Description: (Same as Anthropology M126N.) Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour (when scheduled). Introduction to genes, disease, and culture. Introduction to basic concepts in human genetics, expanding upon evolutionary genetic concepts learned in Anthropology 1, and survey of both inherited and infectious disease on global level. Wide range of topics include gene-culture co-evolution, niche construction theory, cultural perceptions of disease, cultural selection, biological and environmental determinism, and evolutionary origins of disease. Course is broken down into genes and genomes, Mendelian disease, complex disease, and infectious disease. Discussion of selected readings that integrate cultural perceptions with biological/genetic phenomena. P/NP or letter grading.

Units: 4.0