BS110-12 Animal & Plant Biology
Introductory description
Welcome to the Animal and Plant Biology course.
The course contains 28 lectures and covers major animal and plant body plans and their evolution in deep time. We take you onto a journey of discovery, to see animals and plants from the molecular and cellular 'inside'.
We show you how organisms changes across vast timescales and how we can trace these processes. This is going to be much different from what you have learned in school, so enjoy the ride!
To make the most of this, we encourage you to look at the lectures, films and papers we put on this website before and after the lectures. They are complementary to the lectures themselves and not a substitute for each other.
More details about the module can be found in the module summary and on this website.
Module aims
The module progresses from a series of lectures covering zoological methods, with an analysis of the evolutionary relationships between different Phyla and groups of animals and plants. A comparison is then drawn of the differences of plant to animal biology in terms of their cell biology, biochemistry and physiological activities. Finally the diversity of major groups is discussed. The aims of the courses for which this is available are to introduce students to a range of Biological subjects and this is the only truly whole organismal material in the degree programmes. The overall objective for students is to acquire the ability to integrate organismal and molecular knowledge in a broad, evolutionary context.
Outline syllabus
This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.
- Lecture 1: The Tree of life - Andre Pires da Silva
Lectures 2 and 3: The dawn of multicellular animals, the Metazoans - Georgy Koentges
Lectures 4 and 5: The evolution of the Bilaterian body plan. The Lophotrochozoans - Georgy Koentges
Lecture 6&7 Ecdysozoa - Andre Pires de Silva
Lectures 8 - 11 Chordates, Tetrapods, Dinosaurs and Birds - Georgy Koentges
Lecture 14 - Robin Allaby
Lecture 15-18: Plant origins - Robin Allaby
Lecture 19 Co-evolution in the Anthropocene - Robin Allaby
Lecture 20 Extinctions and the Carbon cycle - Robin Allaby
Lectures 21-24 - Plant structure-function - Isabelle Carre
Lectures 25-27 - Stephen Jackson:
Lectures 27-29: Plant responses to environmental stress - Emily Breeze
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- By the end of the module the student should be able to: Understand and describe the methods used in Zoology to define the major groups of Animals. Understand and describe invertebrate and vertebrate diversity Understand and describe plant structure and the function of the various components of a plant.
Indicative reading list
Sadava et al Life: The Science of Biology. Freeman 2006
Subject specific skills
By the end of the module the student should be able to:
- Understand and describe the methods used in Zoology to define the major groups of Animals.
- Understand and describe invertebrate and vertebrate diversity
- Understand and describe plant structure and the function of the various components of a plant.
Transferable skills
- Critical appraisal of source material
- Self directed learning
- Adult learning
Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 25 sessions of 1 hour (21%) |
| Private study | 95 hours (79%) |
| Total | 120 hours |
Private study description
Self directed learning and revision for end of year exam
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You must pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Students can register for this module without taking any assessment.
Assessment group B1
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online Examination | 100% | No | |
|
CAT points: 12 (100% examined: 1 hour examination in the summer)
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Feedback on assessment
Pastoral meetings with tutors\r\n\r\n
Courses
This module is Core for:
- Year 1 of UBSA-3 Undergraduate Biological Sciences
- Year 1 of ULFA-C1A1 Undergraduate Biological Sciences (MBio)
- Year 1 of ULFA-C113 Undergraduate Biological Sciences (with Placement Year)
- Year 1 of ULFA-C1A5 Undergraduate Biological Sciences with Industrial Placement (MBio)
This module is Core optional for:
- Year 1 of UIPA-C1L8 Undergraduate Life Sciences and Global Sustainable Development
This module is Optional for:
- Year 1 of UBSA-3 Undergraduate Biological Sciences
- Year 1 of UBSA-C1B9 Undergraduate Biomedical Science
- Year 1 of ULFA-C1A3 Undergraduate Biomedical Science (MBio)