Unit name | Palaeontology and Evolution Research Project |
---|---|
Unit code | EASC30073 |
Credit points | 30 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
Unit director | Dr. Cunningham |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
N/A |
Co-requisites |
N/A |
School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
Faculty | Faculty of Science |
The unit aims to introduce students to:
In the first five weeks of the unit students will gain a general understanding of modern methods in macroevolutionary analysis through a series of lectures covering phylogenetic reconstruction, inference of divergence time and the comparative method. Practicals in these weeks will include how to use supercomputers (using a UNIX/LINUX shell interface) and how to use an array of standard software for data analysis (e.g. PAUP MrBayes Phylobayes).
Students will then meet with the instructor to agree a research topic.
Students will undertake an independent research project using publicly available data from Morphobank or GenBank, grounded on the practical and theoretical knowledge they accumulated in lectures and practicals. Students will research the agreed topic independently, obtain relevant publicly available data, and complete a series of appropriate analyses to test specific evolutionary hypotheses, as previously agreed with the instructor.
At a second supervisory meeting (drop-in session) students will present a bulleted point document describing the project write-up plan. Completion of the project will culminate in an oral presentation and a report of the project results in the style of a short scientific paper at the end of the unit.
Students will:
The unit will be taught through a combination of
Students who either begin or continue their studies in an online mode may be required to complete laboratory or field work, or alternative activities, in person, either during the academic year 2020/21 or subsequently, in order to meet the intended learning outcomes for the unit, prepare them for subsequent units or to satisfy accreditation requirements.
100% Coursework comprising:
10-minute presentation on students' research findings (20%)
Coursework comprises a written report of the project undertaken (2500 words; one figure with panels allowed) (80%)
Essential:
Independent reading of the broad literature to select a topic for the project is essential.
Further Reading: