BOT 3015 - Plant Biology

College of Natural Sciences

Credit(s): 3
Contact Hours: 47
Effective Term Spring 2015 (495)

Requisites

Prerequisite BSC 2011 with a minimum grade of C and
Prerequisite BSC 2011L with a minimum grade of C and
Pre- or Co-requisite BOT 3015L with a minimum grade of C

Course Description

This course explores evolutionary and ecological relationships through the systematics, taxonomy, morphology and physiology of plants, fungi, and autotrophic protists. NOTE: Credit is not given for both (BOT 3015C) and (BOT 3015/BOT 3015L).

Learning Outcomes and Objectives

  1. The student will examine evolutionary relationships of plants as illustrated through classification schemes by:
    1. comparing and contrasting plant taxonomy, plant morphology, and plant physiology.
    2. outlining the difficulties of classifying organisms.
    3. surveying the development of the major schemes used to classify organisms.
    4. interpreting the phylogenetic relationships of angiosperms and gymnosperms.
    5. collecting and identifying local flora
  2. The student will examine the structure and development of the angiosperm and gymnosperm plant body by:
    1. distinguishing the sequence of developmental stages of a plant embryo.
    2. comparing and contrasting the mature embryo of eudicots and monocots.
    3. explaining the overlap in the processes of plant development.
    4. explaining the principal function of roots.
    5. relating the need for a plant to maintain balance between its shoot and root systems.
    6. identifying the basic types of organization found in the primary structure of the stem.
    7. evaluating the proposed hypotheses that explain the pattern of leaf arrangement on stems.
    8. explaining how secondary growth affects the primary body of the stem.
  3. The student will analyze physiological processes of seed plants by:
    1. differentiating among the mechanisms by which plant hormones exert their effects at the molecular level.
    2. differentiating among the mechanisms by which plant hormones exert their effects at the molecular level.
    3. determining the ability of plants to respond and adjust to a wide range of changes in their external environments.
    4. outlining the functions of the elements that are essential for plant growth
    5. comparing and contrasting C3, C4, and crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) pathways for carbon fixation
    6. considering the advantages that C4 plants have over C3 plants.
    7. examining the metabolic processes of photosynthesis and respiration.
  4. The student will consider autotrophic protists and fungi within the scope of plant biology and the general context of evolution by:
    1. comparing and contrasting the dinoflagellates, euglenoids, and cryptomonads.
    2. determining the characteristics of green algae as the protist group from which the bryophytes and vascular plants have evolved.
    3. describing three lines of evolution in the development of multicellularity.
    4. describing the characteristics that differentiate fungi from all other life forms.
    5. comparing the biochemical and biophysical mechanisms by which fungi obtain nutrients to the mechanisms of plants.
    6. determining how the three types of mycelia not only relate to one another but also fit into the life cycle of a fungus.
    7. comparing and contrasting the life cycles of representative fungi.
  5. The student will connect the relationships of bryophytes to other groups of organisms within the scope of plant biology by
    1. comparing and contrasting the divisions of bryophytes.
    2. specifying evidence in support of a charophyte ancestry for plants.
    3. diagramming and explaining the life cycle of a bryophyte as an alternation of heteromorphic generations.
    4. describing the structural modifications related to water absorption.
  6. The student will analyze the organization of the vascular plant body within the context of the features of vascular plant evolution by:
    1. summarizing the adaptations required before plants could transition to land.
    2. evaluating the explanations for the evolutionary origin of microphylls and megaphylls.
    3. drawing and comparing the life cycle of a fern to that of a moss.
    4. defending the presence of vessel elements and heterospory in several unrelated groups of vascular plants as examples of convergent evolution.
    5. discussing the evolutionary advances seen in the seedless vascular plants.
    6. comparing and contrasting the ecology and life history of the various major groups of Peteridophytes and Lycophytes.
  7. The student will assess the evolution of the seed as a principal factor in the success of seed plants by:
    1. summarizing the events that led to the evolution of the ovule.
    2. explaining the basic life cycle of a gymnosperm.
    3. classifying ways that gnetophytes resemble angiosperms.
    4. discussing adaptations that occur in the gymnosperms.
  8. The student will evaluate the importance of plant physiology, morphology and diversity in terms of how ecosystems function by:
    1. explaining the role of growth rate in the competition among plants.
    2. analyzing how a plant community changes over time.
    3. differentiating the role of phytoalexins and tannins in the defense of microorganisms and herbivores, respectively.
    4. supporting disturbance and succession as two important factors that account for the full extent of the diversity of life on Earth.
    5. investigating how plant species compete for resources in an ecological niche.

Criteria Performance Standard

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will, with a minimum of 75% accuracy, demonstrate mastery of each of the above stated objectives through classroom measures developed by individual course instructors.

History of Changes

C&I Approval: 05/16/2014, BOT Approval: 10/21/2014, Effective Term: Spring 2015 (495)

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