Biology

• 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.
• CAS BI 519: Theoretical Evolutionary Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS BI 107 and CAS MA 121/123 (also recommended: CAS BI 225 or CAS BI 303 or CAS BI 309); or consent of the instructor. - Familiarizes students with the theory of evolutionary ecology. Students gain enough background to read theoretical evolutionary ecology literature, do simple modeling, and move on to more complex theory. Students gain experience through homework assignments and computer labs. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Quantitative Reasoning II, Scientific Inquiry II, Critical Thinking.
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  • Critical Thinking
  • Quantitative Reasoning II
  • Scientific Inquiry II
• CAS BI 520: Sensory Neurobiology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI325 OR CASNE203) or consent of instructor. - Animals receive a constant stream of sensory input that they use to adjust their behavior. In this course we explore how sensory systems translate the physical features of the outside world into meaningful patterns of neural activity. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Scientific Inquiry II.
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  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Scientific Inquiry II
• CAS BI 523: Marine Urban Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: enrollment in the BU Marine Semester. - Marine Urban Ecology is an emerging, interdisciplinary field that aims to understand how human and ecological processes can coexist in human-dominated systems. Covers ecosystems, and organisms associated with urbanization in the Greater Boston area.
• CAS BI 525: Biology of Neurodegenerative Diseases
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASNE102 & CASNE203) and NE major; and junior or senior standing. - An in-depth look at molecular mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases and their impact and relevance in clinical diagnosis and treatment. Topics include the molecular pathways of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, and Creuztfeldt-Jacob Disease, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Ethical Reasoning, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Ethical Reasoning
  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
• CAS BI 530: Forest Ecology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI107) and CASBI303 or CASBI306, or consent of instructor. - Prerequisites: CASBI107 and CASBI303 or CASBI306, or consent of instructor. The major biotic and abiotic factors influencing forest ecosystem composition, structure, and function. Role of solar radiation, hydrology, soils, succession, and management of forest ecosystems. Includes New England case study. Three hours lecture plus discussion. Meets with CAS GE 530. Effective Spring 2023, 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 531: Ichthyology: Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution of Fish
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CASBI 260 and consent of instructor. - A comprehensive introduction to fish biology and systematics. Emphasis on phylogenetic relationships, ecology, and behavior. Labs include morphological studies of specimens and behavioral studies of live fishes. Effective Fall 2021, this course no longer carries any Hub units.
• CAS BI 535: Translational Research in Alzheimer's Disease
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI203 OR CASNE102) AND (CASBI325 OR CASNE203). - An introduction to translational research focused on the search for new therapeutic targets in Alzheimer's disease. Emphasis on the development of cellular and animal models for preclinical research, and on past and current clinical trials in Alzheimer's patients. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Ethical Reasoning, Research and Information Literacy.
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  • Ethical Reasoning
  • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • Research and Information Literacy
• CAS BI 539: Coral Reef Dynamics: Shallow Waters, Deep Time
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: enrollment in the Marine Semester. - Tropical reefs-- diverse, complex, and ancient-- exhibit lawful cycles of growth, degradation, and regeneration. Explore these through observations on the Belize Barrier Reef in fossil reef environments and through laboratory experiments. Insights are applied to reef conservation in today's changing world. Also offered as CAS EE 539.
• CAS BI 541: Coral Reef Resilience and Restoration
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: enrollment in the BU Marine Semester and junior or senior standing. - Caribbean coral reefs have fallen into ruin. Students develop methods to restore reef health by applying genomics, life history theory, landscape ecology and climatology. This course includes field work in Belize.
• CAS BI 542: Neuroethology
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CASBI 325 or CASNE 203 or consent of instructor. - An in-depth study of the neural mechanisms underlying natural behaviors in animals, integrating perspectives from behavioral ecology and neurobiology. Emphasizes behaviors central to fitness, including sensory and motor bases of prey detection, predator avoidance, communication, courtship, navigation, and migration. Covers non-model organisms (e.g., honey bees, owls, bats, and crickets). Lectures are integrated with student-led discussions of relevant research papers. 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 546: Marine Megafaunal Ecology: Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and Surrounding Waters
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CASBI 260 and CASMA 213 or consent of instructor; enrollment in the BU Marine Semester. - Marine macrofauna, from macrobenthos to whales, seals, seabirds, sharks, bony fishes, turtles, jellies, and humans in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Sail aboard research vessel "Auk" and become a participant in SBNMS research to understand life in the Gulf of Maine. Apply data collected to marine biodiversity conservation and sustainable resource management. Student research helps to invent the science of coupled human and natural systems, mines ecosystem insights for Sanctuary operations, and guides deployment of the new kid on the block: offshore renewable energy.
• CAS BI 548: Marine Microbial Ecology: Exploring Marine Microbes through Microscopy
  Microorganisms are the most abundant form of life in the ocean. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) is a critical tool that uses sequencing to develop a deeper sense of specific microbe roles in an ecosystem. This project-based course weaves together scientific background, analytical tools, and data processing and analysis. Students gain insight into the complexity and importance of marine microbial communities. With lab-based FISH projects, students design and conduct an adaptive set of experiments. Through computational data analysis, students turn raw data into usable results.
• CAS BI 550: Marine Genomics
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CASBI 108 or equivalent. - Covers the evolution of genomes, the architecture of gene networks, and the connection between genotype and phenotype in marine organisms, as well as the technical development of modern genomics. Student research projects utilize modern genomics experimental approaches. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Teamwork/Collaboration.
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  • Teamwork/Collaboration
• CAS BI 551: Biology of Stem Cells
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: (CASBI203 OR CASBI206) , or consent of instructor. - Views on stem cell research range from assumptions of a potential cure for most diseases to fears that it will depreciate the value of human life. This course equips students with the science that underlies this discussion, including the biological properties of stem cells and the experimental hurdles to utilization in regenerative medicine.