Educational objectives Expected learning outcomes
Acquiring skills on general and applied entomology, including modern molecular and cladistic approaches to insect systematics. To allow students to recognize the main taxa of Hexapods. To allow students to know and apply the main collecting methods aimed to sample insect populations in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems, in a perspective of environmental monitoring. Acquiring skills on the use of insects and other terrestrial arthropods in Conservation Biology and in biological control of alien and invasive insect species. Acquiring skills and standard scientific knowledge allowing the preparation of scientific articles on insect taxonomy, morphology, and molecular phylogenetics.
Dublin Descriptors
Dublin Descriptor 1: knowledge of the basic elements of the Arthropods and Insects evolution, as well on their species richness at Italian, European, and World scale. Knowledge of the main phylogenetic relationships inside insect orders, and of their main diagnostic morphological features; knowledge of the main different metamorphosis models during development, as well as of the main insect trophic and physiological adaptations.
Dublin Descriptor 2: Skills in combining, integrating and applying knowledge of the main entomological principles in Evolutionary Biology, Ecology, Zoological systematics, and Conservation Biology. Ability to recognize the Insect orders (up to the level of the main families) of the European and Italian fauna. Ability to approach qualitative samplings and critical use of identification manuals (guides, local faunas, traditional and virtual keys to identification, etc.). Knowledge and ability to approach applied research, using indicator species and indices of environmental quality, managing problems related to the introduction of alien species, and problems related to insect conservation biology. Standard scientific knowledge allowing the preparation of scientific articles on insect taxonomy, morphology, and molecular phylogenetics.
Dublin Descriptor 3: skills in better and more critically understanding entomological items through the experiences accumulated during fieldwork, lessons, and discussions with teachers. The examinations, including a written (although not mandatory) report aimed to summarize a recent scientific article, should also allow students to better verify their own preparation and ability to understand and summarize complex entomological items.
Dublin Descriptor 4: skills in better communicating the results of personal entomological training, through the experiences accumulated by each student during field work, lessons, discussions with the teacher and with other students, and examinations.
Dublin Descriptor 5: skills in better transferring the experiences accumulated during this specialized entomological course in autonomous studies addressed to a taxonomic specialization in entomology, as well as in other fields such as applied zoology, zoogeography and Conservation Biology; this improved autonomy being based, e.g., on the acquired ability to read, understand and summarize a recent scientific article or textbook, and in easily using traditional and interactive keys to identification.
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Educational objectives Through a detailed examination of the fossil and archaeological record, combined with paleoenvironmental and paleogenetic data, the course provides the knowledge necessary to understand the dynamics of human evolution. The student will acquire the necessary skills in paleoanthropology for a critical evaluation of the information framework, as to independently take into consideration the available interpretative models.
The student will acquire knowledge on the paleoanthropological record as a whole, as to understand the dynamics of human evolution in the paleoenvironmental context between Miocene and Pleistocene.
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Educational objectives Objectives of the course
Analysing the relationships between vegetation distribution and climatic-litho-morphological characters.
Describing the actual vegetation cover as a combination product of the flora and vegetation history, and of the physical and biotic environment evolution.
Surveying and classifying vegetation communities, recognizing types and vegetation series. Knowledge of the Italian vegetation main types.
Using basic and lexical knowledge on organisms and plant communities to build educational paths based on observations in the field, also through digital technologies.
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Educational objectives Objectives of the course:
To learn the basic techniques of palaeobotanical and palynological techniques. To know the main vegetation changes of the Quaternary. To acquire knowledge of the evolution of plants through geological ages. To apply palaeobotany to nature conservation issues.
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Educational objectives The course will illustrate how the peculiarities of numerous Italian plant food products, often outdated, are related to the response of the entire plant, and / or its edible organs, to changes in temperature, as shots of cold or heat, drought and alterations in organic / inorganic compounds in the soil, illustrating the relative biotechnology investigation, and possible enhancement in value.
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Educational objectives Expected learning outcomes
To foster basic knowledge on: distribution of terrestrial and freshwater animal taxa, including their historical causes and dynamic processes, chiefly those which shaped our present-day European and Italian faunas; concept of geographical range, endemism, insular biogeography, and PAE; geographic delimitation, structure and main distinctive traits of the recognized Zoogeographic Regions, Realms, and Transitional Zones; use of principles and methods of the modern zoogeography in the fields of the applied zoology and of the Conservation Biology.
Dublin Descriptors
Dublin Descriptor 1 Knowledge of the zoogeographical bases of the animal distribution.
Dublin Descriptor 2: Skills in combining, integrating and applying knowledge of the main zoogeographic principles in Evolutionary Biology, Ecology, Zoological systematics, and Conservation Biology.
Dublin Descriptor 3: skills in better and more critically understanding zoogeographical items through the experiences accumulated during fieldwork, lessons, and discussions with teachers. The examinations, including a written (although not mandatory) report aimed to summarize a recent scientific article, should also allow students to better verify their own preparation and ability to understand and summarize complex biogeographical and evolutionary concepts.
Dublin Descriptor 4: skills in better communicating the results of personal biogeographic training, through the experiences accumulated by each student during fieldwork, lessons, discussions with the teacher and with other students, and examinations.
Dublin Descriptor 5: skills in transferring the experiences accumulated during this specialized biogeographical course in autonomous studies addressed to a specialization in applied zoogeography, as well as in other fields such as applied zoology and Conservation Biology; this improved autonomy being based, e.g., on the acquired ability to read, understand and summarize a recent scientific article or textbook on items of this research field, and in easily using numerical methods in applied zoogeography.
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Educational objectives Expected learning outcomes
The course offers an overview of the human biodiversity, both from a morphological and genetic point of view, as well as knowledge on the micro-evolutionary factors that have shaped it. The traditional class-lessons will provide the theoretical basis for the understanding of the evolutionary/adaptive aspects of human biodiversity and of the analysis of biodiversity in human populations with a closer look at the newest scientific achievements (new discoveries, methods of analysis and tools). These topics will be further investigated during practical exercises that will provide the basis of bioinformatics applied to the study of human biodiversity as well as the necessary knowledge to understand and apply these tools to the analysis of morphological and genetic data.
Dublin Descriptors
“knowledge and understanding” of human biodiversity, of the evolutionary èrocessess that shaped it and the tools to study it.
“applying knowledge and understanding” through the use of appropriate statistical methods, bioinformatic tools and digital resources
“making judgements” through the deepening and discussion of topics selected during lectures
“communication skills” public presentation a topic of choice at the end of the course
“learning skills” by deepening through bibliographic and website research a topic of choice among those covered during the course
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Educational objectives Course's general goal is to facilitate the study of maths and other topics connected to scientific disciplines, especially geometry and astronomy, overcoming fears and indifference often developed in the previous school years. Another goal is to let experience different and active methods of teaching-learning. For this purpose, students are invited to join "adult workshops" where they are involved in explorative and cognitive activities of medium length (two months) and where their moving bodies allow an active interaction with the environment. In a second stage, are discussed the issues related to their didactic transpositions and their pedagogical meanings with regard to the various ages and conditions.
At the same time, during the course there will be individual activities of observation into the nature, and of registration, representation with various languages, and collective interpretation of these kinds of observation, and of construction of dynamic models aimed at being able to schematise natural phenomena, with adequate graphs and charts too. One more goal is to be able to systematically collect and interpret data related to the study area of didactics of science, and to reflect on the relative issues, proving to have a scientific and cooperative aptitude, and critical and self-critical skills.
Learning Results
Acquired knowledge: the students who pass the exam will be able to deal with scientific topics with a curious and critical aptitude, being able to distinguish a descriptive stage from an interpretation and cause-research one. They will have recognised the local and relative character of errors and their management with educational purposes. They will have understood the epistemological importance of some learning disorders and some teaching methods of maths. They will have known the differences between the continuity of some natural phenomena and the discreet character of their registration by means of the choice and the use of pertinent tools.
At the end of the course, the student will also have a basic knowledge on didactic elements, such as the necessity of acquiring the initial concepts of who is learning, the attention to educational obstacles, and the choice of the methods useful to make the initial concepts evolve by expanding the field of meanings [Dublin Descriptor No. 1].
The acquired knowledge will be about a greater ability to work in group, to make questions with a clear and technically correct language, to reflect on one's learning, and cognitive difficulties and doubts. The student will have integrated using methods of his/her body and sensory skills among the knowledge tools [Dublin Descriptor No. 2].
The acquired cross skills will be about the critical skills and the skills at making judgements strengthened by participation to activities of reflection and workshop, and by the ability to make questions [Dublin Descriptor No. 3].
Course's activities, included the final ones called "The stands of science", organised by students and presented to pupils of different ages and teachers, will allow to perfect expository skills, and skills in choosing related questions, materials, and issues, based on the age of the audience [Dublin Descriptor No. 4].
By means of the discussion with his/her colleagues, meetings with recent graduates, and participation to thematic seminars, the student will be better able to pursue a further education in an independent way, and to examine in depth scientific themes and the ones specific of planning in the educational field [Dublin Descriptor No. 5].
Learning Results
Acquired skills: the students who have passed the exam will be able to prepare activities related to the presentation of some scientific aspects and themes taking into account some solutions to various educational difficulties.
To reflect on the specificity of an approach to science open to complexity, that involves the whole person, and to perfect the perception of natural phenomena. To give value to concrete efficiency connected to the thinking of and planning of objects and tools. To orally express the themes of course's work.
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Educational objectives General aim:
To provide specialist knowledge on biological invasions as components of global changes
To know and to understand invasion processes and the role of biological invasions as a component of global change, including biodiversity loss and climate change.
To be able to apply the knowledge and skills learned on biological invasions
To be able to assess the risks of invasions and to formulate hypotheses on the tools to be used for their management
To be able to effectively communicate the acquired knowledge through oral presentations
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