Course Details
Fall Semester 2022
Course #36863 TR 11:15A - 12:05P 3 cr.
Location: GY 1045
IUB GenEd N&M credit – Natural Science; COLL (CASE) N&M Breadth of Inquiry credit.
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Claudia C. Johnson
Office Phone: 855-0646; claudia@indiana.edu Please add E114 to email subject line.
OFFICE HOURS: Monday, 2:30-3:15 pm and by appointment.
The objectives of the course are to increase your understanding of three major themes: a) origin and evolution of vertebrates, including dinosaurs and their distant relatives the fish, amphibians, amniotes, and birds; b) geography and climate of the Earth during the evolution of these groups but especially during the time of the dinosaurs and birds; and, c) dinosaur classification, phylogeny, evolution, paleobiology, paleoecology and extinction.
Through the lecture and lab exercises you will gain an increased awareness of successful evolutionary pathways, as well as mass extinction events that occurred through the dynamic history of our planet. The objectives of the course will be achieved if you remember facts, understand the meaning of the material presented, apply your knowledge to solving geologic problems, and analyze topics by breaking them down and understanding the relationship among the parts.
You will have practice in each of these steps during both lecture and lab.
Your ultimate goal is to gain skills necessary to synthesize and evaluate information pertaining to dinosaurs and their distant relatives long after the course has been completed.