Science classes
Student in a human biology/anatomy class.
Available courses vary from year to year and from semester to semester. For complete and current course offerings and descriptions, please search our online catalog. Or read about specific subjects below.
The Science Department offers classes in a broad range of science disciplines.
While almost all GCC students are required to take two four-credit lab science classes, we also provide courses for students from other two and four year colleges and universities as well as interested learners in the community at large. We offer a full range of classes in the subjects of chemistry, biology, food science, environmental science, geology, oceanography, physics, engineering, and general science.
Astronomy
An introductory course in how we, our Planet, our Sun, our Galaxy, the chemical elements, all came into being. The ultimate history of everything as seen through the eyes of modern science. We study the basic laws on the Universe, the history of how humanity discovered those laws, and how the application of those laws have created everything now into existence. We study the lives of planets, stars, and galaxies. The strangeness of our universe and the miracle of our existence in it. The evolution of energy into matter, of hydrogen into the 92 natural chemical elements, of stars into people and the processes by which all this came about. GCC provides loaner telescopes for direct observations of objects close by to us. (SCI103)
Biology
Students in a biology lab
Biology, the study of life, extends from the global scale of the entire living planet to the microscopic scale of cells and molecules. One can divide the range of biology into hierarchical levels of biological organization. At the largest level are all the environments on earth that support life (biospheres). A closer look at one of these environments brings one to the level of all the organisms living in a particular area as well as the nonliving physical components with which organisms interact (ecosystem). All the organisms inhabiting an ecosystem form a community. Below the community level is an interacting group of individuals of one species termed a population. Below this level is each individual living thing (an organism). Each organism is composed of organ systems (digestive, circulatory, etc.). Then, each organ system can be seen to be composed of various organs (stomach, intestine, etc.). Each organ is composed of tissues (groups of various similar cells that work together). Each cell (a unit of living matter) is composed of structures that perform a specific function in a cell (organelles). Finally, each organelle is composed of molecules that are made of atoms held together by chemical bonds.
Chemistry
GCC students in a chemistry lab.
GCC offers two levels of Chemistry. Chem 105, Basic Principles of Chemistry, is a one semester non-lab course. This course is a survey of chemical principles including topics such as chemical nomenclature, the basis of chemical reactions, acids and bases, and an introduction to Biochemistry and Organic chemistry. This course is a great complement for students that are interested in going further in their study of science. The second level of chemistry is a two semester General Chemistry laboratory course, Chem 111 and Chem 112. The first semester combines an introduction into the periodic table, nomenclature, stoichiometry and chemical bonding with a weekly laboratory. This course is a requirement for many science majors. The second semester combines chemical kinetics, acids and bases, chemical equilibrium, electrochemistry, the environmental impact of chemistry, and an introduction into Organic chemistry with a weekly laboratory. The weekly laboratory portion of Chem 111 and Chem 112 requires active student participation. Laboratory experiments are performed using standard chemistry lab equipment such as beakers, burets, balance, flasks, spectrophotometer, burners, pipettes, and graduated cylinders.
Introduction to Engineering, Technology, Science and Society
GCC students in a engineering lab.
A survey introductory course that combines hands-on experience with sociological analysis of engineering, science, and technology using lab, lecture, research, design, and discussion. Includes aspects of electrical, mechanical, environmental, civil, and chemical engineering. This is a lab based intro course that examines the application of various sciences into specific applications and their many consequences. (EGR/SCI 105)
General science
More information coming soon.
Geology
Students on a geology field trip
Geology is such a diverse field and the Connecticut Valley is one of the best places in the world to study this exciting science of the earth! In our beginning geology classes you will learn about such wide-ranging topics as rocks and minerals, volcanoes, floods, glaciers and resources. All these topics have important examples in the Valley region and class discussions and field trips will illustrate how geology affects our land and life.
GCC students in a geology lab.
Geology 101, Physical Geology, covers such things as the origins of basic earth materials such as rocks and minerals, plus how the earth is shaped by both surface processes like rivers and glaciers, as well as internal processes such as plate tectonics leading to the origin of mountains, volcanoes and faults. In Geology 102, Historical Geology, you will become familiar with fossils and gain practice “reading the record of the rocks” as we study the origins and history of sedimentary rocks. Field trips are scheduled to collecting sites in eastern New York State to view the ancient environment and life of a tropical ocean that existed along eastern North America before the Pangea super continent about 400 million years ago, as well as trips to local Valley sites where Jurassic Period (Age of Dinosaurs) geological history is particularly well displayed.
Meteorology
An introduction to the patterns in our atmosphere that we call weather. How the energy of the Sun delivered unevenly to our Planet results in patterns that move that energy around , creating storms, Hurricanes, Tornados and the many phenomenon we observe around the planet. We analyze these patterns daily, using data from the GCC weather station and the internet to make predictions of upcoming weather. We study past events and long term climatalogical data, and anthropogenic effects on this very thin layer of air around us we call an atmosphere. (SCI 117)
Oceanography
The oceans have a volume of 320 million cubic miles and cover over 2/3rds of the earth with an average depth of 2 miles! The ocean realm has profound influences on life on earth. Humans depend on ocean resources ranging from water and food supplies to fossils fuels and other mineral resources. The ocean – climate connection is especially relevant to life on earth. Our GCC oceanography class, Geo 104, is a general introduction to ocean science. There are 3 major sections: Marine Biology, Marine Geology, and Chemistry and Physics. Topics include: marine life identification and classification, marine ecosystems, coastlines and beaches, sediment types, plate tectonics, water properties, and how the ocean moves due to waves, tides, and ocean currents. A field trip to the coast to view ecosystems, marine life, and coastal processes offers some practical experience with oceanography.
Human biology
More information coming soon.
Natural sciences
More information coming soon.
Physics
GCC students in a physics lab.
GCC offers two levels of Physics, a Calculus based Physics (PHY 111 & 112) and an Algebra based physics (PHY 101 & 102). Both Physics programs require the use of scientific calculators and the use of the software program Mathematica. The 101/111 Physics courses are offered fall semester only, they cover classical mechanical physics dealing with Kinematics, Acceleration, Newton's laws, Centripetal motion, Energy, Momentum & Collisions, Rotation, States of Matter, Elasticity, Waves and Sound, Properties of matter, Thermal energy, & Thermodynamics. These courses are very lab based and focus on the solution of practical problems. They combine lecture, Q &A sessions, problem solving, and hands on labs. During the spring semester we offer courses in Electricity and Magnetism (102/112) which follow the same format as the fall courses but cover material dealing with Charges, Electric and Magnetic fields, Circuit components and analysis, Wave motion, and Electromagnetic waves. We use a circuit analysis program (Spice) and specialized Mathematica packages. Our modern classrooms and Labs feature Computerized Engineering Workstations with the usual scientific analysis programs like Excel for spreadsheets, Mathematica for analysis and 3D graphing, Vectorworks for CAD, and Spice for circuit analysis. Classes are usually small with as much individual attention as possible.
Renewable energy & sustainability
GCC's solar panels on the South lawn.
Read more about these classes here.
