BIO 10SC: Natural History, Marine Biology, and Research
Monterey Bay is home to the nation¿s largest marine sanctuary and also home to Stanford¿s Hopkins Marine Station. This course, based at Hopkins, explores the spectacular biology of Monterey Bay and the artistic and political history of the region. We will conduct investigations across all of these contexts toward an inclusive understanding of ¿place¿, ultimately to lead us to explore our own lives in relation to the natural world, historical and cultural milieu, and the direction of our individual life path.n The location at the entry point to the Big Sur Coast of California provides a unique outdoor laboratory in which to study the biology of the bay and the adjacent coastal lands. It is also an area with a deep cultural, literary and artistic history. We will meet marine biologists, experts in the literary history of Cannery Row and the writings of John Steinbeck, local artists and photographers, experts in the neuroscience of creativity, as well as people who are very much involved in the forces and fluxes that steer modern culture. This rich and immersive approach provides students a rare opportunity to reflect on their relationships to nature, culture, and their own individual goals.nThe course emphasizes interactions and discussions. We will be together all of the time, either at our base at the Belden House in Pacific Grove, hiking and camping in Big Sur¿s pristine Big Creek Reserve on the rocky coast, and traveling to the Tassajara Mountain Zen Center in the Ventana wilderness for several days. This is not an ordinary academic experience, instead it is an adventure of a personal, intellectual, spiritual and physical kind. We welcome people with wide interests; artists, poets, writers, engineers, scientists and musicians. Mostly we invite people with an open mind and a sense of adventure. nStudents are expected to have read the several books provided as introductory material before the course begins, and each is also expected to become our local expert in an area such as plant identification, bird identification, poetry, weather prediction, photography, history, ethnography, etc. The course requires an individual research project of your choice on a topic related to the general theme. Final reports will be presented at the last meeting of the group and may involve any medium, including written, oral, and performance media.n Note: This course will be held at the Hopkins Marine Station in the Monterey region, and housing will be provided nearby. Transportation from campus to the housing site will be provided once students arrive to campus on Monday, September 5 (Labor Day). Transportation to campus from the Belden House in Pacific Grove will be provided on Saturday, September 24. Sophomore College Course: Application required, due noon, April 5, 2016. Apply at
http://soco.stanford.edu
Terms: Sum
| Units: 2
Instructors:
Thompson, S. (PI)
BIO 12N: Sensory Ecology of Marine Animals
Animals living in the oceans experience a highly varied range of environmental stimuli. An aquatic lifestyle requires an equally rich range of sensory adaptations, including some that are totally foreign to us. In this course we will examine sensory system in marine animals from both an environmental and behavioral perspective and from the point of view of neuroscience and information systems engineering.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Thompson, S. (PI)
BIO 14: Bio-logging and Bio-telemetry
Bio-logging is a rapidly growing discipline that includes diverse fields such as consumer electronics, medicine, and marine biology. The use of animal-attached digital tags is a powerful approach to study the movement and ecology of individuals over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales. This course is an introduction to bio-logging methods and analysis. Using whales as a model system, students will learn how use multi-sensor tags to study behavioral biomechanics.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-AQR, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Goldbogen, J. (PI)
;
Cade, D. (TA)
BIO 15N: Environmental Literacy
Preference to freshmen. Lack of public understanding of the details of most environmental problems is cited as a cause of environmental deterioration. Good citizenship requires literacy about the elements of the scientific and decision making processes that accompany most environmental issues. Whether we are aware of them or not, environmental problems significantly decrease the quality of our lives, those of future generations and of other species. For example, when the average global temperature increases to 2oC (3.6oF) above natural, as many as 400,000 species could go extinct, and definitely some of those species, such as pollinators, currently enhance our quality of life greatly. Your grandchildren may need to learn to survive in a qualitatively different world than the one we know today.nIn this class we will explore many of the major problems our world is facing today including: over population, over consumption, sustainability impediments, toxins and pollution, and climate change. In addition, we will explore policies or lack thereof, communication missteps and breakdowns, and the role of the media to educate yet they often cause confusion.nEach week we will read articles¿mainly from the scientific literature, but also some from the policy world¿and discuss them in class.
Last offered: Winter 2015
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
BIO 16: Conservation Storytelling: Pre-course for BOSP South Africa
Limited to students admitted to the BOSP South Africa overseas seminar. Through 4 workshop meetings, students will develop and pitch story ideas, form teams in which a writer and a photographer agree to collaborate on a story, and conduct background research prior to departing for South Africa.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 1
Instructors:
McConnell, S. (PI)
;
Todhunter, A. (PI)
BIO 18Q: Plant Evolutionary Ecology
Plant EcoEvo analyzes the conceptual basis of ecology and evolution from the plants' perspective. After a broad overview of the biomes of the world, it explores population ecology, community ecology and biotic interactions. This is followed by an analysis of biodiversity from the botanical perspective and closes with a discussion of anthropogenic impact on plants. The course is based on lectures and practical activities (discussion of selected papers; analysis of data; laboratory activities, 2 field trips). Emphasis: Latin American ecosystems.
Last offered: Spring 2013
BIO 20: Introduction to Brain and Behavior (HUMBIO 21)
Evolutionary principles to understand how the brain regulates behavior physiologically, and is also influenced by behavioral interactions. Topics include neuron structure and function, transmission of neural information, anatomy and physiology of sensory and motor systems, regulation of body states, the biological basis of learning and memory, and behavioral abnormalities.
Last offered: Autumn 2010
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci
BIO 21: The Science of the Extreme Life of the Sea
Based on the book Extreme Life of the Sea, this course will explore the new science about how marine species thrive in some of the world's most difficult environments. Species that live in the hottest, coldest, deepest and shallowest habitats will be described along with the genetic, biochemical, physiological and behavioral adaptations that allow them to persist. We will also examine the fastest, the oldest, the most archaic, the smallest, biggest and the most numerous species. Emphasis will be on the scientific discoveries about these species that give insight into their lives.
Last offered: Winter 2015
BIO 25Q: The Molecular Basis of Genetic Disease
Preference to sophomores. Focus is on two genetic diseases resulting from the production of protein molecules that are unable to fold into their native conformations, called conformational diseases: cystic fibrosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease. Hypotheses and controversies surrounding the molecular basis of these disorders, and implications for novel therapeutics. Readings from research literature.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Kopito, R. (PI)
BIO 26N: Maintenance of the Genome
Preference to freshmen. The precious blueprint for life is entrusted to the genomic DNA molecules in all living cells. Multiple strategies have evolved to prevent the deleterious consequences from endogenous DNA alterations and damage from radiation or genotoxic chemicals in the environment. In this seminar you will learn about the remarkable systems that scan cellular DNA for alterations and make repairs to ensure genomic stability. Deficiencies in DNA repair have been implicated in many hereditary diseases involving developmental defects, premature aging, and/or predisposition to cancer. An understanding of DNA repair mechanisms is important for advances in the fields of cancer biology, neurobiology, and gerontology. Background readings, introductory lectures, student presentations, short term paper.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Hanawalt, P. (PI)
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