Professor: Heywood Course format: Lecture w/section Number of respondents: 75 Total Enrollment: 93

Class Composition Froshs: 0 Sophs: 1 Jrs: 31 Srs: 44 Concs: 64 Non-Concs: 3 Don't Know: 1	Instructor Average: 1.50 Course Average: 1.72

"Biology of the Eukaryotic Cell" is a complex and rewarding course in the structure and function of cellular biology as the latest innovations in the field. Great emphasis was given to acquiring knowledge from primary sources , the use of experimental techniques, and problem solving skills. Stated prerequisistes are Bio 20, Bio 28 or the equivalent, and Chem 25 or Chem 35. Most also stated that a solid background in molecular biology was a necessity and further biology classes would be helpful.

This course was team taught by Professors Heywood and Miller, who both received excellent reviews. Students described Miller as one of the best professors they have ever had at Brown. He made difficult concepts easily understandable. Miller also integrated the lectures and the readings well. His clear and laid-back style were much appreciated in this fast paced class. Heywood also received good reviews. Some found him a little disorganized and hard to understand. Yet, overall, they thought he did a good job dealing with very difficult material. Most students agreed that the two professors were among the highlights of this course.

The workload for this course was very heavy. Most of the effort was put into the substantial reading assigned. Not only was there heavy textbook reading, but roughly ten journal articles were assigned each week. Two midterm exams were given, one in-class and one take-home. Both were described as challenging. In addition, a final exam was given. A final research proposal was also due at the end.

This course is blazingly fast-paced and covers an staggering amount of material over one semester. The amount of reading assigned in this course overwhelmed quite a few students. The concepts were not difficult to understand but the challenge was in finding time to do all the reading. Students put in about 15 to 20 hours a week on this course. They described it as challenging and most highly recommended taking it S/NC. The grade option helped reduce some of the stress of the course and let people enjoy the material more.

Overall, most students were very satisfied with this course. They were amazed, at the end, at the sheer breadth of material that they covered. They were pleased with their increased knowledge of eukaryotic cell physiology as well as an increased comfortability in reading scientific papers.

View BI/0105 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.