Courses

     Biology:

1. Topics in Biology (100) - The course focuses on a selected topic in biology in order to demonstrate fundamental principles of biology and/or how biology influences human society. The precise nature of the topic will vary from year to year, but in general will focus on a clearly defined topic in biology, often with some discussion of how the topic intersects with human society. Topics taught in the past have included the following: human inheritance, disease, tropical biology, neuroscience, human ecology, animal behavior, and insect biology. All sections of the course are  suitable for non-science majors and will feature discussion and lecture formats. Fall and Spring.
2. Gateway to Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology (202) - This course serves as an introduction to the major concepts in the fields of ecology, evolution, behavior and physiology. These biological disciplines are approached from the population and individual levels of biological organization. Through lecture, laboratory, in-class exercises and readings in the biological literature, this course focuses on the structure and function of individual organisms, as well as their behavior, interactions, origination and conservation. This course is a pre-requisite for many upper level biology courses and must be completed with a C- or better before enrolling in Biology 401. This course is open to non-biology majors. Three class hours and one laboratory period weekly. Prerequisites: C- or better in Biology 101. One and one-fourth credits. Alternate years.
3. Population and Community Ecology (350) - A study of ecological principles as they apply to populations, communities, and ecosystems. Topics include physiological ecology, population growth, competition, predation, community structure, patterns of energy and nutrient cycling, and species diversity. Laboratory exercises emphasize experimental techniques used to investigate ecological questions. Prerequisites: C- or better in Biology 202 or permission of the instructor. Three classroom meetings and one laboratory weekly. One and one-fourth course credits. Annually. Fall.
4. Behavioral Ecology (352) - The study of animal behavior from an evolutionary perspective. This course will consider how particular behavioral patterns enhance survival and reproductive success, and the ways in which ecological pressures shape behaviors involved in communication, reproduction, foraging, will be considered, ranging from the simplest invertebrates to humans. Two classroom/laboratory meetings weekly. Prerequisites: C- or better in Biology 202 or Psychology 323, or permission of the instructor. Annually. Spring.
5. Conservation Biologyolution (356) - This course will examine the theory, methods, and tools by which biologists attempt to understand and to protect biological habitats and their attendant natural populations of organisms. Topics to be covered included demographic and genetic conservation, invasive species, fragmentation and habitat loss, design of nature reserves, management for conservation, restoration of degraded habitats, and sustainable development within a conservation context. We will also examine economic, social, and political pressures that influence conservation decision-making, using case studies at both the local and the international level. Laboratory exercises will include computer simulations, field research, field trips, and group projects. Three classroom meetings and one three-hour laboratory weekly. Prerequisites: C- or better in Biology 202. One and one-fourth course credits. Alternate years. Spring 2006-2007.

1. Environmental Chemistry (216) Various aspects of the chemistry of the environment, both unpolluted and polluted, are discussed. Consideration is given to chemical reactions in the aquatic, atmospheric, and geologic realms. Three class hours and one three-hour laboratory period per week. Prerequisite: Chemistry 112, C- or better. Suggested previous course: Geology 110. One and one-fourth course credits. Alternate years.

Economics:

1. Environmental & Natural Resource Economics (240) - An examination of the economic use of natural resources in society: the economic implications of finite resource supplies, renewable resource supplies, and the use of environmental resources with consideration of policy options regarding optimal resource use. Prerequisite: Economics 101. Alternate years.

1. Writing About Wooster & the World: Connecting Local, Global, and Environmental Change - http://www.wooster.edu/geology/geo110/geo110.html

Geology:

1. Geology of Natural Hazards (105) - Survey of the geologic conditions, human and environmental impacts, and regulatory consequences of natural hazards and disasters. Course focus is on earthquakes, volcanoes, flooding, landslides, and destructive coastal processes. Three hours of lecture weekly. One course credit. Annually. Fall and Spring.
2. Environmental Geology (110) - An investigation of the ways human activities affect and are affected by physical Earth processes. Topics include an overview of Earth’s development; minerals and rocks; internal processes such as plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanoes; surface processes; natural resources; waste disposal; pollution and related topics. Three hours of lecture weekly; field trips. One course credit. Annually. Fall and Spring. http://www.wooster.edu/geology/geo110/geo110.html
3. Climate Change (210) - Understanding how and why climates change is important for interpreting the past geologic record and evaluating contemporary climate change. After an overview of the Earth’s oceanatmosphere system and energy balance, Quaternary dating methods and techniques of reconstructing past climates are outlined. Students will work with paleoclimate data sets from ocean cores, ice cores, tree-rings, lake cores, and corals. Labs include computer modeling, statistical analysis of time series, field and lab projects, extracting lake sediment cores, and collecting dendroclimatological data. Fieldtrips. Prerequisite: any Geology 100-level course. Three hours lecture with one 3-hour lab per week. One and one-fourth course credits. Annually. Fall. http://www.wooster.edu/geology/climate/CC.html

1. The American West (238) - This course examines the development of the American West as a recognized region over the past 500 years. It focuses on several primary themes: ideologies of expansion, ethnic conflict, environmental change, technology, politics, and myth. Moreover, the course will examine how shifting historical interpretations of the West (including those of novelists and filmmakers) have reflected contemporary society.

Inter-departmental:

1. Science, Gender, and the Environment (200) - http://www.wooster.edu/geology/PIDS20006.html

1. Introduction to Contemporary Political Ideologies (130) - An introductory level course that focuses on the comparative analysis of competing ideologies that have dominated Western politics in the twentieth century: liberalism, libertarianism, conservatism, democratic socialism, communism, anarchism, and fascism. The second part of the course analyzes several of the newer ideologies that are transforming politics in the twenty-first century: minority liberation, liberation theology, gay liberation, feminism, environmentalism, animal liberation, and religious fundamentalism. Annually.
2. Environmental Politics (215) - Examines the theories and politics of the U.S. environmental movement and analyzes the process through which environmental policy is made. The first part of the course focuses on the contemporary environmental movement, the environmental critique of present policies, and their proposals for changing the way we think about and interact with the environment. The second part of the course focuses on the political process through which environmental policy is made and on the policy alternatives regarding such topics as air pollution and hazardous waste. Alternate years.
3. Problems of the Global Community (222) - (See International Relations) A critical analysis of problems confronting the community of nations — such as population expansion, economic development, environmental degradation, and anarchy—and individual and collective efforts to cope with them. Role playing is used to gain a more vivid comprehension of problems and prospects. Alternate years.

1. Environmental Psychology (225) - The field of environmental psychology explores the interrelationships between people and their physical, rather than social, environment. This course covers the major areas of research in environmental psychology, including effects of the natural and built environment on humans, human perception of the environment, the relationship between humans and the natural world, and psychological factors affecting human care for the natural environment. We will leave the classroom from time to time in order to explore and assess different environments. Prerequisite: Psychology 100 or 110, or consent of the instructor.

1. Topics in Theories and Issues in the Study of Religion (269) - An examination of one major issue involving the interface of sociological, ethical, and theoretical factors, such as religion and science, religion and the environment, or peace and violence.