Ecology and Evolution
Fall 2008
Page Contents

---Instructors
---Time and Place
---Textbooks
---Course Downloads and Links
 ---Course Schedule
---Grading
Course Announcements


 

Instructors
---Roberta Mason-Gamer, 1008 SEL, 996-4537. E-mail: robie at uic.edu
Office Hours Tu/Th 12:30–2:00
---Mosheh Wolf, 3350 SES, 355-0990. E-mail: mhwolf at uic.edu
Office Hours Tu/Th 12:30–2:00
---Amy Sullivan, 3464 SES, 413-0023. E-mail: asulli1 at uic.edu
Office Hours TBA

Time and Place
---Lectures: 11:00–12:15 Tuesday and Thursday, Lecture Hall B, Room B1
---Jump to course schedule (updated to reflect canceled lecture)
---Download a copy of the syllabus (pdf format)

Textbooks 
---Evolutionary Analysis,  4th Edition (2007). Scott Freeman and Jon C. Herron.
Prentice Hall / Pearson Custom Publishing.  Companion Website for Evolutionary Analysis

---Elements of Ecology, 6th Edition (2006). Robert l./ Smith and Thomas M. Smith.
Companion website for Elements of Ecology
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Download Additional Course Materials

Evolution Lecture Summaries
We will post lecture summaries at least a day before the corresponding class.
Please print them out and bring them to class with you.
Lecture 1 - Aug. 26
Lecture 2 - Aug. 28
Lecture 3 - Sep. 2
Lectures 4, 5, and 6 - Sep. 4, 9, and 16
Addendum - Selection Scenarios
Lecture 7 - Sep. 18
Addendum - Widowbird example (for those with older edition of book)
Lecture 8 - Sep. 23
Link to Dr. Mike Ryan's research Multi Media page to hear the Tungara frogs
Lecture 9 - Sep. 30
Link to Dr. Charlie Henry's page Cryptic Song Species of Green Lacewings and listen to the songs
Alvaro Saldivar (from class) provided links to two stories on volcanic island formation.  Thanks, Alvaro!
Birth of an Island describes the formation of Loihi, the next Hawaiian Island
Birth of a New Island describes the formation of Kavachi, in the western Solomons
Lectures 10 - Oct. 2
Lectures 11, 12 - Oct. 7, 9

Ecology Lecture Summaries

Lecture 14 - Oct. 14   (There is no Lecture 13; we lost one when the computer went on strike.)
Lecture 15 - Oct. 16
Lecture 16 - Oct. 21
Lecture 17 - Oct. 23
Lecture 18 - Oct. 28
Updated Lecture 18 Handout
Guide to Ecology Reading for Exam 2
Lecture 19 - Nov. 6
Lecture 20 - Nov. 11, 13
Lecture 21 - Nov. 18
Lecture 21b - Nov. 25
Lecture 22 - Dec. 2
Guide to Ecology Reading for Final Exam

Supplementary Readings - Required

Krama, I., Krama, T., Igaune, K., and Mänd, R. 2008. Experimental evidence of reciprocal altruism in the pied flycatcher. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology  62:599–605. 

Barkman, T. J., Lim, S.-H., Salleh, K. M., and Nais, J. 2004. Mitochondrial DNA sequences reveal the photosynthetic relatives of Rafflesia, the world's largest flower. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 101:787–792.

Supplementary Readings - Optional


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Homework Assignments
Homework 1 - Posted Sep. 8, due Sep 16
Homework 2 - Posted Sep. 24, due Oct. 2
Homework 3 - Posted Oct. 8, due Oct. 16
Homework 4 - Posted Oct. 28, due Nov. 6
Homework 5 - Posted Nov. 13, due Nov. 20
Homework 6 - Posted Nov. 26, due Dec. 2


Homework and Exam Answers
Homework 1 Answers
Sample Questions - Exam 1  ---->  Answers
Exam 1 Answers
Homework 2 Answers
Homework 3 Answers
Exam 2 Answers
Homework 5 Answers, version A
Homework 5 Answers, version B
Homework 6 Answers
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Web Resources
A. Class Resources

Download AlleleA1 software for Mac or Windows:

1. Download the software for
       Windows
       Mac OS Classic
       Mac OS X
2. Download the User Manual
3. Download a list of exercises looking at
       Selection and Mutation
       Migration and Genetic Drift


B. Links related to creationism and science education

---National Center for Science Education
Information and advice to keep evolution in the science classroom and "scientific creationism" and "intelligent design" out.

---The Panda's Thumb
Active discussions of evolutionary theory, the antievolution/antiscience movement, science and science education, and related.

Student Opportunities


Download Journal Articles

You will be asked to download at least one online research article.  If you are not sure how to do it, read on:

1. First, go to the UIC Library's list of online journals, newspapers, and magazines.
2. In the "Search by Journal or Newspaper Title" area, select "Title begins with" in the pulldown box.
3. Type in the first few words of the journal.  For example, when I type in "trends in ecology" I get the following window:
3

4. The journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution is available from several sources, depending on the year I want. If I choose the third source, I get to this site:
5

5. The exact appearance of the resulting window will vary depending on the journal and who is hosting it.  In this case, you would go to the left side of the window to choose the year, volume, and issue you want.  The main window lists the articles in that issue.  They can be viewed as html by clicking on the title, or downloaded as pdf files by clicking on the pdf link.

Course Schedule

Date
 Lecture
 Reading
1
 8/26
 HIV and the study of evolution
 Freeman Chapter 1
2
 8/28 Darwinian natural selection Freeman Chapter 3
3
 9/2
 Origins of genetic variation - mutation Freeman Chapter 5
4
 9/4
 Genetic variation - Hardy-Weinberg principle and selection Freeman Chapter 6
5
 9/9
 Changes in genetic composition – mutation, migration, genetic drift Freeman Chapters 6–7

9/11 AV Meltdown
6
 9/16 Changes in genetic composition – genetic drift, non-random mating Freeman Chapter 7
7
 9/18 Sexual selection Freeman Chapter 11
8
 9/23 Kin selection Freeman Chapter 12

9/25
 Exam 1
9
 9/30
 Species concepts and speciation Freeman Chapter 16
10
 10/2
 Phylogenetics I
 Freeman Chapter 4
11
 10/7
 Phylogenetics II, Human evolution I Freeman Chapters 4, 20
12
 10/9
 Human evolution II
 Freeman Chapter 20


~~~~~~~~~~~
14
 10/14
 What is ecology?  Topics and methods
 --
15
 10/16
 Global physical environment and bioregions
 Smith Chapters 3–5
16
 10/21
 Adaptations to the environment – physiology and morphology
 Smith Chapters 6–7
17
 10/23
 Life history
 Smith Chapter 8
18
 10/28
 Population processes and dynamics
 Smith Chapters 9–10
19
 10/30
 Population regulation and metapopulations
 Smith Chapters 11–12
--
 11/4
 Exam 2
20
 11/6
 Competition
 Smith Chapter 13
21
 11/11
 Predation, parasitism, and mutualism coevolution
 Smith Chapters 14–15
22
 11/13
 Community structure and dynamics
 Smith Chapters 16–18
23
 11/18
 Landscape and ecosystem ecology
 Smith Chapters 19–22
24
 11/20
 Biomes and ecosystems
 Smith Chapters 23–25
25
 11/25
 Human impact and sustainability
 		Smith Chapter 27
--
 11/27
 Thanksgiving - No Classes
26
 12/2
 Biodiversity and conservation  (Instructor evaluation at start of class – Mason-Gamer)
 Smith Chapter 28
27
 12/4
 Global climate change  (Instructor evaluation at start of class – Wolf)

12/8 (M)
 		Final Exam 10:30 AM –12:30 PM

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Grading
Exams
Two in-class exams (125 points each) will include multiple-choice and short-answer questions. Exam I will cover material from lectures 1–9, and Exam II will cover lectures 10–19. It is likely that many of you will have exams in other courses scheduled for the same days. We cannot offer multiple exam dates to accommodate your exams in other courses. You must plan ahead, and take the BioS 230 exams on their scheduled days. The final exam (150 points) will include only multiple-choice questions, with 125 points from lectures 20–27, and 25 points from lectures 1–18. The final exam will not be given early.

Homework
Six homework exercises, worth 20 points each, will be posted online and announced in class. You will have approximately one week for each assignment; completed assignments will be due at the beginning of class on their due date. The lowest homework grade will be dropped from the final grade. Two points will be deducted per day for late assignments.


Grading


Each
 		Total
Two lecture exams
 125
 		250
Six homework assignments, drop lowest
 20
 		100
Final exam
 150
 		150
Total
500

Grading Scale       
A    450–500 points = 90–100%
B    400–449 points = 80–89.4%
C    350–399 points = 70–79.4%
D    300–349 points = 60–69.4%
F   < 300 points      < 60%

Grades will be posted on Blackboard. If one of your exams or homework assignments has been graded incorrectly, speak to your teaching assistant within one week after the exam or assignment is handed back.
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