SYLLABUS - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

expressions describing processes and interactions in conceptual models. (Case study reflections
and discussions; oral midterm and final)
b. Students will be able to simplify models by identifying circumstances under which spatial or
temporal scales separate. (Case study reflections and discussions; oral midterm and final)
c. Students will be able to use dynamical systems theory to make qualitative predictions about the
behavior of their models. They will be able to predict the existence of fixed points and evaluate
their stabilities, predict the existence of limit cycles, identify critical parameters and predict
bifurcations and catastrophes, and understand the circumstances under which chaotic behavior
is possible. (Case study reflections and discussions; oral midterm and final)
5) discuss and critique geobiological models.
a. Students will use the reasoning outlined in goals 1–4 to evaluate the reasoning and assumptions
in modern integrative geobiological models. (Case study reflections and discussions; term
project and presentation)
Names
Telephone number
Email addresses
Office hours
Office locations
Mike Tice
845-3138
tice@geo.tamu.edu
TBA
Halbouty 314
Instructor Information
Textbook and/or Resource Material
There will be one reading from the primary literature each week which will be required for participation
in Friday case study discussions. In addition, there will be up to two short optional readings (tutorials) provided
each week that may be helpful background reading for the case studies. These tutorials will not be discussed in
class. There is no required textbook.
Grading Policies
Activities forming the basis for learning evaluations will be 1) participation in classroom discussions
(20%); 2) written summaries and reflections of weekly readings from the primary literature (20%); 3) a term
project analyzing a specific geobiological system (20%); and 4) a midterm (20%) and final exam (20%). Final
grades will be assigned based on weighted averages of graded activities rounded to the first decimal place (e.g.
89.84% → 89.8%) and the following distribution: A = 90-100%, B = 80-89.9%, C = 70-79.9%, D = 60-69.9%, F ≤
59.9%.
Case Studies. Each of the first 12 weeks will include analysis of one case study from the primary
literature. Students will work in groups to read one paper and analyze it using models and theories discussed in
class. Each student will individually write a short (1–3 page) first-person reflection on that paper explaining their
analyses in logical steps (e.g. “I didn’t find the authors’ approach obvious, so I reasoned in the following way in
order to identify it.”). These reflections should be type-written and will prepare students for case study discussions
each Friday. Discussions will be student-led, but discussion leaders will be selected by the instructors randomly
throughout the Friday session. Students are encouraged to add additional notes to their reflections in blue ink prior
to handing them in at the end of discussion.
Term Project. Each student will select a geobiological system to analyze and present to the class in a slide
presentation. The instructors will guide students in selecting topics appropriate for modeling using techniques
described in this class. Topics presented in term projects will form part of the material tested in the final.
Midterm and Final. Students will be given small geobiological models to analyze over the course of one
hour. They will then present their analyses orally to the instructors. The oral presentation and discussion will form
the basis for the test grades.
Course Topics, Calendar of Activities, Major Assignment Dates
Week Topic Required Reading
1 One-Dimensional Models in Geobiology: Population
growth; one-component reaction kinetics
Case Study: As(III)-oxidizing phototrophs
Tutorials: Oxidation/reduction reactions and
metabolism; measuring bacterial growth
- 2 -
Kulp et al., 2008, Arsenic(III) fuels
anoxygenic photosynthesis in hot
spring biofilms from Mono Lake,
California, Science 321:967–970.