Learning Objectives

1. Critically review literature for in-class discussion.
2. Understand the most suitable epidemiologic study designs for investigating specific exposure/disease associations.
3. Recognize study biases and understand methods for minimizing bias.
4. Identify some of the major chemical, physical, and biological agents as risk factors for environmentally-related diseases.
5. Describe hazardous effects of some major environmental exposures on human physical health, including disease induction, physiological impairment, and genetic susceptibility to risk.
6. Describe methods for assessing human exposures to hazardous agents for epidemiologic research purposes.
7. Describe pathways of exposure to hazardous agents in the workplace and general environment.
8. Describe the influences of genetic susceptibility on risks related to environmental agents.
9. Write a term paper on a selected topic concerning adverse health related to workplace or general environmental hazardous agents; the assignment involves review of relevant literature and development of a research protocol similar to a condensed version of an NIH grant application.
10. Describe risk assessment methods that are used by governmental agencies to set exposure guidelines and standards.