Course syllabus 2020 PDF

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ENVR 202, section 01 (downtown), CRN 647

The Evolving Earth

ENVR 202, Section 01: The Evolving Earth McGill School of the Environment Winter semester 2020 (January 7-April 9) Class Time: Tuesday/Thursday: 10:05-11:25 RPHYS 112 Note that section 01 downtown and section 51 on the Mac campus are taught by different professors and to some degree are different courses; it is NOT possible to attend comparable lectures on both campuses. You are in the downtown course (sec 01, CRN 647) and working under the terms of this syllabus. Instructors: Brian Leung (course coordinator), Biology & MSE, [email protected] Nagissa Mahmoudi, Earth & Planetary Science, [email protected] Christie Lovat, Natural Resource Sciences, Plant Science, [email protected]

*Communication by email is preferred as it provides everyone a written record of the exchange. Office Hours: There are no fixed office hours in this course. Use the main bulletin board on myCourses for questions about course material so that everyone can share in the exchange. With regard to private matters, you can best contact us by email or after class; we will make an appointment as necessary to deal with bigger problems and questions. E-mail address: THIS IS OFFICIAL MCGILL POLICY. As a service to students, the growing need for timely and efficient communication requires that McGill University institute a policy establishing e-mail as an official means of communicating with students. In order to implement email as an official means of communication between the University administration and students, timely receipt of announcements and notifications must be guaranteed. To this end, e-mail routing must be confined to the University’s network, and delivery to the official e-mail address must be verifiable. The policy applies to any student who is, or has been, assigned a Uniform E-Mail Address (UEA), as well as McGill employees who manage official communications with students. In other words, make sure you have access to your unique McGill Uniform E-Mail Address (UEA) and always use it when communicating with us.

Course overview: The Evolving Earth treats the key processes of geological and biological evolution that underlie patterns of variation among landscapes and biota. We seek to balance geological, evolutionary and ecological perspectives and emphasize their fruitful interplay. We pay special attention to the nature of the interactions between species and their environment that govern biodiversity over time. We touch on the impacts of human activities on natural landscapes and the associated threats to biodiversity. The course is centered at the spatial and temporal scales at which organisms interact with one another and with their abiotic environment. Spatial scales range from the space used by individuals up to the geographic extent of species distributions, and temporal scales range from generations up to time periods typical of continental movements. The Evolving Earth will impart a body of basic knowledge about biotic and abiotic aspects of the environment, but also teach ways of thinking about interactions between organisms and their environment. We wish to develop a student's ability to evaluate lines of evidence for the interactions between organisms and their environment in a holistic and balanced fashion that draws on a set of basic principles or considerations and that appreciates the historical basis of

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ENVR 202, section 01 (downtown), CRN 647

The Evolving Earth

biotic and abiotic elements in a particular situation. Part of our goal is to teach these main elements that must be considered in assessing any environmental situation, but with an emphasis on their application to evaluating the interactions between organisms and environments. Text books There is an optional text book: Sir Richard Southwood’s The Story of Life (2003, Oxford University Press). This provides an easy to read, enjoyable summary of life on Earth. However, the lecture material should be viewed as your primary sources of information. Evaluation Assignments (30%). There will be two assignments related to lectures and class discussion. The purpose of these assignments is to help develop your critical thinking skills and your written expression of ideas. Further, they will provide practice and feedback on the type of integrative questions that will be asked during the final. Class Quizzes (10%). We will have short in class quizzes to assess whether you are understanding the material, and to allow discussion to clarify topics. We will be using “Turning Point Cloud” to give the quizzes. Please see http://www.mcgill.ca/polling/, and the FAQs for students. Note that using any device other than your own or giving yours to someone else so they can vote for you in your absence is cheating. You will need a smart phone, tablet or a laptop. If you do not have either in class, please let one of the instructors know, and we will give you a scantron form. Also, note that we will give 3 “freebies”, where we remove your lowest 3 quiz marks. This should not be viewed as a reason to skip class, but is meant to account for random events that may occur, including sickness, family issues, having a bad day or misinterpreting the questions. You do not need to hand in doctor's notes or excuses for these 3 freebies, however, you can provide notes if you wish. If you miss more than 3 quizzes, you will need notes for all classes missed or you will lose the additional points (e.g., you miss 4 quizzes. If you can only supply one valid reason, you will still lose marks for 1 quiz. If you can supply valid reasons for all 4 missed quizzes, you will not lose marks...it should not be necessary to miss more than 3 classes).

Comprehensive Final Exam (60%). There will be a formal final examination covering all material from lectures and any assigned readings from throughout the entire semester. The examination will be short and answer and essay format and will be written in the 3 hours allotted during the university examination period. N.B. We will give a supplemental or deferred final examination to eligible students if necessary, but the supplemental or deferred examination will count only 60% toward the final course grade. In other words, the grades obtained for the assignments and class quizzes stand as they are at the end of the semester. There is no provision for extra work in this course. Guidelines for Scholarship McGill University values academic integrity. Therefore all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures -- visit and read the information at www.mcgill.ca/integrity!

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ENVR 202, section 01 (downtown), CRN 647

The Evolving Earth

L'université McGill attache une haute importance à l’honnêteté académique. Il incombe par conséquent à tous les étudiants de comprendre ce que l'on entend par tricherie, plagiat et autres infractions académiques, ainsi que les conséquences que peuvent avoir de telles actions, selon le Code de conduite de l'étudiant et des procédures disciplinaires -consulter le site www.mcgill.ca/integrity! Expectations for Workload The official university norm for the workload in this 3-credit course is 3 hours lecture and 6 hours self-study per week averaged over the 15 weeks attributed to a semester. This norm applies to the average student who has the proper preparation for the course. An average student might also be expected to get an average mark; depending on their preparation and abilities, students may have to work more than this to attain top marks. Cardinal Dates January 7: First class Feb 6: First class assignment due (15%) March 10: Second class assignment due (15%) April 9: Last class: Review session Comprehensive Final Examination: TBA (60%)

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ENVR 202, section 01 (downtown), CRN 647

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The Evolving Earth

2020 Lecture Sequence

Tues, Jan 7 Thur, Jan 9 Tues, Jan 14 Thur, Jan 16 Tues, Jan 21 Thur, Jan 23 Tues, Jan 28 Thur, Jan 30 Tues, Feb 4 Thur, Feb 6 Tues, Feb 11 Thur, Feb 13 Tues. Feb 18 Thurs, Feb 20 Tues, Feb 25 Thurs, Feb 27

Introduction: Current biodiversity and course themes Scientific Method: chance necessity history Origins: Plate Tectonics Origins: What is life Origins: A young Earth fit for early life Origins: Natural selection & early life Diversification: Early diversification of life – in the seas Diversification: Biotic/abiotic interactions in marine reef Diversification: Moving onto Land Diversification: Biotic/abiotic interactions in Freshwater Diversification: Origin of Species Diversification: Adaptive radiation Diversification: Extinction and extirpation Diversification: Mass extinction events Diversification: Rapid evolution/sexual selection Case Study: Plants in Hawaii

Tues, Mar 3 Thur, Mar 5

BREAK BREAK

Tues, Mar 10 Thur, Mar 12 Tues, Mar 17 Thur, Mar 19 Tues, Mar 24 Thur, Mar 26 Tues, Mar 31 Thurs, Apr 2 Tues, Apr 7 Thurs, Apr 9

Case Study: Panama Case Study: Microbes on a changing planet Human impact: Agriculture Human impact: Biodiversity loss and it consequences Human impact: Invasive species Human impact: Disease Human impact: Microbes and Mercury The Evolution of You The Evolving Earth - Past, Present and Future Review session

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