General Information

HBY350/501 is a comprehensive course in human physiology that serves as a basis and foundation for your clinical and applied courses. We feel that each student who passes will gain an understanding of normal cellular and organ-system function at a level expected of a health-care professional—namely, at a level approaching that of Medical Physiology.

Some students find the course to be highly challenging. Nevertheless, those students who start off struggling with the material usually rally as the course progresses: historically, more than 96% of all students pass the course, and those few who fail usually do so because of identifiable situational difficulties—most notably, inadequate commitment of time or studying in isolation. The exceedingly high passage rate of Stony Brook graduates on certification and licensing exams attests to the fact that we in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics are doing our small part in properly training you.

Our responsibility is to do everything reasonable to help you acquire an adequate level of knowledge required to pass the course. Should you experience any problems, your responsibility is to seek help from the faculty and teaching assistants (TAs). You will find the instructors and TAs committed, approachable and friendly, and exceedingly fair!

Room assignments and class times

Monday and Wednesday sessions meet from 8:00 – 9:50 a.m., and Friday sessions meet from 9:00 – 9:50 a.m. Quizzes and examinations are held in lecture halls and/or large classrooms. Consult the course website often for last-minute room changes, and for quiz and examination room assignments. The Lecture and Examination Schedule lists the scheduled topics, reading assignments, and quiz and examination schedules.

Website

Up-to-date course information will be posted on the course website at www.pnb.sunysb.edu/hby350. The site includes lecture notes and primers, problem sets, transcripts (selected lectures), as well as slides and/or computer graphics presentations. These items constitute the primary source of printed course information. The website also contains student quiz and exam scores (sorted by the last four digits of your ID number), useful information regarding course prerequisites, keyed quizzes and exams from the previous two years, schedule changes, etc.

Testing and grading

HBY350 students and HBY501 students will be tested separately. All tests will be of the objective type. Testing will be done using optical scanning sheets for submitting answers. You will be permitted to annotate and keep the question sheets for future study, and as a record of your responses. Be sure to bring a sufficient quantity of sharpened #2 pencils to all quizzes and exams!

We have scheduled 10 half-hour quizzes and two two-hour comprehensive examinations. Of the 10 quizzes, only the eight highest scores will be counted in computing your cumulative average and grade. You are not penalized for guessing on answers to test questions, hence you should make every effort to attend all quizzes, even if you feel you are not adequately prepared. Quizzes and exams are cumulative, in that they may cover any lecture or text material presented up to that point in the course. This simply reflects the nature of the course: basic principles discussed early in the course are expanded upon in subsequent lectures. Generally, however, quizzes will tend to emphasize the most recent preceding topics, and the two-hour exams will emphasize material presented during the first and second halves of the course, respectively.

Grades will be based strictly on the following relative weights, and there is no provision for improving or inflating a grade by any other means other than scheduled test performance:

7 % for each of the eight highest quizzes	=	56 %
22 % for each two-hour examination	=	44 %
Total	=	100 %

Letter grades

Letter grades will be determined independently for students enrolled in HBY350 and HBY501; thus, students enrolled in HBY350 will not be graded in relation to students enrolled in HBY501 (and vice versa). Nevertheless, for both HBY350 and HBY501, a minimum cumulative score of 55 % is required to pass with a grade of D (we do not award D+ grades), and the minimum C- score is 60 %.

If your cumulative score is at or above the respective class mean, then your letter grade will be B- or higher. Midterm letter grades will be computed immediately following the first two-hour exam. All scores and grades will be posted on the website (sorted by the last four digits of your identification number).

Test taking strategy and test times

Quiz and exam questions are of the four-item multiple-choice format. Some questions ask you to select the one best (true) item, while other questions ask you to select the one false item. We take great care to write unambiguous test questions, and to avoid bad testing practices—e.g., questions with double negative clauses. Although we must ask questions that are sometimes perceived as highly specific and technical, we do not write questions with the goal of “tricking up” the student. If a statement in a question sounds obvious and true, then it probably is! If a statement in a question is false, then it is usually blatantly false—often for more than one reason!

Unless we are explicitly asking a question about a specific pathology (e.g., disease or trauma), always consider the question as referring to an adult or child (or experimental animal) who is healthy, and otherwise physiologically normal. Be wary of questions with the words “always” or “never”, since very few physiological processes, or physiological responses, are absolute.

Quizzes are designed to be completed in 30 minutes; the two exams are designed to be completed in 120 minutes. Once you have carefully read and answered all the questions, it is generally a bad practice to second guess yourself and mull over the questions seeking hidden nuances. Students who absolutely require additional time to complete a quiz or exam will be permitted a reasonable amount of additional time (20 minutes for a quiz, and 60 minutes for an exam) to complete the test. This privilege, however, will be revoked for students who repeatedly arrive late for quizzes and/or exams!

Reviewing tests from previous years

Copies of quizzes and exams (with correct answer keys) from the preceding two years are posted on the course website (see above). In consulting previous tests, be cautious of three things: (1) The chronological sequence of lectures differs slightly from year to year (previous years’ schedules are included on the website). (2) Physiology is an advancing field and on occasion, you will find that some of the “correct” responses to questions from old tests might now be incorrect. (3) Do not use quizzes and exams dated prior to 2007 as study guides; the information might be out of date, different text sources might have been used, and instructors might have emphasized the material differently.

Disputes on test questions

If you have a dispute and/or complaint regarding a test question, then submit your personal explanation in writing and in person to any of the course instructors or the Course Administrator (see below) by the end of the next day that classes are in session (i.e., no later than the Monday afternoon following a Friday quiz). Alternatively, you can submit your dispute via e-mail: address your e-mail to the instructor(s) who taught the material, being sure to carbon-copy the Course Director. Please write your dispute in a non-accusatory tone, and keep it concise and to the point. Each dispute will be judged on an individual basis in consultation with the instructor and the Course Director. Your written dispute will be returned to you, appended with a brief explanation regarding the judgment.

You are permitted to view your answer sheet (Scantron® form) after it has been scored. Note, however, that in scanning over 30,500 forms over the past 15 years, we have never experienced a case where the optical scanning machine failed to read a form accurately. If the machine fails to read a filled bubble (because it is too light), or if it reads a multiple answer (due to a bad erasure), it stops thereby permitting the operator to examine the form visually and to enter responses manually.

Make-up tests

No make-up quizzes will be offered under any circumstances! However, in the event that a quiz is canceled due to official closure of the University (e.g., snow emergency), we will attempt to reschedule the quiz during a lunch and/or evening time period. In the event that rescheduling of the quiz proves impossible, then the resulting zero score will become one of the two dropped quizzes.

Make-up exams will only be given to students who can provide a legitimate reason for missing either of the two-hour exams. University policy requires that the reason must be documented in writing (e.g., physician’s note, police accident report). Make-up exams will typically be of the essay and/or oral variety, and the date and time of the exam will be arranged with the Course Director.

Numerical problems and calculators

Numerical problems will commonly be given on quizzes and exams, and the numerical answer (including proper units) is the only correct answer. No partial credit is awarded for errors involving incorrect units, improper use of a formula, or arithmetic and/or calculator errors including sign errors. Consult Numbers, Quantities and Units on the website for further information.

The use of calculators is permitted, but sharing of a single calculator among two or more individuals is not permitted; make sure your calculator is in good working order before a quiz or exam. Note that a number of numerical problems will require you to evaluate logarithms and solve problems using scientific notation. Consult Review of Logarithms on the website for a brief review, and a discussion of common pitfalls in using calculators.

Academic dishonesty

Suspected incidents of academic dishonesty, no matter how minor or trivial, will be reported to the Dean of your School for investigation and appropriate action. The Faculty feel that such acts demonstrate a serious character flaw that cannot be tolerated in a health-care professional. Use of any device capable of remote two-way communication during a quiz or exam will be considered an act of academic dishonesty. Such devices (e.g., cell phones, lap-top computers) must be turned off during a quiz or exam.

Office hours and question and answer sessions

Faculty and teaching assistants will conduct a weekly question and answer session to be held in on Thursday at 4 p.m. at a location to be assigned (check the website). All students are invited to attend, but attendance is not mandatory. Note that if no student appears at the session by 4:15 p.m., then the instructor will assume that no one needs assistance and will be free to leave.

You can also meet privately or in small groups with the TAs or instructors (it is best to address highly technical questions to the instructor who originally presented the material). Normal TA office hours will be as follows:

Day	Time	Location
Wednesday	noon – 1:00 p.m.	Basic Sciences Tower room 5T-140
Wednesday	5:30 – 6:30 p.m.	Basic Sciences Tower room 5T-140
Thursday	noon – 1:00 p.m.	Basic Sciences Tower room 5T-140
Thursday	5:00 – 6:00 p.m.	Lecture hall used for Thursday 4 p.m. review

All instructors have been asked to reserve lunch hours (noon – 1:00 p.m.) and weekdays after 4:00 p.m. for student office hours, so feel free to visit their offices (see below) during these times. Alternatively, you can call the instructor by phone or communicate via e-mail to set up an appointment, should the scheduled hours conflict with your class schedule. Seeking help via an e-mail dialog is discouraged; meeting face-to-face with an instructor or TA is a better way.

We urge you to utilize TA and instructor office hours, but please make an honest effort to learn the material on your own beforehand. Office hours are best used for clarifying specific topics, working specific problems, and correcting misconceptions, as opposed to re-delivering a lecture.

Room locations and phone numbers

Faculty offices are located in the Basic Health Sciences Tower of the HSC (the shortest of the three towers and serviced by only two elevators):

Instructor	Room	Phone*	e-mail**
Dr. Chris Clausen (Course Director)	T5-160	444-3042	chris.clausen
Dr. Raafat El-Maghrabi	T6-170	444-3049	raafat.el-maghrabi
Dr. Roger Johnson	T6-160	444-3040	roger.johnson
Dr. Leon Moore	T5-160	444-3047	leon.moore
Dr. Barbara Rosati	T6-124	444-7350	barbara.rosati.1
Dr. Ilan Spector	T5-194	444-3447	ilan.spector
Dr. Kelly Warren	T6-140	444-2282	kelly.warren
Ms. Mel Bonnette (Course Administrator)	T6-140	444-2299	melanie.bonnette
Main Departmental Office	T6-140	444-2287	robin.green

* Area code 631. Dial only the last 5 digits when using an on-campus phone.

** All e-mail names must be followed (suffixed) with @stonybrook.edu.

If you have problems finding a TA or instructor, or if you need replacement copies of handouts, etc., contact the Course Administrator by calling or visiting the Physiology Department main office (see above).

Required text book

Your primary source of course information is the material presented in lecture, coupled with material available on the website, although some instructors may explicitly hold you responsible for textbook material.

The text for this course is Human Physiology: An Integrated Approach (Fourth Edition) by Dee Unglaub Silverthorn (Pearson Education, Inc). The medical bookstore on HSC Level 2 will have copies of this text, or you can order it from online book sources. If you wish to use additional texts and/or monographs, review them first with an instructor or the Course Director. These other sources of information may be inaccurate, outdated, or too technical for the level of the course.

Course prerequisites

We assume that you have a working knowledge of basic inorganic chemistry (chemical bonds, solutions, reactions, pH, etc.), cell biology (DNA transcription, mitosis, cellular organelles, etc.), and mathematics at a pre-calculus level (algebraic manipulations of formulas, logarithms, scientific notation, working with units, etc.).

We strongly urge you to review three documents on the website: Numbers, Quantities and Units, Review of Logarithms, and Chemistry Self-assessment Test. If you experience problems working the associated problem sets, then please see Drs. Clausen or Moore as soon as possible.

Study habits

Physiology cannot be learned successfully by simply memorizing structures, terminology, formulas, etc. You must be able to work with the facts and concepts presented in order to solve problems and to predict the outcome of hypothetical situations related to the normal functioning of a human (or other animal). Here are six suggestions for excelling in the course:

1. Students always benefit by studying in small groups; do not study “in isolation.”

2. If you experience difficulty grasping a specific concept, seek immediate help from the instructors or TAs—do not delay, as subsequent topics usually rely heavily on previous material.

3. Reviewing keyed quizzes and exams is a poor way to study physiology. However, by actually taking past quizzes and exams as practice tests, you can obtain a reasonable assessment of your knowledge of the material. In so doing, be able to justify your response to each question: explain why a correct response is indeed correct, and be able to identify what is wrong with a false statement.

4. Highlighting of written material is a poor way to study physiology, since in subsequent readings, the highlighting can give one the false impression that the material had already been assimilated.

5. A better approach is to read the material, then subsequently outline the salient topics in your own handwriting on a sheet of paper—an action that has been shown scientifically to reinforce retention of the material.

6. Pay special attention to figures and graphs.

Finally, regarding numerical problem solving, all too often students plug numbers into formulas and report the results without ever considering whether or not the result is physiologically reasonable. We will never pose hypothetical situations that result in nonsensical physiological values that are incompatible with life. When asked to determine values using formulas discussed in class and data provided in a question, always consider whether or not the result you obtain—as as well as its units—is reasonable. Consult the Numbers, Quantities and Units and the Review of Logarithms pages on the website for more information.