SYLLABUS

Date: Fall, 2005 Instructors: Michael Boyle; boyle@juniata.edu; x3553

1076 Von Liebig ( Research lab Von Liebig L165 in basement) Donald M. Braxton; braxton@juniata.edu; x3530 204 Good Hall Webpage: http://faculty.juniata.edu/braxton/

Class Time: MW 10-12 Office Hours: Braxton - TTh 10-12; W, 1-3 VLB 1022 Boyle – M .W 1-3. F 8-10

Course

IC 203: Genomics, Ethics, and Culture

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course fulfills the objectives established for all IC classes. It prepares you to understand and analyze culture. It enables you to think critically about major patterns, and movements in culture from a variety of perspectives including scientific, economic, ethical, political, and environmental vantage points. The materials you read will present you with many of the principal assumptions and ideas ambient in contemporary American culture.

Specific to this class are a range of objectives associated with its particular problem domain. These objectives include, but

are not limited to, the following: To understand the basic content of modern genomicsTo learn to situate modern genomics in larger cultural contextsTo learn to master a basic range of ethical theoryTo conduct research on selected problemsTo apply ethical theories to particular case studies

COURSE FORMAT AND GOALS

The course will be structured into a number of learning formats (M 10-12 and W 10-12). Early in the semester the focus will be on mastering the knowledge base of the modern study of genetics and the resources of ethical theory. Therefore, the format will be largely lecture. From mid-semester until the end of the semester, the course will be structured around specific cases studies. This approach is called Problem-Based Learning (PBL). You will be presented with a specific scenario at the intersection of modern genetic knowledge, American cultural values, and ethical quandaries. You will be given a series of background lectures to help orient you in the topic. You will then be

expected to conduct investigations (both in the library and on the web) to formulate a response strategy to the problem you face.

PBL is designed to achieve two goals: first, you are to acquire the knowledge necessary to adequately address a particular ethical concern raised by genetics; second, you are to develop learning skills such that you can enter into a novel problem environment, assess its features, and evolve a learning strategy so you can eventually offer solutions.

REQUIRED TEXTS

The following texts are required:

LeRoi, MutantsBuchanan, et. al., From Chance to Choice

For non-scientists who are concerned about the genetics component of the course the primer entitled How the human genome works by Edwin McConkey is recommended.

Important websites.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genome/guide/human/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

http://cgap.nci.nih.gov/Genes

http://cgap-mf.nih.gov/BtoB/BtoBSampleManagement.html

http://www.restrictionmapper.org/links.htm

http://www.ornl.gov/TechResources/Human_Genome/home.html

Additional reading materials:

Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters Baker Catherine. Your genes your choices: exploring the issues raised by genetic research.

These books are on order in the bookstore.

EXPECTATIONS OF THE STUDENT

1. Class Attendance and Participation - You will be expected to attend all sessions of the course having read the assignments in advance of the meeting time. The course will consist mostly of teacher-led discussions. The quality of our class time will depend significantly on your contribution to the conversations. Since part of your academic training is in the ability to speak well in public, all participants are evaluated in part on their willingness to state opinions and to respond to others. Those persons who are especially proficient at speaking in public will need to restrain from dominating the conversations. And those persons who are shy by nature will need to overcome their reservations to give their input into the class. Class participation will directly influence your final grades.

2. Tests: There will be two tests in this class. The midterm will take place prior to Fall Break. The final will occur during the assigned time of exam week.

3. PBL Cases: Every student will be responsible for submitting reports on their research on each of the five PBL cases. Each report will contain an analysis of the case, a list of relevant data sources the student has discovered, and a moral argument regarding the case. Each case report must be typed doubled spaced and 4 pages in length

4. Debate: At the end of the semester three topics will be debated. For these debates, students will be assigned to a team to argue for or against a proposition that will require moral reasoning and an understanding of scientific technology.. Participation is mandatory and will be calculated into final grades. The broader campus community will be encouraged to attend these sessions.

5. Analysis of Text: Outside of class and by the time of the midsemester break, you are to read the historical survey, Mutants. Immediately after the midsemester break, we will allot a 1-hour time slot for discussion of the text. On the basis of this discussion and your own reading of the text, you are to write a 6 page paper in response to the following question:

In light of the history of human responses to mutation in our species, how ought society to react to variety in the human form in the future? Pay particular attention to the idea of seeking perfection through altering the human genome first addressed by LeRoi (p. 17) and then more concretely investigated in

the chapter “Anthropometamorphosis” at the end (pp. 335-358). In the future with more knowledge of and control over the human genome, how will we decide what constitutes beauty and health, normal and supernormal intelligence, adequate and exemplary athletic prowess, what constitutes a normal life span, and a host of other questions. How does this historical study of the variability of the human form help you to understand the social and cultural dynamics we are likely to face in the future?

6. Weekly journal: During the first week of class the students will write a short essay (1-2 typed double spaced pages) describing why they are taking the class and what they expect to gain from the course. Each week thereafter , up to an including the week of Thanksgiving, students will identify one news story each week that has direct relevance to some aspect of the course. Each student will provide a critique (1-2 typed double spaced pages) of the selected news story

explaining its relevance to the course and determining if it falls into a scientific, ethical or public policy issue. The analysis of the article should include as appropriate an assessment of the reliability of the information, evidence for any bias from the author and identification of any word or phrase use that deliberately or subtly underscores a particular viewpoint or opinion. Each of these writing assignments are to be submitted electronically before the Tuesday class each week. Prior to the last week of class each student will submit a journal containing a copy of each news story, and critique as well as a reflective essay (1-2 pages) on the relevance of the course to evaluating current affairs as reflected in the stories selected during the semester. This weekly journal will be worth 15% of your final grade appropriately source referenced, as well as a 500 word explanation as to the relevance of the article to the course an explanation as to why the particular item was selected.

7. Academic Integrity: Academic integrity is expected of all students, and students as well as faculty have a role in upholding it.

Falling into the category of breach of integrity would be such infractions as cheating, plagiarism, collusion and fabrication/falsification of records. Consult your Student Handbooks for further details. Infractions will be handled according to College policy.

All significant due dates will be noted in the course schedule. All assignments are to be typed and double-spaced.

GRADING

1. Grades will be the result of the following components:

Midterm 12.5%Final 12.5%Book Analysis 10%PBL component (5) 30% (6% for each exercise.*)Journal 15%Debate 5%Class participation 15% Total 100 %

* The PBL grade will consist of three components; Quality of written report. Peer –evaluation. Facilitator evaluation.

Grades are awarded according to the following scale.

A indicates work of the highest excellence, showing a superior grasp of content as well as independent and creative thinking in the subject.

B signifies unusual achievement wherein the student reveals exceptional insight and ability.

C is given for satisfactory achievement on the college level where the work in the course has been conscientious and shows no considerable deficiency in either quality or quantity.

D indicates that the work in the course is below the quality normally expected for college work, but is only marginally so.

F signifies work which is distinctly unsatisfactory at the college level.

The above grades may be qualified by the use of a plus(+) or a minus(-).

Failure to meet a deadline for any assignment will result in the loss of one letter grade per day overdue on that assignment.

Evaluation of the course.This course is a new IC offering and like all courses can be improved. As part of our efforts as instructors evaluating the effectiveness of the course and determining what works and doesn’t work, we are asking you to participate in a classroom research study of teaching effectiveness.

The purpose of this research is to evaluate your learning experience within the course Genomics, Ethics and Society. The procedures of this research may involve your participation in surveys, interviews, taping and focus groups. Participation in these activities is voluntary and will have no influence on your grade in the course.

After you agree to participate (by signing the informed consent form) you will be asked to complete the online survey at the following URL to access the instrument:     http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/salgains/stu/default.asp

You will need the following information to access the site:

Course ID: 563

Course Password: eagles

Student ID:Your e mail address without the

@juniata.edu

At the end of the course you will be asked to complete a similar survey. Your assigned name will only be used to compare an individual’s pre to post test responses to evaluated gains in learning. The data will be collected and analyzed by computer and when compiled the ability to determine a specific individual response to any question will be eliminated. This experimental design is being used to protect your identify and to enable you to answer all questions freely and honestly. The survey test should take 10 -15 minutes to complete.

You are under no obligation to participate in this study and your decision to participate or not will have no effect on your grade or the amount of work you are expected to do in the course.

Thank you for helping us to evaluate the effectiveness of this course.

Class Schedule and Reading AssignmentsIn addition to assigned readings for class you should be reading Mutants early in the course to allow you time to write your paper. Anticipate completion of the text by midsemester.

During the first two weeks of the course you need to become familiar with some genomic terminology. The required vocabulary is found at:

http://www.genome.gov/page.cfm?pageID=10002096

Interestingly, this is a talking vocabulary which will compensate for any foreign or different pronunciation that may at times be used by one or more of your instructors!

FCC = From Chance to Choice

Week Day First hour Second hour

Week 1

 

Mon., Aug 29

Truncated Class Period; Survey(12:00-12:50)

 

Wed., Aug 31

Intro to Molecular Biology: Boyle Intro to Gen-ethics: Braxton FCC, pp. 1-9;

22-24Week 2

 Mon., Sep 5

DNA Replication/Mendel: Boyle http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/resource/people.shtml

Eugenics: Background and Analysis: Braxton FCC, pp. 27-60

 Wed., Sep 7

The Human Genome: Boyle(http://www.ornl.gov/TechResources/Human_Genome/project/about.html)

Distributive Justice and the Level Playing Field: Braxton FCC, pp. 61-68; 79-82

Week 3

 

Mon., Sep 12

HHMI lecture: Ladner (http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/) Gattica I

 

Wed., Sep 14

Malleability of Human Nature: Braxton FCC, pp. 82-9o Gattica II

Week 4

 

Mon., Sep. 19

Human Experimentation + web exercise: Boyle (http://cme.nci.nih.gov/)

Freedom, Morality, and Genetic Intervention: Braxton FCC, pp. 90-103

 

Wed., Sep 21

Microarrays and Disease: Boyle (http://www.ornl.gov/ORNLReview/v30n3-4/genome.htm) HHMI Lecture: Boyle

Week 5

 

Mon., Sep. 26

Introduction to Problem Based Learning (PBL) PBL Case # 1 Introduction: Deaf Child

 

Wed., Sep 28 Tutorial in Library Research PBL Case # 1 Discussion: Deaf Child

Week 6

 

Mon., Oct. 3

Collection and Evaluation of Data: Boyle PBL Case # 1 Conclusion: Deaf Child

 

Wed., Oct. 5

Bioinfomatics + Web Exercise: Boyle

Moral Distinctions btw Treatment and Enhancement: Braxton FCC, pp. 104-118, 152-155

Week 7

 

Mon., Oct. 10

 

Wed., Oct 12 Midsemester Exam