Final Exam Office Hours

Albert will have office hours for the final exam on

• Monday May 2nd from 2:30 to 3:30pm in University Hall 2-005 and
• Tuesday May 3rd from 1 to 2pm also in University Hall 2-005.

And Winnie will have office hours on

• Friday, April 29th from 2:15 to 4:15pm in University Hall 2-129.

Drop by with your questions on material we’ve covered and/or old exam questions.

End of Semester Plans: Final Exam & Final Project

Here’s how we’ll plan to proceed as we near the end of the semester:

• May 4, last day of class: Final Exam (cumulative, with emphasis on topics more recently covered)
• May 9: Final Project Due (via email by 10pm)

Final Project Guidelines

To wrap up the semester, you’ll be investigating the work of a scientist currently doing biology-related research or a breakthrough in the field of Biology that has occurred within the past 3 – 5 years. Whether you choose to focus on a scientist or breakthrough, gather the following to work on your project:

• 5 Sources of Information 
• 4 Images 
• 3 Key Concepts vital to what the scientist’s work or the breakthrough
• 2 Important Events involved in the scientist’s work or in arriving at the breakthrough
• The One Big Thing that matters, e.g. what is the major contribution being made, or what is the future application?

Use these to prepare a short presentation consisting of 3 slides that convey the most important points. 

Exam 2 Stats

Average: 44.5
Standard Deviation: 13
Highest Score: 62.5

Middle of the A range: 57.5
Middle of the B range: 44.5
Middle of the C range: 31.5

Suggested Event on April 29th and 30th: The Molecularization of Identity

There’s an amazing interdisciplinary workshop being hosted by the Harvard Kennedy School of Government that you may be interested in attending. Below is the description from its website. You can also look for more Biology-related events listed on this website. And remember, the Cambridge Science Festival, which kicks off today, also has a number of events you can consider.

The Molecularization of Identity: Science and Subjectivity in the 21st Century

April 29-30, 2016, 9:00am-6:00pm
Day 1: Nye A, 5th Floor, Taubman Building, HKS; Day 2: Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building, HKS

ABSTRACT
Recent advances in biological and computational technologies are changing the way we imagine race, gender, kinship, citizenship, and disease risk. Existing taxonomies may be displaced or reconfigured, impacting the ways in which people are governed, how lives are lived, how groups are known, and how power is exercised. Drawing upon the tools and expertise from multiple disciplines and geographical regions, and with specific attention to the material and lived dimensions of these developments, this symposium interrogates the complex ways in which the molecular realm is an emerging site for constituting human identities in the 21st century.

On Apr. 13th, class ends at 5PM

so that you can attend the 6PM talk Mammals on the Move if you would like to do so. Please be advised that the location of this talk is Northwest Building, Hall B103, 52 Oxford St. (which is different from the location of last week’s talk).

Here is the optional reading on genetic engineering for April 13th:

• EO Wilson’s Life on Earth section 13.5
• OpenStax Biology section 17.1
• Biology by Raven section 17.4

On Apr. 6th, class ends at 5PM…

so that you can attend the 6PM talk The Evolution of Darwin’s Finches on the Galápagos Islands at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, if you would like. Not only does this talk directly connect with the evolution part of our course this semester, but you may also it for the biology-related talk/event you’ve been asked to attend for course credit. If you attend, take good notes; guidelines will be posted soon on how to submit write-ups for events.