This is the second term of a three-term sequence designed to introduce students to major concepts and topics of biology. This course is also designed to show how biology relates to every other discipline and to everyday life. We will look at the abiotic origins of life, the basic Darwinian evolution and its current modifications, the current models of the origin of species, and as a contextual element, population genetics and the changes of allele frequencies over time, for that is really the heart of evolution.
Evolution makes no sense except in the light of genetics.
We will also look at how to define a species in a historical context, from the ancient Greeks all the way to contemporary times. Finally, we will look at classification schemes and the diversity of living organisms. This year, we will also look at the attempts of the literal creationists to place religious dogma in science classrooms, and ask whether creationism in its strict sense is science.