Biology 403:  Functional Vertebrate Morphology

Fall 20087 Lab Syllabus

Monday 2:30-5:30 pm, HS 102                                                     

Brandon Jackson,

243-6834, brandon.jackson at mso.umt.edu                                                             

Office Hours will be during open lab and by appointment. 

Text: Homberger & Walker, 2004, Vertebrate Dissection Ninth Edition.

YOU SHOULD DOWNLOAD THE ERRATA AND CORRIGENDA FOR THE TEXT FROM: http://www.biology.lsu.edu/webfac/dhomberger/vd9errata.pdf

You should also read and BRING the lecture text.

There are also numerous websites, alternate dissection guides, and study guides that may help in the study of comparative anatomy.

Lab handouts are available below , or via the department’s course pages.  It is your responsibility to print out each handout and finish all of the reading and pre-lab work prior to coming to the lab. 

Open Lab/office hours will be Thursday evenings, 7:00-10:00.

The open lab sessions are provided as extra time to study the dissection materials from previous labs, not as substitute time for Monday’s labs. Access to the open labs is by the discretion of the instructor, and will not be allowed to students that do not participate for all of the scheduled lab time on Mondays.

Friday sessions, when scheduled, will be held at the Flight Lab at Fort Missoula. These sessions provide time in an active biomechanics and functional anatomy lab for group research projects on novel scientific questions. Thus the exact time and dates that you will be required to attend will depend on your project. Project assignments will be made in the first two weeks. At the end of the semester, you will write your own scientific manuscript, and perform a professional group presentation of the results of your research. Times of meetings and due dates are included in the syllabus.

We suggest that you also use Friday afternoon, when not at the lab, to meet as a project group in order to discuss readings, study as a group for exams, etc. No one in the class should have other classes from 1-2:30 on Fridays…USE IT!

Quizzes will occur at the end of Monday lab sessions, and be on the material from that day. They will

provide examples of the types of questions on the practical exams.

Exams are cumulative, and will consist of questions about structures, functions, and comparisons of anatomy, as well as questions on readings in the text and scientific papers. There will be no makeup quizzes or exams, period. Please mark your calendar, particularly for the second exam, which is on the Monday before Thanksgiving.

Scientific papers will be assigned for reading. These papers serve to prepare you for your projects, and allow you to see what you are learning in action.

Lab Points:                                                              

Quizzes, assignments, and participation                                                            50                       

1st lab practical                                                                                              50                                     

2nd lab practical                                                                                             50                                     

Group project (preparation, participation, presentation)                                   50         

                                                                                                                      200 points

All students must practice academic honesty.  Academic misconduct is subject to an academic penalty by the course instructor and /or a disciplinary sanction by the University

All students need to be familiar with the Student Conduct Code.  The Code is available for review online at http://www.umt.edu/SA/VPSA/index.cfm/page/1321

Research Projects

Initial meetings: Each group will meet at the designated times to discuss the rationale behind the project. Literature will be distributed at this time to aid in a more detailed literature search in preparation for writing the proposals.

Proposals: Must be submitted by 12:00 pm on the date specified. They should be submitted electronically (as a MS Word attachment) via email to brandon.jackson "at" mso.umt.edu prior to the deadline. Receipt will be confirmed by email. It is the student’s responsibility to follow up if they do not receive a confirmation, first by resending an electronic copy, then by submitting a paper copy. Editing suggestions will be made, and the rewrites (if required/desired) will be due before starting the experiment. No late proposals will be accepted. Each person must write their own proposal.

Experiments: All group members are required to attend all parts of the experiment. Some may have both morning and afternoon times. The total amount of time for the experiment will be at least five hours.

Manuscripts: Must be submitted by 12:00 pm on the date specified. They should be submitted electronically (as a MS Word attachment) via email to brandon.jackson "at" mso.umt.edu prior to the deadline. Receipt will be confirmed by email. It is the student’s responsibility to follow up if they do not receive a confirmation, first by resending an electronic copy, then by submitting a paper copy. Format should follow the Journal of Experimental Biology. No late manuscripts will be accepted. Each person must write their own manuscript.

Presentations: Presentations are performed as a group, with each group member providing 5-8 minutes of speaking time. Expect 5 – 10 minutes of question-and-answer following the presentation. Presentations must be created using MS Powerpoint (windows 2007, mac 2008), and brought to the session location via CD or USB key to upload to the presentation computer at least 15 minutes before the start of the session.

Project Grading: In addition to grades for writing, you will be graded based on your efforts on the project at all stages (e.g. literature searches, experiment, analysis, presentation),

Details on format for proposals, manuscripts, and presentations will follow.