autumn 2020
BIO-3014 Biological Rhythms - 10 ECTS

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Application deadline

Concerns only admission to singular courses: Applicants from Nordic countries: 1 June for the autumn semester and 1 December for the spring semester. Exchange students and Fulbright students: 1 October for the spring semester and 15 April for the autumn semester.  

Type of course

Master course for biology students - principally aimed at MSc-students specializing in "Arctic Animal Physiology". The course is available as a singular course.  

Admission requirements

Local admission, application code 9371 - - Master`s level singular course.

Admission requires a Bachelor`s degree (180 ECTS) or equivalent qualification, with a major in biology of minimum 80 ECTS.

Course content

This course focuses on biological timekeeping (chronobiology) in animals, covering time-scales from hours to years. It covers the eco-evolutionary and biomedical importance of innate timing processes, the formalisms necessary for their study and the physiological mechanisms through which biological timekeeping is achieved.  

Objectives of the course

Knowledge and skills:

  • The key principles and intellectual formalisms of chronobiology 
  • The evolutionary origins and ecological importance of biological timekeeping, and its relevance in biomedical contexts 
  • The mechanistic basis to biological timekeeping at levels from the genetics to the whole organism  

General skills:

  • Understanding the process of generating scientific knowledge 
  • Science communication, orally and in writing 
  • Review and extraction of relevant information from scientific research papers 
  • Critical analysis of scientific literature  
  • Presentation of scientific content clearly and in logical order while using language appropriate for the audience and occasion 
  • Proposing, discussing and evaluating hypotheses 

Language of instruction and examination

English

Teaching methods

Seminars (2 hrs per week) including student-led presentations and discussions. Practical classes (4-h) will be held on two occasions during the course.  

Assessment

3 h final written exam. A graded scale of five marks from A to E for pass and F for fail.

Coursework requirements:
One oral presentation on a prepared topic and participation in two practical activities including written reports- all must be approved in order to be able to sit the exam. 

Re-sit exam:
There will be a re-sit examination for students that did not pass the previous ordinary examination.

  • About the course
  • Campus: Tromsø |
  • ECTS: 10
  • Course code: BIO-3014