BIO219 Plants and People
Lead Faculty: Dr. Michael R. Maxwell
Course Description
A study of food, fiber, forage, fuel and drug crops of major economic significance. Emphasizes ethnobotany, including basic principles of botany, geographic distribution, commercial value and marketable products.
Learning Outcomes
- Understand the structure of higher plants (flower, stem, root and other features).
- Have a basic understanding of plant classification, evolution, and ecological roles, including primary productivity and the food chain.
- Have knowledge of man's economic interest in plants, including: origin and domestication of plants; centers of origin; examples of plant origins; plants of ancient history; and genetic engineering and improvements of plant crops.
- Describe products made from plant cell walls (including descriptions of the forests of the world, U.S. forests, and wood and fiber products.
- Understand ethnobotany, with emphasis on the ecological types of California Indian cultures and their plant resources and uses.
