CES: Emerging Genetics is a two-unit course that provides students with the basic knowledge necessary to understand genetics and its applications. The introduction offers early discoveries in genetics, such as the contributions of Charles Darwin, Alfred Wallace, and Gregor Mendel. Students will conceptualize and apply Mendelian genetics and advance through the timeline of this field to study the great contributions of James Watson, Francis Crick, Rosalind Franklin, and Maurice Wilkins. With the structure of DNA covered in detail, students will apply this structure to its unique and complex function with the realm of the central dogma and mutations brought to light. The second portion of this course provides students with the basic skills needed to understand molecular genetics and its application to today’s society. The introduction consists of learning about techniques such as cloning and hybridization. Gaining an understanding of these techniques will allow the learner to see how they are applied to such areas as GMOs, animal development, cancer studies, DNA fingerprinting, and pharmacogenomics. Throughout this portion, the importance of population genetics and the theory of nature versus nurture will also be stressed.

It is recommended that students considering registering for CES: Emerging Genetics successfully complete at least one year of high school biology before enrolling in this course.