Office: Faculty Suite 3531 room #7

Office Phone: 281-283-3750

Email: mailto:puzdrowski@uhcl.edu

I am most easily contacted through my email address, which I check regularly.

Office Hrs: Mondays 4:00-6:00pm, Thursday 4:00-5:30pm, and by Appointment

I reserve the right to alter these office hours any time during the semester

Prerequisites: Introductory level courses in Anatomy and Physiology.

Course Description: This course will cover basic and advanced principles of neuroscience. The focus of the course will be on the mammalian nervous system, however, examples from non-mammalian animals will be presented where useful and appropriate. The course will cover the field of neuroscience from the physiology of neurons through the organization of sensory and motor systems, and behavior.

Learn Objectives:

To understand and describe the origin of the membrane potential, and develop an active knowledge of how neurons use changes in this potential to communicate information to other neurons and target cells.
To gain an appreciation of the anatomical structure of both the central and peripheral nervous system in vertebrates, and be able to associate the anatomical structure with the functional systems that comprise the vertebrate nervous system.
To appreciate the functions of the nervous system and how the parts of the nervous system are integrated and coordinated to carry out these functions.
To explore examples how the nervous system produces both simple and complex behaviors.

Methodology: The material covered will be presented primarily in a lecture format. There will be one lab devoted to the structure of the nervous system. Reading assignments from the course textbook will be required. Handouts of figures, tables, or charts will be provided if they are not in the textbook.

Required Text: Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain 3rd ed. by Mark Bear, Barry Connors and Michael Paradiso is available in the UHCL bookstore.

Lecture Attendance: Lecture attendance is strongly advised. The exam questions will focus mainly on the material covered in lecture. HOWEVER, YOU WILL BE EXPECTED TO DO THE ASSIGNED READINGS AND ANY MATERIAL FROM THESE READINGS IS FAIR GAME FOR EXAM QUESTIONS.

Exams: There will be three exams. The exams will consist of multiple choice, True/False, matching, and short answer essay questions. Exam 2 will include a lab practical component. Each exam will be worth 100 points. The test format may be changed as the course instructor sees fit. While exam questions will focus on material covered in class, questions may also be based on information from assigned readings.

After the exam, a copy of the exam questions will be available. Challenges to exam questions may be submitted during the week after I have returned your exam to you, NO CHALLENGES WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THIS TIME. Challenges must be submitted in writing or by email. Challenges to exam questions should include a detailed explanation of the basis of the challenge. (HINT: Challenges based on the claim, “You didn’t tell us we need to know this” or “this question is not fair”, will not be accepted.)

Grades:

Final grades will be based on the total points accumulated from three exam scores. If you miss an exam, contact the instructor immediately to schedule a make-up exam. In most circumstances, makeup exams will be scheduled during the week of the original exam. Your final grade will be determined as a percentage of this total (for example 250/300= 83%). Letter grades will be assigned according to the scale, 90-100=A, 80-89=B, 70-79=C, 60-69=D, and less than 60 =F.

I want everyone to get an ‘A’ in the course, so study hard, ask questions, and good luck! If you feel that you are having trouble with the material, please see the instructor immediately, so that help can be provided. Please, don’t wait until the last week of the course to seek help!

Honor Code: Students will be expected to adhere to the UHCL Academic Honesty Code. This code is detailed in the 2011-2012 UHCL catalog on pages 80-82 and online at http://prtl.uhcl.edu/portal/page/portal/PRV/FORMS_POLICY_PROCEDURES/STUDENT_POLICIES/Academic_Honesty_Policy. Anyone found in violation of this code will be held accountable for their behavior.

Students with Disabilities: If you are certified as disabled and entitled to accommodation under the ADA Act, Section 503, please tell me immediately so that arrangements can be made. If you are not currently certified and think you may qualify, please contact the Health and Disability Services Office.

Drop Date: The last day to drop the course without receiving a grade is November 17^th . It is your responsibility to initiate the drop proceedings. If you simply stop attending the course I will be required to assign you a grade of ‘F’. The UHCL policy regarding incompletes states that a student must be making “satisfactory progress” in order to receive an incomplete. I interpret this to mean that you must have a grade of ‘C’ to receive an incomplete (‘I’) for the course.