Biology 320: Comparative Morphology and Evolution of the Vertebrates

Instructor: Dr. Christopher Rose  

Office hours: MW 1-3:30; look for me in my office and lab; email me for an appointment outside of office hours.

Office: Burruss 213            Lab: Burruss 339

Phone: 568-6666                 email: rosecs@jmu.edu

Webpage: http://csm.jmu.edu/biology/rosecs/BIO320.html

Course syllabus

Burruss 57 Room schedule

Dr. Rose's schedule

Contact students

Please BE AWARE of the Class announcements page since this is where you should look for instructions regarding class cancellations, unplanned changes in course schedule and any other "breaking news" that I cannot communicate to you directly.

General description: This course explores vertebrate morphology with the goals of understanding major events in the history of vertebrate evolution and appreciating the integration of morphology with ecology, behavior and physiology in specific phenomena of vertebrate biology. The course starts with an introduction to the comparative method, including evolutionary concepts such as homology and homoplasy, and an overview of vertebrate phylogeny. The next set of lectures provide general descriptions of vertebrate form, function, and development. Subsequent lectures are overviews of major organ systems (bones, muscles, respiratory, digestive, urogenital, circulatory and sensory systems), interspersed with discussions of particular vertebrate phenomenon that highlight the development, function and/or evolution of these organ systems. These include the water-to-land transition, tetrapod locomotion including flight, feeding, and reproduction including mating and viviparity. Labs will complement lectures with detailed dissections of four representative species (lamprey, shark, salamander, and cat), and surveys of specializations in other forms including birds, turtles, alligators, frogs, bony fish and ungulates.

Prerequisites: BIO 124 or Bio 290 and Junior standing.

Course time and place: Lectures are scheduled at MW 10:10-11 in Miller Hall G002 and labs at TTh 2:00-3:50 in Burruss 057.

Registration:  Students are responsible for registering for classes and verifying their class schedules on E-campus. Late course additions will not be permitted. The deadline for adding a spring semester class without instructor and academic unit head signature is Tuesday, Jan. 15. Between Tuesday, Jan. 16 and Thursday, Jan. 24, instructor and academic head unit signatures will be required to add a class for spring semester. No student will be allowed to register for a spring semester class after Thursday, Jan. 24. Tuesday, Jan. 15 is the last day to drop a course without getting a W grade.

Disabilities: Students with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations to fully participate in course activities and/or meet course requirements must register with the Office of Disability Services (ODS) and contact me to discuss access issues. ODS will provide you with an Access Plan Letter that will verify your need for services and make recommendations for accommodations to be used in my classroom. ODS is located in the Wilson Learning Center, Room 107; Phone: 568-6705

Required texts and materials: The required reference text is "Vertebrates: Comparative Anatomy, Function, Evolution", 4th edition, by Kenneth V. Kardong, and the required lab manual is "Comparative Anatomy Manual of Vertebrate Dissection", by Dale W. Fishbeck and Aurora Sebastiani. A selection of colored pens/pencils is recommended for taking notes in lecture and lab.

Grading: Grades will be based on the scores of three lecture exams, three lab exams, a research paper, and lab performance. The grade breakdown is:

 

Lecture exam I

15 %

 

Lecture exam II

15 %

 

Lecture exam III (cumulative)

20 %

 

Laboratory exam I

10 %

 

Laboratory exam II

10 %

 

Laboratory exam III

10 %

 

Research presentation

10 %

 

Surprise lab quizzes and lab performance

10 %

Final letter grades will be assigned using the standard numerical scale (e.g., > 90 = A, 80-89 = B, etc.). Grades of WP and WF will not be given out in this class.

                  Lecture exams will be comprised of objective, short answer questions (definitions, identifications, fill-in blanks, etc.) and short essay questions that may require the use of diagrams (so bring your colored pens/pencils). Lecture exams will include material from assigned readings. Lecture exam III will focus on the final third of the lecture material, but approximately 1/4 of the questions will address concepts/themes covered throughout the course. TO DO WELL on lecture exams, students are recommended to do THREE THINGS. First, you attend class, pay attention, and be active note takers, which means that you do not limit this task to just copying what the teacher writes on the blackboard. Second, after each class, you review your lecture notes and do the assigned readings, and if you still don't understand the material, you seek clarification in office hours at that time. Third, you prepare and use study notes before each lecture exam.

                  Lab exams will involve the identification of developmental anatomy from dissections, and where appropriate, microscope slides, whole-mounts, and models. Some questions will pertain to functional, developmental, and evolutionary relationships, and will draw from lecture material. There will also be 2-3 surprise lab quizzes (2% each), given on Tuesdays on the previous week's lab exercises. The additional 4-6% is at the instructor's discretion and will be based on lab attendance and performance.

                  The research presentation will be a 20-25 minute talk on a research topic in vertebrate anatomy and evolution. A list of topics is provided, although you may select your own pending my approval. Students are required to select a research topic by March 12 and submit an outline of their paper by April 2. You will be requested to attend a brief meeting with the instructor during the week of April 2-6 to discuss your research outline and finalize the content of your presentation. You will be required to research your topic through library searches of primary literature and books. Although you are encouraged to use the Internet, all presentations must have a minimum of five references to books and/or primary literature. Presentations must be given in your own words and you must reference all sources used.

                  Presentations will be graded on the basis of their content, organization, effectiveness of communication, and originality. Content includes whether the talk addresses the relevant information, concepts and mechanisms needed to explain the phenomenon in question, plus the depth, clarity and completeness of the explanation. Organization refers to the overall structure of the talk, i.e., is there a clearly defined introduction, body and conclusion, are ideas presented in a logical sequence and clearly introduced. Effectiveness of communication refers to conciseness, coherence of ideas, ability to engage the audience, and efforts to answer questions and stimulate discussion of the topic. Remember, an interesting talk is generally a good talk, and an enthusiastic speaker is generally an interesting speaker. Also, some form of visual aid is essential to any presentation in biology. You are strongly encouraged to use a Powerpoint presentation package for computer projection, and the instructor will provide scanning and powerpoint workshops as necessary; blackboard and overhead illustrations/outlines are also acceptable. Originality refers to whether there is any attempt by the author to define the problem in his/her own terms and to present his/her own synthesis of the information available.

Missed exams: If you have a valid excuse (official school business, sickness with doctor’s note, death in family) for missing an exam, contact me by phone or email before the time of the exam and you will either be given a make-up exam or have your grade calculated on the basis of the remaining evaluations. If you do not have a valid excuse or fail to contact me before the missed exam, your grade will be zero.

Final exam schedule:.

Laboratory policy: Most laboratory exercises will involve some amount of dissection of embalmed material. All dissections will be done in pairs and both partners are expected to contribute equally to the endeavor. Gloves and dissection kits will be provided. Assuming that a moderate amount of care is taken, lab coats are deemed not necessary. Postfixation animals have been saturated with a nontoxic fluid in order to prevent dehydration. While their dissection does not pose a health risk, it does pose a risk of stains and odors to clothing. Hence, students are warned not to wear clothing that is likely to absorb odors or clothing that one is not prepared to get a little dirty. All students are requested to treat all laboratory exercises and animals with the respect and maturity befitting serious scientific inquiry, and to not remove any dissected materials from the lab room.

Course goals

Honor Code: All students are expected to be familiar with and abide by the JMU Honor Code. Work submitted for this course must be your own and written for this course. Direct quotations (which are rarely used in scientific writing) and paraphrased materials must be properly cited in the text and referenced in the bibliography (see above). Forms of academic dishonesty include lending your work to another person to submit it as his or her own, deliberately creating false information on a works cited or reference page; and plagiarism, presenting another person’s writing, ideas or results as your own, whether intentional or not.

Consult the following websites for information on educational rights and privacies:

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974

FERPA for Parents

FERPA for Faculty

JMU compliance with FERPA

Course syllabus

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