7.01 Knowledge Noodle - Fall 1997

Teaching Introductory Biology in the Experimental Study Group at MIT is different from teaching these subjects in the regular curriculum. Because we teach freshmen in small groups, we can replace the usual series of lectures by discussions of the reading assignments and of the problem set questions. As a result, our reading assignments are long. We find this discussion format an excellent and compelling way to teach.

When teaching Introductory (Molecular) Biology to freshmen in the Experimental Study Group at MIT, we read selected articles which serve to authenticate the need to understand Molecular Biology in order to deal with cutting edge biology research.

We also use as hard-cover text "Biology" by Purves, 5th edition. We find it useful that students read both the Hypertext and a relevant section of Purves to get somewhat different perspectives. While the Hypertext has more in-depth material, reading the Purves text is also useful for its contents and particularly for its illustrations.

Biological Macromolecules

• What are proteins?
• What are other biological molecules that make up the components of a cell?

The reading assignment is the first two chapters of the Hypertext and Purves p19-61.

Enzyme Structure and Kinetics

• What do proteins do? How do proteins work?
• What determines how well a protein works?
• What does a protein look like and how does its structure determine its ability to carry out a particular job?

Central Metabolic Biochemistry

• What are the functions of a cell membrane, anyway?
• How do the organelles work that provide energy for the cell?
• What are the chemical reactions that convert energy into a useable form?
• Why are these reactions universal?

Mendelian Genetics

• What is a "gene"?
• How did the DNA that is contained within every cell get there? What mechanism(s) ensure that all cells in an organism get the same amount of DNA?
• And how can so much DNA fit into the tiny nucleus of a eukaryotic cell?
  
• How is DNA, the genetic material, passed on so very accurately from generation to generation?
  
• What is a mutation and how is it different from an allele??

The Central Dogma of Biology

• Where DO new proteins come from?
• How does a cell copy its DNA when it replicates?

Bacterial Genetics and Regulation

• How were the basic rules of molecular genetics discovered?
• What is molecular genetics anyway?
• How do bacteria decide how to behave?

Recombinant DNA Technology

• What are some of the important advances in recombinant DNA technology?
• What are they for? How do molecular biologists use them?

Eukaryotic Cells - Structure, Function, and Communication

• Why and how do membranes organize the inside of a cell?
• If all the types of cells in the body contain the same DNA, why do they look so different?
• Is there any rhyme or reason to gene expression?
• What allows a cell to keep tabs on all the different proteins that are being produced within it?
• Cells and their interiors are so compartmentalized! Cells are separated from one another by membranes, and the interiors of eukaryotic cells are further compartmentalized by organelles. How do cells communicate with one another?
• How do groups of cells coordinate their activities?

Population Genetics and Evolution

• What if enough mutations collect over time and are passed on from generation to generation? What are microevolution and macroevolution?
• How do whole populations change in a particular direction over time?

The Immune System

• How does the body protect itself against foreign invasion?