CHEM-342 INTRODUCTION TO BIOCHEMISTRY Assignments SPRING SEMESTER 2010

Every Class - Come on time and be prepared to contribute substantively to your group's discussion. This will benefit you and everyone in your group. It will also make the course more interesting and enjoyable. To do well in this class (and any other for that matter) you should spend at least three hours of quality time outside of class for each hour in class.
 

First week - Feb 8 to 12	Pauling et al. (1949) -  April 7 - 16
Stokes - Feb 15 to Mar 1	Ingram (1958/59) -  April 19 -  26
Zinoffsky - Mar 3  &  7	Dintzis (1961) -  April 28 - May 7
Jigsaw Groups - Mar 9 to 17	Allison (1954) -  May 10 - 14
Concept Map -  March 15 - 19	Shemin and Hemin - May 17
Prep for Midterm Exam -  March 19 and 22	Hemoglobinopathy Assignment. Due May 14
Midterm Exam -  March 24 and March 26	Register your evaluation of the course on line before May 19.

Wednesday, 10 February - You will be assigned to a group of other CHEM-342 students with whom you will work this semester. Before class, look at Dawn's Eight O'Clock to see what happens when you don't come to class on time. It is one of a series of on-line video vignettes about what you shouldn't do, if you want to have a group that functions well. Many of the actors in the video were students in CHEM-342 at the time. In class you with be working with your new group on a POGIL activity in preparation for reading the Stokes article. Class Canceled due to Snow Storm #2.

Friday, 12 February - There will be an in class activity to prepare you for reading the Stokes (1864) article. Due to the cancelation of the first two classes, this activity will be done as homework, due Monday. Instead, we will do the activities planned originally for February 10. 

GROUP ASSIGNMENT after 12 February:  As a group, do something together--the more fun, the better--take a hike in White Clay Creek State Park, go skating at the Ice Arena, build a snow sculpture, have dinner together at a new place, have a bowling party, play games, whatever. It has to be an activity everyone agrees to (and is legal). Then, write up a one page report from the group (not individual reports) telling me what you did as a group and what ground rules you have agreed upon. Report is due on or preferably before 26 February. If you have reservations about working in groups, please check out a web-site devoted to issues you probably have.

Monday, 15 February - In class be prepared to apply what you have learned in chemistry classes to figure out what is going on chemically in the demonstration that will be presented. See the Blue and Gold Demo.

Wednesday, 17 February - Initial Discussion of Stokes' Article. Before class, read the background information on Stokes' (1864) article. Then scan Stokes' article. To begin with, just focus on the first 10 numbered sections. Try to identify the major themes and write them down. What has Stokes done? What conclusions does he make? What parts of the article seem to be the most difficult for you? And then read the article more carefully and make a list of learning issues including every word or concept you do not understand. Using available resources (dictionaries, textbooks, the library, knowledgeable people) try to learn the meaning of or find answers to the items on your list. Note that some of the words or word usages are archaic. Spend about three hours of quality time on these activities before class and bring your list (and a copy to turn in) to class.

Friday, 19 February - Continued discussion of Stokes' Article. Before this period you should work 2 - 3 hours on your personal learning issues and those assigned in the group. This initiates a cycle of in-class and out-of-class activities in which all members of each group will learn more and more using research articles as a vehicle for that learning. Because this is a group activity and because part of your grade will come from group performance, you need to share in group responsibilities. You need to seek and offer help freely. Twice during the semester you will evaluate your own contributions and those of the other members of your group. Continue during this period to resolve your learning issues and to identify new learning issues that can be looked up and discussed in subsequent class periods.

In class demonstration and use of spectroscopes to see the oxygenation, deoxygenation, and oxidation of hemoglobin. (See PowerPoint presentation of the demonstration)

Monday, 22 February - Assignment due at the beginning of class. Grading will be done according to a set of rubrics. Bring learning issues associated with Stokes for discussion after the demonstration of the reactions Stokes' described in Section 11 of his paper.

Wednesday, 24 February - POGIL Activity related to Stokes. A list of instructor-generated learning issues will be distributed. 

Friday, 26 February - Group ground rules due. Final day for inclass discussion of the Stokes article.. 

Monday, 1 March -  Group Quiz at the Beginning of class. Revised Stokes assignment due at beginning of class for those wishing to improve their grade on the assignment. Grade on the revision will be substituted for the original grade for the assignment, if it is better.

Monday, 8 March -  Last day for in-class discussion of the Zinoffsky article. Wrap-up of the Zinoffsky article.

Beginning Wednesday "Jigsaw" groups will be formed and each person in your current group will be working with students from other groups on a couple of articles. Each group member will be responsible for different articles. After about a week, your original group will reconvene and share what respective members have learned. See Course Schedule for articles and links.

There will be a Jigsaw Group assignment due on Friday, March 19 (see below). 

If you have gotten into a pattern that you would like to change (e.g. getting to class on time, doing out-of-class research, participating in group discussion, etc.), this is the week to do that while working with different students and a different tutor.

Because my objective is your learning and I know that learning is facilitated by interactions between individuals and groups, groups studying the same articles will be located next to each other in 205 Brown Lab.

Friday, 26 March - Group Part of the 2010 Midterm Examination. 
Graded Individual Part of the Midterm Examinations will be returned after the Group Part of the Examination on April 5. 

Wednesday, 7 April - Video on Linus Pauling.  Linus Pauling was one of the intellectual giants in science of the 20th century. It is worth your knowing a little about him above and beyond his contributions to our understanding of hemoglobin and sickle cell anemia.
Read the Pauling et al. (1949) article and its background material before class and come to class with a list of learning issues.  In groups, pursue personal and group learning issues. 

Friday, 9 April - A list of at least 10 learning issues is due at the beginning of class, if you wish them to be graded. Your learning issues now should display more sophistication than they did earlier in the semester. You may want to review the characteristics of good learning issues. 

Monday, 12 April -  Resolve any remaining learning issues.  [The Pauling et al. paper does not have an abstract.  Review the characteristics of a good scientific abstract. You can peruse as many abstracts as you want at PubMed. You might like to look at, How to Prepare the Abstract, from Robert Days' delightful book, "How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper" now in its fifth edition. Each student will write and turn in an abstract, due Friday, for the Pauling et al. (1949) article]

Wednesday 14 April - Resolve remaining learning issues associated with the Pauling et al. article. Prepare for quiz Friday.

Wednesday, 21 April - Continued discussion of the Ingram articles.

Friday, 23 April - Research your learning issues in some depth and come to class prepared to discuss what you have found. Continue to generate new learning issues as you become aware of things you don't understand or need to look up. Many of the issues that are important for understanding the Ingram article will be helpful in researching your variant hemoglobin for your hemoglobinopathy assignment. 

Monday, 17 May - Shemin and Hemin POGIL