Course Syllabus

4-6     Silent Spring Exam and Discussion

“The World in Two Pages” by Donella Meadow

Introduction to Course (Syllabus and Grading Policy)

“Hope at Low Tide” by Carl Safina

Four Corners Activity

7-12   Chapter 1 (Key Themes in Environmental Science)

Dimensional Analysis

Parts Per Million Lab

Debunk It!

13-14 Chapter 2 (Science as a Way of Knowing: Critical Thinking About the

Environment)

          Water You Know About Science?

          The Scientific Method:  What are the effects of thermal pollution on

river fish?

19      EXAM (Ch.1-2)

20-28 Chapter 4 (The Human Population and the Environment)

Global Law and Solar Box Cookers

Film: Six Billion and Beyond

“The Tragedy of the Commons” by Garrett Hardin

The Tragedy of the Commons Fishing Activity

Estimating Carrying Capacity

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Introduction to A.P. exam Free response Questions (FRQs)

October

1-4     Chapter 6 (Ecosystems and Ecosystem Management)

          There’s A Hair In My Dirt! by Gary Larson

Pillbug Behavior Lab

5-11   Chapter 7 (Biological Diversity)

Biodiversity/Transect Lab

Guggenheim Preserve Field Work

12      EXAM (Ch. 4, 6-7)

15-17 Chapter 3 (The Big Picture: Systems of Change)

People and Nature: A Walk in the Park

The Evolution of Life on a Football Field

“Human Domination of Earth’s Ecosystems” by Vitousek et. al.

18-22 Chapter 5 (Biogeochemical Cycles)

Tectonics Computer Lab

Alternative Energy Project Assignments

23      EXAM (Ch. 3,5)

24-26 Chapter 8 (Biogeography)

          Earth’s Biomes

          “A Walk in the Woods to Alum Cave” by Edward Abbey

November

10/29-  Chapter 9 (Biological Productivity and Energy Flow)

  11/1 Using Dimensional Analysis To Solve Efficiency Problems

Depth Profile and Compensation Point Exercise

Solar Input Lab

2-7     Chapter 10 (Ecological Restoration)

          Wants and Needs Assignment

8        EXAM (Ch. 8-10)

9-16  Chapter 11 (Producing Enough Food for the World: How Agriculture

Depends on the Environment)

Film: The Future of Food

A Lot of Rot Activity

“The Good Farmer” by Barbara Kingsolver

Hunger Banquet

19-26 Chapter 12 (Effects of Agriculture on the Environment)

Soil Lab

What Did Your Lunch Cost Wildlife?

27-30 Chapter 13 (Forests, Parks, and Landscapes)

          People and Nature: A Walk in the Park (Follow-Up)

December

3-6     Chapter 14 (Wildlife, Fisheries, and Endangered Species)

Seafood Wallet Cards

Asian Longhorned Beetle Goodies

Film: Cane Toads

Guest Speaker? (Long Island fisherman?)

7        EXAM (Ch. 11-14)

10-13 Chapter 15 (Environ. Health, Pollution, and Toxicology)

          Toxins in the Home Activity

          “The Pollution Within” by David Ewing Duncan

Bioassay of Toxic Materials in the Environment

          Toxicology Problems

14      QUIZ (Ch. 15)

17-19  Chapter 16 (Energy: Some Basics)

          We “Auto” Drive Less Activity

          Calculating Efficiency

January

12/20-  Chapter 17 (Fossils Fuels and the Environment)

  1/4   Film: Who Killed The Electric Car?

7-11   Alternative Energy (Chapter 18) Presentations/Projects Due

14-17 Chapter 19 (Nuclear Energy and the Environment)

          Calculating Half-Lives

          Nuclear Energy Debate

18      EXAM (Ch. 16-19)

22-25 Midterms

28-31 Chapter 20 (Water Supply, Use, and Management)

          Film: Flow

“Water” We Going To Do?

February

1-7     Chapter 21 (Water Pollution and Treatment)

Dissolved Oxygen in Water Lab

8        EXAM (Ch. 20-21)

11-15 Chapter 22 (The Atmosphere, Climate, and Global Warming)

          Personal CO₂ Production

          Film: Global Warming: What’s Up With The Weather?

          Letter Writing Campaign

25-28 Chapter 23 (Air Pollution)

Tailpipe Emissions Made Visible

1        EXAM (Ch. 22-23)

March

4-7     Chapter 24 (Indoor Air Pollution)

Film: Environmental Illness

“Furnishing a Healthy Home” by Mark Harris

Some Mold News Activity

8-14   Chapter 25 (Ozone Depletion)

          Tropospheric Ozone Lab

          Save Our Skins: Ozone Depletion and Skin Disorders

15      EXAM (Ch. 24-25)

18-21 Chapter 26 (Minerals and the Environment)

Cookie Mining Activity

“The Midas Touch” by Kenneth Miller

April

3/22- Chapter 27 (Dollars and Environmental Sense: Economics of

 4/3             Environmental Issues)

          Probability and Risk

          Environmental Economics: Who’s Paying For The Pizza?

4        EXAM (Ch. 26-27)

5-11   Chapter 28 (Urban Environments)

Film: The End of Suburbia

“Is there room for urban renewal in the environmental movement?”

Urban Sprawl: A Round-Table Discussion

12-17 Chapter 29 (Waste Management)

Re-Use An Item

Trash Talk: There Is No “Away”!

          Film: Modern Marvels: Garbage

          Packaging Police: A Visit To A Local Supermarket

18-22 Chapter 30 (Imagine a Sustainable Future)

          Personal Code of Environmental Ethics

          “The Land Ethic” by Aldo Leopold

23      EXAM (Ch. 28-30)

May

4/24-  Review for A.P. Exam

  5/1   Campus Ecology Tour

2-3     COURSE FINAL EXAM

6        A.P EXAM