PH 150B: Introduction to Environmental Health Sciences
3 units – CCN# 75592
Lecture TuTh, 3:30 – 5:00 390 Hearst Mining
Instructors:
Charlotte Smith,
Office hours Tu/W/Thin 575 University Hall
See time and sign up on
and by appointment by email
Asa Bradman,
Office hours Thurs 2:30-3:30in Stanley Hall study area (tables on first floor)
and by appointment by email
John Balmes,
Office hours M-Fby appointment753 University Hall
Graduate Student Instructors
Kathleen
Lila Rubenstein
L. Drew
Rainbow
Marie
Kali
Course overview: The course begins with an exploration of the routes of exposure, health effects, regulations, policies and environmental justice issues of a classic environmental contaminant: lead. Next, we delve deeper into the core areas of environmental health sciences: toxicology, exposure assessment, risk assessment and regulations/policy setting. We will examine the science, health considerations and regulations of contaminants in the air, water and food in the context of both developed and developing countries. Case studies of environmental exposures, for example,radionuclides and BPA, will be discussed along with other special topics such as ethics and occupational health.This course consists of two 1.5-hour lectures per week and a 1-hour discussion section. Discussion sections provide an opportunity for students to present, discuss and debate concepts from the lecture and readings. An average of 4-8 hours a week studying, reading and writing outside of the class and discussion sections is expected.
Course objectives:
1. Students will be able to describe, contrast, compare, and conduct analyses using the basic skills of environmental health sciences: toxicology, exposure assessment, risk assessment and epidemiology.
2. Students will be able to describe major ways in which the environment and health are linked in different parts of the world and for different populations.
3. Students will be able to describe ways that scientific studies can determine the quantitative relationship between environmental exposures and health.
4. Students will be able to describe methods used to mitigate or control adverse health impacts from environmental hazards.
5. Students will be proficient finding primary literature sources and managing literature citations using for example, Zotero or Endnote.
Discussion Sections
Attendance in discussion sections is required. Students are expected to read assigned readings before section and participate in class activities and discussions. Participation in section counts as 10% of your grade.Although attendance will be taken, it constitutes a relatively very small portion of the discussion grade. The discussion section grade is primarily comprised of actual participation (guidelines and a grading rubric are posted in bCourses). Accommodations for students with disabilities that inhibit discussion will be made upon receipt of a letter from the DSP office. Students requesting accommodations should speak to the professor and their GSI early in the semester to ensure proper accommodation.
Note: Discussion sections commence the week of Sept. 2, 2013; graduate students enrolled in PH270 do not attend 150B discussion sections.
Section / Day / Time / Room / GSI / Office Hours101 (75586) / W / 1-2 / 109 Dwinelle / Lila Rubenstein / F 11-12 Yali’s on Oxford
102 (75589) / T / 1-2 / 79 Dwinelle / Rainbow Rubin / Tu 2-3P Ishi Court (Dwinelle) Raining: Free Speech Cafe
103 (75592) / Th / 1-2 / 79 Dwinelle / L. Drew Hill / Th2-3PIshi Court (Dwinelle)
104 (75595) / F / 10-11 / 6 Evans / Kathleen Navarro / Th 5-6PStanley Hall Tables
105 (75622) / Th / 5-6 / 2032 VLSB / Marie Tysman / M 9-10AQualcomm Cafe
106 (76972) / F / 11-12 / 321 Haviland / Kali Feiereisel / Th 11-12 Stanley Hall Tables
Course website
Required articles and some supplemental (optional but recommended) readings for all lectures will be posted on the course website. Lecture slides from 2013 are available in bCourses. Every effort will be made to post updated slides on bCourses by Friday for the prior Tuesday and Thursday lectures. Distribution of slides is at the discretion of guest speakers and some might not be posted at all. Lectures will cover material that is not always in the readings or discussed in sections.Therefore,it is important to come to the lectures to be fully engaged in the class and perform better on exams. The bCourses site will also include the most current version of the course schedule, assignments, and other information. To access the site, log in to bCourses (bCourses.berkeley.edu) using your CalNet ID and passphrase; if you are enrolled in the class, you will have immediate access to the site. See the professor immediately if you can not access course material.
Homework:
Two homework assignments are to be completed independently. After attempting your best effort to answer questions on your own, you may discuss your answers with other students and revise your answers. Past experience has shown that students who attempt to complete the homework independently perform better on the exams.
Note: Graduate students enrolled in PH270 do not complete the homework assignments. You will have separate assignments.
Exams:
There will be two exams during the semester, each covering approximately half of the lectures. However, concepts from the first half may apply to material in the second half and may re-appear on the second exam. There is no final exam for this course.
Term Paper:
Please note: All assignments are to be uploaded to bCourses as Word™ files to conserve paper and utilize the University’s plagiarism detection software.
A 5 to 8 page paper (not including references)will be uploaded to bCourses by 11/18/14 11:59pm. Papers must include a minimum of 10 references 8 of which are from peer-reviewed articles or government documents. Papers will be deducted 10 points per day for each day late without prior approval from one of the professors. If you have any question as to the whether or not a document is peer-reviewed, check with your professors or GSIs. The paper should be double-spaced with 1-inch margins. Put your name, GSI’s name and section number in the header of the first page only. This means creating a section break for page2 and de-selecting “same as previous” for the header. Put page numbers on all pages except the first page (starting with 2 on page 2). Submit your paper as a Microsoft Word document to bCourses. Do not turn in a paper copy or electronic PDF.
The use of bibliographic management software, such as Zotero (open source) or EndNote (~$80.00), is very strongly recommended because it is a marketable skill. Instructions for Zotero will be provided in bCourses. You should use the “cite as you write” feature of your bibliographic software(don’t cut and paste, or manually enter references). For the references, you can use the reference style from any of the following 3 journals: Nature, Environmental Health or Environmental Health Perspectives. Nature is a Zotero default, EH & EHP have to be imported. See “Zotero instructions” in bCourses or get help from the professor or GSIs.
We strongly encourage you to also seek assistance early in the semester from a reference librarian in the Public Health or Biosciences Library and/or your GSIs or professors for help with finding appropriate sources.
Support with Writing: Several resources are available on campus, including the Student Learning Center ( Additional resources can be found at:
Plagiarism: Plagiarism entails copying or otherwise using passages, words and phrases without credit (citing your source); using main or supporting ideas without credit; and paraphrasing without credit. Plagiarism also includes submitting a paper written by someone else or by you for another class. Ethical research requires that you properly document the sources you use to develop your papers, including one of your own term papers from another class or “personal communications”.
Even when you do not quote directly from another work, if reading that source contributed to the ideas presented in your paper, you should give the authors proper credit for their ideas. Students engaging in plagiarism in this class may be subject to student misconduct proceedings which could result in failing the written assignment, failing the entire course, or expulsion from the University. Please educate yourself on this important issue by reading the information on the Student Conduct website:
If you have questions about how to cite your sources appropriately, please speak to the professors or GSIs.
Note: Graduate students enrolled in PH270 do not write the term paper described above. You will have a different term paper assignment.
The goal of the term paper assignment is to stimulate you to think through a problem in environmental or occupational health, integrating what you have learned about the various disciplines within environmental health sciences (toxicology, exposure science, epidemiology, risk assessment and regulatory policy). The key to writing a quality term paper is to try to tell a good story from introduction to conclusion, supported by citations from relevant scientific and policy literature. In other words is the research strong and consistent for the topic you have chosen, or is there ambiguity in the literature and discrepancies or conflicting results in the studies you review?
The paper should clearly answer:
The problem to be addressed (i.e., what is the hazard?)
What is the source of the contaminant or problem?
Who is affected by this issue (who are the stakeholders)?
How much of the contaminant constitutes a concern?
What are the routes of exposure?
What are the health effects (positive or negative)?
What is the context of your discussion (i.e. the time and place)?
Is the issue very localized, global or something in-between?
How the problem is managed or mitigated (e.g., regulations, incentives or industry self-regulation)?
How is risk communicated to populations of interest?
Examples of Suitable topics:
Air pollution in Atlanta Georgia before, during and after the Olympics
E-waste: from my cell phone to your polluted stream
Obesity and diabetes in school-age children
Any contaminant (i.e., Lead, Microbes, Disinfection By-products etc.) in Drinking Water
The role of climate change on any vector-borne disease (malaria, dengue fever, west nile etc.)
Microcytin and the Toledo water supply
Do radionuclides generated by hydraulic fracturing threaten drinking water sources?
Formaldehyde in Temporary Hurricane Katrina Shelters
Occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes in the environment
Environmental Burden of Disease in Tracy, CA
Disproportionate Health Burdens in the Navajo Nation Caused by Uranium Mining
Chemical Exposures in Vietnamese Nail Salons
The Health Effects of Exposure to Swimming Pool Chlorination
Examples of non-suitable topics:
Air pollution in China (too broad and ambiguous).
A suitable topic would be: Cook stove use in rural china and the relationship to indoor air pollution and childhood asthma.
Lead (too broad).
A suitable topic would be: Redefining “low lead” in plumbing fixtures: reducing American’s exposure to lead in drinking water.
Ebola disease (to broad and might focus only on communicable aspects of the disease).
A suitable topic would be: The role of environmental factors on the West African Ebola epidemic.
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Term paper Grading RubricPH 150B
ATTACH THIS SHEET AS THE LAST PAGE OF YOUR TERM PAPER
Name______SID______Score______
ScoreCharacteristic / 10 / 5 / 1 / Score
Understanding / Clearly shows that the student read and understood the source text(s) that inform the paper. Summarizes key points and extends the ideas of the source text in interesting ways (e.g., literature comparisons). / Shows evidence that scientific literature was read and has shaped the writing. Shows basic understanding and ability to engage the literature. Goes beyond repetition or summary. / Does not connect well to the source text. Does not show evidence of having understood the literature used for the paper. Repeats or summarizes source text without analyzing or critiquing.
Analysis / Paper analyzes and synthesizes the scientific literature. Sufficient information is included for both the environmental exposure issue and the health effect(s), and connections are clear. Develops specific ideas in depth with strong and appropriate supporting examples, data, etc. / Scientific analysis is disconnected or unclear in places. The significance to environmental health is not clearly articulated. Some gaps in existing scientific literature. Achieves some depth and specificity of discussion. / Topic was not appropriately developed for environmental health. Scientific literature is not addressed or left vague and undefined.
Moves between ideas without substantial development; lacks depth or support for arguments or claims.
Organization / The paper follows a logical flow, with one overall topic and all sub-topics linked to the main subject. Writing is efficient with clear points. / The topic was clearly stated but sub-sections stray off subject or could have been re-ordered to fit a more logical flow. Writing meanders some between points. / The topic was too broad; subtopics were unrelated or disjointed. Subsections didn’t follow a logical order and writing rambled or failed to connect points.
5 / 3 / 1
Grammar & Length / Standard English grammar and sentence structure rules are followed. Close to zero spelling errors. Meets requirement of 5-8 double spaced pages, 1” marginsnot including references. / A few grammar mistakes or sentence structure errors exist. A few spelling errors. Length requirements not met. / Grammar and punctuation rules are ignored. More than 5 spelling errors. Sentence structure looks like an email. Begins many sentences with: “It” (It is important that... It is well known that ...) or uses double verbs (do read...).
References / One of the 3 accepted journal formats was used. Internal citations and references were sufficient and appropriate. Included at least 10 references, 8 of which were peer-reviewed literature or government documents (not fact sheets). / Accepted format used, but some sentences had missing or inappropriate references. Fewer than 10 total references or fewer than 4 of references were peer-reviewed. / Lack of proper citation. Insufficient total number of references or references inappropriate.
Use of electronic devices in class:
Use of laptops or other electronic devices in class for note taking is not allowed unless students provide a note from the Disabled Students Program (DSP). Once class begins, please turn off cell phones and all other electronic devices and stop internet surfing, texting, e-mailing and doing other work. Electronic multi-tasking inhibits one’s capacity to learn new material and fully participate in class discussions.
iClickers:
An iClicker is required, and can be purchased new or used at the campus bookstore. See
for information regarding iClicker if you have not had previous experience with the iClicker. You will need to register your iClicker online as described (/).
We will not allow the use of the iPhone iClicker app or other phone apps in PH150B.***
***Laptop and phone policy: PH150B has a strict laptop, iPad/tablet and cell/smart phone use policy. This important policy will be discussed the first day of class.
iClicker Course Requirements:
• Bring your iClicker to every lecture session. No excuses will be accepted for missed iClicker points. These include but are not limited to: late to class, forgot it at home, dead batteries, iClicker not registered, etc. If your iClicker is not working, it is your responsibility to resolve the problem or get a new one. We will test iClickers the first day of class and post a list of enrolled students with registered iClickers so you can identify any problems and immediately address them.
• The iClicker will be used in all lecture sessions to poll students’ understanding of course material through question and answer exercises. The iClicker will also be used to monitor participation in guest lecture sessions. iClicker participation is incorporated into your overall course grade. At the end of semester, answers to all questions will be tallied.
Students with special needs:
If you have a physical or learning disability, please contact the professor or the GSIs within the first two weeks of class, either by email or during office hours, to discuss any necessary accommodations for exams, assignments, lectures or discussion. In most cases a letter from the DSP is required to obtain an accommodation.
Email communication:
For all email correspondence with the professors or the GSIs, please put PH150B in the subject heading. We will try to answer your query within 48 hours during the week. If you send an email on Friday after 5:00 you will get a reply by the following Tuesday.
Recommended Text:
Essentials of Environmental Health (second edition). Robert H. Friis. Available on reserve in the Public Health Library (basement of University Hall). Also available for sale in the Student Bookstore on Bancroft Ave.
Grading (150B):
Homework #115%
Homework #215%
Exam #1 20%
Exam #2 20%
Term Paper20%
Participation10%Discussion sections and iClickerparticipation
Notes Regarding Grading:
- Homework andpaper re-grades are at the discretion of the GSIs. Exam and final grade re-gradesare at the discretion of the instructors.
- PH270 grading based on PH270 syllabus.
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Class / Day / Date / Topic / Lecturer / Chapter is Friis*1 / Thursday / 8/28/14 / Introduction & Zotero Training / C. Smith
A. Bradman
J. Balmes / 1
2 / Tuesday / 9/2/14 / Environmental Health Example: Lead / C. Smith
3 / Thursday / 9/4/14 / Toxicology Basics / A. Bradman / 3
4 / Tuesday / 9/9/14 / Exposure Assessment / A. Bradman / 6 & 7
5 / Thursday / 9/11/14 / Epidemiologic Methods / M. Bates / 2
6 / Tuesday / 9/16/14 / Environmental Journalism / J. Kay
7 / Thursday / 9/18/14 / Risk Assessment / Risk communication / A. Bradman
8 / Tuesday / 9/23/14 / Environmental Law / T. Maiden
9 / Thursday / 9/25/14 / The Built Environment / D. Jackson
10 / Tuesday / 9/30/14 / Pesticides / R. Rubin
11 / Thursday / 10/2/14 / Environmental Justice / R. Morello-Frosh
12 / Tuesday / 10/7/14 / The precautionary principle - BPA / M. Schwarzman / 13
13 / Thursday / 10/9/14 / Home work 1 Due –
Electronic submission
13 / Thursday / 10/9/14 / Radionuclides / T. McKone / 8
14 / Tuesday / 10/14/14 / Exam 1
15 / Thursday / 10/16/14 / Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) / C. Smith / 9
16 / Tuesday / 10/21/14 / SDWA / CWA / WHO Guidelines / C. Smith
17 / Thursday / 10/23/14 / Environmental Health Policy / A. Kyle / 4