|
 Academic Year:
| 2012/3 |
| Owning Department/School:
| Department of Biology & Biochemistry |
| Credits:
| 6 |
| Level:
| Intermediate (FHEQ level 5) |
| Period: |
Semester 1 |
| Assessment:
| EX 100% |
| Supplementary Assessment: | Like-for-like reassessment (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites:
| Before taking this unit you must take BB10012 |
| Description:
| Aims: To develop an understanding of key concepts in microevolution and macroevolution; to place these in the context of the history of evolutionary thought; to apply these concepts to key problems in evolution; and to understand how they apply to evolution in real populations and in humans. Learning Outcomes: After taking this course the student should be able to: * utilise concepts from evolutionary theory, optimisation theory, behavioural ecology and ecological genetics in understanding ecological and evolutionary issues; * discuss key concepts in macroevolution and the evolution of modern biodiversity; * demonstrate an understanding of the role of biological and physical factors in shaping macroevolutionary patterns; * demonstrate an understanding of the role of mathematical modelling in evolutionary biology; * demonstrate an understanding of how concepts are applied to understand human evolution. Skills: Learning and studying T/F/A, Written communication T/F/A, Information technology T/F, Information handling & retrieval T/F/A, Working independently T/F. Content: The background and reception of The Origin of Species; The age of the earth and the rate of evolution; modelling evolutionary processes; group selection, individual selection, gene level selection; linkage disequilibrium, hitchhiking, disease locus mapping, modifer analysis; measuring and understanding heritability; introduction to quantitative genetics; neutral evolution, the problem of polymorphism and the strength of selection; introduction to molecular evolution: Detecting selection and neutral evolution at the molecular level; selfish elements, genetic conflicts and the corruption of individual level thinking . Quantitative genetics - connecting variation at the molecular level to variances at the phenotypic level; Influence of inbreeding and non-random mating; Migration, gene flow and metapopulations; Haplotype networks to examine population history; Coalescence and drift; optimality. Sexual selection and genome evolution; genome-wide screens for selection using comparative primate genomics and the neanderthal genome; population genetic evidence for recent adaptation in human populations; genetic diversity and "The 1000 human genome project"; elucidating molecular adaptation in the post-genomic era. Why sex? costs and benefits of sexual and asexual reproduction; genetical and ecological approaches to resolving the paradox of sex; constraints on the evolution of asex; insights from geographic parthenogenesis and spatial modelling. Macroevolution: phyletic gradualism vs. punctuated equilibrium; diversity through time; what drives evolution? the Tree of Life; cladistics; reconstructing evolutionary pathways; molecular clocks; the origins of novelty and the origins of higher taxa; mass extinctions; testing macroevolutionary hypotheses. |
| Programme availability: |
BB20040 is Optional on the following programmes:Department of Biology & Biochemistry
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