Barden, Phillip

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Digital Commons @ New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT)

New Jersey Institute of Technology Digital Commons @ NJIT Biology Syllabi NJIT Syllabi Fall 2020 BIOL 698-101: Ecology Phillip Barden Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.njit.edu/bio-syllabi Recommended Citation Barden, Phillip, "BIOL 698-101: Ecology" (2020). Biology Syllabi. 55. https://digitalcommons.njit.edu/bio-syllabi/55 This Syllabus is brought to you for free and open access by the NJIT Syllabi at Digital Commons @ NJIT. It has been accepted for inclusion in Biology Syllabi by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ NJIT. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@njit.edu. BIOL698 Course Syllabus – Fall 2020    1 BIOL698 ST Graduate Ecology  Instructor & coordinator: Dr. Phillip Barden E-mail: barden@njit.edu  Additional instructors: Drs. Bunker, Holzapfel, Russell (contact info below) Office: Online Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday: 3:00-4:00pm; by appointment Course Website: http://canvas.njit.edu Course Schedule: Tuesday 6:00-8:50pm  Course Location: Online (see below) Course description: Ecological patterns and processes shape global biodiversity. From the community of microbes under your fingernail to entire continents and the planet, the field of ecology seeks to understand complex interactions among biological species and the environment. These themes are increasingly important; humans are reliant on functioning ecosystems even as anthropogenic factors alter our planet in profound ways. This course introduces graduate students to ecology at multiple conceptual and geographic scales. Covered topics will include:  • Autecology: What are the determinants of organismal and environmental interactions?  • Population Ecology. What determines the abundance, dispersion, age structure, and dynamics of biological populations? • Species Interactions. What is the nature of species interactions such as competition, predation, parasitism, and mutualism? How do these interactions influence distribution and abundance? • Community Ecology. What determines the structure, organization, and dynamics of groups of coexisting species? • Ecosystem Ecology. How do materials and energy move through the biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems? How do organisms and abiotic factors influence the structure and function of ecosystems? • Applied ecology. How do we apply ecological principles to problems such as conservation biology, global change, and sustainability?  Learning objectives This course will introduce students to topics in ecology and to the scientific method as applied to ecological research.  Students will:  • Learn how to understand and evaluate scientific publications;  • Learn how to ask ecological questions, formulate hypotheses, generate predictions, design and conduct experiments, and interpret data; • Gain an understanding of the structure of knowledge in ecology, biology, and the natural sciences in general; • Gain in-depth understanding of foundational and contemporary topics in ecological research.  Prerequisites: None BIOL698 Course Syllabus – Fall 2020    2  Required Materials: None.  Instructors: This course is co-taught by Drs. Phil Barden (NJIT) , Dan Bunker (NJIT)  , Claus Holzapfel (Rutgers-Newark) , and Gareth Russell (NJIT) . Because ecology is a rich and complex field, each faculty member will contribute their own unique expertise by leading classes throughout the semester. You will find a schedule detailing instructor dates below.  Prof. Barden, Course coordinator Office hours: Monday, Wednesday: 3:00-4:00pm and by appointment Office location: Online; 973-596-5863; barden@njit.edu Prof. Bunker Office hours: Tuesday 3-4 pm and by appointment Office location: Online; 973-642-7537; dbunker@njit.edu Prof. Holzapfel Office hours:  Thursday 10-12 and per appointment  Office location: Online; 973-353-5385; holzapfe@rutgers.edu  Prof. Russell Office hours: Monday and Wednesday 11:30-12:30 Office location: Online; 973-596-6412; gareth.j.russell@njit.edu   Grading Policy: The course is team taught by Profs. Barden, Bunker, Holzapfel, and Russell. Each faculty member will grade you on 25% of the course, with their own grading schema.   Barden: Paper presentations, notes, class glossary  25% Bunker: Hypotheses assignments, participation   25% Holzapfel: TK       25% Russell: TK        25%            Attendance & Participation: As a graduate student we expect that you will be fully engaged in this course and your graduate work in general. Failure to attend class and participate fully may result in failure in the class.  Grading Scale A 90 – 100 B+ 85 – 90 B 80 – 85 C+ 75 – 80 C 70 – 75 D 60 – 70 F 0 – 60 BIOL698 Course Syllabus – Fall 2020    3 Assignments: This course will cover a large amount of material and will move quickly. Reading assignments will be posted on Canvas and/or disseminated via email. It is your responsibility to read all assigned materials before class meets and be fully prepared to discuss in class. Assignments will be made by individual instructors and will be due when stated. Online course format: This course is set to run as Synchronous Online for the entire semester, meaning we will all meet during our scheduled class time (Tuesday, 6:00-8:50pm), but virtually. We will be using Cisco WebEx, a free to use video conferencing platform. By clicking the WebEx links listed on the Canvas page, you will be prompted to download WebEx software or, if you prefer, join the WebEx room from your browser. There is additional information on WebEx available here for the NJIT and Rutgers community: https://ist.njit.edu/webex  https://it.rutgers.edu/webex/ University-wide updates regarding the pandemic are here: https://www.njit.edu/coronavirus  Academic integrity: Academic Integrity is the cornerstone of higher education and is central to the ideals of this course and the university. Cheating is strictly prohibited and devalues the degree that you are working on. As a member of the NJIT community, it is your responsibility to protect your educational investment by knowing and following the academic code of integrity policy that is found at: http://www5.njit.edu/policies/sites/policies/files/academic-integrity-code.pdf.     Please note that it is my professional obligation and responsibility to report any academic misconduct to the Dean of Students Office. Any student found in violation of the code by cheating, plagiarizing or using any online software inappropriately will result in disciplinary action. This may include a failing grade of F, and/or suspension or dismissal from the university. If you have any questions about the code of Academic Integrity, please contact the Dean of Students Office at dos@njit.edu  Canvas: We will be using Canvas for our class website (http://canvas.njit.edu). To use Canvas students must have an NJIT UCID.  If you are matriculated at NJIT you should already have a UCID.  If you are a Rutgers student you may already have one. You can check by following the directions here: https://ist.njit.edu/ucid/.  If you do not have one you can request one at the same page or call the NJIT helpdesk for assistance (973 596 2900).  Key Dates: Sept. 1: First day of classes Sept. 8: This Tuesday Follows a Monday schedule, NO CLASS Sept. 8: Last day to add/drop a class.  Sept. 14: Last day to withdraw with 90% refund Nov. 9: Last day to withdraw. Dec. 10: Last day of classes.  BIOL698 Course Syllabus – Fall 2020    4  Week Date Instructor Topic Assignment (due on date listed) 1 1-Sep Barden Introduction – Core terms and concepts – Survey of major subfields of ecology Read the syllabus 2 8-Sep No Class–Monday Schedule By Wednesday Sept 9 at 5pm: Draft of presentation, paper notes for readings listed on Sept 15 3 15-Sep Barden Distribution of life on earth:  biomass, diversity, and carbon Bar-On et al. 2018.; Gaston 2000.; Mannion et al. 2004.; MacArthur & Wilson. 1963.; Chapin et al. 2006. 4 22-Sep Barden Evolutionary Ecology: ecomorphology, adaptive radiations, and extinction See Canvas 5 29-Sep Bunker Niches See Canvas 6 6-Oct Bunker Communities  See Canvas 7 13-Oct Bunker Biodiversity See Canvas 8 20-Oct Russell Population Dynamics in Time and Space See Canvas 9 27-Oct Russell Landscape Ecology See Canvas 10 3-Nov No Class–Election Day but replacement activity from Barden See Canvas 11 10-Nov Russell Conservation as Applied Ecology See Canvas 12 17-Nov Holzapfel Community Assembly See Canvas 13 24-Nov Holzapfel Interactions (competition, predation, mutualism, etc) See Canvas 14 1-Dec Holzapfel Multitrophic communities See Canvas 15 8-Dec Barden Behavioral Ecology See Canvas *Course schedule is tentative and subject to change. Please see Canvas for updates, reading assignments, and online meeting place information.      

BIOL 698-101: Ecology

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BIOL 698-101: Ecology

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