Image: Dr. Claire Ting |
The materials and information for this class can be found on Stellar.
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Course Description
Fundamentals of ecology, considering Earth as an integrated dynamic system.
- Coevolution of the biosphere, geosphere, atmosphere and oceans.
- Introduction to thermodynamics.
- The Earth's energy budget.
- Photosynthesis and respiration.
- The hydrologic, carbon and nitrogen cycles.
- Flow of energy and materials through ecosystems, regulation of the distribution and abundance of organisms, structure and function of ecosystems. Evolution and natural selection; metabolic diversity; productivity.
- Trophic dynamics; models of population growth, competition, mutualism and predation.
One of the 7.012x classes is recommended. |