General Education Requirements
Not currently certified for a requirement. Courses are typically considered for Ways certification a quarter in advance.
Course Description
Viruses are unique biological entities that resemble both living and inanimate objects. Despite their simple structure they include some of the most devastating and ubiquitous causes of human disease. From smallpox to measles to HIV to the common cold to SARS-CoV-2, viruses have literally changed the course of human history and impacted evolution. They have also been important experimental tools for probing the molecular nature of key biological processes, and they have been utilized in many key discoveries and Nobel Prize-winning research programs. In books, movies, newspapers, and electronic feeds, viruses continue to make the news on a daily basis. Using contemporary media, we will explore the essential nature of viruses, what makes them unique, how they are classified, how they cause disease, key molecular processes, breakthroughs in prevention and treatment, current efforts in trying to eradicate viruses, and cultural iconography pertaining to viruses. In short, this seminar is intended to go viral.
Meet the Instructor: Robert Siegel
"I am a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. I have secondary appointments in the Center for African Studies, the Master of Liberal Arts Program, the Program in Human Biology, and the Woods Institute for the Environment. My experience at Stanford goes all the way back to my undergraduate years, including my stint as the second Tree. For twenty years, I ran the required microbiology curriculum for Stanford Medical Students. My recent courses focus on virology and infectious disease, genetics and molecular biology, biogeography and ecology, Darwin and evolution, and nature photography. I have traveled extensively and have taught field seminars on six continents including eight Bing Overseas Seminars. I serve on the advisory boards of several organizations related to science education, and I am a docent at Jasper Ridge. I am an obsessive photographer which you can peruse here: https://web.stanford.edu/~siegelr/photo.html You can see some of my teaching accolades on my faculty page."
