| Fungi, Fall 2007 |
| Lectures: Tues and Thurs 9:05-9:55, 336 Plant Science |
| Lab: Thursday 1:25-4:25, room 326 Plant Science |
| Dr. Hodge's office hours: Fridays, 11am-1pm
401 Plant Science (or by appointment). Call 255-5356 |
This exam includes the material we've covered since the last prelim. Same format as last time.
More upcoming deadlines:
Second blog post: Thurs. Nov. 29
Final two cultures (gp III+): Fri. Nov. 30
Final Feast: Thurs. Nov. 29 in lab period (yum!)
Final Exam: Wed., Dec.
12, 9:00-11:30am. Room 336.
Why not learn about fungi this semester? In this course we cover a weird, cool group of organisms that very few people know much about. Fungi play important roles in the environment and in our lives. This class (PLPA 309, Fungi) explores this ubiquitous and unusual kingdom of life through lectures, readings, and hands-on laboratories. At the end, a fungal feast helps you "internalize" what you've learned.
You might think that you're not terribly interested in fungi. Some of my students thought that last year, but most of them don't think that anymore. Fungi have surprising impacts on us, but perhaps because they tend to be small we don't notice them much. Some are important human pathogens and cause diseases like histoplasmosis or athlete's foot. Some help us produce delicious and intoxicating foods and beverages, like blue cheese and beer. Some spoil foods before we can eat them, kill crop plants before harvest, or contaminate seeds with mycotoxins. Some grow in our homes. Others support plants and link whole forests through symbiotic interactions with roots. We think there are more than 1.5 million species of fungi, but we have named less than 10% of them. Mycology, the study of fungi, is one of the last great frontiers of biology.
Mycology isn't rocket science, but of course there's some jargon involved and there's the interesting challenge of learning to "think like a fungus." My focus is not jargon, but the diversity and interactions of what I think are the most exciting things on the planet (after my husband, I guess). I do assume that students have some basic grounding in biology, so I can use terms like "DNA," "nucleus," and "meiosis" without a lot of explanation. The course is listed at the 300-level because it involves some independent work on a collection assignment and because it covers fungi in some depth. I suggest that PLPA 319 Mushrooms of Field and Forest makes an apt companion course: you'll get to discover in the wild some of the mushrooms we talk about. If you don't have any biology background but still want to have fun with fungi, try Prof. Hudler's Magical Mushrooms, Mischievous Molds course, PL PA 201.
The class syllabus is available from the menu at left. It may help you decide whether this course is appropriate for you. My students in past years have really enjoyed the course, and typically gave it ratings that hover around 4.8 out of 5. Please do contact me if you'd like further information.
Maintained by Kathie Hodge © 2007
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