BIOL-190 Syllabus

Course Syllabus:  BIO-190 syllabus updated.pdf

***Update 8/31 - class syllabus updated to reflect NO CLASS on November 12th due to Veteran's Day.

Meet Your Instructor:  Dr. Dinh-Mahavongtrakul

Hello! My name is Dr. D and I am excited to be your biology instructor for this semester. I have long loved biology since a child and now get to spend my life hopefully inspiring wonder and appreciation of biology to SAC students! My background is in Neurobiology and Developmental Biology - I received my Bachelor's degree from UC Davis and completed my Master's and Doctoral degree at UC Irvine. I spent the last 10 years doing research, only to realize how much I enjoyed teaching, and here I am! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Looking forward to meeting you all!

When I'm not teaching, I enjoy reading (fantasy and sci-fi), running or hiking outdoors, gardening, doing art (photography, drawing, painting), and experimenting in the kitchen (spicy food predominantly). My current obsession has been Bullet Journaling (I can talk about pens and washi tape ALL day).

Course Description:  Introduction to Biotechnology

Textbook Information:  

1. Introduction to Biotechnology, William Thieman and Michael Palladino, 3 ed., Pearson, 2013, ISBN: 0321766113 (Recommended)
2. Concepts of Biology, OpenStax College, 2013. ISBN: 1938168119 https://openstaxcollege.org/textbooks/concepts-of-biology (Recommended)

Student Learning Outcomes

Students who successfully complete (C or better) Biology 190 will have a fundamental understanding of the applications and underlying principles of biotechnology

Communication skills

• Reading and writing – students will develop their ability to comprehend readings on biological subjects
• Reading and writing – students will learn the basics of the technical vocabulary of biology

Thinking and Reasoning

• Critical thinking – students will develop their critical thinking skills by evaluating scientific evidence to reach valid conclusions.