Biological Anthropology Seminar 113:285

Spring 2002

113:285 -- Biological Anthropology Seminar Prof. Russell Ciochon (Sha-HAHN)

Spring Semester 2002 Office: 113A or 26 Macbride Phones: 335-3506, 5-2751

Tuesday, 2:30-5:20pm -- 117 Macbride

Website: http://www.uiowa.edu/~bioanth/ Email: russell-ciochon@uiowa.edu

Required Textbooks:

Jurmain et al - Introduction to Physical Anthropology, 8th edition, Wadsworth, 2000

Alcamo, E. - DNA Technology: The Awesome Skill, 2nd edition, Harcourt, 1999

Ciochon & Nisbett - The Primate Anthology, Prentice Hall, 1998

Sussman - The Biological Basis of Human Behavior, Prentice Hall, 1999

Assignments: Readings will be assigned prior to each class meeting. A general outline for the readings is listed on the course syllabus. It is important that the assigned readings are completed before each class meeting.

Style of Seminar: This seminar will be an open discussion of the topics of biological anthropology. During each class meeting, students will give informal presentations based on the readings. These presentations will be followed by a question and answer session. Additionally, the professor will propose new topics for discussion and bring in materials, such as skulls, limb bones, fossils and casts to further stimulate debate. Following this style, students can be exposed to a wide variety of topics in biological anthropology.

Requirements: All students are expected to attend class and participate in the discussion of the assigned readings each week. The formulation of arguments during class discussion will form a 25% portion of your final grade in the seminar. During the final two meetings of the seminar, all students will be expected to give a formal class presentation on a topic relevant to biological anthropology. You may choose any subject in biological anthropology though you will need to discuss your topic with the professor prior to beginning your research. Additionally, each student is expected to write a 25+ page research paper (one inch margins, Times Roman, 12pt font) on the topic of your oral presentation. This paper should be a scholarly treatise that explores the topic of your class presentation in greater detail. The papers will be due on Monday, May 13th in MH 114. I would appreciate if some papers were turned in prior to that date. In addition to the large research paper, there will also be two short written projects that will be assigned during the first half of the semester.

Grading: Your grade in the seminar will be determined by (1) your participation in class discussion, (2) your writing abilities based on the two short written assignments, (3) the organization and originality of your class presentation, and (4) the quality of your final written research paper.

Office Hours: My posted office hours are Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm to 2:30pm. I can usually be found in Laboratory of Biological Anthropology in MH 26. Please stop by anytime to talk. Each student should come to talk with me about her or his class presentation and research paper at least four weeks before the beginning of the student presentations.

Student Rights and Responsibilities: If you have a complaint about any aspect of this class or my teaching, I hope you would talk with me about it. If you do not feel confortable about talking with me, you can meet with the Chair of Anthropology, Prof. Florence Babb. Her office is located in Macbride Hall in room 113A. The Department phone number is 335-0522. Plagiarism results in automatic failure of the course and will be reported to the Dean for possible explusion from school. It may be considered plagiarism if you: 1) use a paper or portions of a paper that someone else wrote, or 2) use thoughts, ideas or words of another writer without giving that writer credit in your paper.

University of Iowa Spring Semester 2002

Department of Anthropology

Prof. R.L. Ciochon

Anthropology 113:285

BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY CORE SEMINAR

Course Syllabus

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Research Papers Due on Monday, May 13th by 5:00pm in MH 114.

J -- Jurmain et al - Introduction to Physical Anthropology, 8th edition, Wadsworth, 2000

A -- Alcamo, E. - DNA Technology: The Awesome Skill, 2nd edition, Harcourt, 1999

C/N -- Ciochon & Nisbett - The Primate Anthology, Prentice Hall, 1998

S -- Sussman - The Biological Basis of Human Behavior, Prentice Hall, 1999