Natural Science 0249 - Epi:Genetics

Genetics is traditionally the study of heredity - the passing of traits from parent to offspring. We have come to know that much of heredity is based on the information encoded in our genes. However, increasing evidence supports the notion that external factors can significantly influence this passing of traits. We will investigate many "traditional" areas of genetics, ranging from basic topics such as DNA structure and Mendelian inheritance to more advanced topics such as regulation of gene expression. Additionally, we will supplement the class with recent primary articles to put the information we learn into a modern research context. In all, we will learn how the various aspects of heredity relate to the current understanding of human disease. Students will be evaluated on presentations, weekly problem sets, and a semester-long research paper.

Independent Work Quantitative Skills Writing and Research