What is this class about and why am I teaching it?:

• The purpose of this class is to explore basic biological principles by examining the long and short term responses of the human body to exercise. In particular we will focus upon human physiology, the study of the processes of the human body (i.e. in contrast to structural biology or anatomy).
• Why should we use exercise to think about biology? One reason is that many of us exercise. Thus, we have an intuitive understanding of how the body responds during exercise and long-term training. We can use this understanding as the basis for an in-depth look at how the body works. Second, exercise has traditionally been used by physiologists to study human biology. Scientists can learn only so much about human physiology by examining resting subjects; to fully understand how we work, it is necessary to study how we respond to stresses. Exercise is the most stressful event that we routinely experience, and it is one that many of us undertake voluntarily. Thus, exercise has been a convenient tool for exploring how the physiological systems of the body respond under stressful conditions.
• This course is designed for non-biology majors and no prior knowledge of biology will be assumed.

Text and reading: The books for this course are:

• J. Jerome. The Elements of Effort. Click here for weekly listings of readings.  This is not a scientific text, but is rather a collection of short essays that connect the exercise experience to exercise science. These are a very good model for the journal assignment (see below). They will also give us a common basis of general information about exercise that we can use during class discussion.
• Housh, Housh, and DeVries. Applied Exercise and Sport Physiology. This book is recommended but not required. In the past, some students have told me that they understand the material in this class from lectures alone and find a textbook unneccessary. Others benefit from reading a textbook before or after class. I'll be happy to talk with you to help you decide whether or not buying and using this textbook will be helpful for you.
• 16 books have been placed on course reserve in the library. These books are mostly exercise physiology textbooks, some are general, some focus on a particular aspect of exercise (i.e exercise nutrition). These books may be very useful as background for projects and as supplementary material for lecture preparation and review. Click here to see reserve list.
• You are encouraged to read secondary sources relevant to this class (i.e. Runner's World, the sports page of the newspaper, etc.), this reading can enhance your connections to the science we are covering and will be useful in both your project and journal assignments.

Course objectives:
Upon completion of the class students should be able to understand and interpret the wealth of health and exercise news in the popular press and have the ability to directly read primary literature sources relevant to health and exercise.  Two majors aims of the class will focus upon this overall goal.  Students will:

• Understand the physiological mechanisms of the human body and be able to apply this knowledge to analysis of human body function during exercise.
• We will examine the working of each physiological system (i.e. heart, lungs, kidney) during exercise.
• We will consider both the short-term responses to exercise, and also how the body responds to long-term exercise programs (training).
• In-class quizzes will be used to assess student accomplishments in this area.
• Learn to critically evaluate and write about topics in exercise physiology.
• We will examine the design of exercise biology experiments.
• We will explore the structure of scientific papers.
• For the course project, students will write a position paper that uses the primary scientific literature to critically assesses a claim about exercise science reported in the popular press.
• Connect the science we are learning in class with other aspects of your life.
  • We will try to examine issues in exercise science that are relevant to the interests of the class.
  • The journal assignment provides an opportunity for students to document their individual connections to course material.

• ATTEND CLASS. My quizzes are based on the material we cover in lecture. Lectures will cover some material not contained in the readings.
• Learn the vocabulary
• Read assignments before coming to class, review them afterwards to consolidate material
• Stay in contact with the instructor. E-mail is the best way to contact me - gillenc@kenyon.edu.
• I believe that biology is learned best through practice. Although learning facts about biology is important, a complete understanding of biology requires an ability to use those facts. How does one "practice" biology? One strategy is to consider the body's response to stressful physiological situations such as exercise, altitude, and disease. Working through the physiological response to a stress strengthens our understanding of the basic biology and deepens our understanding of the relationship between the biological system and the environment. This approach will form the basis for much of our classroom discussion. Also, many of the exam questions will ask you to employ this approach. Therefore, I highly recommend that you "practice" biology during your studying and reading.

Project:One project, consisting of 4 assignments, will be assigned. See the project instruction sheet. Late project assignments will be penalized 1/2 grade per day. Assignments more than 2 weeks late will not be accepted. Requests for extensions need to be made at least 3 days before an assignment is due.  See the biology 105 library research page for help in searching for references.

Quizzes: Quizzes will be composed of multiple choice and short essay questions. You will be allowed to bring into the quiz one sheet of 8.5" X 11" paper with notes in your own handwriting (not a computer-generated printout) on one side of the page only. You will hand in the note sheet with the quiz.

Interactive example multiple choice quizzes are below.  These are great practice for learning how to effectively take multiple choice quizzes.  You will receive feedback on correct or incorrect answers.  This will help you understand why a particular answer is right or wrong.

• Muscle
• Metabolism
• Molecular
• Heart and lung
• Fluid balance
  
  
• Interactive Quizzes 2000-2001
• Quiz 1
• Quiz 2
• Quiz 3

Academic honesty: This class will follow the official Kenyon College position on academic honesty. Click here to view the Kenyon policy. Please read my detailed policy on academic honesty. Unless specifically stated, work in this class is expected to be your own. If you work with others on an assignment where it is allowed, you must acknowledge the collaboration at the end of the assignment.

Need help?:

• If at any time, you feel that you do not have the proper background to understand the material that is being presented, please let me know.
• If you have a disability which may require classroom or test accommodations please see me as soon as possible during a scheduled office hour or send an e-mail to schedule an appointment.  If you have not already done so, you must speak with the Coordinator of Disability Services (Erin Salva, salvae@kenyon.edu, x5145), who is the individual responsible for coordinating accommodations and services for students with disabilities.  All information and documentation of disability is strictly confidential.  No accommodations will be granted in this course without notification from the Office of Disability Services.

• 3 quizzes @ 10% each = 30%
• Project = 35%
• Class attendance and participation = 10%
• Journal = 25%
  
  

Schedule:

Week.	Date.	Subject.	Reading (Housh, Housh, DeVries). Click here for reading in Jerome.	Monday - Literature.	Friday assignment.
1	Jan 13	Intro - 1/15, 1/17	Chapter 1, 9	First class	Your course overview - 1/17/03
2	Jan 20	Muscles - 1/20, 1/22, 1/24	Chapter 2, 14	Process of science
3	Jan 27	Biomechanics - 1/27, 1/29, 1/31	Chapter 11, 12	I - How scientists read	PA1 - 1/31/03
4	Feb 3	Nervous system - 2/3, 2/5	Chapter 4	Info lit - finding papers	Quiz 1 - 2/7/03
5	Feb 10	Cellular metabolism - 2/10, 2/12, 2/14	Chapter 3, 10	II - Introduction	Journal assignment 1 - 2/14/03
6	Feb 17	Nutrition - 2/19, 2/21	Chapter 15	Hypothesis exercise
7	Feb 24	Endocrine systems - 2/24, 2/26, 2/28	Chapter 7	III - Methods	PA2 - 2/28/03
break
8	Mar 17	Training mechanisms - 3/17, 3/19, 3/21	Chapters 10, 11, 13	Experimental design
9	Mar 24	Training 3/28		IV - Results	Quiz 2 - 3/26/03
10	Mar 31	Respiration 3/31, 4/2, 4/4	Chapter 6	Results	Journal assignment 2 - 3/31/03
11	Apr 7	Circulation 4/7, 4/9, 4/11	Chapter 5	Statistics	PA3 - 4/11/03
12	Apr 14	Fluid balance 4/14, 4/16, 4/18	Chapter 15 p. 249-250	Ethics in science
13	Apr 21	Special topics - weight balance, gender, supplements 4/23	Chapter 9 p. 145-149 Chapter 20	Boston marathon!	Quiz 3 - 4/25/03
14	Apr 28	Special topics - drugs, extreme environments, age, animal exercise 4/28	Chapter 17, 18, 19	TBA	Journal assignment 3 5/2/03
final	May 6			(6:30 PM)	PA4 - 5/6/03

A list of other possible special topics

• Exercise and development
• Exercise at altitude
• Exercise in space
• Exercise in the heat
• Exercise and immunity

Links to external sites:

Mount Vernon YMCA "Fit for Life" program
American College of Sports Medicine
ACSM position statements (click on "position statements")
American Society of Exercise Physiologists
The Gatorade Sports Science Institute (requires free membership)
Runner's World online
Stephen Seiler's Exercise page
Muscle-Fitness Magazine
Biological terms dictionary
Webster's online dictionary
Dictionary of cell biology
Multimedia from HHMI - including heart, kidney, altitude demo
Surgeon General's report on physical activity and health
The HUMAN GENOME 0
MEDline Plus

project research links:
Citation instruction sheet for proper citation formats.
Grading criteria sheet
Biology 105 library research page
Biology 105 course reserves
Free journals at highwire press (external site)

Copyright notice: Readers may view, browse, and/or download material for non commercial and educational purposes.  Please notify the course instructor of any use of the material on this site and credit this site.  Materials on this site obtained with permission from other sources require permission from those sources for further reproduction.

Disclaimer:  The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of its information provider. The provider assumes full responsibility and liability for the content of this document. The contents of this page have neither been reviewed nor approved by Kenyon College.  The information contained in this site is intended for educational purposes only; this site is not intended to make health, fitness, or dietary recommendations.  Individuals should consult a physician or other appropriate heath care provider for specific advice about exercise or diet.

Credits:  Photos of Kenyon Athletics are courtesy of the Kenyon Athletic department.  The support of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Undergraduate Education Program Grant to Kenyon College is gratefully acknowledged.

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