Foundations of Science 3: Systems in Flux

Focuses on changes in systems in the physical and living worlds. Capacitors, current, and basic circuits are explored with an eye toward understanding their applications to chemical reactions and the behavior of living cells. The rates and directions of chemical reactions are explored as chemical kinetics and chemical equilibrium are investigated with a special focus on acid-base chemistry. These fundamental physical and chemical principles are used to describe basic cellular monomers and polymers including DNA, RNA, and protein, and the sequence of events that leads to information flow and its regulation in the cell nucleus. They are also applied to macroscopic systems found in the biosphere. Laboratory exercises focus on fundamental protocols and tools needed to sharpen basic laboratory skills. Weekly discussion sections are designed to hone proficiency at solving problems in a collaborative, team environment.

Foundations of Science 4: Form and Function

Explores a question applicable to all branches of science: How does the form or shape of a physical entity set its function? This leads to another question: If a specific function is desired, can a form or shape be engineered or modified to execute or improve that function? The course examines the form/function concept in magnetic and electrical fields, the behavior and design of small molecules, and the activity of proteins as the workhorse in biological systems. Laboratory exercises require students to design experiments related to crystals and crystallography, and to examine chemical forms at the macroscopic and microscopic levels. Weekly discussion sections are designed to hone proficiency at solving problems in a collaborative, team environment.

5th Annual Crystal Symposium Student Video Compilation

Knowing the three-dimensional structure of a molecule is important for understanding its functional properties. Is it indeed possible to visually analyze a molecule and use the observed experimental data to build a three-dimensional model? This structural information can be obtained using a variety of analytical techniques such as X-ray crystallography, and can lead to significant breakthroughs in pharmaceutics. Students grow crystals of different colors, shapes, and sizes and harvest them for physical and morphological characterization in order to understand the basic principles of atomic structure and theory, chemical bonding and reactions, thermochemistry, periodicity, and solution chemistry.

Biochemistry investigates the chemical structures, reactions and processes that occur in living systems. Indeed, the very principles of chemistry, biology, physics and math converge in the field of biochemistry, and biochemical concepts provide a focal point for many disciplines, including biology, healthcare, the pharmaceutical industry, environmental studies and ecology, and our understanding of evolution. This course opens the study of biochemistry, which continues in Biochemistry 2 with a rigorous investigation of biological macromolecules, including the structure and function of proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids. This then leads to the investigation of enzyme structure, including their mechanism of action and their regulation, moving toward a deep understanding of information flow in cells via detailed biochemical studies of replication, transcription, and translation.

Building on the lessons ofBiochemistry 1, this course emphasizes analysis of basic metabolic pathways, including glycolysis, electron transport, and oxidative phosphorylation, as well as mechanisms of metabolic regulation and integration.

This course provides a rigorous introduction to the molecular analysis of biomolecules. Selected experiments and instruction in analytical techniques used in biochemical research, including chromatography, spectrophotometry, and electrophoresis; isolation and characterization of selected biomolecules; kinetic analysis of enzymatic activity; and analysis of protein-protein and protein-DNA interactions that direct basic biochemical pathways.