Course Syllabus, Spring 1999
| Instructor:
Dr. Martin C. Mathes Room 214 Millington Hall Phone: 221-2238 E-Mail: mcmath@facstaff.wm.edu Office Hours: By appointment |
Lab Coordinator:
Mr. Bill D. Saunders Room 118 Millington Hall Phone: 221-2219 E-mail: bdsaun@facstaff.wm.edu |
Graduate Teaching Assistants:
Announced in lecture.
Additional information given in laboratory
Certain labs will be complemented by undergraduate teaching assistants
Required Text:
Selected Chapters
Moore/Clark/Vodopich
Custom Publishing
Web Page:
A copy of much of the course information (tables, lectures, unit outlines,
key
words, study questions, diagrams) and interesting links are included in the web
site.
This web
site should be used to clarify and expand your botanical horizons.
Weekly (help) summary sessions:
4:00 pm Monday in Millington auditorium, Room 150
Lunch bunch:
Use e-mail or sign-up sheet at the beginning of the semester to arrange
an
informal lunch - Room 220 in the University Center.
Lecture Video Tapes:
Each lecture will be video taped for your convenience and placed on
overnight reserve in Swem Library.
Course overview:
Over 275,000 organisms on Earth are photosynthetic organisms (i.e.,
plants and organisms related to plants). This is roughly equivalent to
the number of non-insect animals. Moreover, photosynthetic organisms provide
us (or have provided us with food, fiber, fossil fuels, cosmetics, paper
and wood, insect repellents, pharmaceuticals (about 25% of our medicines
come from plants). And many other miscellaneous goods such as natural rubber,
glue, dye and turpentine. In addition, photosynthetic organisms: (1) are
responsible for the oxygen on Earth, (2) are providing us with model systems
to engineer light-driven alternative forms of energy, and (3) provide us
with new or improved products. These products include new pharmaceuticals,
improved crops, and plants that are capable of producing biodegradable
plastic (to name just a few new products). Therefore, the knowledge of
photosynthetic organisms is essential in today's society and is an integral
requirement for the biological degree.
This course is designed to give the students a broad background in the traditional subject matter of botany. This includes topics on organisms in the plant kingdom as well as organisms not in the plant kingdom but which affect the growth ecology or evolution of plants (e.g., selected bacteria, fungi, and selected protists). However, most of the emphasis will be on members of the plant kingdom. The study of plants will incorporate information from the sub-disciplines of systematics, anatomy and morphology, life history studies, physiology, development, and evolution.
This course has a lcture component (which will account for 75% of your
grade) and a laboratory component (which will be 25% of your grade). The
two course components are designed to reinforce each other. In lecture,
you will be introduced to a topic, and in the laboratory you will have
some "hands on" experience with the topic. When you go to your first laboratory,
you will receive another syllabus that will explain the laboratory portion
in more detail.
Grading - Your final course grade will be determined from your
lecture and laboratory grades combined. Each exam that you take in lecture
will have a percentage grade. These percentage grades will then be averaged
to produce your final course grade. + and - grades are used with the exception
of A-. I give only "A" (since A+ is not available). Hard work resulting
in an "A" grade should not be discounted by a minus.
Exams - The examination will largely consist of multiple choice,
fill-in the blanks and additional short-answer forms. The exams will be
taken from material covered in lecture - so accurate lecture notes are
a pre-requisite for good grades. Attend Lecture.
Reminders:
Lecture Schedule:
Lecture Topic
APPROXIMATE EXAM I
APPROXIMATE EXAM II
UPTAKE AND TRANSPORT IN PLANTS
GRADE CALCULATION:
Each exam counts 25%
A - Exam I - Lecture 1 to 13 - February 3rd week
B - Exam II - Lecture 14 to 29 - April 1st week
C - Exam III - Lecture 30 to End (+approximately 50% of the exam
will be comprehensive)
D - Lab Grade
Or, you can use the following chart to go directly to links on specific topics:
Online Textbook | |
| Classification and Systematics | |
| Prokaryotes | |
| Fungi-Lichens | |
| Algae | |
| Non-vascular Plants | |
| Vascular Plants Without Seeds | |
| Seed Plants - Gymnosperms | |
| Seed Plants - Angiosperms | |
| Flowers - Reproduction | |
|
Tissues and Primary Growth of Stems | |
| Leaves | |
| Roots | |
| Woody Plants | |
| Transport | |
| Nutrition | |
| Development |