This class has a combination of lab exercises to illustrate various aspects of plant physiology and molecular biology. It includes several open-ended lab investigations including two that are testing ideas being explored in the Binder’s research lab and that are funded through NSF; one that explores chemicals that prime plants to survive better and another examining plant-microbe interactions.

Can you save the Yggdrasil? In “Tales from the Yggdrasi,” students learn the science and skills they’ll need to save a multi-generational spaceship (the Yggdrasil) after an asteroid-like object hits the craft, leaving behind loss and destruction. If the survivors are to make it to a new home among the stars, students will have to collaborate and use problem-solving, creativity, and critical thinking skills. Blending science fiction with sound scientific principles, this innovative course is a new way for students to engage in experiential learning.

This course gives students hands-on experience working with computational tools to investigate real biomedical questions by analyzing the ever-increasing wealth of genomic and proteomic data becoming available. Students learn R programming, statistical approaches, and online analysis tools as they investigate how a single DNA point mutation can lead to a devastating premature aging disease, dive into the molecular biology of COVID and cancer, and analyze single-cell sequencing of neurons in the brain.