The three hour-long examinations will be short-answer essays that cover lecture material and assigned readings during the designated period for each examination. The third examination will not be cumulative but will cover only the material not covered by the first two examinations. I will provide a set of review questions that cover the material designated for each of the three examinations. These review questions are typical essay questions, and in fact, I usually draw about half of the examination directly from among them. I will also provide you with a "guide to answering essay questions." These will be available on my home page.

WHAT THE THESIS PAPER OUGHT TO BE

The thesis paper is a library research project. The final product ought to be an essay of 6-8 double-spaced, typewritten pages that is based on your reading of original scientific literature. I will provide a separate document that offers more detail on the paper and also provides a step-by-step guide (available for you to retrieve from the course home page) to how one ought to write a good thesis paper. Samples of excellent papers from the past (grades of A or A-) will be placed on reserve in the classroom so you can see what I expect from you. IMPORTANT WARNING: The paper is supposed to be written expressly for this course, and papers that you write for this course ought not to be considered to fulfill a similar assignment in another course. I consider the practice of writing one paper and submitting it in two separate courses to constitute fraud; if I learn that you have done so, I will assign you a grade of zero for your paper in this course.

IMPORTANT GENERAL POLICIES: READ CAREFULLY

1. I expect you to be familiar with and adhere to the university's academic honor code as described in the FSU Student Handbook. Any claim of ignorance of the honor code is unacceptable.
2. You are responsible for everything covered in lectures and assigned readings. Note that, for some topics, the assigned reading may not overlap extensively with the lecture material. You may therefore encounter exam questions on material that is covered in the text but was not discussed in lecture. I expect you to know and understand the assigned material regardless of its origin (textbook or lecture). Of course, office hours and review sessions may be used for questions about any required material.
3. You are free to ask for a reevaluation of any part of any examination (i.e. a "regrade") under these conditions: First, your request must be made in writing and turned in to me no later than one week after your graded examination is returned to you; no requests will be accepted after the one-week deadline. Second, your request must be in the form of a one-page, typewritten, double-spaced justification of why you believe your answer was graded incorrectly, why the question was unfair, etc. This justification must compare your answer to the full-credit answers that will be posted (which will have been written by one of your colleagues in the class, no names will be revealed of course) and explain why your answer is as good as those. Third, by making such a request for a regrade you accept that I may exercise my option to regrade one or more of your other answers on that same examination. Fourth, all regrading decisions are final.
4. If you must miss a scheduled examination, you must notify me no later than one week before the examination. When you notify me, we will schedule a make-up examination for you. If you miss a scheduled examination because of illness or unanticipated circumstances, you must bring a doctor's note to verify the illness or other documentation for other circumstances. When you present that material to me, we will schedule a make-up examination for you. If other circumstances create a problem for you in taking an examination on the scheduled day, please talk to me about them.
5. No computer assignment or thesis paper will be accepted late unless you have made prior arrangements to turn in a late assignment because of a religious observance or other legitimate conflict. Any assignment or paper received after the due date without prior arrangement will be assigned a grade of zero.
6. If you wish to be excused from class to observe a religious holy day, please notify me in advance so that we can arrange for you to make up the work you will miss.
7. Students with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations should bring me a letter from the Student Disability Resource Center that describes the disability and needs so that we can make special arrangements.
8. I will call your attention to these policies at the first class meeting and thereafter expect you to be familiar with them.
9. Please notify me if you need these documents provided in an alternative format.