Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

• CAS BI 459: Biochemistry 2
  BIOCHEM-2 LEC
• CAS BI 471: Readings in Biology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: junior or senior standing, consent of instructor, and completed applic ation. - Intensive library research on well-defined topic in biological sciences, chosen with a faculty member. May be taken as preparation for Undergraduate Research/Honors Research. Not a Biology/BMB major/minor elective and cannot be combined with another 2-credit course for elective credit.
• CAS BI 472: Readings in Biology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: junior or senior standing, consent of instructor, and completed applic ation. - Intensive library research on well-defined topic in biological sciences, chosen with a faculty member. May be taken as preparation for Undergraduate Research/Honors Research. Not a Biology/BMB major/minor elective and cannot be combined with another 2-credit course for elective credit.
• CAS BI 475: Urban Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASEE100 OR CASEE101) and one of the following: CAS BI 306, CAS BI 443 or GRS BI 643, CAS EE 456 or GRS EE 656, or CAS BI 530 or CAS EE 530; or consent of instruc tor. - The biophysical environments and ecology of urban settlements. Key topics include the physical environment, patterns in human population growth and development, ecosystem structure and function, global change, urban environment pollution and management, and sustainable urban development. Effective Spring 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Scientific Inquiry II, Teamwork/Collaboration.
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  • Historical Consciousness
  • Scientific Inquiry II
  • Teamwork/Collaboration
• CAS BI 481: Molecular Biology of the Neuron
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CASBI 203 - Topics include electrical properties of neurons, a survey of neurotransmitters, molecular structure and function of receptors, synaptic transmission, intracellular signaling, and the molecular biology governing neurodevelopment and neurological disorders. Three hours lecture, one hour discussion. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Scientific Inquiry II, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
  • Scientific Inquiry II
• CAS BI 494: Topics in Biology 4
  Topics and prerequisites vary.
• CAS BI 497: Honors in Biology Seminar
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: For students taking CAS BI 401, BI 402, BI 453, or BB 453. - A 2-credit weekly research seminar for students in CAS BI 401, BI 402, BI 453, or BB 453 in the Fall semester. Students learn and present digitally produced descriptions of their research and prepare their theses for defense under the guidance of the Research and Honors Committee. A minimum grade of B in BI 402 and this course or BI 498 is required to graduate with honors. Students participate in only one course, either BI 497 or BI 498. Effective Fall 2020, this course carries a single unit in the follow Hub area: Digital/Multimedia Expression.
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  • Digital/Multimedia Expression
• CAS BI 498: Honors in Biology Seminar
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: For students taking CAS BI 401, BI 402, BI 453, or BB 453. - A 2-credit weekly research seminar for students in CAS BI 401, BI 402, BI 453, or BB 453 in the Spring semester. Students learn and present digitally produced descriptions of their research and prepare their theses for defense under the guidance of the Research and Honors Committee. A minimum grade of B in BI 402 and this course or BI 497 is required to graduate with honors. Students participate in only one course, either BI 497 or BI 498. Effective Fall 2020, this course carries a single unit in the follow Hub area: Digital/Multimedia Expression.
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  • Digital/Multimedia Expression
• CAS BI 500: Shark Biology & Conservation
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: some background in ecology and/or evolution recommended. - Explores the natural history and behavior of sharks and their relationship to other animals in the ecosystem. Conservation of sharks and other elasmobranchs is crucial to ecosystem function and requires accurate scientific knowledge to implement the best conservation practices. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Scientific Inquiry II, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
  • Scientific Inquiry II
• CAS BI 503: Neuroimmunology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS BI 203/NE 102 or BI 213 and BI 325/NE 203 - Neuroimmunology is a burgeoning field in neuroscience. This course examines current topics including the role of glia in brain development, health, and disease, glia-neuron crosstalk, impact of stress and environment on the neuroimmune system, and cell trafficking into the brain.
• CAS BI 504: Advanced Evolutionary Analysis
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI309) or permission of instructor. - Modern concepts, controversies, and analytical approaches in evolutionary biology. Topics include adaptation, natural and sexual selection, species and species formation, phylogenetics, origin of evolutionary novelty, adaptive radiation, basic population and quantitative genetics, development and evolution. Three hours lecture, one hour discussion.
• CAS BI 505: Evolution and Development
  This course focuses on the evolution of development. We explore how biodiversity arises by examining the intersection of development, genetics, evolution and ecology. Topics include: the origin of novel traits, developmental constraints, heterochrony, epigenetic inheritance, evolution of gene networks, developmental systems drift and the evolution of complex traits. We also cover common tools used in Evo Devo research, including: RNAseq, RNA interference, CRISPR/Cas-9 and in situ hybridization.
• CAS BI 506: Phenotypic Plasticity
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: senior standing, CAS BI 107; and one of the following: BI 303, BI 309, BI 315, or BI 410; or consent of instructor. - Explores the flexible phenotype as a product of development and target of natural selection, addresses phenotypic plasticity in ecological interactions and evolutionary diversity, evolution and mechanisms of plasticity, plasticity in ecology, diversification of life, and conservation in a changing environment.
• CAS BI 507: Diversity of Sex
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: senior standing, and one of the following: CAS BI 225, BI 309, BI 315, BI 407, or BI 410; or consent of instructor. - Examines the integrative and comparative biology of sex and sexes based on readings drawn from recent primary literature, review papers, and book chapters. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Oral and/or Signed Communication. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Oral and/or Signed Communication.
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  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
• CAS BI 508: Behavioral Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: One upper-level EBE course - Examination of the adaptive significance of behavior in an ecological context. Topics include mating systems, sexual selection, alternative reproductive behaviors, life history strategies, optimal foraging, territoriality, cooperation and conflict, host-parasite co-evolution, the ecology of communication, and comparative analyses.
• CAS BI 509: Metapopulation Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) - Introduces students to metapopulation ecology through the lens of propagule dispersal and population connectivity. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Writing-Intensive Course, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
  • Writing-Intensive Course
• CAS BI 510: Institutional Racism in Health and Science
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS BI 126 or CAS BI 206/216 or ENG BE 209, and senior standing, or co nsent of instructor. - Graduate Prerequisites: MSc./PhD. program standing in Bioinformatics, or MSc./PhD. program sta nding in Biology, or MSc./M.A. standing in BU Wheelock, or consent ofi nstructor. - Traces the historical mischaracterization of race as a biological construct and the physiological manifestations of racism. Through the study of primary sources, students learn to discriminate between fact-based conclusions and unsupported pseudoscience and to construct empirical knowledge.
• CAS BI 511: Coral Reef Fishes
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: admission to the Marine Semester and consent of instructor. - Introduces the ecology, evolution, and behavior of coral reef fishes, with a special focus on the coral reef fishes of Belize. Students are introduced to the organisms, the environments, and key concepts in behavioral, population, and community ecology.
• CAS BI 513: Genetics Laboratory
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI203 & CASBI206) and senior standing, and consent of instructor. - Genetic techniques such as mutant selection and screening, complementation, mapping, recombinant DNA, and chemical genetic screening are taught using the genetic model systems Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Arabidopsis thaliana. Short-term and long-term projects in which students formulate and test hypotheses.
• CAS BI 515: Population Genetics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI206 OR CASBI309) MA/CS requirements for Biology major plus BI206 or BI303; or consent o f instructor. - General introduction to population genetics, including the interactions of basic evolutionary processes (mutation, natural selection, genetic drift, inbreeding, recombination, and gene flow) in determining the genetic composition and evolutionary trajectories of natural populations. Course considers the classic models and insights of the modern evolutionary synthesis and more recently developed approaches based on coalescent theory and population genomics.