Biological Sciences

Life history traits, e.g., growth rates, maturation schedules, and offspring size and number, are influenced by environmental and anthropogenic factors and in turn determine individual fitness and influence population growth rates. Because life history traits are heritable, variation in these traits tends to involve both evolutionary (genetic) and ecological (plastic) processes. Exploring life history variation provides an opportunity not only to understand the eco-evolutionary interactions that shape the observed patterns, but also to forecast population dynamics in changing environments. In this course, we design lectures to guide students to understand the concepts and theories of adaptive life history variation. In addition, the course project involves field sampling and laboratory experiments with mosquitofish Gambusia affinis, to gain hands-on experience on life history research. The objectives of this course are to understand the theoretical background of life history variation, and explore empirical variation in growth rates, maturation schedules, and offspring size and number based on the model species, mosquitofish.

This course provides a comprehensive understanding of processes in terrestrial ecosystems, and of effects of global change on processes and organisms. The focus is on carbon, water, and nutrient cycling between plants, soil organisms, soil, and atmosphere. This includes lessons in radiation and energy balance, photosynthesis, respiration, water use efficiency, and measures of stress, at leaf, plant, and canopy level. Belowground processes as plant nutrient uptake and microbial turnover, mobilization and immobilization of nutrients, plant-microbe-animal interactions, plant-soil-atmosphere interactions, rhizosphere processes and mycorrhizal function are also addressed, with focus on the importance of climate and anthropogenically induced climatic changes. Species/community effects on ecosystem processes and temporal dynamics are also addressed. Field and laboratory studies are performed and the results are presented orally and in reports. Participants present one or two journal papers with relation to the subjects taught in the lectures, including effects of global change on ecosystems.

Ecophysiology is the study of physiological adaptations of organisms in relation to the environments in which they live. It has become an increasingly important science, because an understanding of the relationship between organism and environment is essential in order to predict the effects of man-made environmental change. The physiology of an organism incorporates many of its most important adaptations to the environment in which it lives. This course considers the variety of environmental pressures imposed on organismal physiology. It examines the often ingenious solutions that evolve in response to these pressures, and how different organisms and groups of organisms have evolved different physiological means of dealing with the same problem. The course focuses both on the abiotic environment (e.g. issues related to climate, gas exchange) and the biotic environment (e.g. how digestive physiology is adapted to plant toxins). Towards the end of the course, students look at Conservation Physiology, one of the practical applications of ecophysiology. There is a particular focus on the physiological adaptations of animals. Although BIO2004 General Zoology is not a prerequisite for this course, the course is recommended before taking Ecophysiology.

This course provides a theoretical introduction to microscopy, with an emphasis on fluorescence microscopy. Topics include theoretical principles of confocal microscopy and the use of deconvolution in microscopy, an overview of different types of advanced research microscopes as well as imaging methods that are not based on optical microscopes; preparation and optimization of both fixed and live samples for microscopy; microscopic visualization of cellular structures and physiological functions with fluorescent markers; and a theoretical introduction to digital visualization, with an emphasis on fluorescence-based methods and digital imaging. A practical project includes the preparation, documentation, and analysis of microscopy specimens with an oral and written presentation.

This course examines how the basic abiotic factors of the Australian environment, such as climate and geology, have resulted in the distinct Australian biota. Students examine how the same factors have influenced indigenous and non-indigenous human cultures, and contrast the effects the two have had in turn on the biota. A field trip to Stradbroke Island introduces the typical Australian vegetation adapted to poor soils in a drought and fire-ridden environment. A trip to Lamington National Park introduces Australian rainforest - the vegetation which typically develops at the opposite extreme of all those variables. Australia is very instructive in an international sense regarding how rainforest is defined. Unlike most parts of the world, we recognize dry rainforest or vine thickets which are highly distinct from nearby non-rainforest vegetation. They grow in very low rainfalls, but in the absence of fire. A trip to Kroombit Tops shows the students rare examples of the driest extremes of rainforest in an ecologically fascinating mosaic, and gives them a remote outback experience in a functioning cattle station.

This course discusses the structure of function of plant and animal cells. Topics include: membrane models; cytoplasmic organelles; biological information from gene to protein; the endomembrane system; secretion; intracellular digestion; endocytosis; transport processes; cytoskeleton; cell motility.