On successful completion of the course, the student should be able to:
have an understanding of what life has arisen and how it has evolved
know the main groups of unicellular and multi-cell organisms
recognize that humans are part of nature and influences this greatly, including by destroying habitats and thus eradicate the species
know the molecules that are important for life and how these may interact
understand basic life processes such as photosynthesis and respiration know how plants and animals interact and how they depend on physical and chemical factors
be able to write a laboratory report
make a poster with figures based on research results
make a plant collection and an insect collection
know the basic techniques for working in the lab and how to be able to work safely in a laboratory and field
find relevant natural science literature on library
Course contents
Basic chemistry. The tree of life. Biodiversity. Prokaryotes, protists, plants, fungi, animals. Life's chemistry. How life originated and how it has evolved. Evolution, the main features of the theory of evolution. Key ecological concepts and examples of ecology in practice. Extinction of species, naturally and due to human activity. Photosynthesis, oxidative respiration. How to write a good lab report. How to create a poster to present scientific findings. Using a spreadsheet, especially the design of diagrams. Courses in laboratory safety. Field instruction in biodiversity and ecology. Tour of the Science building. Information about the library and how to find relevant scientific literature.
Teaching methods
Lectures, laboratory work, field work, lab. Lab, field and computer education is compulsory. The course has an expected scope of work of 270 hours.
Examination requirements
Attendance to all mandatory lab, field and data teaching must be approved. A test in species during October must be passed. All written submissions as well as leaf collection and insect collection must be passed in order to take the exam, see Canvas for more information.
The person responsible for the course, in consultation with the student representative, decides the method of evaluation and whether the courses will have a midterm- or end of term evaluation, see also the Quality System, section 4.1. Information about evaluation method for the course will be posted on Canvas.