| Unit name | Dynamics of Macroevolution |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EASC30077 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Mike Benton |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
Mandatory units in years 1 and 2 of a degree programme in Environmental Geoscience, Geology or Palaeontology and Evolution at Bristol. |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
Mandatory units in year 3 of the relevant degree programme |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
N/A |
| School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
Why is this unit important?
Macroevolution is key to understanding two big topics, global change and biodiversity, and it is a fundamental part of modern earth sciences, and especially the ways in which we use the rock and fossil records to speak to a wider community of people. In this unit, you will learn about the data and methods we use to analyse fossil data, using both laboratory techniques (microscopes, measurements of data) and computational techniques (statistics, model fitting, phylogenetic comparative methods). It is an interdisciplinary unit, drawing material from palaeontology, stratigraphy, sedimentology and evolution. The focus is on tackling deep-time questions concerning global change and the origins of biodiversity. A clear focus is given to debates, so students can read widely in the current literature and understand the nature of different kinds of evidence and their meaning. We explore how the data and methods we have learned provide powerful tools to explore current environmental crises.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
All fossils are important for understanding the diversity and evolution of life, with many calcifying plankton groups boasting an exceptional fossil record that is unparalleled in other clades. Key fossil groups can provide important information about evolutionary processes, extinction events, and the structure of ecosystems on land and in the oceans. They are also powerful proxies for various aspects of palaeoenvironmental change such as sea level, nutrient input, oxygenation, and temperature. Understanding the uncertainties associated with and critically evaluating these proxies is an important tool for palaeobiologists interested in the Earth System. Further, modern phylogenetic comparative methods give palaeontologists great power in linking their deep-time data to modern biological information, as well as analysing unique deep-time events such as mass extinctions and hot-house worlds and identifying fundamental patterns and processes in large-scale evolution.
An overview of content
This unit covers the basics of understanding deep time and dated time trees, as well as the biology and ecology of the main fossilised marine plankton groups in the Cenozoic and Mesozoic. It introduces major biological approaches used to quantify and understand biodiversity and the Earth System. These include the link between microfossils and their environment, specifically palaeo-temperatures, water depth, productivity and oxygen levels in the ocean. We explore mass extinctions, rates and modes of large-scale evolution, and links between the past and the present. We focus on case studies such as whale evolution, Pliocene warmth, Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction, and the main drivers of climate change.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
Everyone knows something about climate change and mass extinctions, but students will have confident knowledge of key microfossil groups used in these analyses as well as state-of-the-art computational techniques.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion you will be able to:
The unit will be taught through a combination of
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative)
You will receive 1:1 help and feedback from staff and demonstrators during weekly laboratory practical sessions which are tied directly to content and topics discussed in the lectures. Each session provides hands-on experience in either applying microfossil proxies to reconstructing past environmental conditions (sea level, temperature, productivity), in using the fossil record to accurately date marine sediments using the science of biostratigraphy, and in application of programs in the R environment to macroevolutionary questions.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Coursework 50%; final examination 50%
Assessment of the coursework is based on proficiency with R, evidence of understanding macroevolutionary meaning of the results, and presentation quality. Assessment of the examination is based on broad knowledge across the field, coupled with thoughtful application of the methods learned to currently debated big questions around biodiversity and climate change issues.
When assessment does not go to plan
The University’s Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes outline the requirements for progression on and completion of degree programmes.
Students who miss an exam and self-certify their absence may complete a supplementary assessment for an uncapped mark as if taken for the first time. Resit and supplementary exams are habitually taken during the reassessment period later in the summer.
As far as is practicable and appropriate, resit and supplementary assessments will be in the same form as the original assessment but will always test the same intended learning outcomes as the initial missed or failed assessment. In the case of group work, failure by a whole group would result in an appropriate group task being set and reassessed for all group members. If a single student fails a group assessment or is unable to participate for an evidenced reason, an individual reassessment will be set.
There are rigorous and fair procedures in place to support students who are ill or whose studies and assessments are affected by exceptional circumstances.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EASC30077).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
