Sciences

This course serves as an introduction to nutritional concepts and to the interconnections of health, nutrition, weight, and physical activity. This course is particularly appropriate for students with no science background.

This course explores various contemporary issues in science using an integrative and societal approach. Students will study the topics from a biological, chemical, physical, and environmental perspective, and relate the significance of the scientific matter to their major field of study. This course is intended for non-science majors.

Functional Anatomy and Physiology is a one semester, 3 credit lecture with a separate laboratory course designed to give the non-science major knowledge of the human body and its relationship with the environment. Topics covered include: the chemical basis of life, the anatomy & physiology of all organ systems, growth, development, heredity and biotechnology issues.

This course is a continuation of Anatomy and Physiology I. The course will provide a thorough understanding of structure-function relationships down to the molecular level. The semester will cover the special senses, blood, the cardiovascular system, lymphatics, the respiratory system, the digestive system, the urinary system, the endocrine system, and reproduction.

The course, specifically designed for the Environmental Science majors, introduces fundamentals of geology in the environmental context. The issues of local and global environmental changes are placed into a broader perspective of the functioning of the Earth system. Students are introduced into the science of Earth' materials: rocks, minerals, soils, and waters and the processes forming them. The internal processes (plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes) and surface processes (streams, flooding, coastal zones, mass movements, glaciers, winds, desertification) are presented from the point of view of their influence on the geologic hazards, and on the distribution of natural resources. The interrelation of geology and human activities is examined in such contexts as waste disposal, air pollution, water contamination, climate change, land degradation, and resource and energy consumption. The format of this course includes one local field trip, lab activities on rocks and minerals identification, and introduction to topographic and geologic maps.

This course is a survey of the important topics in environmental science. Concepts of energy flow and nutrient cycling are explored in the context of human impacts upon these processes. Sources of pollution and their total effect on ecosystem and biosphere function are also explored. Management of material wastes and energy efficiency is an integral theme of the class. This class satisfies the laboratory science requirement with a series on in-class lab experiences and field trips.

This is an introductory astronomy course with a virtual observing component that is intended to give the students some basic knowledge about the world in which we live. The primary objective of this class is to help the students understand the solar system. The course will present an overview of the night sky, the constellations, light -telescope and the nature of stars and the galaxies but the emphasis will be on understanding our solar system. The Sun, Earth, Moon, planets and their satellites, asteroids and comets will be studied in some detail. No mathematics or physics background is assumed in this course.

This course explores fundamental quantitative and qualitative principles of inorganic, organic and biological chemistry and provides a basic understanding of theoretical and applied aspects of general chemistry. Topics in inorganic chemistry include measurement, atomic theory and chemical bonding, chemical reactions and mass relationships, kinetic theory and gas laws, acids, bases, pH and buffers. Organic chemistry will provide an overview of the nomenclature, properties and reactivity of major groups of organic compounds, while biochemistry will focus on the chemistry of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and enzymes. An overview of biochemical energetics, nucleic acids and protein synthesis is also included.

This course is a continuation of Chemistry I. It focuses on organic chemistry and biochemistry and provides a background for understanding the chemical mechanisms of health and disease. Organic chemistry will emphasize the study of carbon, its special properties, and its compounds. Biochemistry will focus on the chemicals of living organisms, carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. Selected physiological topics such as energy metabolism, the genetic code, and protein synthesis are included.

General Biology II is the continuation of a two-semester series in general biology for science majors. This course is designed to provide a thorough introduction to biology and prepare students for further study of evolution and ecology in SC 240. The goal of the course is to emphasize the diversity of species and for students to understand their relationship to, and their place in, the natural world. General Biology II is an introduction to the systematics, anatomy and physiology of the plant and animal kingdoms. This course will examine the structure and function of plant and animal organ systems in the framework of the evolution of adaptations. The course also concludes with an introduction to ecological systems.