3/12/2025 4:01:33 AM	BIO 12 Course Outline as of Fall 1997	Changed Course
CATALOG INFORMATION
Discipline and Nbr:  BIO 12	Title:  BASIC CONCEPTS/ECOL
Full Title:  Basic Concepts of Ecology
Last Reviewed:1/24/2022

Units		Course Hours per Week			Nbr of Weeks	Course Hours Total
Maximum	3.00	Lecture Scheduled	3.00		17.5 max.	Lecture Scheduled	52.50
Minimum	3.00	Lab Scheduled	0		5 min.	Lab Scheduled	0
		Contact DHR	0			Contact DHR	0
		Contact Total	3.00			Contact Total	52.50
		Non-contact DHR	0			Non-contact DHR Total	0

Total Out of Class Hours:  105.00

Total Student Learning Hours: 157.50

Title 5 Category:  AA Degree Applicable
Grading:  Grade or P/NP
Repeatability:  00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP
Also Listed As: 
Formerly: 

Catalog Description:

Basic principles of ecology, including ecosystem and population biology and their application to problems of renewable resource conservation and management.

Prerequisites/Corequisites:

Recommended Preparation:
Completion or concurrent enrollment in ENGL 100A, 100B or 100.

Limits on Enrollment:

Schedule of Classes Information
Description:

Basic principles of ecology including ecosystems and population biology and their application to problems of renewable resource conservation and management.

(Grade or P/NP)
Prerequisites:
Recommended:Completion or concurrent enrollment in ENGL 100A, 100B or 100.
Limits on Enrollment:
Transfer Credit:CSU;UC.
Repeatability:00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP

ARTICULATION, MAJOR, and CERTIFICATION INFORMATION

Associate Degree:		Effective:	Fall 1981	Inactive:
Area:	C H	Natural Sciences Global Perspective and Environmental Literacy
CSU GE:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
	B2	Life Science		Fall 1981
IGETC:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
	5B	Biological Sciences		Fall 1981
CSU Transfer:	Transferable	Effective:	Fall 1981	Inactive:
UC Transfer:	Transferable	Effective:	Fall 1981	Inactive:
C-ID:

Certificate/Major Applicable: Not Certificate/Major Applicable

COURSE CONTENT

Outcomes and Objectives:
At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

Students completing Biology 12 will be able to describe, understand,

analyze and demonstrate knowledge in the following areas by means of oral

and written assignment and exams:

1.  Methods of science and scientific investigation.

2.  History of the discipline, including the science of ecology,

   conservation, environmentalism and the development of environmental

   ethics.

3.  The basic principles and assumptions of ecology, including the

   properties of "open" and "closed" systems, patterns of cyclic and

   linear processes, interdependency, exponentiality and the

   relationship of diversity, complexity and sustainability.

4.  The basic design and function of natural systems, including the

   cellular nature of life, correlation of structure and function,

   energy transformation, growth and change and evolution.

5.  The basic biosphere processes including climatic, physiographic and

   biotic and their relationship to major landscape or biome

   distribution.

6.  Ecosystem structure and function including trophic structure and

   function (eg. food webs), productivity, mineral cycles and management

   problems.

7.  Community dynamics, including factors influencing the distribution of

   organisms, species diversity and dominance, vegetation ecology,

   niche, species interactions and ecological succession.

8.  Population dynamics, including patterns of distribution and dispersal,

   age structure, growth, "r" vs "k" characteristics, interspecific and

   intraspecific factors in environmental resistance and application to

   human population dynamics.

9.  Managing biosphere resources including general management trends,

   interplay of economic and ecological considerations, examples in

   ecosystem management (eg. forests, rangelands, wetlands), endangered

   species and the maintenance of biodiversity.

Topics and Scope

1.  Ecology as Science:

   a. Course introduction

   b. Scientific approaches to problems - the science way to know

2.  Development of Ecology and Environmentalism:

   a. Early conservation concerns eg. Thoreau

   b. Ecology - the synthesis of Darwin and Thoreau

   c. The development of environmental ethics

   d. The ecological imperative

3.  Foundational Principles:

   a. "Open" vs. "closed" systems

   b. Cyclic vs. linear processes

   c. Cybernetics, negative feedback and interdepencies

   d. Exponentiality

   e. Diversity and Complexity

   f. Sustainability

4.  Design of Natural Systems:

   a. Life is cellular

   b. Structure and function

   c. Energetics

   d. Growth and change

   e. Evolution

      1. Species adaptations

      2. Speciation

      3. Evolution of ecosystems

5.  Biosphere Structure and Function:

   a. Climate: precipitation, temperature, climatic zones

   b. Physiographic: tectonics, rock cycles, continental drift,

      topography

   c. Biotic: effect of A and B on biogeography and formation of major

      landscape types (Biomes)

6.  Ecosystem Structure and Function:

   a. Principles of cycle and flow

   b. Trophic structure

   c. Productivity

   d. Mineral cycles

   e. Issues in ecosystem resource management

7.  Community Structure and Function:

   a. Organismic distribution and limiting factors

   b. Diversity, dominance, complexity and stability

   c. Vegetation: community structure and landscape design

   d. The "niche" as a community function

   e. Species interactions

   f. Ecological succession

8.  Population Structure and Function:

   a. Patterns of distribution and dispersal

   b. Age structure and life tables

   c. Population growth

   d. Dynamics of "r" and "k" selected species

   e. Environmental resistance relative to both interspecific and

      intraspecific factors.

   f. Human population dynamics

9.  Management and Conservation of Natural Resources:

   a. General principles of sustainable resource management

   b. The interface of ecology and economics

   c. Ecosystem management case studies eg. forests, rangelands, wetlands

   d. Endangered species

   e. Importance and maintenance of biodiversity

Assignments:

1.  Read text and other assigned readings.

2.  Term report.

Methods of Evaluation/Basis of Grade.

Writing: Assessment tools that demonstrate writing skill and/or require students to select, organize and explain ideas in writing.		Writing 10 - 30%
Essay exams, Term papers
Problem solving: Assessment tools, other than exams, that demonstrate competence in computational or non-computational problem solving skills.		Problem Solving 5 - 20%
Quizzes, Exams
Skill Demonstrations: All skill-based and physical demonstrations used for assessment purposes including skill performance exams.		Skill Demonstrations 0 - 0%
None
Exams: All forms of formal testing, other than skill performance exams.		Exams 60 - 80%
Multiple choice, Matching items, Completion
Other: Includes any assessment tools that do not logically fit into the above categories.		Other Category 0 - 0%
None

Representative Textbooks and Materials:

THE WAY THE WORLD WORKS, 5th ed., Nebel and Wright, Prentice Hall, 1995

ENVIRONMENT, 2nd ed., Raven, Berg and Johnson, Saunders, 1995

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, Botkin and Keller, John Wiley and Sons, 1995

THE ECONOMY OF NATURE, 3rd ed., Richlefs, 1996

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