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PBC 301 Plant Systematics (1): Modern systematics emphasizing application and major themes in the evolution of vascular plants.
PBC 302 Plant Community Ecology (1): Abundance, distribution, diversity, and scaling in plant communities in space-time.
PBC 303 Plant Population Genetics (1): Exploration of evolutionary processes at the population level; mathematical and theoretical concepts of population genetics, with reference to ecological and biological processes specific to plants.
PBC 401 Plant Evolution and Diversity (1): Modern systematics emphasizing application and major themes in the evolution of vascular plants. Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 330 or equivalent and permission of instructor.
PBC 402 Plant Community Ecology (1): The purpose of this class is 1) to introduce students to the scope of the science of ecology at more complex levels of organization, and 2) to develop sophistication in understanding community and ecosystem ecology literature through the exploration of both classical and recent literature. Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 330 or equivalent and permission of instructor.
PBC 405 Ecosystem Ecology (1): Concepts and principles of ecosystem ecology, with an emphasis on terrestrial ecosystems under the context of global change. Mass and energy flows through living and non-living ecosystem components as well as their environmental controls. Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 210-1.
PBC 410 Plant Animal Interactions (1): Ecology of interactions among members of the Plant and Animal Kingdoms, including mutualisms (e.g., pollination, seed dispersal) and antagonisms (e.g., herbivory, parasitism). Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 210-1.
PBC 415 Spring Flora (1): Field-based approach to learning the identification of the major components of the local spring flora, focusing on the wildflowers, trees, and shrubs of the Oak Woodland. Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 210-1.
PBC 418 Soils and the Environment (1): General treatment of soils and environmental implications: soil development, morphology; physical, chemical, hydrologic, and biological properties; water use, erosion, and pollution; management of soils as related to plant growth and distribution. The course is intended for those preparing to be professional environmentalists and who have a background in biology and chemistry but no, or minimal, knowledge of soil science. Thus, the primary emphasis of the course is defining and describing soil properties and processes that determine the fundamental role soils play in the environment. The associated laboratory and demonstration exercises experientially reinforce the concepts presented in lectures. Prerequisites: BIOL_SCI 210-1,2,3; CHEM 103 or 172.
PBC 420 Field Methods in Plant Conservation (1): The science of plant conservation broadly encompasses the knowledge of many ecological field techniques. This course is designed to give students a real understanding of and hands-on experience in plant conservation practices with conservation practitioners in the greater Chicago area. Students will be exposed to a broad range of conservation issues, learn how they are being addressed, conduct relevant field projects, analyze the data, and interpret the results. Every other class meeting will be an all day trip to a field site. The alternating class meetings will deal with the analysis of the data collected. On field days, be sure to dress appropriately for the weather.
PBC 425 Molecular Ecology (1): The aim of this course is to explore the relevance of Evolutionary theory and modern molecular lab techniques to Ecological Research. Ecology is “the study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms and how they are affected by interactions with other organisms and their environment”. Evolution has played an important role in determining a species, and a populations, origin, distribution and the intraspecific and abiotic interactions they experience, and these factors will go on to affect the future evolutionary trajectory of that species or population. Hence in this course we will explore important evolutionary concepts in reference to ecological processes and biological concepts.
PBC 430 Conservation Genetics (1): In this course we will learn how basic evolutionary and genetic principles inform the conservation and management of wildlife, game, and plant populations. We will read and discuss current research in the primary literature, examine case studies of current practices, and engage in group problem-solving and computer simulation exercises. Prerequisites: BIOL SCI 210 series.
PBC 435 Quantitative Methods & Statistics for Plant Conservation Biology (1): Methods for analyzing data sets in ecology and conservation biology will be taught in a computer lab setting. Students will also conduct research projects using original or publicly available data and results will be presented to the class in a professional, publication ready form.
PBC 440 Microbial Ecology (1): The goal of this course is to provide a framework for understanding microbial interactions with plants and animals, ecosystem processes, and the relationship between microorganisms and biogeochemical cycling in natural communities. Course topics are structured to demonstrate the linkages between microbial ecology, diversity, and evolution, and explored in lectures and laboratory analyses.
PBC 450 Field and Lab Methods in Plant Biology and Conservation (1): This course is aimed to provide students with the knowledge, critical thinking, and practical skills to design, execute, and analyze plant biology and conservation research in order to help find solutions to real conservation problems. As this often requires the mastery of many skill sets across disciplines, the course is team taught and includes hands on training in topics such as experimental design, sampling methods, managing data, soil analyses, pollinator and breeding studies, DNA extraction, PCR, and DNA fingerprinting.
PBC 451 Fundamentals of Plant Biology and Conservation (1): This course provides students with the conceptual and theoretical framework within the field of plant biology (especially ecology) and conservation. This is a seminar style class based on reading and discussion of works ranging from historical literature to recent studies including topics such as conservation policy, economics of conservation, climate change, invasive species, habitat fragmentation, and applied conservation case studies.
PBC 499 Independent Study (1-3) : This is a required course for the master's degree in plant biology and conservation in which students will work with an instructor of their choice conducting independent literature, lab, or field research. Prerequisites: Permission of instructor.
PBC 590 Research (1-4): This course will allow students in our new PhD program to sign up for research credit once they have completed a set of core basic courses. Students will be working on their independent research projects while taking this course.
Related Courses
BIOL_SCI 301 Biochemistry (1): Major areas and principles of biochemical processes at the molecular level: structure, metabolism, energetics, and control mechanisms.
BIOL_SCI 323 Bioinformatics: Sequence and Structure Analysis (1): An introductory course exploring the principles and applications of computational tools to research problems in biology. Prerequisites: Introductory-level biochemistry, protein structure and function, and some background in discrete mathematics, statistics, and probability; BIOL_SCI 301 or equivalent; BIOL_SCI 361 or equivalent; and permission of instructor.
BIOL_SCI 346 Field Ecology (1): This is an outdoor lab course, providing a field experience for students in biological and environmental sciences. Prerequisites: BIOL 204 is preferred, but BIOL 210-1 or 164-0 also accepted; STAT 202, 206, or 210 are preferred, but MATH 214-3 also accepted.
BIOL_SCI 390 Molecular Biology I (1): Nucleic acid and chromosome structure; cell and virus genetics; mechanisms and control of DNA mutation, repair, recombination, replication, restriction and modification, and lysogeny; recombinant DNA technology and gene cloning.
BIOL_SCI 395 Molecular Genetics (1): Modern genetic analysis in studies of cell biology, development, and human disease. Emphasis on interpretation of experimental results.
ENVR_POL 394 Climate Change and Local Action (1): This linkage seminar will explore the issues and possibilities for implementing Climate Action Plans, primarily looking at Evanston and Northwestern University. Questions to be addressed will include how to move beyond lofty targets to engage citizens and major institutions in implementing changes from past behavior. Students will participate in small groups evaluating climate action possibilities at Northwestern University. Prerequisites: none
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