ORIENTATION AND DEADLINE DATES
This is an information sheet only, not the course syllabus.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This
course is an interdisciplinary study of the environment investigating how
nature works and how things are interconnected.
Based on an understanding of ecological concepts and principles, you
will examine lifestyle issues and critically analyze the relationship among
population, natural resources, land use, agriculture, biodiversity,
industrialization, and pollution.
Environmental problems are examined from scientific, ethical, economic,
and sociological perspectives to enable you to understand the relevance of
biology to contemporary issues in human society.
Prerequisites:
None
4 Credit
Hours
COURSE MATERIALS
Required Textbook: Environment: The Science Behind the Stories (2nd Edition) by Scott Brennan and Jay Withgott. Pearson Education Inc.
VIDEOTAPES/AUDIOTAPES
Ten one-hour videos from the Race to Save
the Planet series
OTHER MEDIA
None
ORIENTATION/ATTENDANCE
Orientation is required.
EVALUATION/GRADING
Eight laboratory
assignments, five exams
COURSE OUTLINE
|
Topic |
Text Chapters
&
|
Laboratory
Exercise
|
|
Historical Roots & Environmental Worldviews |
Chapters 1 & 2 Video 1 |
LAB 1: Exploring Your Connections to the Earth |
|
Structure & Function in Ecosystems |
Chapters 4, 5, 6 & 7 |
|
|
|
EXAM 1 |
|
|
Agricultural Systems & Food Choices |
Chapters 9 & 10 Video 7 |
LAB 2: Understanding Your Foodshed |
|
Water: Use & Pollution |
Chapters 15 & 16 Video 8 |
LAB 3: Down the Drain |
|
|
EXAM 2 |
|
|
Air: Use & Pollution |
Chapters 17 & 18 Video 2 |
|
|
Energy: Choices & Consequences |
Chapters 19 & 20, & 21 Video 6 |
LAB 4: Hot House Planet |
|
|
EXAM 3 |
|
|
Stability, Change & Crisis in Biomes and Communities |
Chapter 11 & 12 Video 5 |
LAB 5: Biomes & Biodiversity |
|
Environmental Health: Toxicology, Risk Assessment, and Policy Making |
Chapters 3 & 14 Videos 3 & 4 |
|
|
Resources: Use, Misuse, & Waste Management |
Chapter 22 Video 8 |
LAB 6 : Opposing Viewpoints |
|
|
EXAM 4 |
|
|
Human Population and Resource Consumption |
Chapter 5 & 8 Video 9 |
LAB 7: Questioning Consumption |
|
Land Use issues |
Chapter 13 |
LAB 8: Suburban Dream or the Nightmare of Urban Sprawl |
|
Sustainable Solutions |
Chapter 2 & 23 Video 10 |
|
|
|
EXAM 5 |
|