Marine Microbiology

When it comes to nutrients, C cycling, photosynthesis, and many other essential marine processes, microbes are the elephants in the room. While not as charismatic, and certainly not as visible as macrofauna, microbial processes define where and when nutrients are available; determine how much carbon remains in the ocean versus the atmosphere; the extent of marine productivity; and the very extent of life in the ocean itself. This upper-division science program will exam microbes in the marine environment, including bacteria, archaea, eukarya, and viruses.

Activities will include both theory, laboratory practice, and bioinformatics. This program will bring in concepts and laboratory skills from various fields, including molecular biology and computer science, to give students a chance to apply techniques and see how modern marine microbiology is attempting to improve our understanding of the relationships between microbial communities and the broader biogeochemical environment. Other themes include how natural selection affects microbial communities and how these selective pressures can be detected in microbial DNA. Other activities will explore conducting field work and sampling the marine environment. Students can expect a balance of lecture, seminar on journal articles, and laboratory/field work.

This 8-credit program will meet during the day on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Students wishing to take a full 16-credit load can consider the 8-credit programs  Marine Fisheries and Human Health,  Counting for Conservation: Principles of Population Genetics, and Symbiosis, which have non-conflicting schedules.

Anticipated Credit Equivalencies (upper division eligible):

8 - Marine Microbiology