Organismal Biology - Biology 203

Dr. Greg Sandland, 4031 Cowley Hall,  785-6982 - sandland.greg@uwlax.edu

Dr. Tom Volk, 3024 Cowley Hall,  785-6972 - volk.thom@uwlax.edu 

Goals:  This course emphasizes the incredible diversity of life that has evolved on the Earth.  The course is primarily for students majoring in Microbiology, Biomedical Science, or Cellular and Molecular Biology and has been developed to provide an introduction to non-human biology.  THIS COURSE DOES NOT APPLY TOWARD THE GENERAL BIOLOGY MAJOR OR TOWARD THE AQUATIC SCIENCE or ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CONCENTRATIONS.  To see a sample syllabus from the spring of 2009 click here.

We have four main goals as part of this course:

1.  Learn about biodiversity, systematics, and how organisms are related to one another.

2.  Develop an understanding of evolution and how living organisms survive and adapt to their surroundings.

3.  Develop an appreciation for the complex interactions evolved by species in representative communities/ecosystems and contributions that all organisms make towards the sustainability of life on the earth.

4.  Develop an appreciation for the infinite uses of various species in the lives of humans.

In order to facilitate a greater appreciation for all organisms, students are required to design a webpage based around a particular theme - in 2009, it was Christmas.  You can visit these webpages at multipleorganisms.net.  While you are there, please take some time to read Dr. Tom Volk's ORGANISMAL Christmas story - you'll be surprised at the diversity of creatures that pop up throughout the tale.

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