Course: Geosciences for Biologists

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Course title Geosciences for Biologists
Course code KBE/411
Organizational form of instruction Lecture
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study not specified
Frequency of the course In each academic year, in the summer semester.
Semester Summer
Number of ECTS credits 2
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory, Compulsory-optional
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Hais Martin, RNDr. Ph.D.
Course content
Content of lectures: 1) Earth Planet - evolution of life on Earth, exogenous x endogenous processes, global tectonics, orogenesis (Cadomian, Caledonian, Hercynian, Alpine folding) 2) Basics of geology - processes of rock formation and transformation, main rock types: igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic; brief overview of the Czech and the world regional geology 3) Basic geomorphology - main geomorphological factors, Davis geomorphological cycle, climatic geomorphology and implications for biota, climate morphogenetic regions of the Earth in relation to biogeography 4) Basics of climatology and bioclimatology - influence of climate on the distribution of plants and animals, climatic extremes, influence of climatic parameters on the main biological rhythms (annual, diurnal, lunar, tidal) 5) Basics of microclimatology - influence of local climate systems on biota: Anemo-Orographic systems, mountain circulation (summit effect, frost pockets, bora, fen), energy balance in the landscape, microclimate of forests, wetlands, steppes, urban areas 6) Basics of fluvial hydrology - rainfall-runoff regimes in the Czech Republic and worldwide, discharge measurements, influence of land-cover on runoff formation, extremes: floods and droughts 7) Basic limnology - stratification of lakes (especially temperature, oxygen), eutrophication; monomictic, dymictic, polymictic lakes 8) Basic oceanography - main ocean currents - recent risks (changes in temperature distribution, salinity changes), biodiversity, trophic level and temperature distribution in the oceans 9) Synthesis - complex influence of physical-geographic factors on biota 10) Use of geoinformatics in biology - GIS and remote sensing; basic principles, methods, data sources 11) Use of geoinformatics in biology - main solved tasks: assessment of spatial distribution of organisms (spatial interpolation of point data, habitat models) migration, distribution of organisms in space, temporal changes - time-series data processing 12) Regional and physical geography of the Czech Republic 13) Regional and physical geography of the world 14) Global problems: desertification, climate change, deforestation; examples of solutions (Africa - "Big green wall", London - "Green belt" and others)

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified
Learning outcomes
The aim of the course is to get basic overview about geosciences for students biology. The students should understand how is the biota determined by the environmental conditions.

Prerequisites
unspecified

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
The student must succesfully complete the final exam. The exam will take the form of a written test. A 65% of the points obtained is required to pass the exam.
Recommended literature
  • Darrel Hess & Dennis Tasa (2016): Physical Geography: A Landscape Appreciation, Pearson, 593pp ISBN: 13: 9780134245546.
  • John Widdowson, Rebecca Blackshaw, Meryl King. Simon Oakes, Sarah Wheeler, Michael Witherick (2016) Geography, Hodder Education, ISBN, 1471859932, 9781471859939.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester