Instructor: Dr. David A. Johnson; Samford Office: PH 231 (also try 237 or 239); E-mail: djohnso2@samford.edu; Samford Phone: ex. 2845; Spring 2013 Office Hours: http://www2.samford.edu/~djohnso2/officehours2013spring.pdf

Course Home Page: http://www2.samford.edu/~djohnso2/44962w/london/
Handouts and and all class materials will be available on this web site. Please check this site regularly for important course information.

Text and Readings: We will be reading original publications (where possible) of famed British experts in biology and medicine. These will be supplemented with some background reading material. These will include original articles by the following: the discoverer of a vaccine for smallpox (Jenner), the discoverer of the circulation of blood (Harvey); the person who coined the word "cell" to describe the basic unit of life (Hooke), the originators of the theory of evolution (Darwin and Wallace), the principle proponent of sterile technique in surgery (Lister), the discoverer of penicillin (Fleming), and the discovers of the DNA double helix (Watson and Crick).

About the Course: In this course, we will explore the key role British investigators have played in the development of modern biology and medicine. Class sessions will include some traditional lectures (to fill you in on some necessary biological background), but will primarily consist of discussion of readings and local field trips.

Course Objectives:

1. To identify the British who have significantly contributed to our understanding of the life sciences and the modern practice of medicine;
   
2. To gain an understanding of how these scientists reached their conclusions;
   
3. To place these contributions in the historical context of the thinking of their contemporaries;
   
4. To gain an understanding of the impact of these contributions on current practices in biology and medicine, relating this to the role of the British in world history and the way these discoveries were communicated to the scientific community; and
   
5. To gain an understanding of how journalism and mass communication was used to educate the general public about these discoveries.
   

Evaluation: Your grade will be based on:

1. Class Participation (30%): You will be expected to keep up with assigned readings and participate in the class discussions and to attend and actively participate in field trips.
   
2. Writing Assignments (70%): There will be two types of writing assignments:
• Reports on Field Trips and other Assignments (20%): You will be given a guide on recording and presenting observations made during our field trips.
• Major Paper on One or More Discoveries or Individuals (50%): Your major paper will cover more deeply one or more individuals or discoveries. In this paper, you are encouraged to not only cover the details of the discovery, but to relate these to your interest and field of study. Be sure to have the topic of your major paper approved and feel free to ask for advice and submit any rough drafts you wish (rough-drafts submission not required). NOTE: Additional or more detailed writing assignments may be required for those receiving other than general education credit for this course. For example:
• For students in Journalism and Mass Communication, this report will emphasize how the discovery information was disseminated to the general public and/or to the general scientific/medical community and the role of journalism and mass communication in this process;
• For students in History, this report will obviously take a British-history centric approach in describing the importance of discoveries;
• For students in Sociology, this report should center on how the history of medicine in Britain has impacted the current British health care system, comparing that system to the United States system.
• For scientific methods students, the report will demonstrate how the scientific method was used (or maybe should have been used?) in the discoveries.
  
• For students in the sciences, the report will emphasize the scientific aspect of the discoveries.
• Due 4/29/2014
  

Grading: ≥93% = A; ≥90% = A-; ≥87% = B+; ≥83% = B; ≥80% = B-; ≥77% = C+; ≥73% = C; ≥70% = C-; ≥67% = D+; ≥63% = D; ≥60% = D-

Course Outline:

Disability Accommodation: If you are registered with Disability Resources and have your accommodation letter, please make an appointment with Anne R. Sherman as soon as possible to discuss accommodations that may be necessary. If you have a disability but have not contacted Disability Resources, please call 726-2980/4078 or visit DR located within Career Development, Room 205 of the University Center. Students who may need course accommodations are welcome to make an appointment to see Anne R. Sherman during office hours. Students with disabilities must be registered with Disability Resources, 726-2980/4078 and must have received an accommodation letter before beginning to receive academic adjustments.

The Communication Resource Center (CRC) offers free tutoring for Samford students in oral, written, and mediated communication, as well as support for developing and improving critical reading skills. The CRC is in Brooks 222. Hours are posted at the start of each semester at http://www.samford.edu/crc/. Sessions last from 10-30 minutes, and appointments are not required.

Academic Integrity: Samford's policy on academic integrity will be upheld in this course. This policy (below) is quoted from the first page of the "Academic Life" page of Samford's Student Handbook (http://www.samford.edu/studenthandbook/).
  A degree from Samford University is evidence of achievement in scholarship and citizenship. Activities and attitudes should be consistent with high academic standards and Christian commitment, and should be in keeping with the philosophy and mission of the university. When a student is found guilty of dishonesty in academic work, for a first offense, the student will be placed on probation, and the professor will receive a recommendation that the student receive an "FX" in the course. Any student already on probation who is found guilty of dishonesty again automatically will be suspended.
Faculty Statement on Academic Dishonesty
   Students, upon enrollment, enter into voluntary association with Samford University. They must be willing to observe high standards of intellectual integrity; they must respect knowledge and practice academic honesty. Those who cheat on an examination or class assignment are not only academically dishonest, but also completely deficient in the scholarly maturity necessary for college study.
Value Violations
   An academic integrity value violation is defined as the act of lying, cheating or stealing academic information to gain academic advantage for oneself or another. As a Samford University student, one is expected neither to commit nor assist another in committing an academic integrity value violation. Additionally, it is the student's responsibility to report observed academic integrity violations. Violations of the Academic Integrity Values Statement include, but are not limited to:
Taking Information
   1) Copying graded assignments   2) Working together on a take-home test or assignments when specifically prohibited by the professor
   3) Looking at another student's paper during an exam   3) Looking at your notes when prohibited
   4) Acquiring a term paper written by someone else   5) Taking an exam out of the classroom when prohibited
   5) Removing resource material from the University Library without authorization
Tendering Information
   1) Giving your work to another to be copied   2) Giving someone answers to exam questions during the exam
   3) After taking an exam, informing a person of questions that appeared on the exam   4) Giving or selling a term paper or class work to another student
Plagiarism
   1) Copying homework answers from your text and handing them in for a grade
   2) Quoting text or other works on an exam, term paper or homework without citing the source
   3) Submitting a paper purchased from a term paper service or acquired from any Internet source   4) Submitting another's paper/project as your own
   5)Taking a paper from an organization's files and handing it in as your own
Conspiracy
   1) Planning with one or more students to commit a violation of the Academic Integrity Values Statement
   2) Giving your term paper/project to another student who you know will plagiarize
Misrepresentation
   1) Having another person do your computer program, course project or lab experiment   2) Lying to a professor to increase your grade