BIOL 5710 Graduate Modules 2023/2024

NOTE: The module list will be updated as the descriptions are submitted. The final number of modules could > or < 10.  Please check in regularly for updates.  You will be notified via e-mail when the list is finalized.

This list is close to being finalized. You will be notified via e-mail when it is finalized.

No.

Short Title






Instructor

Date














1

 Undergrad STEM Diversity Outreach






Bielawski
 Oct++

2

 Soil Organic Matter Dynamics






Lynch
 Nov

3

 Lipid Biomarkers in Ecology






Budge Oct

4

 Quantitative Proteomics






Rowland/Bertrand
 Winter

5

 Contemporary Env. Monitoring






Skinner Feb/Apr

6

 The Krebs Cycle in Life and Death






Guderley Oct/Nov

7

 Spatiotemporal Ecology






Lennox Nov

8

 Foundations of Evolution






Latta
 Nov

9

 Aquatic Animal bIotelemetry






Crossin/Lennox
 TBD

10

 NA






NA
 NA

11 NA






NA NA



























13+ FoA module selection (link to their site) 






see ag website















* Note: (module-specific notes will be posted here).

On-line modules: (as necessary)

(Note: The Biology program does not offer modules over the summer.)

Individual module descriptions



Module No:

1

Title:

Undergraduate diversity outreach: special events & workshops

Instructor(s):

 Joseph P. Bielawski

Preferred time:

 Starts in Oct.  Meetings will be held through Fall and Winter as required.

Contact:

 Dr. Bielawski: (902) 494-7844  |  j.bielawski@dal.ca

Description:

 With invaluable input from Biology Graduate students, I created a new undergraduate program called the Dalhousie Science Scholars and Leaders (SSL) Program (www.sciencescholars.info).  The goal of SSL is to change the way that traditional undergraduate education determines who can and should do science. Undergraduate science students joined an academic program that affirmed and supported the growth of each student’s individual science identity. The SSL program is ongoing, and it encourages applications from historically excluded and underrepresented STEM students.

We launched the program this Fall term of 2022.  However, there is still much work to be done.

This module will offer graduate students the opportunity to develop their own undergraduate science outreach event, or workshop.  The graduate students will be able to interact with undergraduate students in the Dalhousie SSL Program, and well as King’s History of Science and Technology (HOST) program.

As part of this module, graduate students will (i) participate in further development of Dalhousie SSL Program, (ii) develop an undergraduate outreach event, or workshop, based on their own ideas and experiences, and (iii) gain valuable teaching experience by delivering their event or workshop within the context of the SSL and HOST programs.

The plan…

1.    We will begin by meeting in October and reviewing the overall goals and structure the SSL Program. 

2.    We will then work as a group to identify (based in each graduate student’s experience in science) core principles, skills and concepts that would be especially valuable for undergraduate science students (with a special focus on reducing barriers to excluded and underrepresented students).

3.    We will translate our group work into specific proposals for an event or a workshop focused on reducing barriers faced by historically marginalized undergraduate students

4.    Each graduate students will have the opportunity to deliver their “module” sometime in the Fall of 2023, or Winter of 2024, with support from organizations such as Dalhousie SSL Program, King’s HOST Program, the Institute for Comparative Genomics (ICG) or Diversity of Nature (DoN) and the Dalhousie Leadership Certificate Program.

Grades will be based on participation and successful completion of the above elements.
 



Module No:

2

Title:

  Soil Organic Matter Dynamics and Management
 

Instructor(s):

 Dr. Derek Lynch

Preferred time:

 November 2023

Contact:

 Dr. Derek Lynch: (902-4032531  |  Derek.Lynch@Dal.Ca

 

Description:

 A review of our current understanding of organic matter distribution, storage and dynamics in soil, and the tools (physical and biological fractionation techniques, C isotopes and conceptual ‘pools’ or models) used to help characterize it.  Particular emphasis will be placed on discussion of the mechanisms and potential of soil C sequestration, and the impact of management practices (cropping systems, tillage, amendments) and edaphic factors on soil organic matter dynamics. 


Format: Lecture (via Zoom), 2.0 hours/week for 4 weeks.


Method of Evaluation:   
       
        1) Essay                                                 40%
        2) Presentation of paper                         20%
        3) Participation in weekly discussions    40%


Participation: Each student will be expected to participate with questions and comments related to lectures and distributed readings, and occasionally lead discussion on selected readings.


Essay:  A review on a topic of your interest related to soil organic matter (Confirm topic with Dr. Lynch). Ten to fifteen pages double spaced including references.


Presentation.  Scheduled at end of module. Approx. 15 minutes including questions. The presentation will include selected material from the major essay written by each student.


 


Module No:

3

Title:

 Lipids as biomarkers and food quality indicators

Instructor(s):

 Dr. Suzanne Budge

Preferred time:

 Early October, Thursday morning

Contact:

 Dr. Suzanne Budge:  902 494 6010  |  suzanne.budge@dal.ca

Description:

We will discuss relevant techniques, including qualitative and quantitative uses of fatty acids and their stable carbon isotopes, using recent literature as examples. I’ll provide basic theory relevant to the approaches, including lipid metabolism, sampling considerations, and interpretation of results. Students will develop sufficient understanding to assess the quality of applications in current literature. Their grade will be based on their review with presentation and written critique of a relevant paper in the field.

 

 

Module No:

4

Title:

 Quantitative Proteomics - Principles and Practice

Instructor(s):

 Elden Rowland & Erin Bertrand

Preferred time:

 Jan or March, time will be set once we know everyone’s schedules.
 

Contact:

 Dr. Erin Bertrand:  (902) 494-1853  |  Erin.Bertrand@Dal.Ca

Description:

 This module will explore the principles behind current quantitative proteomic approaches and expose students to limited hands-on applications of those principles. We will cover both global and targeted approaches, with a focus on mass spectrometry-based workflows. We’ll review and evaluate current applications of quantitative proteomics in the literature with examples from marine, terrestrial and medical fields. Assignments will include presentations on current literature applications and brief lab report.



 

Module No:

5

Title:

 Contemporary Environmental Monitoring Concepts

Instructor(s):

 Dr. Marc Skinner

Preferred time:

 Feb-Apr

Contact:

 Dr. Marc Skinner:
(902) 718-7634 
Marc.Skinner@stantec.com

 

Description:

 Together we will explore theoretical and applied concepts in effective (and not-so effective) environmental monitoring.  At some point in their careers, most environmental scientists have wrestled with simple, yet soul-piercing questions such as: “What do I monitor?”; “When do I monitor?”; “How do I monitor?”; “How many samples do I take?”; “What’s and acceptable baseline/reference for monitoring?”; “Will anyone even care about my monitoring?’; “Why did I register for this module?”; and so on.  I guarantee I will answer none of these questions for you, but through engaging discussions we will hopefully come away from this experience with a better appreciation for how to approach the design and implementation of environmental monitoring studies.

Format:  Participants will be provided an initial list of selected readings but are encouraged to suggest others.  After an introductory meeting/discussion session, each participant will be expected to lead a future session.  Each participant will be assigned a reading/topic to present to the group and will facilitate a group discussion based on this reading/topic.  Participants will be assessed by the instructor as well as their peers to determine a final grade.


Module No:

6


Title
Life and death in the spinning of the Krebs cycle

Instructor(s):

 Helga Guderley

Preferred time:

 Tuesday 13:30-15:20

Contact:

 Dr. Helga Guderley:
helga@guderley.ca
902-820-2979
902-266-8046

Description:

 One of the most creative thinkers in bioenergetics, Nick Lane, has put together a book examining why the exact role of the Krebs cycle, the perfect system we all memorized that is at the heart of metabolism, remains so elusive more than 80 years after its discovery.  We learned that this cycle removes hydrogen atoms from carbon skeletons allowing mitochondrial metabolism to generate ATP by electron transport and proton movements. But is that why the Krebs cycle exists? 

In this book, Nick Lane explains how the Krebs cycle and its  role in energy metabolism was discovered, he shows how this cycle, spinning in reverse created the chemical building blocks of life and allowed the emergence of life.  He shows how in multicellular animals, spinning the Krebs cycle in reverse is related to aging, cancer and death.  The liner notes describe the contents well:  “What brings the earth to life and our own lives to an end?  Transformer unites the story of our planet with the story of our cells – what makes us the way we are and how it connects us to the origin of life.” 

This module will essentially analyze Lane’s book, with discussions guided by myself and module members of the different chapters of the book.  The book is available from Amazon in paperback for $25. 

I propose 4-5 meetings, on Tuesday afternoons in late October and November. 



 

Module No:

7

Title:

 Spatiotemporal ecology

Instructor(s):

 Robert Lennox

Preferred time:

 Week of November 6-10 (but could change)

Contact:

 Dr. Robert Lennox: (902) 399-6139  |  lennox@dal.ca

Description:

 Module content and format of class: 
As ecosystems change, dimensionality is a key aspect of ecological research. The use of time series and spatially replicated experiments requires special consideration for design and analysis. This module will discuss the role of space and time in ecology, explore the available tools, and provide opportunities to use data to understand opportunities and pitfalls in applying spatiotemporal ecological data.

 

Module No:

8

Title:

 Foundations of Evolution

Instructor(s):

 Robert Latta

Preferred time:

 November, 2023

Contact:

 Dr494-2737. Robert Latta: (902)   |  Robert.Latta@dal.ca

Description:

 Description: 
This module will be a reading and discussion class focusing on the classic writings in evolutionary biology.  I offer the module every few years as an introduction to major topics in Evolution for incoming grad students (and anyone else who's interested).  The focus will be on foundational works from the early to mid 20th century that laid the basis for our understanding of current research questions (e.g. Adaptation; Genetic Change; Hybridization; Speciation; etc.).  Many of these works are known today only from textbook summaries, and by revisiting the originals, one can glean a better understanding of why particular ideas or approaches have dominated research over the years.  We will pair classic papers with more recent studies in the same field to evaluate where the field has advanced, and which problems remain unsolved.  The format will be to read two classic papers each week, and discuss.  Each student will be responsible for leading the discussion of one of the papers in the module.  Evaluation will be on class participation, and on a short paper.

 

Module No:

9

Title:

 Biologging and Biotelemetry Applications in Aquatic Animal Ecology

Instructor(s):

 Glenn Crossin and Robert Lennox and

Preferred time:

 March 2024
NOTE: ideally 1 week – but dates and times to be confirmed with interested students;  M,T,W,Th,F - 9-10:30am

Contact:

 Dr. Glenn Crossin:  (902) 494-4258  | gtc@dal.ca
Dr. Robert Lennox: (902) 399-6139  |  lennox@dal.ca

Description:

 Electronic tracking has become a key tool ecology, and is central to well-established global and regional research networks. In North American alone there are several organizations advancing our knowledge of aquatic animal biology, like the Ocean Tracking Network (based here at Dalhousie), the Great Lakes Acoustic Telemetry Observation System, the Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry Network, the Florida Acoustic Telemetry Network, and many others. Beyond providing insights into animal behaviour, electronic tracking can be integrated with other disciplines (genomics, oceanography, etc), thus providing a critical tool for habitat management, protected areas management, invasion species monitoring and control, fisheries interactions and sustainability, and stock assessment.

In a week of 1.5-hour classes, we will provide an overview on the operation and utility of acoustic and other types of telemetry systems by highlighting relevant studies using tracking technologies to inform management. This will include guest lectures focusing on the practicalities of aquatic telemetry analysis, as well as animal care considerations.

The class will begin with 4 lectures: an introductory lecture on the history and development of telemetry and animal tracking, and three covering a range of case studies. An additional lecture will involve guest lectures from personnel at the Ocean Tracking Network to discuss analysis of telemetry data, as well as the University veterinarian to discuss tagging specifics and animal care. Assessment for students will be to propose a telemetry experiment to a hypothetical question in animal ecology that we pose to each student. This proposal will be 2-3 pages, single-spaced in length in addition to references cited.

 

Module No:

10

Title:

 Module 10 

Instructor(s):

 TBD

Preferred time:

 TBD

Contact:

 Dr. XXX: (902) xxx-xxx  |  xxx.xxxxx@dal.ca

Description:

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Module No:

11

Title:

 Module 11

Instructor(s):

 TBD

Preferred time:

 TBD

Contact:

 Dr. XXX: (902) xxx-xxx  |  xxx.xxxxx@dal.ca


Description:

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Module No:

12

Title:

 Module 12  

Instructor(s):

 TBD

Preferred time:

 TBD

Contact:

 name.name@Dal.Ca  |  902 xxx xxxx (office)

Description:

 TBD



Module No:

13+

Title:

 Faculty of Agriculture module selection (link to their site)

Instructor(s):

 Faculty of Agriculture

Preferred time:

 link to their site

Contact:

 link to their site

Description:

 Modules offered through the Faculty of Agriculture (formerly NSAC) do count towards BIOL5705/5706.