Current Topics in Ecology and Evolution Spring 2015
EEB 3894 Course Objectives:
The purpose of this course is to explore the ecology and evolutionary biology research being conducted by top researchers in these fields. The Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department invites the highest caliber scientist to UConn as part of a weekly seminar series. Our class with have the opportunity to meet with these researchers in a comfortable, round-table table discussion each week. Prior to each discussion, as a group we will examine related scientific literature, learning how to critically read and interpret data from a variety of study systems. Following our discussions with the visiting researchers, we will attend the their formal lecture to the Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department. Students will become critical readers of primary scientific literature, will be familiar with major research avenues in ecology and evolutionary biology, and will become comfortable asking questions and interacting with visiting scientists.
Syllabus
Instructors:
Nora Mitchell Jimmy Bernot
Office: BioPharm 302 Office: TLS 478
Email: nora.mitchell@uconn.edu Email: james.bernot@uconn.edu
Expectations
This is a discussion-based class centered on the EEB Seminar Series. As such, you are
expected to:
- Attend class every week and actively participate in discussion (TLS 171b)
- Attend the EEB seminar every week (4-5pm in BPP 131)
- Read an assigned article from the primary scientific literature every week
- Write a one-page response to the above-mentioned article
- Contact the speaker and lead discussion one week of the semester
Guidelines
See the provided documents to help with your assignments:
Schedule
Meeting Time
Thursday 2:30PM–5:00PM
Bamford Room (TLS 171b)
Date | Speaker | Background | Lecture Title |
---|---|---|---|
Jan. 22 | Yang Liu | Bryophyte phylogeny and evolution of organelle genomes | |
Jan. 29 | Daniel Ksepka | Avian paleobiology | |
Feb. 5 | Steven Pacala | Climate change, ecosystem biology, and plant community ecology | |
Feb. 12 | Daniel Simberloff | Invasive species dynamics and community ecology | |
Feb. 19 | Michael Donoghue | Plant evolution and phylogenetics | |
Feb. 26 | Seth Borenstein | Associated Press national science writer | Dispatches from a Hotter Planet & a Cooler Cosmos |
Mar. 5 | David Hillis | Evolution, molecular systematics, and phylogenetics | |
Mar. 12 | Robert Ricklefs | Evolutionary ecology of birds, avian blood parasites | |
Mar. 19 | Spring Break: No Class | ||
Mar. 26 | Gregg Mitman | Science history, the environment, and human health | Ecological Imperialism Revisited: Entanglements of Disease, Commerce and Knowledge in a Global World |
Apr. 2 | Gene Likens | Ecosystem ecology, biogeochemistry, human impacts on ecosystems | |
Apr. 9 | Susan Wessler | Genome evolution | |
Apr. 16 | Tyrone Hayes | Amphibian development and environmental contamination | From Silent Spring to Silent Night: A Tale of Toads & Men |
Apr. 23 | Mimi Koehl | Physiology and mechanics of marine organisms | |
Apr. 30 | Peter Raven | Botany, conservation, and sustainability |