Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
Tory Clarke
E8B 209
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Credit points |
Credit points
4
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
Admission to MRes
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
Students will formulate a novel research question within a well-defined topic area, conduct a comprehensive review of the primary literature, synthesise this material to address their research question, and present their findings in oral and written forms. The best reviews will unite evidence from disparate areas to generate novel ideas and hypotheses. This unit provides an opportunity for students to learn about an area of scientific research that they may be unfamiliar with at the outset. The intention is to give students an opportunity to gain exposure to a research area that is completely unrelated to their masters research project. It also provides an opportunity for students to learn about the latest work in a wide variety of research areas through discussions and oral presentations presented by their peers. In the past, some literature reviews by students have been published in refereed scientific journals.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Name | Weighting | Due |
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Discussion participation | 5% | Throughout |
Proposal | 15% | Thursday 30th April 4pm |
Oral presentation | 20% | Monday 18th May 1pm - 4pm |
Literature Review | 60% | Thursday 4th June 4pm |
Due: Throughout
Weighting: 5%
Participation in class discussion (5%).
Students are required to attend the introduction meeting on the 21st of April and all seminars (date to be confirmed). Proactive participation in the discussions during these meetings is expected.
Due: Thursday 30th April 4pm
Weighting: 15%
Proposal (15%)
Produce a brief outline of your research topic detailing the question to be addressed, the sub-questions you will consider, an outline of the structure of your review, and six key references you intend to use. Maximum 1 side of A4 paper. The intention of this assessment task is to give early feedback to students on their planned project.
Your research plan will be assessed on
a) Formulation of a clear question and hypothesis;
b) Strength of supporting research;
c) Clarity of structure to the review;
d) Overall communication of your work.
Due: Monday 18th May 1pm - 4pm
Weighting: 20%
Oral presentation (20%)
You should deliver a 10-minute presentation of your research topic structured as an academic conference presentation, followed by a 5-minute period for questions. Your oral presentation should be accompanied by slides prepared in Powerpoint. This will be an open presentation, meaning any member of the university community may attend, and you should anticipate presenting to the majority of the Biology academic and student community. This should also be seen as an opportunity to gain constructive comment and feedback from your examiners and peers, which may improve your thesis.
In preparing your talk, consult the marking rubric (attached) to understand what examiners looking for in your talk.
Use the following checklist when developing your presentation
Due: Thursday 4th June 4pm
Weighting: 60%
Literature Review/Opinion Piece (60%)
The literature review/opinion piece should be written and formatted as a submission-ready review paper in the style of an appropriate journal (eg Trends In Evolution and Ecology). Write your report for a scientifically literate but non-specialist audience. This must be fully referenced following the referencing style of the journal. The essay must not exceed 3,500 words excluding references. More information about formating your article can be found here: http://www.cell.com/trends/ecology-evolution/authors#1b
A good scientific review requires a clear definition of the problem and question, comprehensive coverage of relevant literature, a concise and unbiased summary of existing evidence, clear structure, precise spelling, grammar and use of written English and a conclusion that addresses the topic question.
You should cite at least 20 papers from the primary peer-reviewed literature in your review, but you may have to read considerably more than this to get a rounded idea of the topic. Emphasis should be placed on recent papers (last 5 years). In preparing your review, consult the standardised marking sheet (attached) to understand what features we are looking for and what mistakes you should avoid.
Use the following list when developing your essay
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Unit Objective
“Topics in Evolution” is about getting students to think critically about the role of evolutionary processes in diverse biological phenomena and integrating mechanisms across time and levels of biological organization to form a coherent argument. We will be testing various skills, including: formulation of a well-defined topic area; retrieval of refereed papers on the subject; comprehension and coverage of the published material; synthesis of the diverse papers into a concise and coherent review; and ability to communicate these ideas in oral and written forms. The best theme topic literature review will unite evidence from disparate areas to formulate new ideas or hypotheses. In the past, some theme topic reviews have been submitted as sole-author papers to refereed journals, so this is not just another assessment exercise, but marks your transition from summarizing the thoughts of others to thinking critically and originally about a topic. The theme topic is designed to push you out of your comfort zone into an area that is not the same as your research project. It is also an opportunity to learn about the latest research in a wide variety of areas through the discussions and seminars presented by your peers.
This year the theme is entitled “In the Light of Evolution”, Student will need to develop their own topic within this theme and identify a faculty mentor within the department who is willing to grade your essay and sit in on your oral presentation. After identifying your general subject area, you should refine your topic in consultation with your chosen mentor and other academic staff. The chosen topic must not be related to that chosen for BIOL799.
What kind of topics can be chosen?
Theodore Dobzhanksy (1964) noted that “nothing makes sense in biology except in the light of evolution.” The key aspect of this theme is that it asks you to concentrate on the evolutionary processes that give rise to contemporary phenomena. In formulating a topic, you are free to focus on any level of biological organization (genotype, phenotype, population, community, ecosystem).
Some examples are listed below. This list is by no means exhaustive.
Potential Topics | Academic Mentor |
Animal signalling | K-Lynn Smith |
Differences among species in their structural, chemical and physiological traits | Ian Wright |
Evolution of communication | K-Lynn Smith |
Evolution of colony shape (morphology) in colonial organisms | Josh Maddin |
Evolution of visual structures (in insects) for dim light | Ajay Narendra |
Functional ecology and ecological strategies of plants | Ian Wright |
How will changes in rainfall timing affect plant ecology and evolution? | Melanie Zeppel |
How does climatic variation affect animal reproductive physiology and behaviour? | Simon Griffith |
How will climate change affect interactions between plants and insects? | Melanie Zeppel |
Models of evolution for phylogenetics | Rob Lanfear |
Rates of evolution | Rob Lanfear |
Role of landscape heterogeneity in the evolution of animal navigation behaviour | Ajay Narendra |
Somatic mutations in plants | Rob Lanfear |
The (mis)behaviour of scientists | Rob Lanfear |
The evolution of genome size | Rachael Gallagher |
The evolution of range size in flora | Rachael Gallagher |
The evolution of sociality in birds | Simon Griffith |
"Unnatural evolution" of fish behaviour in harvested populations | Elizabeth Maddin |
IMPORTANT DATES | |||
Tuesday 21st April | Initial meeting, explanation of theme topic & examples, discussion to choose choice topic areas | 2:00pm - 3:00pm | EMC-G230 |
Monday 27th April | Round-table discussion on formulating questions, finding references, structuring literature review, writing proposal | 1:00pm - 3:00pm | EMC-G240 |
Thursday 30th April | Proposal due [Hard copies submitted to Biology Department Office. Electronic copies submitted via Turnitin accessible through the ILearn website.] | 4:00pm | |
Monday 18th May | Seminars, attendance at all seminars is compulsory! | 1:00pm - 4:00pm | E8A280 (Tearoom) |
Thursday 4th June | Literature review due [Hard copies submitted to Biology Department Office. Electronic copies submitted via Turnitin accessible through the ILearn website.] | 4:00pm |
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Academic Honesty Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html
Assessment Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy.html
Grading Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html
Grade Appeal Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html
Grievance Management Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grievance_management/policy.html
Disruption to Studies Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html The Disruption to Studies Policy is effective from March 3 2014 and replaces the Special Consideration Policy.
In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/student_conduct/
Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
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