BIOL4930 / PUB4931: Biology and Public Health

Abstract

The goal of this course is to educate students on the convergence of Biology and Public Health. We will engage with diseases whose impact on the individual impacts society and diseases where societal norms and standards influence understanding and progression. We will discuss our current methods for assessing and understanding the burden of disease on our society. Recent experiences with Covid-19 and public health will be used as a springboard to discuss many of the intersections of public health and biology. As the pandemic is still emerging (and we are hopefully moving toward endemicity), this semester may be fluid because living through a public health emergency and experiencing the successes and failures of public health will provide the best lessons of all