Goodale Research

Courses

BIOEE 261 Ecology and the Environment. Brian Chabot, Andre Kessler, Andre Dhondt, and Christine Goodale. (Odd-year fall terms; Fall 2007, 2009). Alex Flecker and Jed Sparks (Even-year fall terms; Fall 2008, 2010).

BIOEE 478 Ecosystem Biology. Co-taught with Robert Howarth. Odd-year spring terms, next 2009. See here for a recent syllabus.

Ecosystem ecology is the study of the cycles of energy, organic matter, and nutrients through organisms and the environment. Why are these processes important? Ultimately, they maintain life on Earth; they provide food and fresh water for humans and other animals; they are the core means to understanding environmental problems such as global warming, air pollution, invasive species, and pollution of fresh and coastal waters. In this course we provide an understanding of:

Fundamentals and measurements of the core processes of primary productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems;
Regulation of these processes by abiotic and biotic factors, such as light, water, and nutrient supply, community structure, and disturbance;
Approaches for studying ecosystem processes, and key uncertainties and debates within the field; and
Impact on ecosystem processes from human-induced environmental change.

Throughout the course, we provide context on both current understanding and historical development of the field.

BIOEE 668 Principles of Biogeochemistry. Co-taught with Robert Howarth. Even-year spring terms, next 2008. See here for a recent syllabus.

Definition of biogeochemistry: the science dealing with “biotic controls on chemistry of the environment [and] with the geochemical control of the structure and function of ecosystems” (Howarth, R. W. 1984. Biogeochemistry, 1: preface).

Graduate seminars and workshops. Past seminars include readings in Nutrient Cycling and Limitation, and workshop on Terrestrial Ecosystem Models.