Using scientific reasoning and evidence from various biological disciplines to test hypotheses about the common ancestry of organisms. Three one-hour lectures.

This course explores evidence relating to the common ancestry of organisms on Earth. It is divided into a series of units, covering the process of science, comparative study of skeletons of vertebrates, fossil evidence, the genetic code, and comparative study of molecular biology of organisms.

Students proceed by developing their own hypotheses about the origin and relatedness of organisms. These hypotheses are tested against anatomical and molecular evidence in a series of units. Student record their hypotheses, predictions, results, and conclusions, along with their reasoning processes, in ongoing journal entries during the course. In the process the students are exposed to a variety of types of biological evidence along with the tools for locating and analyzing it, and gain experience in application of scientific reasoning to a problem.

Attend all classes, participate in all class activities, and satisfactorily complete all assignments and examinations.