Courses

BIOL42B Physiology Lab

Typically offered every fall

This laboratory course is offered as an optional 2-credit add on to the lecture-based BIOL42A Human physiology course. 

In the first half of the semester, students are introduced to laboratory techniques used to study human physiology including electromyography, electrocardiography, exhaled gas analysis, and spirometry. Students conduct experiments using their own bodies, make predictions, record results and analyze how their observations reveal physiological principles.  

In the second half of the semester, students design their own experiment using some of the laboratory techniques introduced earlier in the term. Working in groups, students come up with a research question, decide which independent and dependent variables they will measure and how, what controls are necessary, how many subjects they will test, how they will statistically analyze their data for significance, how to interpret their results, and the best way to present their findings to members of the Brandeis community at an open poster session.