Course Description
The overall theme of this course is that genetics and evolution provide a useful perspective for understanding many important aspects of our lives, including our psychological makeup and how we relate to others. The course will draw on multiple intellectual disciplines – genetics, evolution, mathematics, statistics and psychology – to address the following fundamental issues:
- How life is maintained from one generation to the next through genes, and how living organisms can adapt the environment through changes in the genes.
- How human individual differences in important domains such as personality and health are influenced by genetic and environmental differences.
- How the nature or humankind may have been shaped by our evolutionary past, and the implications this has on the future of our species.
Learning Outcomes
- Describe and explain the basic principles of genetics and evolution, and give an account of the principal historical figures and their major ideas and contributions.
- Evaluate the evidence concerning the relative roles of nature and nurture (or genes and environment) in the determination of human individual differences, and to discuss the implications of the findings of such studies.
- Analyze how humankind's evolutionary past may have shaped our emotional makeup and thereby impact on how we behave to each other and the material world.
Study Load
| Activities | Number of hours |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 24 |
| Tutorials | 12 |
| Reading / Self-study | 64 |
| Assessment: Essay / Report writing | 30 |
| Assessment: Presentation (incl preparation) | 20 |
| Assessment: Online discussions | 10 |
| Total: | 160 |
Assessment
- 100% coursework
| Assessment Tasks | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Online discussions | 20 |
| 2. Group presentations | 30 |
| 3. Essay assignment | 50 |
Required Reading
- Dawkins, R. (2006). The selfish gene (30th anniversary ed.). Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press.
Recommended Reading
- Axelrod, R. M. (2006). The evolution of cooperation (Rev. ed.). New York: Basic Books.
- Gonick, L., & Wheelis, M. (1983). The cartoon guide to genetics (1st ed.). New York: Barnes & Noble.
- Hamer, D. H., & Copeland, P. (1998). Living with our genes: Why they matter more than you think. New York: Doubleday.
- Kitcher, P. (1996). The lives to come: The genetic revolution and human possibilities. New York, N.Y: Simon & Schuster.
Recommended Website
Course Co-ordinator and Teacher(s)
| Course Co-ordinator | Contact |
|---|---|
| Professor P.C. Sham Department of Psychiatry, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine |
Tel: 2819 9557 Email: pcsham@hku.hk |
| Teacher(s) | Contact |
| Professor P.C. Sham Department of Psychiatry, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine |
Tel: 2819 9557 Email: pcsham@hku.hk |
| Dr S.S. Cherny Department of Psychiatry, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine |
Tel: 2819 9581 Email: cherny@hku.hk |
| Dr W.L. Yang Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine |
Tel: 2819 9355 Email: yangwl@hkucc.hku.hk |
| Dr M.M. Garcia-Barcelo Department of Surgery, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine |
Tel: 2819 9633 Email: mmgarcia@hkucc.hku.hk |