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| Origins of the Universe, Earth and Life | |||
| ORIG ERTH LIFE | |||
| CLASS CODE: | FDSCI 207 | CREDITS: 3 | |
| COLLEGE: | CURRICULUM | ||
| DEPARTMENT: | FOUNDATIONS OF SCIENCE | ||
| GENERAL EDUCATION: | This course fulfills a General Education - no GECode requirement. | ||
| DESCRIPTION: | An investigation into the origins, change, and demise of physical and biological systems, including star systems, biological communities, and human civilizations. This course will draw connections among seemingly disparate topics such as the life and death of stars, the origination and extinction of species, and the rise and fall of human civilizations. Emphasis is placed on scientific reasoning and discovery. | ||
| TAUGHT: | Fall, Winter, Spring | ||
| CONTENT AND TOPICS: | Ultimately, the purpose of this course is to promote creative, scientific thought. Rather than require students to memorize scientific facts and jargon, they will be asked to ponder case studies from which they will derive fundamental principles of physical and biological evolution. Students will actively apply the scientific method to better understand the universe and life. This course will draw connections among seemingly disparate topics such as the life and death of stars, the origination and extinction of species, and the rise and fall of human civilizations. These topics are not unrelated. For example, just as evolutionary novelty (e.g. the origin of feathers) promotes the rapid diversification of organisms into new habitats, human invention shapes civilizations. Religion and societies have been grounded historically in mankind’s interpretation of the cosmos, and today, human expansion contributes to species extinction. “Origins” will be divided into several modules. Each module will teach one or more complimentary scientific principles as the course progresses from the origin of the universe to humans. Furthermore each module will provide an opportunity for the students to apply the scientific method. Generalized examples follow. (1) Origin of the universe (2) Origin and demise of planetary systems (3) Origin of Earth and its moon, oceans, and atmosphere (4) Origin and early diversification of life (5) Reefs through time (6) Plant-insect interactions (7) Vertebrate evolution and extinction (8) Origin of humans (9) Rise and fall of civilizations The course will begin with a brief history of time (1-2 lectures) followed by a comparison of scientific and revealed truth and two related issues that seem particularly important to students: radiometric dating and evolution. Students will be taught that science is a human endeavor, thus it has limitations. Nevertheless, the scientific method, when properly applied, provides a powerful tool for approaching truth. Furthermore, science and religion are not mutually exclusive; as Latter-Day Saints, we should embrace all truth. “Every accomplishment, every polished grace, every useful attainment in mathematics, music, and in all science and art belongs to the Saints, and they should avail themselves as expeditiously as possible of the wealth of knowledge the sciences offer to every diligent and persevering scholar.” Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses 10:224 |
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| GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: | |||
| REQUIREMENTS: | |||
| PREREQUISITES: | FDSCI 101 | ||
| OTHER: | |||
| EFFECTIVE DATE: | August 2008 | ||