(apologies for cross postings) Ecological and Evolutionary Analysis of Spatial Variation in Marine Systems Research Apprentice Course Fall Semester 2006, August 21 - December 9, 2006, 20 quarter-units at the Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington Enrollment limited to 12 students Instructors: Sarah Gilman ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) and Melissa Frey ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Applications due June 10, 2006 http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/studentApprentice2006.html Live and do research for 16 weeks at Friday Harbor Laboratories, the world-renowned University of Washington marine lab on San Juan Island, 75 miles northwest of Seattle. The Friday Harbor Labs offer intensive, full-time research training experiences to qualified undergraduates and post-baccalaureates from any college or university. Teams of students each work on one focused research problem guided by a group of faculty, postdoctoral and graduate student mentors. Students selected for participation receive financial support to defray costs for room and board at FHL and tuition charged by University of Washington. For the first time, FHL is offering one research apprenticeship on a semester schedule, with a greater unit load to accommodate students from institutions based on a semester OR quarter system. Students will earn 20 quarter-units (approximately 13-15 semester units, depending on your home institutions rules). Course Description Marine benthic ecosystems are notorious for exhibiting extreme environmental heterogeneity over small spatial scales. Over scales of meters to kilometers, organisms may encounter significant differences in environmental conditions, such as emersion times, wave exposure, and community composition. This heterogeneity presents a challenge to marine organisms because traits that allow an individual to succeed in one environment may be detrimental in others. Local adaptation and phenotypic plasticity are common responses to environmental heterogeneity. In turn, dispersal, which influences how frequently individuals encounter variability within or between generations, shapes these adaptive responses. In this course, apprentices will investigate how marine populations balance local adaptation, phenotypic plasticity, and dispersal to counteract the challenges of living in a spatially heterogeneous environment. A primary objective of the course is to train students in both experimental and molecular approaches to marine ecology. Through lectures, readings, and discussions, as well as field excursions and demonstration labs, students will gain hands-on knowledge of: marine ecology and the natural history of the San Juan Islands, experimental design, basic techniques in molecular ecology, and current ecological and evolutionary theory of environmental heterogeneity. The primary focus of the course will be independent research projects designed and conducted by each student For more information check out the Research Apprentice page on the FHL website (http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/ studentApprentice2006.html) or contact the instructors at [EMAIL PROTECTED] and [EMAIL PROTECTED] --------------------------------------------- Sarah Gilman, PhD Friday Harbor Laboratories University of Washington 620 University Rd. Friday Harbor, WA 98250 360-378-2165 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://faculty.washington.edu/gilmans ---------------------------------------------
