This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 109.

A foundation course that focuses on the study of life at the cellular and molecular level, including eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell structure, function of biological macromolecules, molecular genetics, cellular metabolism, and key topics in cell biology. This course will provide the fundamental tools for exploration of cellular and molecular biology with the aim of enhancing conceptual understanding. Laboratories focus on experimental approaches to these topics and are shared with BISC 112. One year of high school chemistry or equivalent is strongly recommended. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course.

This course has a required co-requisite lab - BISC 110L.

Please be aware that there is no guarantee you will be able to swap into different lecture or lab sections, due to the demand in this course. We encourage you to make initial registration choices carefully and wisely.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 110.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 110.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 110.

A foundation course that focuses on the study of life at the cellular and molecular level, including eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell structure, function of biological macromolecules, molecular genetics, cellular metabolism, and key topics in cell biology. This course will provide the fundamental tools for exploration of cellular and molecular biology with the aim of enhancing conceptual understanding. Laboratories focus on experimental approaches to these topics. This course is intended for students who, because of their previous biology, chemistry or math preparation, would benefit from additional academic support for the study of introductory biology, or who do not meet the prerequisites to enroll in BISC 110. Includes two additional class meetings per week. Students in BISC 110P must enroll in BISC 110P lab. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course.

A study of life, ranging from the physiology of organisms to the structure of ecosystems. The main themes of the course are evolution and biodiversity, form and function in plants and animals, and ecological interactions among organisms. The course provides the fundamental tools for exploration of organismal biology with the aim of enhancing conceptual understanding. Laboratories focus on experimental approaches to these topics and are shared with BISC 113 and BISC 113Y. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory: BISC 111L.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 111.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 111.

Seminar-style introduction to life at the cellular and molecular level, designed as an alternative to BISC 110 for students with strong high school preparation (such as AP, IB, or other). The course will include eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell structure, function of biological macromolecules, molecular genetics, cellular metabolism, molecular genetics, and mechanisms of growth and differentiation, with an emphasis on experimental approaches to investigating these topics. This course will aim to develop students' skills in data analysis and scientific writing along with building foundational knowledge in the field. Lab sections are shared with BISC 110. This course differs from BISC 110 in its small class size and discussion-based format; it meets for one discussion and one lab session per week. One year of high school chemistry or equivalent is strongly recommended. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course.

This course has a required co-requisite lab - BISC 112L.

Please be aware that there is no guarantee you will be able to swap into different lecture or lab sections, due to the demand in this course. We encourage you to make initial registration choices carefully and wisely.

An exploration of the central questions, concepts, and methods of experimental analysis in selected areas of organismal biology, designed as an alternative to BISC 111 for students with strong high school preparation (such as AP, IB, or other). Topics include: the evolution and diversification of life, the form and function of plants and animals, and ecological interactions among organisms, with an emphasis on laboratory methods, data analysis, and science writing. Lab sections are shared with BISC 111. This course differs from BISC 111 in its smaller class size, a seminar-style format, and a focus on discussion of landmark scientific studies that shape this field; it meets for one discussion and one lab session per week. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course.

This course has a required co-requisite lab - BISC 113L.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 113.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 113.

A foundation course that provides an integrated introduction to the application of chemical principles to understand biological systems and covers the content of both (BISC 110, BISC 110P, BISC 112, or BISC 112Y) and CHEM 105. It is designed for students whose interests lie at the interface of chemistry and biology and must be taken concurrently with CHEM 116. Students will learn how structure and function of biological systems are shaped by principles of atomic properties and chemical bonding. Cellular metabolism and molecular genetics are integrated with quantitative introductions to thermodynamics, equilibrium, and kinetics. Other topics motivated by the application of chemistry to biology include nuclear chemistry and cellular growth and differentiation. The laboratory is a hands-on introduction to spectroscopy, microscopy, and other experimental techniques, as well as quantitative analysis, experimental design, and scientific writing. Successful completion of this course enables a student to take any course for which either CHEM105 or (BISC 110, BISC 110P, BISC 112, or BISC 112Y) is a prerequisite.

A foundation course that provides an integrated introduction to the application of chemical principles to understand biological systems and covers the content of both (BISC 110, BISC 110P, BISC 112, or BISC 112Y) and CHEM 105. It is designed for students whose interests lie at the interface of chemistry and biology and must be taken concurrently with CHEM 116. Students will learn how structure and function of biological systems are shaped by principles of atomic properties and chemical bonding. Cellular metabolism and molecular genetics are integrated with quantitative introductions to thermodynamics, equilibrium, and kinetics. Other topics motivated by the application of chemistry to biology include nuclear chemistry and cellular growth and differentiation. The laboratory is a hands-on introduction to spectroscopy, microscopy, and other experimental techniques, as well as quantitative analysis, experimental design, and scientific writing. Successful completion of this course enables a student to take any course for which either CHEM105 or (BISC 110, BISC 110P, BISC 112, or BISC 112Y) is a prerequisite.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 201.

Examination of evolution, the central paradigm of biology, at the level of populations, species, and lineages, with an added emphasis on a realistic view of the human body as a product of natural selection: functional and remarkable in many ways, but also flawed in many ways, for good evolutionary reasons. Topics include the genetics of populations, including the patterns among human populations, the definition of species, the roles of natural selection and chance in evolution, the evolution of sex, the impact of sexual selection, and the importance of evolutionary thinking in medicine where we will explore fundamental evolutionary principles such as arms races, maladaptation, evolutionary mismatch, and evolutionary theories of senescence and their connections to medicine. Class work emphasizes collaborative work and reading and interpreting primary literature. Labs include hands-on assessments of genetic variation in populations using DNA analyses; exploration of computer simulations to understand the effects of genetic drift and student-designed experiments to assess the effects of natural selection in populations.

This course has a required co-requisite Laboratory - BISC 202L.

How do animals work?  This course addresses the structure, systems of physiology, and energetics of vertebrate animals, with comparisons of the adaptations of animals of different thermal regime, body size, lifestyle, and environment throughout vertebrate evolutionary history. The laboratories include projects in diversity, digestion, muscle energetics, study of comparative anatomy through dissections of vertebrate specimens, and the use of statistics and graphing.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory - BISC 203L.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 203.

Oceans cover more than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface and are our planet’s primary life support system. This course examines adaptations and interactions of plants and animals in a variety of marine habitats. Focal habitats include the photic zone of the open ocean, the deep-sea, subtidal and intertidal zones, estuaries, coral reefs and kelp forests. Emphasis is placed on the dominant organisms, food webs, and experimental studies conducted within each habitat, and the measures being taken to conserve these ecosystems. Laboratories will emphasize diversity of species in marine habitats and will highlight local coastal ecosystems. The course capstone will allow students to investigate a human impact on a marine ecosystem and propose solutions, supported by the scientific literature.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory - BISC 210L.

The goal of the course is to develop an understanding of the fundamental principles of genetics at the molecular, cellular, organismal, and population levels. The course establishes a link between the generation of genetic variants through mutation and recombination, their patterns of inheritance, interactions between genes to produce complex phenotypes, and the maintenance of such genetic variation in natural populations. The course also explores principles of genome organization and the mechanisms that regulate gene expression. Other topics include: DNA sequencing and the use of genomic data to address questions in genetics, comparing and contrasting genetic regulation strategies across the three domains of life, and exploring experimental approaches for addressing genetic questions. Laboratory investigation will expose students to the fundamentals of genetics including transmission, molecular, and computational techniques for genetic analysis. Students must attend lab during the first week in order to continue in the course. During certain weeks, students are required to come in outside of scheduled lab time for approximately one hour 3-4 days after the scheduled lab. Please plan your schedule accordingly.

This course has a required co-requisite laboratory: BIOC 219L/BISC 219L.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BIOC 219/BISC 219.

The grading option chosen for the lecture (BIOC 219/BISC 219) - either Letter Grade or Credit/Non Credit - will apply to the lab as well; the final grade is a single unified grade for both lecture and lab and is based on the grading option you choose for the lecture section.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BIOC 219/BISC 219.

The grading option chosen for the lecture (BIOC 219/BISC 219) - either Letter Grade or Credit/Non Credit - will apply to the lab as well; the final grade is a single unified grade for both lecture and lab and is based on the grading option you choose for the lecture section.

How did cannibalistic tadpoles evolve? Why don’t fruit bats get diabetes despite the large amount of sugar they consume? Ecological evolutionary developmental biology, or eco-evo-devo, is an emerging field that answers such questions by exploring how environmental (abiotic and biotic) factors impact the development and evolution of organisms. We will discuss topics such as adaptations to climate change, developmental origin of health and disease, developmental endocrinology and endocrine disruption. Through reading of original papers, we will examine recent advances made in eco-evo-devo and critically analyze the role of eco-evo-devo in biology – from molecules to organisms – and its implications beyond biology. Students will have the opportunity to design and conduct an independent research project with insects using molecular tools.

This course has a required co-requisite Laboratory - BISC 311L.

Hormones act throughout the body to coordinate basic biological functions such as development, differentiation, and reproduction. This course will investigate how hormones act in the brain to regulate physiology and behavior. We will study how the major neuroendocrine axes regulate a variety of functions, including brain development, reproductive physiology and behavior, homeostasis, and stress. The regulation of these functions by hormones will be investigated at the molecular, cellular, and behavioral levels.

This is a required co-requisite laboratory for BISC 316.

From the moment a sperm cell interacts with an egg, new life begins to organize itself, turning two haploid gametes into a new individual. We will ask questions that include: How do sperm and egg form? How do sperm find an egg? How does an embryo establish polarity? How do cells with identical DNA choose radically different fates within hours? This course explores the molecular, cellular, and developmental events that occur to produce two unique gametes and what happens when two gametes fuse and become a multicellular embryo. Using several different non-human model organisms, including plants, nematode worms, fruit flies, and zebrafish, we will investigate the mechanisms of fertilization, from gametogenesis to sperm-egg recognition, fusion, and the activation of embryonic development and prevention of polyspermy. We will then focus on early embryogenesis, covering early cleavage patterns and axis formation through the blastula stage across diverse organismal taxa. This course incorporates lectures to introduce new material, seminar-style discussions of primary literature, and student-led presentations throughout the semester.