Transcript 1st_301M-Lecture

Biology 301M.
Varanus eremius
Ecology, Evolution, and Society
(Varanid)
Designed for non-science majors.
Introduction to environmental adaptations,
diversity of organisms, species interactions,
organization and processes of communities,
population growth and limitations, evolution
and population genetics, origin of life, and
human impact on the environment.
Three lecture hours and one discussion hour a week for one semester.
May not be counted toward a degree in biology.
Biology 301M – Ecology, Evolution, & Society
Professor: Eric R. Pianka
Office: Patterson 125, Mon., Fri. 1-2 PM
(or by appointment)
471-7472, email: [email protected]
Lectures: Tuesday and Thursday, 1230-2 (Welch 2.312)
Instructor and Course Websites:
(Agamid)
Ctenophorus
http://www.zo.utexas.edu/courses/bio301/ isolepis
http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~varanus/
Download Syllabus from above site (Contract)
Teaching Assistant:
Craig Handley, Office: PAI 148.D
(or by appointment, use email)
Email: [email protected]
Discussion Sections (20% of letter grade)
(24 readings and Problem Sets)
Wed. 8-9 AM
Welch 4.224
Wed. 9-10 AM
GDC 2.502
Friday 8-9 AM
RLM 5.118
Friday 9-10 AM RLM 5.114
Ctenophorus nuchalis
(Agamid)
Notice the demanding course requirements placed on this class
as part of UT's Core Curriculum, and accordingly, this course
must meet standards and objectives of the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board for Natural Science and Technology:
Communication Skills: effective development, interpretation
and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual
communication.
Critical Thinking Skills: creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and
analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information.
Teamwork: ability to consider different
points of view and to work effectively with
others to support a shared purpose or goal.
Ctenotus
Empirical and Quantitative Skills:
(Skink)
manipulation and analysis of numerical
data or observable facts resulting in informed conclusions.
Goals and Philosophy:
Sceloporus (Iguanid)
This course assumes knowledge of High School algebra, geometry,
and genetics. You will be expected to be able to understand
3-dimensional graphs and be able to manipulate simple equations.
We will attempt to teach you the basic ecology and evolution that
everyone should know -- we will also do our utmost to encourage
you to think.
We hope to make students into better informed
citizens of this, our one and only spaceship, planet Earth.
Please read each of the 24 links on the class website:
___________________________________________________
Scientific Methods
Natural Selection
Human Nature
Our Hunter-Gatherer Heritage
Uncaring Humanoids
Unburnable Oil
Population Growth
Problem Gamblers
___________________________________________________
Agriculture
Global Warming
Vanishing Book of Life
Plastics
The Weakest Link
Technology
Economics
Intelligent Design?
___________________________________________________
Energy
Money
Land
Food
Water
Sewage
Solutions
Space Travel
__________________________________________________
Eight will be covered on each of the 3 hour exams and ALL 24
will be included on the Final exam.
Pianka, Evolutionary Ecology, 6th ed.
Read Chapters 1-7
Watch Dance, Monkeys, Dance
and Domino Effects
We will follow this book, more or
less in the order of its chapters
[Powerpoint presentations can be
downloaded from the course website]
Available as an eBook 7th ed. from Google
Also you can read it on line at course webpage or Canvas
(Use Safari, other browsers may not show figures)
UT provides students with 500 megs per week free, if you
need more bandwidth, you can buy 10 gigabytes per week
for only $3 per semester (Link).
For this generation,
who must confront the
shortsightedness of their
ancestors . . .
Moloch horridus (Agamid)
First Exam: 18 Feb.
Second Exam: 31 Mar.
Third Exam: 5 May
Best 2 of above 3 = 40%
Discussion Sections 20%
Anolis
carolinensis
(Iguanid)
Final Exam: 13 May 9-12 AM: 40%
-------------------------------------------------------
First Exam: 18 Feb.
Second Exam: 31 Mar.
Third Exam: 5 May
Best 2 of above 3 = 40%
Discussion Sections 20%
Anolis
carolinensis
(Iguanid)
Final Exam: 13 May 9-12 AM: 40%
-------------------------------------------------------
First Exam: 18 Feb.
Second Exam: 31 Mar.
Third Exam: 5 May
Best 2 of above 3 = 40%
Discussion Sections 20%
Final Exam: 13 May 9-12 AM: 40%
Anolis
carolinensis
(Iguanid)
No “Extra points,
No “Make Up” Exams!
Final Grades are FINAL, non negotiable
Politicians and other advertisers equate ecology
with “beer cans and pollution” and environment
with “clean air and clean water,” in short the
human environment.
Anthropocentric.
All other organisms
Ctenotus pantherinus
have environments, too.
(Skink)
Environment is defined as all the physical and
biotic factors impinging upon a particular
organismic unit, as well as everything affected
by that organismic unit.
An organismic unit could be an individual, a population, or
even all of the organisms living together in a particular
ecosystem, an entire community.
Phelsuma (Gecko)
These constitute different levels of organization
in the biological hierarchy of life.
Ecology is defined as the study of the interactions
between organisms and their environments.
Ecology requires wild organisms in the natural
environments within which they evolved and to
which they have become adapted.
Ecology requires wild organisms in the natural
environments within which they evolved and to
which they have become adapted.
Once, we were surrounded by wilderness
and wild animals, now we surround them.
Ecology requires wild organisms in the natural
environments within which they evolved and to
which they have become adapted.
What good are rattlesnakes?
Snakes in Cages
“Love” in Vials
Captive organisms are out of context, they don’t have a
natural environment (they might as well be dead as far
as an ecologist is concerned)
Henry David Thoreau (1854)
Walden “Book of Life” metaphor
Holmes Rolston (1985) “Vanishing Book of Life”
Humans are just beginning to be able to read it, but
its pages are tattered and torn, and entire chapters
have been ripped out. Need to save as much as possible (conservation biology), but also must READ
it (ecology) before it is gone. Other Earthlings were
here before us and have a right to exist, too.
Hierarchical Organization of the Biological Sciences
Hierarchical Organization of the Biological Sciences
<—————— Integrative Biology——————————>
Foot & Mouth Virus
Time and Space Scaling in Ecology
Daily movements (home range, territory)
Dispersal events (immigration, emigration)
Colonization of new areas and habitats
Geographic range expansion or contraction
Geographical patterns of diversity
Daniel R. Brooks
Models may be verbal, graphical, or mathematical
Model: mere “caricatures of nature”
(all models are imperfect)
Trade offs in construction of m odels
precision
generality
realism