Unit Guide

General Information

Unit convenor and teaching staff	Unit convenor and teaching staff Erin Cheng erin.cheng@mq.edu.au Kevin Danastas kevin.danastas@mq.edu.au
Credit points	Credit points 10
Prerequisites	Prerequisites 50cp at 1000 level or above including [(BIOL2220 or BIOL247) or (20cp from (BIOL1110 or BIOL115) or (BIOL1210 or BIOL108) or (ANAT1001 or HLTH108) or (ANAT1002 or HLTH109) or (PSYU1104 or PSYC104 or PSYU1101) or (PSYU1105 or PSYC105 or PSYU1102) or (COGS1000 or COGS100))]
Corequisites	Corequisites
Co-badged status	Co-badged status
Unit description	Unit description This Unit considers the structure and function of the nervous system. We begin with an overview of the functional organization of the central and peripheral divisions of the nervous system. We discuss how the selective permeability of the cell membrane gives rise to the electrical properties of excitable cells. We look in detail at the generation, propagation and transmission of neural signals, and examine the important principles of sensory physiology such as transduction, adaptation and stimulus coding. Having covered these basic principles, the unit goes on to explore the somatosensory system, and the nerves and organs that give rise to the special senses (vision, hearing, taste and smell) are also discussed. We next examine the structure and physiology of muscle cells, and the central control of motor function. Lastly, we cover the autonomic nervous system and the neuroendocrine system, both of which regulate numerous physiological processes throughout the body.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

ULO1: Explain how neural signals are generated, transmitted and processed in different parts of the nervous system
ULO2: Understand how the nervous and endocrine systems interact
ULO3: Synthesise information taken from the scientific literature about the nervous system and present it to your peers in a concise format
ULO4: Assemble basic electrophysiology recording equipment and perform simple electrophysiological experiments
ULO5: Analyse and interpret the results of simple tests of neural function on human and/or invertebrate animal subjects

General Assessment Information

Online quizzes, in-class activities, or scheduled tests and exam must be undertaken at the time indicated in the unit guide. Should these activities be missed due to illness or misadventure, students may apply for Special Consideration.

All other assessments must be submitted by 5:00 pm on their due date. Should these assessments be missed due to illness or misadventure, students should apply for Special Consideration.

Late submissions will be accepted for the infographic and lab report assessments with penalties applied for late submissions as follows:

A 12-hour grace period will be given after which the following deductions will be applied to the awarded assessment mark: 12 to 24 hours late = 10% deduction; for each day thereafter, an additional 10% per day or part thereof will be applied until five days beyond the due date. After this time, a mark of zero (0) will be given. For example, an assessment worth 20% is due 5 pm on 1 January. Student A submits the assessment at 1 pm, 3 January. The assessment received a mark of 15/20. A 20% deduction is then applied to the mark of 15, resulting in the loss of three (3) marks. Student A is then awarded a final mark of 12/20.

Online quizzes

The three quizzes are 20-minute online quizzes which you may do at home. Each quiz has 12 questions. Quiz questions can be multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blanks or calculations. Only one attempt at each quiz is allowed. Similar to the mid-semester test you will see only one question at a time. You will have only one chance to answer each question. You will answer questions sequentially. You may not go back in the quiz to correct any answers. Think carefully before answering and budget your overall time carefully. You will be expected to use correct spelling and grammar in your answers.

Midsemester Test

This test will include 35 quiz questions to be completed in 50 minutes. Any of the material covered in weeks 1-7 (lectures and practicals) may be included in the mid-semester test. Questions can be multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blanks or calculations. You must complete the test individually. During the test you will see only one question at a time. You will have only one chance to answer each question. You will answer questions sequentially. You may not go back in the quiz to correct any answers. Think carefully before answering and budget your overall time carefully. You will be expected to use correct spelling and grammar in your answers.

Infographic and presentation

The ability to communicate complex scientific (or other) concepts in simple terms to a range of audiences is a critical skill for scientists, clinicians and many other professions. This can be achieved effectively using an infographic: a visual representation of data, concepts or instructive material. Your task is to create a unique infographic that describes and explains one aspect of the visual system. You will also present your infographic in class.

Lab report and practical classes

Through your enrolment and personal timetable you will be assigned a practical time slot and you are expected to attend all practical classes.

The details of each of the three practical assignments are in the practical notes which can be accessed through iLearn. The completed assignments must be submitted to Turitin by 11.55pm on the due dates given in the table above.

Final Exam

The exam is a two hour paper with multiple choice questions, and short answer questions. All the lecture and practical material is examinable.

Assessment Tasks

Name	Weighting	Hurdle	Due
Lab reports	20%	No	see Ilearn for due dates
Quizzes	9%	No	see ilearn for due dates
Mid-Semester Test	20%	No	20 April 11:55pm
Presentation	6%	No	23 May 11:55pm
Final Exam	45%	No	S1 exam period
Lab classes	0%	No	class details in iLearn

Lab reports

Assessment Type ¹: Lab report
Indicative Time on Task ²: 18 hours
Due: see Ilearn for due dates
Weighting: 20%

You will prepare and submit lab reports based on lab activities that involve collection and analysis of neurophsyiological data. These assessments link with lectures and other information sources and test your knowledge of the relevant neural systems.