life edu

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Issues in Biotechnology:The Way We Work With Life

Dr. Albert P. Kausch

Issues in Biotechnology:Biotechnology, Our Society and Our Future

OnCampus LiveOnCampus LiveBCH 190, MIC 190, AFS 190, NRS 190, PLS 190BCH 190, MIC 190, AFS 190, NRS 190, PLS 190

OnLine BCH 190OnLine BCH 190

A Sweeping General Survey on Life and BiotechnologyA Public Access College Course

The University of Rhode Island

life edu.org


Dr. Albert KauschKimberly Nelson

BCH 190BCH 190

A Sweeping General Survey on Life and BiotechnologyA Public Access College Course


Section I. The Mechanics of DNA: What is Life?Section II. The Applications of Biotechnology

life edu.org


Dr. Albert KauschKimberly Nelson

Lectures 1 & 2

BCH 190BCH 190

The Mechanics of DNA: What is Life?Introduction and Overview-

Biotechnology: Panacea or Pandora’s Box Setting the Stage: What is Science?

life edu.org

Issues in Biotechnology:The Way We Work With

LifeDr. Albert P. Kausch

Setting the Stage: What is Science?Lectures 2

A Sweeping General Survey on Life and Biotechnology


The Mechanics of DNA: What is Life?Setting the Stage: What is Science?

Issues in Biotechnology

Professor

Dr. Albert P. Kausch, Ph.D.Department of Cell and Molecular BiologyUniversity of Rhode Island

Office, Lab, and Mailing Address Food Science and Nutrition Building530 Liberty Lane, Rm 108West Kingston, RI 02892Office Telephone 401-874-7121Email: [email protected] hours Weds. 12:00- 3:00 pm

mailto:[email protected]


Course Requirements

Course Syllabus and DescriptionSchedule of Lectures

Requirements and DeliverablesOffice Hours


Course RequirementsTextsJay Phelen What is Life? A guide to biology. Freeman Press. 2010

Icliker devices will be provided

Course Presentations: Attendance is absolutely mandatory. Your final grade will be downgraded by half a letter grade for any unexcused absence or missed lecture (or any part of one class). You will receive a zero for the missed weekly quiz without a make-up. If you must be absent, you MUST notify Dr. Albert Kausch and provide documentation for your absence. Attendance will be determined using the iclicker technology and participation in the weekly quizzes. There will be no make up tests or exams without appropriate and express written permission. Missing class and quizzes will drastically affect your grade.


Course Requirements

Quizzes (weekly) will be taken in class (Live version on Campus) or OnLine (BCH 190 OnLine version) and promptly graded. The quizzes cover: the assigned reading from the class text focusing on both concepts and vocabulary, and concepts from the weekly live lecture(s). These quizzes consist of 20 multiple choice questions and function as a test of general knowledge on the subject. There are no make-up exams or quizzes without a medical excuse. Many quiz questions are covered during class (pay attention). In addition, many of the quiz questions are listed under the lifedu.org website in the Study Guide Section. Failure to complete a quiz or an exam will result in a zero.

Issues in BiotechnologyCourse Requirements2 Exams are provided and intended to be taken at the mid-term and final and will

cover both class lecture material as well as the class text, up to that date (i.e. comprehensive). The exams are derived from the quiz questions (save your quizzes)

Stock Project students will be responsible for a project, due before the end of term, detailing current market analysis of several publicly traded biotechnology companies. The idea is to select five biotechnology companies and invest $100,000 (fictitiously, of course). To do this look up the company and determine their ticker symbols. Look at the cost per share that the company is currently trading at and determine the number of shares that you can purchase, You can spread your money evenly across five companies (i.e. $20,000 each) or not. For example, if a company is trading at $20/share you can purchase 1,000 shares for $20, 000. You must choose your companies and shares. Toward the end of the semester you should look up these same companies and determine the cost per share at that time. Calculate your losses or gains for each company and your total losses and gains. This project will be summarized with a one page written report. This will be described in class.


Are you a:

A. New York Yankees fanB. Boston Red Sox fanC. New York Mets fanD. Some other teamE. I don’t care about baseball

Issues in BiotechnologySome course demographics

You are a:

A. FreshmanB. SophomoreC. JuniorD. SeniorE. Teacher


Are you a:

A. Life sciences majorB. Science major, but not life sciencesC. Non-science majorD. GeneralE. Undeclared


I know:

A. A lot about biotechnologyB. General information about the basis

of biotechnologyC. What I read in public pressD. Very little actually, only about some

of the argumentsE. Nothing at all


Are you a:

A. RepublicanB. DemocratC. IndependentD. SocialistE. Other


I consider myself:

A. ReligiousB. Somewhat religiousC. SecularD. Somewhat secularE. Irrelevant to this course


You are:

A. Pro-choiceB. Pro-lifeC. UndecidedD. I don’t care about politicsE. Circumstantial

What is Life?What is Life?

What is Life?What is Life?When did it start on earth?

Where did it come from? Biologically, what is it? How does it happen?

How do we understand life from its mechanisms?

What are the philosophical implications?

What is Life?What is Life?What are we doing here?

Who are you?

What is consciousness?

Is there really free will?

It it just a biological construct?

What is Life?What is Life?Is there intrinsic meaning or is it all merely biological?

What is purpose?

Is there a purpose to the way things develop?

Is there meaning?

And, what about God?


I can tell when someone is watching me from behind:

A. YesB. NoC. Sometimes

Science is a system of hypothesis making and testing

Is Evidence Based

Do Not Believe what you here only

• What Is Life? A Guide To Biology

• By J. Phelan

CHAPTER 1Scientific Thinking

This week: Reading Assignment:

What is it? Think Critically

Biotechnology and SocietyWhat should we believe?

Why do you believe what you believe?

Fact n. 1. Something known with certainty. 2. Something asserted as certain. 3. Something that has been objectively verified by observation or evidence. 4. Something having real demonstrable existence.

Belief n. 1. The mental act, condition or habit of placing trust or confidence in a person or thing; faith. 2. mental acceptance or conviction in the truth or actuality of something. 3. Something believed or accepted as true-see synonyms at opinion

Knowledge: n. 1. The state or fact of knowing. 2. Familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience or study. 3. That which is known; the sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered or inferred. 4. Learning. 5. Specific information about something. 6. Carnal knowledge.

Theory, pronunciation: \ˈthē-ə-rē, ˈthir-ē\ , function: noun, inflected Form(s): plural the·o·ries, etymology: Late Latin theoria, from Greek theōria, from theōrein

Date: 15921 : the analysis of a set of facts in their relation to one another

2 : the general or abstract principles of a body of facts, from science, or study of an art as in <music theory>3 : a plausible or scientifically acceptable general principle or body of principles offered to explain phenomena <the wave theory of light>

4a : a belief, policy, or procedure proposed or followed as the basis of action <her method is based on the theory that all children want to learn> b : an ideal or hypothetical set of facts, principles, or circumstances —often used in the phrase in theory<in theory, we have always advocated freedom for all>5a : a hypothesis assumed for the sake of argument or investigation b : an unproved assumption : conjecture c : a body of theorems presenting a concise systematic view of a subject <theory of equations>

synonyms see hypothesis

Science is a system for knowledge acquisition conducted by hypothesis making and testing and reproducible observations… See the world!

Evidence based knowledge

Beliefs Truth Fact Knowledge Theory

What is Science? What is knowledge? How do we know anything?

Do you believe in things you can’t see?

Atoms

• Elemental units of which everything is made

• Atomic Diameters: one to a few hundred millionths of an inch

The Periodic Table of Elements Is the Same Throughout the Universe

Is water required for life?

Is a carbon chemistry required for life?

How Did Life on Earth Begin?

How Did Life on Earth Begin?

How does life work?

Science is a system for knowledge acquisition conducted by hypothesis making and testing and reproducible observations… See the world!

Evidence based knowledge

Beliefs Truth Fact Knowledge Theory

What is Science? What is knowledge? How do we know anything?

We need to look at the mechanics of life

15. Observation of and wonder at the workings of nature are what initiate “why” and “how” type questions. Science is a system of: (A) relying on one’s best intuition, inspiration and perspiration to solve problems (B) advertising as a devious enterprise conceived by entrepreneurial western capitalists to make money from the ideas of inventive and often eccentric minds (C) making theories that fit certain beliefs about why and how things happen(D) hypothesis making about the mysteries of life(E) hypothesis making and testing to discern and validate observable facts generating evidence based knowledge

16. A chemical unit consisting of negatively charged electrons orbiting a positively charged nucleus is: (A) an atom (B) a eukaryotic cell (C) a molecule (D) a ribosome (E) a unit

17. Which of the following statements best describes the logic of the scientific method? (A) If I generate a testable hypothesis, tests and observations will support it(B) If my prediction is correct, it will lead to a testable hypothesis (C) If my observations are accurate, they will support my hypothesis(D) If my hypothesis is correct, I can expect certain test results(E) none of these answers are correct

18. Which of the following best distinguishes hypotheses from theories in science? (A) Theories are hypotheses that have been proven(B) Hypotheses are tentative guesses; theories are correct answers to questions about nature(C) Hypotheses usually are narrow in scope; theories have much broader explanatory power(D) Hypotheses and theories mean essentially the same thing(E) none of these answers are correct

19. The word Theory, is defined as: 1 : the analysis of a set of facts in their relation to one another2 : the general or abstract principles of a body of facts, from science, or study of an art as in <music theory>3 : a plausible or scientifically acceptable general principle or body of principles offered to explain phenomena <the wave theory of light>

Some people say that Evolution is “‘just’ a theory”. Used in this way, modified by the word just’ indicates that these people may be confusing with the word theory with what other word(s)

(A) notion(B) idea(C) story(D) whimsy(E) any or all of these words

20. Superstitions are: (A) held by many humans, but not by any non-human species.(B) just one of many possible forms of scientific thinking.(C) true beliefs that have yet to be fully understood.(D) irrational beliefs that actions not logically related to a course of events influence its outcome.(E) proof that the scientific method is not perfect.

21. Empirical results: (A) rely on intuition.(B) are generated by theories.(C) are based on observation.(D) cannot be replicated.(E) must support a tested hypothesis.

22. In a well-designed experiment: (A) the prediction will be highly probable if the experimentshows the explanation is correct.(B) the prediction will be highly improbable if the experiment(C) the null hypothesis will not be tested.(D) the prediction will most likely be correct.(E) Both (A) and (B) are correct.

23. Which of the following statements is correct? (A) A hypothesis that does not generate a testable prediction isnot useful.(B) Common sense is usually a good substitute for thescientific method when trying to understand the world.(C) The scientific method can be used only to understandscientific phenomena.(D) It is not necessary to make observations as part of thescientific method.(E) All of the above are correct.

24. The placebo effect: (A) is the frequently observed, poorly understood phenomenon that people tend to respond favorably to any treatment.(B) reveals that sugar pills are generally as effective as actual medications in fighting illness.(C) reveals that experimental treatments cannot be proven effective.(D) demonstrates that most scientific studies cannot be replicated.(E) is an urban legend.

25. In controlled experiments: (A) one variable is manipulated while others are held constant.(B) all variables are dependent on each other.(C) all variables are held constant.(D) all variables are independent of each other.(E) all critical variables are manipulated.

26. Statistical methods make it possible to: (A) prove any hypothesis is true.(B) determine how likely it is that certain results have occurred by chance.(C) unambiguously learn the truth.(D) reject any hypothesis.(E) test non-falsifiable hypotheses.

27. Anecdotal evidence: (A) is a more efficient method for understanding the world than the scientific method.(B) tends to be more reliable than data based on observations of large numbers of diverse individuals.(C) is a necessary part of the scientific method.(D) is often the only way to prove important causal links between two phenomena.(E) can seem to reveal links between two phenomena, but the links may not actually exist.

28. A relationship between phenomena that has been established based on large amounts of observational and experimental data is referred to as: (A) a theory.(B) a fact.(C) an assumption.(D) a conjecture.(E) a hypothesis.

29. What is the meaning of the statement “correlation does not imply causation”? (A) Just because two variables vary in a similar pattern does not mean that changing one variable causes a change in the other.(B) It is not possible to demonstrate a correlation between two variables.(C) When a change in one variable causes a change in another variable, the two variables are not necessarily related to each other in any way.(D) It is not possible to prove the cause of any naturally occurring phenomenon.(E) Just because two variables vary in a similar pattern does not mean that they have any relationship to each other.

30. The Scientific Method is: (A) a method that requires certain laws of nature to be taken on faith.(B) both a method to gain a body of knowledge and an intellectual activity encompassing observation, description, experimentation, and explanation of natural phenomena.(C) a process that can be applied only within the scientific disciplines, such as biology, chemistry, and physics.(D) the only way to understand the natural world and a Higher Power(E) None of the above.

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