Course documents
Syllabus — 4640-Syllabus-Fa2026_v4
Rowen's syllabus as distributed on Canvas: instructor info, textbook, the four course objectives, grading scheme and scale, academic-integrity and accommodation statements, and the predicted schedule of topics with exam dates.
Assignment 1 — Microbe Search
Find four bacterial species reported in your chosen biome, twice: once by AI-assisted search and once by database search, then compare the two on speed and credibility. Rowen's original Word file, plus a fillable version on this site that autosaves and prints.
Introduce Yourself
Week-1 icebreaker, posted on Canvas as 4640-Introduce Yourself-2026.docx. Not mirrored here — grab it from Canvas.
Microbe Presentation
Named in the syllabus as part of the homework points, with no date given yet. Given that Assignment 1 has you build a species list from your own biome, it is worth choosing that biome with the presentation in mind — the search you do in week 1 is plausibly the groundwork for it.
Deadlines at a glance
| Date | Item | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Introduce Yourself | Canvas. |
| Fri Aug 28 | Assignment 1 — Microbe Search | 6 pts · 11:59 PM. |
| Mon Sep 7 | First Day textbook opt-out deadline | Not an assignment, but it costs money to miss. Details. |
| Mon Oct 5 | Exam 1 | Units 1 + 2. |
| Wed Oct 28 | Exam 2 | Unit 3. No lecture Oct 26. |
| Mon Nov 23 | Exam 3 | Unit 4. |
| Wed Dec 16 | Exam 4 · 10–11:59 AM | Unit 5. |
| Dec 16–18 | Optional comprehensive final | Replaces one of exams 1–3, not exam 4. |
Homework rules from the syllabus
- Due by 11:59 PM on the posted date.
- Late: −3% per day, floor of −50%. Seventeen days late is the same score as one day late, so never skip a submission entirely.
- Academic dishonesty: zero on the first offense, course failure on the second. Note that Assignment 1 explicitly requires AI use and asks you to document your prompts — using AI is the task, passing off unverified AI output as verified sources is the problem.