Fall, 2016
Agronomy 375 + C&I 675
The System View of Life
9:30 – 10:45 T R
Hartshorn Conference Room Science Hall
Prerequisites:
Professor:Dr. Molly Jahn, 456 USDA Forest Product Lab
Dr. Cathy Middlecamp, 64 Science Hall
Office hours will be directly after class, or by appointment.
Required Text:
The System View of Life, Fritfoj Capra and Pier Luigi Luisi
Provided Text (Free PDFs):
Thinking in Systems, Donella H. Meadows
The Righteous Mind, Jonathan Haidt
Attendance, Punctuality and Participation
Attendance (-75 points for each unexcused absence): Attendance is absolutely mandatory in order to succeed in this class. You have one unexcused absence; beyond this, each absence costs you 75 points. For an absence to be excused, such as for travel to a conference or for a contagious illness, contactbothDr. Molly Jahn and Dr. Cathy Middlecamp by email at least 24 hours before the class period. Last minute family or health emergencies are exceptions to this rule. For cases such as these, contact your professors as soon as you are able. They will do their best to work something out with you, accommodating your needs.
Punctuality (-25 points for each unexcused tardiness): Like attending, coming on time to class is absolutely mandatory. After the first week of class, you are not allowed any late entries (9:31 am is late). Each lateness costs you 25 points. If for some reason you cannot make class on time, please let your professors know at the start of the semester. They will work something out with you. If you drive to campus, plan so that you don't get caught in an accident on the Beltline. if you take a bus, consider taking an earlier one. OK, we know. You live in Wisconsin where it is known to snow, sleet, and get windy and foggy. Please be safe on the sidewalks, streets, and highways.
Participation (-10 points per “unspent chip”): This semester, we will experiment with a method of class participation: Talking Chips. At the start of class, you will get 1-3 chips depending on the type of activity planned. The more discussion, the more chips you will receive. Each time you contribute to the class discussion, you "spend" a chip. Once you run out, you have to remain silent until everyone else has used up their chips. If at the end of a class discussion you still have chips, you lose 10 points per chip.
Assignments
Weekly Journal (-25 points if late or missing):Starting in the second week in the semester, write a journal entry. Each week,use this documentas your template. In your writing, aim to link either a concept from class or a reading from class to your daily life. As you write, use questions such as these to guide your thinking:"What is missing or in some way not represented?""How did we end up where we are today?" "What holds the present in place?" "Who benefits from keeping things the way they currently are?" Each entry should be between 500 and 1000 words.
Occasional Assignments (-25 points if late or missing): Now and then, you'll find assignments on the calendar. The first one invites you to dive into the text, theSystems View of Life. Look the assignment on Thursday, the first week of class.
Final Project (Details to come)
Grading
A 1000-910; AB 909-890; B 889-810; BC 809-790; C 789-700; D 699-600; F 599-0
You begin the semester with 1000 points. If you keep all of these points (or if you don't lose more than 90 of them), you will receive an A. The chart below shows grades and point ranges.
Course Objectives/Learning Goals
- Name the basic characteristics of a system. Give examples of each.
- Learn to recognize ("see") systems and to name their elements, including feedback loops, stocks and flows, hierarchies, self-organization, and limiting factors.
- For a given system, identify the elements, interconnections, and function.
- Demonstrate the use of these questions in your journal writing, activities, and projects: "How did we get here?" "What holds the present in place?" "Who benefits from things the way they currently are?" "What is missing?"
- Explain the concept of Systems Thinking, including identifying the parts of a system, feedback loops in a system, and being able to name at least 5 different systems in the world around them.
- Describe the nature of questions. In your description, give examples of who gets to ask questions, how the questions asked determine what you can learn, how asking questions may act on the subject of the question, which questions are missing.
- Create and class test components of a new sustainability course to be taught next fall (mythically titled UW 100, A Systems View of Life), including activities, readings, and assignments.