The course syllabus is available here (PDF).
STUDY GUIDES, READINGS, AND HANDOUTS
Readings listed in the course syllabus are required and will be covered on exams. Because the chapters are fairly long, study guides are designed to help you navigate through the readings for this course. Although these are not graded, students who complete them consistently earn higher- than-average scores on course exams. Some may be turned in for optional points; we'll discuss that in class. Otherwise, you can give them to us on the day the readings are due (at the start of class only) and we will check them for you. Contact me, please, with any questions.
Course materials for EXAM 1
Lecture notes
Please be patient; some of these files may take some time to load. All are PDFs. Please use the username and password given to you in class.
Lecture notes for Jan. 14 are here.
Lecture notes for Jan. 19 are here.
Lecture notes for Jan. 21 are here.
Lecture notes for Jan. 26 are included in notes for Jan. 21. Note: Tree of Life assignment is due on 1/26.
Lecture notes for Jan. 28 are here.
Lecture notes for Feb. 2 are here.
EXAM 1 is scheduled for Feb. 4. It will cover (1) lectures on Jan. 14, 19, 21, 26, and 28, and Feb. 2; (2) study guide information for BR2, TL4, TL1, TL2, TL8, and BR9; (3) course handouts; and (4) the first page of the Tree of Life assignment. The format will include a mix of short essays and drawings, short-answer questions, and multiple choice questions.
Readings for Exam 1 and due dates:
Readings for Jan. 19: BR2 and TL4 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Jan. 21: TL1 and TL2 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Jan. 26: TL8 and BR9 -- and the study guide is here.
The missing page in Brock is here.
Course materials for EXAM 2
Lecture notes
Lecture notes for Feb. 9 are here.
Lecture notes for Feb. 11 will be posted on Feb. 10. The handout on Archaea is here.
Lecture notes for Feb. 16 will be posted on Feb. 15.
Lecture notes for Feb. 18 will be posted on Feb. 17.
Lecture notes for Feb. 23 will be posted on Feb. 22.
Lecture notes for Feb. 25 will be posted on Feb. 24.
Lecture notes for March 2 will be posted on Mar. 1.
Exam 2 is scheduled for March 4.
Readings for exam 2 (note revised schedule; these are the correct due dates):
Readings for Feb. 11: BR13 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Feb. 18: BR12, parts 1-2 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Feb. 23: BR12, part 3 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Feb. 25: BR12, part 4 -- and the study guide is here.
Readings for Mar. 2: BR12, part 5 through the end -- and the study guide is here.
No other readings are required before Exam 2. Be sure to turn in your second reading summary before the start of class on March 4 (date of exam 2).
READING SUMMARIES
Information on how to craft your reading summaries is here. One summary corresponds to one chapter: if two readings are assigned for a given day, you need only write about one of them.
Remember, reading summaries are required as follows: one summary before exam 1, one before exam 2, one before exam 3, and the remainder before the last day of classes. You can do all five at the start of the term, or space them out as you wish -- so long as one is turned in before exam 1, etc.
TREE OF LIFE ASSIGNMENT
The Tree of Life assignment is due at the start of class on 1/26.
SEMESTER PROJECTS
Information on how to craft your semester projects will be posted here after the first day of class.
OPTIONAL POINTS
Optional points will be added to your point total at the end of the term. You can earn up to 10 optional points by engaging in a diverse array of activities on campus, online, and elsewhere. Guidelines and suggestions are here.
Here are some articles that you may wish to read and review for optional points.
Optional reading assignment 1 (Unintelligent design, Discover) can be found here.
Optional paper 2 (Prions, Nature) can be found here.
Optional paper 3 (Friendly flora, Science) can be found here.
Optional paper 4 (Emerging infectious diseases, Nature) can be found here.
Optional paper 5 (Plant-pathogenic viruses) can be found here.
Optional paper 6 (viroids) can be found here.
Optional paper 7 (clean-room Archaea) can be found here.
Optional paper 8 (Nanoarchaeum) can be found here.
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This page will be updated throughout the course.
Please feel free to contact me with questions! The best way to reach me is by email: arnold@ag.arizona.edu.