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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.

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  • CAS AR 591: Theory in Archaeology
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: at least two archaeological studies courses at the 200 level or above, senior status, or consent of instructor. - Seminar dealing with the intellectual history of the discipline, research methods, concepts, and problems in archaeological theory, and the formulation of research designs. Effective Fall 2024 fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Critical Thinking, Global Citizenship, Social Inquiry II.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
    • Social Inquiry II
  • CAS AR 592: Archaeological Ethics and Law
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: junior standing or consent of instructor. - In this course students examine archaeology and professional ethics; archaeology as public interest; legal organization of archaeology; international approaches to heritage management; looting, collecting and the antiquities market; maritime law and underwater archaeology; cultural resource management in the United States. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Ethical Reasoning.
    • Ethical Reasoning
  • CAS AR 594: Scientific Applications in Archaeology
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) and AR 307, or graduate standing. - Seminar exploring new ways of addressing archaeological questions through the application of scientific techniques, focusing on cutting-edge methodologies and the most recent literature in the field. Students pursue questions of individual interest through readings, discussions, presentations, and research papers. 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, Social Inquiry II.
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Social Inquiry II
    • Writing-Intensive Course
  • CAS AR 595: Professional Futures in Archaeology
    A degree in archaeology can get you in the door at museums, the National Park Service, US Customs and other federal agencies, research laboratories, international NGO's, organizations focused on international art law, historical site management, heritage tourism -- and more. For such careers, you need skills that allow you to build on your understanding of archaeological remains and techniques, communicate to a wider public, and create pathways that link subjects and remains of the past to interests and needs in the present. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas Oral and/or Signed Communication, Ethical Reasoning, Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS BB 522: Molecular Biology Laboratory
    Introduction to techniques of molecular biology research, including analysis of DNA, RNA, and protein molecules by techniques such as restriction enzyme digestions, PCR, subcloning, DNA sequencing and analysis, reporter gene assays, protein-protein interactions, and culturing and yeast molecular biology. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following Teamwork/Collaboration, Creativity/Innovation.
    • Creativity/Innovation
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS BB 527: Biochemistry Laboratory 1
    Undergraduate prerequisites: CASCH 204 OR CASCH 212 OR CASCH 214 OR CASCH 282. Emphasizes the purification and characterization of proteins and DNA. Development and use of modern instrumentation and techniques. Same as laboratory portion of CASBB 421. Required for BMB students enrolled concurrently in MMEDIC. Four hours lab, one hour lecture. Effective Fall 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS BB 528: Biochemistry Laboratory 2
    Undergraduate prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) AND CASBB 421 or CASBB 527. Emphasizes protein, carbohydrate, nucleic acid, and lipid chemistry. Development and use of modern instrumentation and techniques. Four hours lab, one hour discussion. Same as laboratory portion of CASBB 422. Required for BMB students enrolled concurrently in MMEDIC. Four hours lab, one hour lecture. Effective Spring 2025, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU HUB area: Writing-Intensive.
    • Writing-Intensive Course
  • CAS BB 592: Graduate Research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: admission to the combined BA/MA Biotechnology Program. - Continuation of the laboratory research project initiated in CAS BB 591, under supervision of a faculty member. Externships are acceptable if approved and overseen by a BMB faculty member or the BMB Director. Minimum of 15 hours per week in the lab, culminating in a presentation at the BMB symposium. Effective Spring 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Creativity/Innovation.
    • Creativity/Innovation
    • Digital/Multimedia Expression
  • CAS BB 622: Biochemistry 2
    Undergraduate prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) AND CASBB 421 or equivalent.- Cell metabolism, with special emphasis on the uptake of food materials, the integration and regulation of catabolic, anabolic, and anaplerotic routes, and the generation and utilization of energy. Lectures include consideration of intermediary metabolism in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms with clinical correlations. Three hours lecture, one hour pre-lab discussion, four hours lab. Effective Spring 2025 this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Research and Information Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration, Creativity/Innovation.
    • Creativity/Innovation
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
    • Writing-Intensive Course
  • 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.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • 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.

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