Biology
Video Lectures - Biology: The Science of Life
Publisher: Teaching Company, 2005, 72pp, 1st ed.
One of the greatest scientific feats of our era is the astonishing progress made in understanding the intricate machinery of life. We are living in the most productive phase so far in this quest, as researchers delve ever deeper into the workings of living systems, turning their discoveries into new medical treatments, improved methods of growing food, and innovative new products. This intensive, 72-lecture course will give you the background and guidance to explore in depth the fundamental principles of how living things work—principles such as evolution by natural selection, the cellular structure of organisms, the DNA theory of inheritance, and other key ideas that will help you appreciate the marvelous diversity and complexity of life.
Lectures
| 1. | The Scope of "Life" |
| 2. | More on the Origin of Life |
| 3. | The Organism and the Cell |
| 4. | Proteins—How Things Get Done in the Cell |
| 5. | Which Molecule Holds the Code? |
| 6. | The Double Helix |
| 7. | The Nuts and Bolts of Replicating DNA |
| 8. | The Central Dogma |
| 9. | The Genetic Code |
| 10. | From DNA to RNA |
| 11. | From RNA to Protein |
| 12. | When Mistakes Happen |
| 13. | Dividing DNA Between Dividing Cells |
| 14. | Mendel and His Pea Plants |
| 15. | How Sex Leads to Variation |
| 16. | Genes and Chromosomes |
| 17. | Charles Darwin and "The Origin of Species" |
| 18. | Natural Selection in Action |
| 19. | Reconciling Darwin and Mendel |
| 20. | Mechanisms of Evolutionary Change |
| 21. | What Are Species and How Do New Ones Arise? |
| 22. | More on the Origin of New Species |
| 23. | Reconstructing Evolution |
| 24. | The History of Life, Revisited |
| 25. | From Cells to Organisms |
| 26. | Control of Gene Expression I |
| 27. | Control of Gene Expression II |
| 28. | Getting Proteins to the Right Place |
| 29. | Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology |
| 30. | How Cells Talk—Signals and Receptors |
| 31. | How Cells Talk—Ways That Cells Respond |
| 32. | From One Cell to Many in an Organism |
| 33. | Patterns of Early Development |
| 34. | Determination and Differentiation |
| 35. | Induction and Pattern Formation |
| 36. | Genes and Development |
| 37. | Homeostasis |
| 38. | Hormones in Animals |
| 39. | What is Special about Neurons? |
| 40. | Action Potentials and Synapses |
| 41. | Synaptic Integration and Memory |
| 42. | Sensory Function |
| 43. | How Muscles Work |
| 44. | The Innate Immune System |
| 45. | The Acquired Immune System |
| 46. | Form and Function in Plants I |
| 47. | Form and Function in Plants II |
| 48. | Behavior as an Adaptive Trait |
| 49. | Energy and Resources in Living Systems |
| 50. | How Energy is Harnessed by Cells |
| 51. | Enzymes—Making Chemistry Work in Cells |
| 52. | Cellular Currencies of Energy |
| 53. | Making ATP—Glycolysis |
| 54. | Making ATP—Cellular Respiration |
| 55. | Making ATP—The Chemiosmotic Theory |
| 56. | Capturing Energy from Sunlight |
| 57. | The Reactions of Photosynthesis |
| 58. | Resources and Life Histories |
| 59. | The Structure of Populations |
| 60. | Population Growth |
| 61. | What Limits Population Growth? |
| 62. | Costs and Benefits of Behavior |
| 63. | Altruism and Mate Selection |
| 64. | Ecological Interactions Among Species |
| 65. | Predators and Competitors |
| 66. | Competition and the Ecological Niche |
| 67. | Energy in Ecosystems |
| 68. | Nutrients in Ecosystems |
| 69. | How Predictable Are Ecological Communities? |
| 70. | Biogeography |
| 71. | Human Population Growth |
| 72. | The Human Asteroid |