Knowing: Science as Narrative

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

Science is messy. Stories of scientific discoveries are never straightforward. Science is done by people whose judgements could be biased and limited by the tools available. Thus, scientific work is constantly re-evaluated and challenged. This course is designed to help students recognize that science is a method to investigate nature, not a collection of established facts. Students will learn some of the fundamental biological concepts and how they were derived and tested. Articles and videos will be assigned to discuss how scientific knowledge is obtained, subjected to scrutiny, and modified. In order to reinforce the understanding of the scientific method, the course includes lab components in which students will extract DNA from a banana at home and observe the microstructure of biological samples using a Foldscope. This course satisfies the Science for All Core requirement