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Courses:

Natural Sciences

Some of these courses are available on the Internet. See Distance Education for more information.

• Graduate Research Methods and Scholarly Writing in Natural Sciences
• Current Topics in Medicine
• Human Sexuality
• Environmental Management I
• Environmental Management II
• Principles of Occupational Health
• Ocean Environments
• Rainforest Conservation Ecology
• Introduction to Epidemiology
• Human Pathophysiology I

NSCI E-100 Graduate Research Methods and Scholarly Writing in Natural Sciences
Graduate proseminar. 4 units. Graduate credit $1,235. Limited enrollment.

These proseminars use selected readings from primary scientific literature on various topics to emphasize hypothesis development, experimental methodology, critical interpretation of scientific data, and presentation. Prerequisite: at the first class meeting, students must complete successfully a writing assignment that demonstrates their graduate-level reading comprehension and capacity for coherent logical argument.

Traditional biotechnology has been forever changed by the development of recombinant DNA technology, giving rise to molecular biotechnology. Currently the major challenge is the development of experimental approaches to precisely define the function of gene products and the means by which proteins are identified, produced, purified, and modified. This proseminar examines how these approaches lay the foundation for disease therapies based on reconstituting lost protein activity.

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One headline blares, "Molecular Biologist Deciphers the Basis of Life," another proclaims "The Fountain of Youth Uncovered by Molecular Biologist." This proseminar will investigate the facts and fiction of molecular biology. Current topics such as cloning organisms, telomerase, prions, and the Human Genome Project will be explored.

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Like no other infectious disease in modern medical history, AIDS has brought together a complex molecular biology and medical pathology with the political entanglements of public funding and social discrimination. This proseminar will explore thow the most recent biological research on the AIDS virus affects the many medical and social issues that surround the disease.

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NSCI E-105/W Current Topics in Medicine (11036)
Donna R. Cooper, MD, Instructor in Medicine, Harvard Medical School.
Writing-intensive course. 4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Thursday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Emerson Hall 108. Optional writing workshops Thursday, 6:30-7:30 pm. Fall term.

While a science background may be helpful, this course is designed for the patient, not the premed science major. Its purpose is to help individuals understand how physicians approach medical problems. After a presentation of pertinent anatomy and physiology, we will develop through class discussions and written assignments a further understanding of the implications of a disease, both from the perspective of an individual patient and from that of society. Students will learn what questions to ask when they seek medical care and how to begin to answer those questions. We will discuss infectious diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis, breast and prostate cancer, coronary artery disease, menopause and estrogen replacement therapy, living wills, nutrition, and holistic medicine. Students will learn how to investigate medical issues by analyzing medical literature.

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NSCI E-115 Human Sexuality (21477)
Dave E. David, MD, Physician.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Monday, 7:35-9:35 pm. William James Hall 1. Optional sections to be arranged. Spring term.

This course provides practical information on the biological, medical, psychological, social, and emotional aspects of human sexuality and sexual development, function, and dysfunction. Sexually transmitted diseases, contraception, adolescence, menopause, and puberty are dealt with along with all sexual orientations.

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NSCI E-126 Environmental Management I
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220.

Fall term (10213) : John D. Spengler, PhD, Akira Yamaguchi Professor of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health. George D. Buckley, MS, Chairman of Science, Watertown Public Schools and Director, Marine Ecology Project.
Wednesday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Harvard Hall 104. Optional sections to be arranged. Course also available on the Internet

Spring term (21535) : John D. Spengler, PhD, Akira Yamaguchi Professor of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health. George D. Buckley, MS, Chairman of Science, Watertown Public Schools and Director, Marine Ecology Project.
Course available only on the Internet

This course examines environmental problems from a local, national, and international perspective. Federal legislation on air pollution, water pollution, drinking water quality, toxic substances, and hazardous waste are reviewed. The fundamentals of pollution sources, pathways of transport, measurement methods, mechanisms of toxicity, health effects, and effects on the ecosystem are presented. Control technologies for treating air and water discharges are described. A one-day field trip to Cape Cod will be scheduled on a weekend in the fall.

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NSCI E-127 Environmental Management II (20190)
Petros Koutrakis, PhD, Professor of Environmental Sciences, Harvard School of Public Health. Robert B. Pojasek, PhD, Adjunct Lecturer on Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health. Gregory A. Norris, PhD, President, Sylvatica, Inc.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Wednesday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Harvard Hall 104. Spring term.

This course complements NSCI E-126, covering regional and global environmental problems including urban pollution, energy, transportation and development, ozone depletion and acid rain, and indoor air pollution. The second half of the course focuses on new approaches, including lifecycle analysis, sustainable development, pollution prevention, industrial ecology, and zero-waste strategies.

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NSCI E-132e Principles of Occupational Health (10214)
Louis DiBerardinis, MS, Instructor in Industrial Hygiene, Harvard School of Public Health. Martin Horowitz, MS, Visiting Lecturer on Industrial Hygiene, Harvard School of Public Health.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Tuesday, 5:30-7:30 pm. Sever Hall 308. Fall term.

An introduction to modern industrial technology and its attendant health hazards, the medical consequence of overexposure to chemical agents and physical conditions, methods to evaluate the workplace, the control technology that has evolved to protect the worker, and regulatory activities in occupational health. Topics also include noise, radiation, indoor air quality, ergonomics, air sampling methods, and personal protective equipment. The course includes a field trip to a local industry.

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NSCI E-133c Ocean Environments (20191)
George D. Buckley, MS, Chairman of Science, Watertown Public Schools and Director, Marine Ecology Project.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Monday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Harvard Hall 104. Optional sections to be arranged. Spring term.

This course provides a study of the major environments of the world's oceans, focusing on their ecology and the varieties of sea life that inhabit them. Habitats examined will include the rocky and sandy shores; salt marshes; mangrove areas; the shallow, open, and deep ocean; and coral reefs. Related topics that will be covered are aquaculture, the marine fouling community, research methods, and seashells. The course will include field trips to Cape Cod's coastal environments and the New England Aquarium.

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NSCI E-142/W Rainforest Conservation Ecology (20685)
Mark Leighton, PhD, Lecturer on Anthropology and Director, Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Peabody Museum, Harvard University.
Writing-intensive course. 4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Thursday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Sever Hall 213. Optional sections to be arranged. Spring term.

The course addresses the problems of rainforest conservation and sustainable utilization. Ecological principles and biological attributes unique to rainforests are reviewed in relation to conservation biology theory and practice, and to their implications for sustainable agricultural and forestry practices. Rainforest conservation will be explored in its economic, anthropological, and policy contexts. Scientific approaches integrating these interdisciplinary components will be discussed as the best means of comprehensively evaluating land use options for policy makers.

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NSCI E-161 Introduction to Epidemiology (20193)
Karin B. Michels, ScD, Instructor in Medicine and Epidemiology, Harvard Medical School. Elizabeth Bertone, SM, Research Associate in Medicine, Harvard Medical School.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Tuesday, 7:35-9:35 pm. Harvard Hall 103. Prerequisite(s): familiarity with medical terminology helpful; basic quantitative skills essential. Spring term.

This course introduces the student to the basic principles and methods of epidemiology. These include types of epidemiologic studies, choices in study design, measures of disease frequency and association, sources of bias, and applications to public health.

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NSCI E-162 Human Pathophysiology I (11596)
Stephanie A. Shore, PhD, Associate Professor of Physiology, Harvard School of Public Health. Nancy C. Long Sieber, PhD, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Physiology, Harvard School of Public Health.
4 units. Noncredit $250, undergraduate credit $480, graduate credit $1,220. Tuesday, 5:30-7:30 pm. Harvard School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Kresge 502. Prerequisite(s): high school chemistry and physics, and college-level physiology, or permission of instructor. Limited enrollment. Fall term.

The course will focus on the pathophysiology of the human pulmonary, immune, cardiovascular, and renal systems with a focus on diseases that are important public health problems. The concept of homeostasis will be integrated with general disease processes such as injury, inflammation, fibrosis, and neoplasia, in order to demonstrate ways in which perturbations in physiological regulatory mechanisms and anatomy result in pathophysiology.

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