College-Level Biology from Carnegie Mellon University

This introductory course in”Modern Biology” covers topics found in the fields
of celluar biology, molecular biology, biochemistry, and genetics. It does not
cover organismal biology or taxonomy. This course is a requirement for biology
majors at Carnegie Mellon University. The course is carefully planned to provide
the backgound biology students will need for advanced biology classes.
Non-biology majors will also find this course useful as it explains many of the
concepts and techniques currently discussed in the popular press.ans for a
complete on-line Biology course are under development.

This Modern Biology course is built around six Key Concepts that provide
unifying explanations for how and why structures are formed and processes occur
throughout your study of biology. Because it is not possible to cover the
breadth of modern molecular biology in one semester, an understanding of these
Key Concepts will provide a basis for extension of your knowledge to biological
systems beyond the specifics covered in this course. One of the major goals of
the course therefore is for you to not only learn the definitions of the
concepts but also learn to recognize when they are operating the process being
studied.

The Key Concepts:

• Bioselectivity
• Energy
• Equilibrium
• Ionic State
• Rate Control
• Solubility

Unit 1: Modern Biology

Unit 2: Biological Chemistry
– Atoms,
Functional Groups, and Water
– Equilibrium and pH
– Carbohydrates and
Polysaccharides
– Amino Acids and Proteins
– Enzymes and
Regulation

Unit 3: Cell BiologyModule
– Lipids and Membranes
–
Transport and Signalling

Unit 4: Basis of Molecular Biology
– DNA and
RNA
– DNA Replication
– DNA Transcription
– RNA Translation-Protein
Synthesis

Appendix: Glossaries
– Instructions for Activities
–
Tutorial Animations
– Functional Groups
– Structure and Function of the
Cell Membrane
– Images of Living Cells