Introduction to principles and mechanisms of evolution by natural selection; population, behavioral, and community ecology; and biodiversity, including major taxa and their evolutionary, ecological, and physiological relationships. Introduction to basic principles of cell structure, organization of cells into tissues and organs, and principles of organ systems. Introduction to basic principles of biochemistry and molecular biology. Introduction to Mendelian inheritance and chromosomal basis of heredity in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, recombination, biochemical genetics, mutation, DNA, genetic code, gene regulation, genes in populations.

Opportunity to conduct wet-laboratory and cutting-edge bioinformatics laboratory experiments. Students work in groups conducting experiments in areas of physiology, metabolism, cell biology, molecular biology, genotyping, and bioinformatics.