Current Topics in Marine Microbiology
| Numbering Code | G-AGR04 6DA14 LE81 | Year/Term | 2022 ・ First semester |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Credits | 2 | Course Type | Lecture |
| Target Year | Target Student | ||
| Language | Japanese and English | Day/Period | Tue.2 |
| Instructor name | YOSHIDA TAKASHI (Graduate School of Agriculture Professor) | ||
| Outline and Purpose of the Course | Microorganisms are ubiquitously and abundantly present in all aquatic ecosystems represented by fresh waters and marine waters from coastal to oceanic waters as well as surface to deep sea waters. Some of them favors even extreme aquatic habitats. Further, viruses coexisting with them exceed in number. Interaction between microorganisms and viruses has considerable impact on the aquatic biogeochemical cycles. The purpose of this course is to deepen the understanding of diversity of aquatic microorganisms and their viruses and their roles in biogeochemical cycles. This course is also an introduction how to access current topics in aquatic microbiology, read and review related papers and give presentations on the papers using PowerPoint slides. | ||
| Course Goals |
It is required to understand current marine microbiological research by reading a lot of original papers and reviews. The goal is to prepare oral presentations on the related papers and to discuss them. |
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| Schedule and Contents |
The course covers the following themes: In the first half, lectures will be presented on basic and advanced topics of diversity and ecology of marine microorganisms and viruses. In the second half, students will form several groups, select a scientific theme for presentation, make presentation slides based on their discussions, and finally debate with the other groups. We will discuss every presentation from various viewpoints: how to plan the theme, scientific quality, originality, presentation quality and aesthetics of the slides. 1. Significance of scientific research, experimental plan, progress method for experiment, the meaning of reproducibility, peer reviwing, writing papers 2. Preparation for scientific meetings, strategy for oralpresentations 3. How to summarize a paper 4. Explanation of important points using actual scientific papers, PowerPoint slides 5. Extreme environments and their ecosystems; deep sea hydrothermal vents, deep biospheres, salt lakes, other ecosystems 6. Diversity and characteristics of marine microorganisms and viruses 7. Application to biotechnology 8. Each group will develop an original theme, make a great poster, discuss and debate it. |
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| Evaluation Methods and Policy | Students are graded based on seminar attendance and the quality of their presentation and debate. Refer to '2019 Guide to Degree Programs' for attainment levels of evaluation. | ||
| Course Requirements | Students should have already studied the basics of microbiology, biochemistry and molecular biology. | ||
| Study outside of Class (preparation and review) | Assignments and homework should be submitted by he next class. | ||
