This class explores the evolutionary roots of humanity. It is intended to provide a foundation in how the scientific method can reveal aspects of our ancestry, using the fossil record of early humans, the behavior of living primates, and the behavior of living hunter-gatherer people. The course is a lecture format with a weekly lab and a field project. The core of this course is Darwinian theory, and all components of it. These principles explain how an ape ancestor evolved and diversified over 5 million years, leading to modern homosapiens.

Readings and Assignments:
Texts: Boyd and Silk: How Humans Evolved
Physical Anthropology Reader
Goodall: Through a Window
Plus other supplemental readings and much hands-on work in TA-run labs.

Note: The readings and assignments list may be subject to change. Please contact the department for verification.

Top of Page

BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE 102Lg
Humans and their Environment
Professors Kiefer & Perkings
TTh, 2:00 - 3:20

The goals of this course are to teach ecological and evolutionary principles that control the size and species composition of populations plant species buy also the human population. We will see how the activities of humans have modified and destroyed natural communities, and how the human population is itself ultimately constrained by these principles. Each week the course material is presented in two 80-minute lectures and is discussed in one 120 minute discussion group. The discussion group also includes local field trips, a computer lab devoted to population dynamics, and several laboratory studies. Grades are based upon examinations, papers, and participation during the discussion group. This course explores principle of energy and material transformations, genetics, evolution, and ecology.

Readings and Assignments:
Reading assignments are in Audesirk and Audesirk, "Life on Earth," and in Goldfarb, "Taking Sides." The field trips are made to the Los Angeles Natural History Museum and the Page Museum. The laboratory studies explore natural selection and predator prey interactions. Students are required to write short papers on the articles from Goldfarb, their field trips, and their laboratory studies.

Note: The readings and assignments list may be subject to change. Please contact the department for verification.

Top of Page

The following course description belongs to Professor Appleman.

BISC 150L is designed to bring students to a level of understanding of modern Biomedical Science that will enable them to make rational decisions on personal, ethical, and political issues in health and disease. This level will be reached through lectures, reading of texts and news media, discussions, and laboratory experiments. Topics include:
* The molecular and cellular nature of man
* Nutrition, aestherosclerosis, and osteoporosis
* Human genetics and genetic diseases
* Cancer, its treatment and its prevention
* Infection and the immune response
* HIV, HIV therapy, and AIDS
* Neurology and mental disease

BISC 150Lg is a participatory course. Frequent lecture exercises will encourage students to take ethical and social positions on health issues; critical assignments will allow students to evaluate public and media views on controversial subjects; a research project will lead students to become true experts on a subject of their choice; and laboratory experiments will give an appreciation of modern biotechnology. Examinations, which count for about one third of the course grade, will be open-book.

Please contact the department for the readings and assignments list.

Top of Page

CHEMISTRY 203Lg
Chemistry in Life: AIDS Drug Discovery and Development
Professor McKenna
TTh, 11:00 - 12:20

The course description belongs to Professor McKenna and is subject to change upon acknowledgement of the assigned course instructor.

"Chemistry in Life" is a friendly new category IV GE course designed for "non"-science majors. However, students interested in health sciences (medicine, pharmacy, dentistry will find it interesting as well as business (entrepreneurism and biotechnology companies), law, social sciences and humanities students; undeclared majors are also welcomed (the first class, given F / 97 included cinema and exercise science majors, among others). The focus of the course is the science underlying new AIDS drugs. 'Real world' aspects are also covered: how a drug is synthesized and tested, patent issues, economics of bringing a drug to the marketplace, how drugs are approved for human use. The course itself provides the necessary chemistry and other scientific background which is introduced on an as-needed, "just-in-time" basis. A multimedia snapshot of the course is currently available at the Chemistry 203Lg Website. Prospective students are encouraged to explore this site (for a quick overview, try the Chemistry 203Lg FAQ).

Students are guided through the amazing new molecular technology which is revolutionizing medicine, with focus on the science underlying new anti-viral agents or diagnostic reagents, from drug design to clinical use. The course adopts a multidisciplinary approach, integrating different scientific principles to explore how effective drugs have been developed against AIDS, a disease which was only clearly recognized 15 years ago.

Readings and Assignments:
A multimedia snapshot of this course is currently available at the Chemistry 203Lg Website. The Website lists the text and includes outline notes for the entire course. The course makes extensive use of the World Wide Web to find information resources. A virtual lab (computer-based) is included which provides every student with a hands-on tutorial on:
1) how to use a computer interface with the Web;
2) how to find medical and other scientific information on the Web;
3) how to locate specific drugs and drug makers on the Web; and much else. In addition, the course features several guest lectures by experts who provide current perspectives on course topics.

Top of Page

EXERCISE SCIENCE 205Lg
The Science of Human Performance
Professor Girandola
MWF, 10:00 - 10:50

Please contact department for course description.

Top of Page

GEOGRAPHY 165Lg
The Atmospheric Environment
Professor Bauer
TTh, 12:30 - 1:50

Please contact department for course description.

Top of Page

GEOGRAPHY 260Lg
Natural Hazards
Professor Wilson
TTh, 9:30 - 10:50

The following course description belongs to Professor Gillerman.

The environment has always posed risks to its human inhabitants. While we may pride ourselves on just how far civilization has progressed in protecting us from the varieties of the physical world, we cannot escape the nagging worry that natural disasters seem to be impacting greater numbers of people and greater amounts of property than ever before. This course will provide an introduction to extreme geophysical and atmospheric events inquiring into the scientific nature of these phenomena as well as their time/space distribution. Methodologies for analyzing these events will be discussed and students will have the opportunity to make their own measurements and analysis through laboratory exercises. As different disaster typologies are developed in class consideration of structural and nonstructural modifications and mitigation will be developed and students will develop an appreciation of how and why some strategies seem to ameliorate effects of hazards while others seemingly exacerbate the situation.

This course is designed to explore the interrelationship between science and technology by focusing on a related set of natural hazard phenomena including geophysical events (earthquake, volcanism, mass movement, and coastal zone erosion) and atmospheric events (hurricanes, tornadoes and flooding) as well as fire. How society has, continues to and will attempt to cope with these events is clearly a major thrust of this course.

Readings and Assignments:
Students will be evaluated through three midterms (half the course credit), a research paper (20% of the course credit) and an interrelated series of 10 laboratory exercises (30% of the course credit.) A laboratory manual plus two textbooks are required.

Note: Please contact the department for the readings and assignments list.

Top of Page

This course introduces students to the evolving science, technology, and applications of Geographic Information Systems. These methods are increasingly used to advance scientific knowledge of the natural and built environments, and they have been applied to problems of water supply, soil water distribution, erosion and deposition, non-point source pollution, crop yield and growth, and ecological modeling. The lab assignments provide "hands-on" exposure to computer processing of environmental information with a variety of GIS software packages.

Required Text:
Clarke K.C. (1999) Getting Started with Geographic Information Systems (2nd edition). Upper Saddle Creek, NJ, Prentice Hall. 338p.

Grading:
Laboratory Assignments (10 total) 40%
Mid-term Exam                   20%
Final Exam                           40%

Note: Please contact the department for the readings and assignments list.

Top of Page

GEOLOGY 125Lg
Earth History: A Planet and Its Evolution
Professor Hammond
MWF, 9:00 - 9:50

Our planet has a history extending back over 4.5 billion years. The objective of this course is to use basic principles of physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics to decipher clues to this history that have been written in the rock record. A weekly laboratory section will emphasize skills in observation and analysis of data. A field trip will be required to visit rocks in their habitat. Through this effort we gain an appreciation of the processes that have shaped our planet. An emphasis will be placed on observational phenomena and differentiating between competing hypotheses. I will assume that the students may have had minimal exposure to science in high school and have not previously taken a college science course. We will discuss questions such as: Where did the earth come from? How and why does our planet differ from others? Why did life emerge from the sea? Why did the dinosaurs die? Will California fall into the Ocean? Will our climate change? Why do earthquakes occur?

Note: The course's most current information is available through the instructor's website.

Top of Page

GEOLOGY 150Lg
Climate Change
Professor Poulsen
MWF, 10:00 - 10:50

Is the Earth warming? Does it really matter? Climate influences all aspects of Earth's environment and plays a critical role in our economic vitality. Since the Industrial Revolution and the widespread combustion of fossil fuels, humanity has been conducting a global climate experiment. There continues to be considerable scientific debate and public confusion about the impact of this experiment on Earth's climate, even though the record of increasing greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere is well established. It is also well known that Earth's climate experiences natural climate variability that would occur regardless of anthropogenic pollution. The geological record teaches us that the past climate change happened abruptly and had dramatic effects on Earth's biota. It also indicates that Earth's climate has varied tremendously from a global snowball to a global sauna... and, yet, here we are.

Understanding how the climate system varies and learning to make reasoned decisions about future climate change is important to function as a member of modern society. This course is designed to provide you with an introduction to the science of climate change. In this course, we will examine how the climate system operates. We will investigate records of past climate on Earth ranging from the time of early life through the time of the dinosaurs, to the dawn of man. We will evaluate the impact of climate change on biological, sociological and economic systems on Earth. And, we will examine some of the controversial aspects of potential future climate change, including global warming and the greenhouse effect.

The laboratory portion of the class is intended to help you understand the complexity of the climate system, how it operates, and to what extent it is susceptible to change. Laboratory assignments are designed to provide a hands-on experience with the science of climate change. They also provide an opportunity to participate in the development and testing of scientific hypotheses. In the laboratory, you will analyze climate data and  use this data to make your own predictions about climate change. You will also examine case studies of climate events to learn how they impacted life, societies, and economies. Towards the end of the course, you will  be asked to form work groups (of approximately 5 people) to conduct a research project. The purpose of the project is to investigate a climate event. You can use all the resources you've learned in the class to document as much about the this climate event or process as possible. The group will present its findings during the last week of  class.  

Required Texts:
* Atmosphere, Climate and Change, by T. Graedel and P. Crutzen
* The Atmosphere 8th ed., F. Lutgens and E. Tarbuck
* Lab Manual: The Atmosphere 8th ed., C. Carbone

Grading: The course grade is based on a total point scale of 500 points. There are two midterm exams (100 points each). The laboratory portion of the class is worth 150 points. Group Reports are 50 points. The final exam is worth 150 points.

Note: For the most recent course syllabus, see the instructor's website.

Top of Page

GEOLOGY 240Lg
Earthquakes
Professor Sammis
TTh, 12:30 - 1:50

In this course we explore earthquakes, volcanoes, seismic Sea Waves, and participate in a thorough discussion on the physical principles and their impacts to the human society, as well as how we cope with these hazards.

Note: Please contact the department for the reading and assignments list.

Top of Page

LINGUISTICS 275Lg
Language and Mind
Professor Byrd
TTh, 12:30 - 2:00

LING 275 is an introduction to language as a cognitive science. It is a course team-taught by a linguist and a psychologist, using multi-media lectures. In addition to exploring a variety of topics in speech and in language processing, students are introduced to the use of computers in the scientific analysis of spoken language.

Topics include: speech and hearing physiology, acoustics, language acquisition, the structure, perception, and reading of words, linguistic diversity in signed and spoken languages, language representation in the brain and associated disorders, and speech technology.

Please see the course website and on-line syllabus at: http://www-rcf.usc.edu/~dbyrd/ling275.index

Top of Page

LINGUISTICS 275Lg
Language and Mind
Professor Anderson
TTh, 2:00 - 3:20

Please contact the department for course description.

Top of Page

PHYSICS 200Lg
The Physics and Technology of Energy: Keeping the Motor Running
Professor Wagner
MWF, 9:00 - 9:50

This general education course is designed for the non-physics major with little, if any, previous background in the sciences and mathematics. This is an evolving course, and this semester its laboratory component will include not only experiments, in which your participation will give you a better understanding of measurements and quantitative reasoning, but also some computer simulations.

The central topic of this course is energy. Everybody has some idea of what the word energy means. For those who saw the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, in 1984, energy seemed to be best represented by Mary Lou Retton, a sixteen year old athlete who became the first American woman to win a gold medal in gymnastics by achieving two perfect scores in the final events. That idea of energy is in common use, but in this course we shall restrict the meaning somewhat. One early goal of this course is to develop an intuitive sense of what energy is -- from the physicist's perspective. Another goal, supplementing that intuitive sense, is to understand the numbers and units involved in dealing scientifically and technologically with energy. Numbers play an important role because the scale of the energy needed to keep out society is huge. (How much of the nation's energy supply does a supertanker sitting in San Pedro represent?) Commercially, energy is measured in strange units - barrels of oil, tons of coal, cubic meters of gas, megawatt hours of electricity, etc., and we need to know the implied assumptions involved in converting such units to a universal standard, such as scientific units.

Another goal of the course is to understand "the energy problem". Physicists insist that "energy is conserved" as a law of nature, so why to individuals, groups, organizations, nations, and trans-national bodies devote so much attention to the "energy problem"? The most important goal may be to understand why the "energy problem" has not only scientific and technological components, but also economic and political components. There are interesting technological and fundamental scientific aspects of "the energy problem" that should be understood by all who wish to participate in the formulation of energy policies. In this vein, we need to address the consequences of energy transformations, such as depletion of resources and the generation of pollution.

Texts
* Aubrecht, Gordon J. Energy, 2nd edition. Prentice Hall.

Grading
* 2 Midterms: 25 % (12.5% each)
* Final: 25%
* Homework: 15%
* Lab: 20%
* Quizzes: 15%