Syllabus

WIS 6405 Biodiversity: Ecological Patterns and Processes

Times and Locations

T 1:55-2:45 CSEE 221 (Computer Sciences and Engineering Building)

Th 12:50-2:45 WEIM 1064 (Weimer Hall)

Description/Organization

Biodiversity emerges from a combination of ecological and evolutionary processes operating across many scales of space and time. This course examines the concept of biodiversity and the processes that generate important patterns of biodiversity in ecology. Course Objectives

• Define the dimensions of biodiversity through discussion and reading the primary literature
• Develop the ability to engage with biodiversity literature from different research areas
• Apply an improved understanding of the processes that shape biodiversity to fundamental and applied questions
• Use the literature to assess current gaps in our scientific understanding of biodiversity
• Design and write an introduction communicating a gap in knowledge in the field of biodiversity

Text and Required Supplies

There is not a required or recommended text book for this class
Links to assigned papers are available on the course website (skmorgane.github.io/biodiversity-course) or via links in Canvas modules. If you are off campus, you will need to use the UF VPN.
Computer with R and Rstudio installed. On specific days (noted on the course schedule) laptops will be required to participate in literature search and basic computational activities. Software: We will be using R (a freely available statistical programming environment) to learn about quantitative approaches to studying biodiversity patterns. R is required. It is also recommending that student load RStudio – a freely available integrated programming environment – which makes working with R more user friendly.

Course Policies

Attendance Policy: Life is complicated and sometimes unpredictable. Given - well everything – the course attendance policy is very flexible with multiple ways to demonstrate engagement with course materials. Grading (see below) is structured so that students may have up to 2 excused absences without needing makeup work or having any impacts on grades. Excused absences must be consistent with university policies in the Graduate Catalog and require appropriate documentation.

Additional missed discussions can be made up by providing written answers to the questions assigned for the readings for the day(s) missed.

Class Conduct: Because this course is discussion-based, an effective learning environment is critically dependent on all students feeling safe and supported in the classroom so that everyone feels comfortable engaging in discussion. I will do my best to foster an open and positive environment for all students but to achieve this I need students to engage in discussions in a constructive and positive manner and listen to other points of view with an open-mind. It is okay to disagree with me or your classmates, and discussions on differing points of view are enthusiastically encouraged, but must be done with empathy for the other people in the classroom. Sometimes we make mistakes during discussion because we did not think sufficiently about our word choice and that is okay. When this happens, students are expected to apologize sincerely to the affected person.

General Course Structure and Expectations

This course is designed to provide advanced training for graduate students in a specialized area of ecology. This course is a mixture of lecture, class discussion of primary literature, hands-on experience through class activities, and a major project. While there is some lecturing, class participation, intellectual engagement with topics, and discussion participation are the main ways students will learn in this class. The first hour of Tuesdays and Thursdays are devoted to lecture and class discussions. You are expected to come prepared to discuss the assigned papers. The second hour on Thursdays are devoted to either class activities or working on group projects.

Course Grading (200 points total)

• 50% (100 points) will be based on a class project and presentation, broken down as follows (given as percentage of course grade, not project grade)

  10% (10 pts): Research Interests Discussion 10% (10 pts) Group Topic Assignment 10% (20 pts): Outline 30% (60 pts) Group Paper

• 50% will be based on class participation in discussion and class activities (100 pts)

  21% (3 pts/class, 15 classes) Participation in “Share the Confusion” Canvas Discussions 21% (3 pts/class, 15 classes) Participation in Group Discussions, either during synchronous discussions or through submitted written (or recorded) answers to discussion questions. 8% (5 pts/R activity, 2 activities) R coding activities

In case of University closure (i.e. Hurricane days or other emergencies), everyone will receive full credit for participation for the cancelled class.

UF Policies

University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities The goal of the course is to create an environment where all students have an equivalent learning environment. If you need accommodations so that your opportunity to learn the material is equivalent to others, please do not hesitate to let me know. Students requesting accommodation for disabilities must first register with the Dean of Students Office (http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the instructor when requesting accommodation. You must submit this documentation prior to submitting assignments or taking the quizzes or exams. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the office as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations.

Course Evaluation the University expects students to provide feedback on the quality of instruction in this course by completing online evaluations. Evaluations are typically open during the last two or three weeks of the semester, but students will be given specific times when they are open. Summary results of these assessments are available to students at https://evaluations.ufl.edu/results/

University Policy on Academic Misconduct Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Students should be sure that they understand the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php. In the conduct of this course, the following would be examples of academic misconduct - passing off as your work the work of a classmate (e.g. not participating in a group project but claiming the work as reflecting your contributions) or of another reseacher (e.g. presenting at your group project the published introduction of another individual).

Netiquette and Communication Courtesy All members of the class are expected to follow rules of common courtesy in all email messages, threaded discussions and chats. All in-person and electronic communications related to this course are covered by the course’s code of conduct statement.

Campus Resources

Health and Wellness

U Matter, We Care: If you or a friend is in distress, please contact umatter@ufl.edu or 352 392-1575 so that a team member can reach out to the student.

Counseling and Wellness Center: http://www.counseling.ufl.edu/cwc and 392-1575 and the University Police Department: 392-1111 or 9-1-1 for emergencies.

Sexual Assault Recovery Services (SARS)

Student Health Care Center, 392-1161.

University Police Department at 392-1111 (or 9-1-1 for emergencies), or http://www.police.ufl.edu/

Academic Resources

E-learning technical support, 352-392-4357 (select option 2) or e-mail to Learning-support@ufl.edu. https://lss.at.ufl.edu/help.shtml

Career Resource Center, Reitz Union, 392-1601. Career assistance and counseling. https://www.crc.ufl.edu/

Library Support, http://cms.uflib.ufl.edu/ask Various ways to receive assistance with respect to using the libraries or finding resources.

Teaching Center, Broward Hall, 392-2010 or 392-6420. General study skills and tutoring. https://teachingcenter.ufl.edu/

Writing Studio, 302 Tigert Hall, 846-1138. Help brainstorming, formatting, and writing papers. https://writing.ufl.edu/writing-studio/

Student Complaints Campus: https://www.dso.ufl.edu/documents/UF_Complaints_policy.pdf

On-Line Students Complaints: http://www.distance.ufl.edu/student-complaint-process