattio)
Topic 8 – What is life? (Dr. Lapennas)
Topic 9 – How do living things evolve? (Prof. Miller)
Topic 10 – Why do we resemble our parents? (Dr. Lapennas)
Topic 11 – How does life use energy? (Dr. Lapennas)
Topic 12 – A really neat topic (Dr. Brown)
Topic 13 – How do we view the Universe now? (Dr. DiMattio)
Final Exam Monday May 5th 3:45 pm Murphy
Aud.