Instructor: Oliver Seely, Jr.

Office: NSM C303

My phone: 243-3778

Department Phone: 243-3376

e-mail: oseely@csudh.edu

Web page: http://www.csudh.edu/oliver/oliver.htm

Office Hours: M,W 1 - 3 pm, or by appointment

Texts:

Connections by James G. Burke

Readings in Science and Technology

Videotapes:

Connections, J. G. Burke, Parts 1-10

The Day the Universe Changed, J. G. Burke, episodes 5,7,8,9,10

Prerequisites: Completion of 60 semester units and completion of ALL lower division General Studies courses.

Section 02 meets Mondays and Wednesday, 11:30am - 12:45 pm. One meeting a week will be devoted to viewing an episode of the videotape series and a short introductory exemplification and discussion of the episode. The other meeting will be devoted to a completion of that discussion followed by a discussion of extra reading material. These topics will be chosen from Readings in Science and Technology. The reading assignments each week are shown below.

We assume that you have completed all lower division natural science general studies courses if you are enrolled in this course. Therefore it can be assumed that students will have attained a rudimentary knowledge spanning the physical and life sciences. In light of the course content, it will be necessary for students to be able to do mathematical calculations. There is no specific math prerequisite for this course but if students have passed the "ELM" they should meet the required math level.

Course Goals and Objectives. SMT 310 is one of several integrative studies in the natural sciences. It is an interdisciplinary course with a goal to build upon the knowledge students have acquired by completing their lower division course work in the natural sciences. A second goal is to develop a greater appreciation for the nature of discovery and invention and the interactions between transportation, communication, economics, the environment, war, religion and unforeseen events which influenced progress. A third goal is to develop a renewed understanding of the methods, processes, terminology and major concepts of science and technology. While this course will include content from many different disciplines, its primary focus is on the integration of knowledge within the natural sciences. The course objectives are to offer material which will allow the student better to understand the technological connections which led to the nine inventions described during the first ten weeks and the scientific influences which led to the five discoveries during the remaining weeks of the semester.

Learning Outcomes. As a result of this course, the student should be able to show, within the range of grades shown on the last page, knowledge of the subjects presented and discussed in class and to demonstrate that the subjects and arguments offered in the reading material have been read and understood.

Assessment. Student success in meeting learning outcomes will be assessed through the administration of five quizzes, several homework assignments, two 1-hour examinations and a comprehensive final examination.

Disabled students will be accommodated according to the auxiliary services provided by the Office of Disabled Student Services. Such students ought to visit the Office of Disabled Student Services to arrange for the desired accommodation.

*Videotape will be shown on Wednesday rather than Monday, as Monday is a holiday.

Should you have to miss class on the day a video episode is shown, all videotapes are now available for viewing at individual stations in the Instructional Media Center, ERC C121 at your convenience. The video and audio quality are excellent.

Quizzes will be given during the last half of class on August 29, September 12 and 26, October 24 and November 28.

The first hour examination will be on material covered from the beginning of the semester. The second hour examination will be on material covered since the first hour examination.

Hour Exams: October 10, November 7

Final Exam: Wednesday, December 12, 11:30am - 1:30 pm

Make-up quizzes and make-up examinations are not given. Students who are unable to attend class on a quiz day must contact the professor prior to the beginning of class on that day in order to avoid receiving a zero for that quiz or examination.

Attendance Policy: We view an episode from one of the series produced by James Burke the first class meeting of each week. The remaining time is spent in a discussion of that episode. During the second class meeting of each week we discuss the extra reading material. From time to time the instructor will distribute additional reading material relevant to the immediate topic or a topic yet to be covered. Quizzes and examinations may contain questions covering that material. It has been my observation that there is a direct connection between a student's class participation and his or her performance.

CLASS DISCUSSIONS: The instructor calls on each student in the class to participate in the class discussion numerous times during the semester. He expects you to be prepared to contribute intelligently, which means that you must have read the material assigned for that day before coming to class. The instructor will be gentle and compassionate. He doesn't expect you to know everything each day. He will be prepared to give you a second and even a third chance to show that you know something. If however after several futile attempts to evoke a response from you he begins to suspect that you know nothing, you may reasonably assume that his suspicion will be transmitted to you in the form of a lower grade.

Grading Policy: Your grade in this course will be calculated from scores on quizzes, hour examinations and final examination. Each quiz will be counted equally. A written assignment carries the same weight as a quiz. Each hour exam and the final exam will be worth two quizzes. The following scheme will be used to calculate your grade:

A word about the CR/NC option.

Each semester at least one student who opts for the CR/NC option achieves a score in the course equivalent to a "D" grade. That student always receives a NC in the course. (Please see University Catalog for explanation of CR/NC formula.) I never nudge such students into the "C" range so as to be able to justify giving them a CR in the course. It would be unfair to those students who take the course for a grade and receive a "D". From time to time a student who plans to graduate opts for CR/NC and performs at the "D" level. That student always receives a NC in the course. I would rather that students who plan to graduate at the end of the semester not opt for the CR/NC designation. It is to their advantage to gamble that they will succeed at least at the "D" level, to pass the course, and to continue onward and upward with their lives rather than to repeat the course. But the decision is entirely up to the student in this matter.

Academic Integrity is described and discussed and Plagiarism is defined and discussed in the University Catalog. This course will be taught in a manner which upholds and enforces those statements.

Instructor: Oliver Seely, Jr.

Office: NSM C303

My phone: 243-3778

Department Phone: 243-3376

e-mail: oseely@csudh.edu

Web page: http://www.csudh.edu/oliver/oliver.htm

Office Hours: M,W 1 - 3 pm, or by appointment

Texts:

Connections by James G. Burke

Readings in Science and Technology

Videotapes:

Connections, J. G. Burke, Parts 1-10

The Day the Universe Changed, J. G. Burke, episodes 5,7,8,9,10

Prerequisites: Completion of 60 semester units and completion of ALL lower division General Studies courses.

Section 08 meets Tuesdays and Thursdays 1 - 2:15 pm. One meeting a week will be devoted to viewing an episode of the videotape series and a short introductory exemplification and discussion of the episode. The other meeting will be devoted to a completion of that discussion followed by a discussion of extra reading material. These topics will be chosen from Readings in Science and Technology. The reading assignments each week are shown below.

We assume that you have completed all lower division natural science general studies courses if you are enrolled in this course. Therefore it can be assumed that students will have attained a rudimentary knowledge spanning the physical and life sciences. In light of the course content, it will be necessary for students to be able to do mathematical calculations. There is no specific math prerequisite for this course but if students have passed the "ELM" they should meet the required math level.

Course Goals and Objectives. SMT 310 is one of several integrative studies in the natural sciences. It is an interdisciplinary course with a goal to build upon the knowledge students have acquired by completing their lower division course work in the natural sciences. A second goal is to develop a greater appreciation for the nature of discovery and invention and the interactions between transportation, communication, economics, the environment, war, religion and unforeseen events which influenced progress. A third goal is to develop a renewed understanding of the methods, processes, terminology and major concepts of science and technology. While this course will include content from many different disciplines, its primary focus is on the integration of knowledge within the natural sciences. The course objectives are to offer material which will allow the student better to understand the technological connections which led to the nine inventions described during the first ten weeks and the scientific influences which led to the five discoveries during the remaining weeks of the semester.

Learning Outcomes. As a result of this course, the student should be able to show, within the range of grades shown on the last page, knowledge of the subjects presented and discussed in class and to demonstrate that the subjects and arguments offered in the reading material have been read and understood.

Assessment. Student success in meeting learning outcomes will be assessed through the administration of five quizzes, several homework assignments, two 1-hour examinations and a comprehensive final examination.

Disabled students will be accommodated according to the auxiliary services provided by the Office of Disabled Student Services. Such students ought to visit the Office of Disabled Student Services to arrange for the desired accommodation.

Should you have to miss class on the day a video episode is shown, all videotapes are now available for viewing at individual stations in the Instructional Media Center, ERC C121 at your convenience. The video and audio quality are excellent.

Quizzes will be given during the last half of class on August 30, September 13 and 27, October 25 and November 29.

The first hour examination will be on material covered from the beginning of the semester. The second hour examination will be on material covered since the first hour examination.

Hour Exams: October 11, November 8

Final Exam: Tuesday, December 11, 1-3pm

Make-up quizzes and make-up examinations are not given. Students who are unable to attend class on a quiz day must contact the professor prior to the beginning of class on that day in order to avoid receiving a zero for that quiz or examination.

Attendance Policy: We view an episode from one of the series produced by James Burke the first class meeting of each week. The remaining time is spent in a discussion of that episode. During the second class meeting of each week we discuss the extra reading material. From time to time the instructor will distribute additional reading material relevant to the immediate topic or a topic yet to be covered. Quizzes and examinations may contain questions covering that material. It has been my observation that there is a direct connection between a student's class participation and his or her performance.

CLASS DISCUSSIONS: The instructor calls on each student in the class to participate in the class discussion numerous times during the semester. He expects you to be prepared to contribute intelligently, which means that you must have read the material assigned for that day before coming to class. The instructor will be gentle and compassionate. He doesn't expect you to know everything each day. He will be prepared to give you a second and even a third chance to show that you know something. If however after several futile attempts to evoke a response from you he begins to suspect that you know nothing, you may reasonably assume that his suspicion will be transmitted to you in the form of a lower grade.

Grading Policy: Your grade in this course will be calculated from scores on quizzes, hour examinations and final examination. Each quiz will be counted equally. A written assignment carries the same weight as a quiz. Each hour exam and the final exam will be worth two quizzes. The following scheme will be used to calculate your grade:

A word about the CR/NC option.

Each semester at least one student who opts for the CR/NC option achieves a score in the course equivalent to a "D" grade. That student always receives a NC in the course. (Please see University Catalog for explanation of CR/NC formula.) I never nudge such students into the "C" range so as to be able to justify giving them a CR in the course. It would be unfair to those students who take the course for a grade and receive a "D". From time to time a student who plans to graduate opts for CR/NC and performs at the "D" level. That student always receives a NC in the course. I would rather that students who plan to graduate at the end of the semester not opt for the CR/NC designation. It is to their advantage to gamble that they will succeed at least at the "D" level, to pass the course, and to continue onward and upward with their lives rather than to repeat the course. But the decision is entirely up to the student in this matter.

Academic Integrity is described and discussed and Plagiarism is defined and discussed in the University Catalog. This course will be taught in a manner which upholds and enforces those statements.