BSCI161 - Principles of Ecology & Evolution Laboratory Fall 2021

The process of evolution, and its consequences, is the foundation of much of the life sciences. This
course guides students to investigate how evolution works, what methods scientists use to understand
it, how organisms interact with each other and their environment, and the scientific framework by
which we understand these ideas. This lab course complements the lecture-based BSCI160 course while
providing students a foundation in the scientific and communication skills used to develop scientific
knowledge. The main themes of the labs are inheritance, evolution and ecology. Inheritance and
evolution are explored through Mendelian genetics, the evolutionary consequences of meiosis, natural
selection, population genetics, and phylogenetic reconstructions. Ecology instruction includes both
online and field-based experiments. All these labs are tied together with exercises developing students’
skills using the scientific process and a series of inquiry-based explorations.

Primary learning objectives of BSCI 161:

• Explain and interpret the nature and function of evolution.

• Use the tools of evolutionary analysis to make sense of evolutionary processes and outcomes.
• Explain the interconnected nature of ecology, and how humans fit into and transcend
ecosystems.
• Interpret the foundational ideas of quantitative methods in life sciences research.
• Use the process of scientific inquiry.

Specific skills and knowledge resulting from BSCI 161 participation:

• Use evolutionary parameters such as allele frequencies.

• Interpret phylogenetic trees as evolutionary hypotheses.
• Interpret statistical results and the biological implications thereof.
• Formulate hypotheses and evaluate their support.
• Interpret graphs of quantitative data.
• Communicate results with correct scientific terminology and accuracy.

Pre- and Co-requisites

Must have math eligibility of MATH220 or higher. Restriction: For science majors

Students enrolled in BSCI161 must have completed or be concurrently enrolled in BSCI160.

Required Materials

Lab Manual - In this class you will be receiving your course materials via Top Hat. Top Hat is a required
component for this course. BSCI161 is participating in a program at UMD called FirstDay™, which gives
every student access to the course materials on or before the first day of class via Canvas, the University
of Maryland College Park’s Learning Management Software.

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- Cost Notice -

As of 8/30/21, you will have access to Top Hat and the required digital materials for this class. After the
Add/Drop period for this course you will see a charge of $34.00 plus tax for the course materials billed
to your student account. To learn more about Student Account Charging and important e-Bill
information please visit the Student Financial Services and Cashiering site at billpay.umd.edu.

- Opt-Out Option -

If you drop the class prior to the Add/Drop deadline you will not be charged for your course materials. If
you decide to Opt-out of this program your access will be turned off after the Add/Drop deadline and
you will be responsible for purchasing the course materials elsewhere. You can Opt-Out by filling out the
form here ter.ps/q9p.

You have until 9/13/21 to OPT-OUT and not participate in FirstDay™. Your access to the course
materials will be turned off by 9/13/21 and you will be responsible for purchasing the course
materials elsewhere if you decide to opt-out (please note that there is not another place to buy access
to the material for this course). Please consider opting out carefully.

Lab Notebook – You will need to have a composition book to use as your lab notebook. You will use this
notebook to record your answers to questions, as well as data and observations from experiments that
you complete in lab. Each week you will scan and upload your notebook pages as part of your post-lab
assignment.

Textbook - NOT REQUIRED - Principles of Life, 3rd Edition. Hillis et al. Sinauer Assoc. ISBN
9781319017712. Some of the labs refer to sections of the textbook for additional information about a
topic. None of this information is specific to this book - it is just additional background. If you do not
have this textbook, you can refer to any introductory biology textbook that you have access to. Please
do not buy the textbook just for the lab.

SimUText Subscription – You will be using SimUText simulation software in this course. Details for setting
up your account are available on the course site on ELMS. There is no charge for this software – the
cost is paid from your lab fees.

Policies

A complete summary of course policies is available on the Office of Undergraduate Studies website:
http://www.ugst.umd.edu/courserelatedpolicies.html

COVID/Masking Guidelines: President Pines provided clear expectations to the University about the
wearing of masks for unvaccinated students. Face coverings over the nose and mouth are required while
you are indoors at all times. There are no exceptions. Students not wearing a mask, or wearing one
improperly, will be given a warning and asked to wear one. Students who fail to comply will be asked to
leave the classroom immediately and the incident will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct.
Students who have additional issues with the mask expectation after a first warning will be referred to
the Office of Student Conduct for failure to comply with a directive of University officials.

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These policies may be amended by the University. If additional mask requirements are in place, we will
follow them with the same protocols. For example, as of the beginning of the semester, based on a
mandate from Prince George’s County, everyone is required to wear a mask while indoors.

The following policies are specific clarifications for BSCI161:

1. An extension to complete graded work will be granted only by the Lab Coordinator. Students
must contact the Laboratory Coordinator within three weekdays of the due date of the missed
days.
2. Extensions will be granted only for University approved reasons:
a. Illness of the student, or illness of a dependent as defined by Board of Regents policy on
family and medical leave, that impacts a significant portion of the week or the due date
for an assignment.
b. Religious observance (where the nature of the observance prevents the student from
being present during a significant portion of the week or the due date for an
assignment). The University System of Maryland policy "Assignments and Attendance on
Dates of Religious Observance" states that students should not be penalized in any way
for participation in religious observances and that, whenever feasible, they be allowed
to make up academic assignments that are missed due to such absences. However, the
student must provide the Lab Coordinator a written notification of the projected
absence within two weeks of the start of the semester (please use the form available on
the course website).
c. Participation in university activities at the request of University authorities.
d. Compelling circumstances beyond the student's control.
3. The due dates for the Community Ecology and Natural Selection Research Reports and the
Community Science Project Report will be considered Major Scheduled Grading Events in
accordance with University's policy on student absences. You will be required to provide written
documentation from the Health Center or an outside health care provider verifying that you
were unable to complete that work. NOTE: the excuse must clearly indicate that you were
unable to complete course work, NOT that you were simply seen.
4. Students who do not receive an extension on an assignment will be assessed a late penalty.
These penalties are listed with the specific assignment or assignment type.
5. Academic Dishonesty will not be tolerated. The Code of Academic Integrity is laid out in the
undergraduate catalog and by the Office of Student Conduct.

The University of Maryland, College Park has a nationally recognized Code of Academic Integrity,
administered by the Student Honor Council. This Code sets standards for academic integrity at Maryland
for all undergraduate and graduate students. As a student you are responsible for upholding these
standards for this course. It is very important for you to be aware of the consequences of cheating,
fabrication, facilitation, and plagiarism. For more information on the Code of Academic Integrity or the
Student Honor Council, please visit https://www.studentconduct.umd.edu/

Biological Science Program Policy: It is the policy of the Biological Science Program to strictly adhere to
and enforce the University Code of Academic Integrity. The lab instructors will proctor all quizzes for
cheating and will monitor all assignments for academic dishonesty. All students found breaking the Code
will be referred to the Office of Judicial Programs. It is important for you to recognize that academic
dishonesty is a serious offense.

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Any of the following acts, when committed by a student, shall constitute academic dishonesty:

• Cheating: fraud, deceit, or dishonesty in any academic course or exercise in an attempt to gain
an unfair advantage and/or using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information,
or study aids in any academic course or exercise.

• Fabrication: unauthorized falsification or invention of any information or citation in any

academic course or exercise.

• Facilitating Academic Dishonesty: knowingly helping or attempting to help another to violate

any provision of this Code.

• Plagiarism: intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one's own
in any academic exercise.

• Self-Plagiarism: the reuse of substantial identical or nearly identical portions of one's own work
in multiple courses without prior permission from the current instructor or from each of the
instructors if the work is being submitted for multiple courses in the same semester.

Remember: While we encourage group work and thought in the laboratories, unless otherwise indicated
all written exercises are to be the work of the individual. Assignments which are found to be very similar
in wording and structure will be considered plagiarism and appropriate measures will be taken.

Grading

Your grade will be based on the following work: Pre-lab Assignments (25%), Post-lab Assignments (30%),
with the remainder of your grade (45%) coming from other assignments. Including the Natural Selection
Research Report, Community Science Report and Community Ecology Research Report. Due dates and
times will be posted with each assignment.

Late Policies

• Pre-lab Exercises: These are not accepted late. The only exception to this is an extension granted
by the Lab Coordinator. You get to drop your lowest grade in this category. This is to account for
the occasional problem that may arise.
• Post-lab Exercises: These are not accepted late. The only exception to this is an extension
granted by the Lab Coordinator. You get to drop your lowest grade in this category. This is to
account for the occasional problem that may arise.
• Other assignments: For large assignments, 10% will be deducted for work turned in up to one
day late, and an additional 10%/day will be deducted thereafter. No work will be accepted more
than five days late. Additional small assignments may have different late policies and they will
be defined on the assignment.

Below is a description of assignments and due dates.

Pre-lab Exercises

• These assignments are designed to provide background material so that you are ready to
complete the exercises in lab each week.

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 • They are available on Top Hat. For some of the assignments you will also need to visit the course
page on ELMS or SimUText.
• They will be available at the end of lab the previous week and are due at the beginning of your
lab each week.
• These are not accepted late.
• These are primarily graded for participation. If you get a question wrong, you can answer it
again. There are some questions that will be graded for correctness – these are clearly indicated.
• Your lowest grade on these will be dropped.

Post-lab Exercises

• These assignments have two parts: 1) you will need to upload a scan of your Lab Notebook each
week and 2) short summary questions about the lab.
• They are available on Top Hat. For some of the assignments you will also need to visit the course
page on ELMS.
• They will be available at the end of lab the previous week and are due at 11:59pm the day after
your lab.
• These are not accepted late.

Other Assignments

• Community Science Project: Details about this project will be available on the course website.

• Community Ecology Research Report: This assignment is based on the Community Ecology labs.

• Natural Selection Research Report: This assignment is based on the Natural Selection lab.

• Other small assignments may be put into this category during the semester

Grading summary:

Assignment %

Pre-labs 25

Post-labs 30

Other Assignments 45

Final course grade assignments: Your final letter grade will be assigned according to the following cut-
offs (% grades will be rounded to the nearest whole percent prior to letter assignment):
A+ = 97-100% A = 93-96% A- = 90-92%
B+ = 87-89% B = 83-86% B- = 80-82%

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C+ = 77-79% C = 73-76% C- = 70-72%
D = 60-69% F < 60%
The grade breaks for the class may be moved down (i.e., in your favor) at the discretion of the
instructor. The grade breaks will not be moved up.

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Lab Schedule

Week of Week Lab

8/30 -

9/6 1 No class Monday - Labor Day – Welcome to BSCI161

9/13 2 Intro to Experimental Design

9/20 3 Data Analysis and Communication

9/27 4 Community Ecology I

10/4 5 Community Ecology II

10/11 6 Community Ecology III

10/18 7 Community Ecology IV

10/25 8 Experiments with Natural Selection

11/1 9 Mendel and Meiosis

11/8 10 Population Genetics

11/15 11 Investigating Phylogenies

11/22 - Thanksgiving

11/29 12 Advanced and Applied Tree Thinking

12/6 13 Using DNA to Explore Lizard Phylogenies

12/13 - Monday = LDOC

Updated 23 August 2021