COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT – Spring 2016

Hawaiian Natural History

BIOL 3010

(Mon & Weds 8:00 – 9:35) AC 203, HLC

Overview of the unique biota in marine, freshwater and terrestrial habitats of the Hawaiian Islands, with an

emphasis on the evolutionary history, ecology and human impacts on Hawaiian ecosystems. The course involves

lectures, brief excursions and the presentation and write-up of an independent field project.

Instructor: David Hyrenbach (khyrenbach@hpu.edu)

Undergraduate, 3 Credits

Course Web-Site

Accessible through Blackboard

www.pelagicos.net/classes_naturalhistory_sp2016.htm

Meeting Times / Places

Meetings @ HLC: 203

(M & W, 8:00 – 9:25)

Office Hours @ HLC:

2nd floor lanai

(M & W, 9:30 – 11:30)

Or by appointment… at Oceanic Institute

Course Objectives

Scope: Students will study the geological origin and evolution of the Hawaiian Islands, their colonization by life, and the striking adaptive changes and radiations of plants and animals in an area that biologists consider one of the world’s greatest laboratories of evolution. Students will survey the major Hawaiian marine, fresh water and terrestrial ecosystems and will consider the overwhelming environmental changes that have ensued since the arrival of human beings in the archipelago.

Course Objectives

Learning Outcomes: Main focus is to provide students with a survey of the ecology of the Hawaiian archipelago, and a general appreciation for its natural history. A secondary focus of is to conduct natural history field observations and to summarize and present the findings in oral and written format.

Readings Required Text:

In the Beginning: Archipelago, the Origin and Discovery of the Hawaiian Islands (2012) Author: Richard W. Grigg, Island Heritage Publishing, Honolulu, Hawai`i ISBN 10: 1617101516 (NOTE: none on reserve)

Readings Recommended Text:

Islands in a Far Sea: The Fate of Nature in Hawaii, Revised Edition (2005) Author: Culliney, John L. University of Hawai`i Press, Honolulu, Hawai`i ISBN: 978-0-8248-2947-6 (NOTE: 3 copies on reserve)

Other Resources

Articles: (1 – 2 each week)

We will also read the primary literature. PDFs will be posted in the class web-site.

(Extra credit: typo +1, figure axes +2)

Links through class Web-Site:

Course Structure Bloom's Taxonomy: (Bloom, 1956) describes six levels of cognitive domains

Evaluation: appraise, argue, evaluate

Synthesis: arrange, develop, formulate

Analysis: analyze, compare, contrast

Application: apply, employ, practice

Understanding: describe, discuss, explain

Knowledge: define, label, list

Course Structure

Lectures & Readings

Knowledge

Group Project

Discussions &

Field Trips

Application

In-Class Exams

Synthesis

Grades Final grades will be determined as follows:

Midterms - 2 (20% each) 40%

Project Write-ups: 25%

Oral Presentation: 15% Take-home Final: 10% Participation: 10% (includes 5-minute papers, quizzes)

Total 100%

Class Project

Credit: 25% (Write-ups) & 15% (Talk)

o 2 – 4 students (form groups by week 2)

o topic selected by you and approved by me

Four write-ups:

o Proposal (5%)

o Outline (5%)

o Pilot Data Report (5%)

o Extended Abstract (10%)

Poster Presentations

In-Class Symposium

(On May 2nd – Final Time Slot)

Take Home Final

(Due May 6th) – due by email

Class Policies Attendance - Attendance is mandatory; no roll call. There will be no make-up quizzes / 5-minute papers except in the case of documented medical necessity.

Coming to class late - Tardiness disturbs others. If you must come late or leave early discuss the need with me and try to make as small a disturbance as possible by sitting close to the door.

Cell phones are not allowed in class; turn them off (or make them silent) before entering the room.

Laptops / Ipads are allowed to take notes / view the lecture pdfs. This privilege will be revoked if they are used for non-class activities (e.g., doing homework, check email / facebook …).

Academic Integrity It is academically dishonest to try to pass off someone else's intellectual work as your own, or to help someone else to do so. Thus, there are no circumstances under which including someone else’s writing or results in your papers or assignments is permissible. Plagiarism will result in a zero on the assignment, and issuance of an academic dishonesty report to the University’s Office of Academic Affairs. Serious cases of academic dishonesty will lead to an “F” in the course and may lead to expulsion from the University. Students are expected to comply with HPU’s Academic Integrity (http://www.hpu.edu/StudentServices/AcademicIntegrity/index.html)

What is Science ?

Science - the attempt to come up with systematic and coherent descriptions of how the world works Scientific Method – the approach whereby scientists decide among possible competing explanations on the basis of observations and predictions

2. Develop predictions based on that conceptual model

1. Assemble a model of how a particular phenomenon works

Steps of Scientific Inquiry

3. Test predictions by collecting observations (data) through correlational or manipulative experiments

0. Observe the natural world in a quantifiable fashion

Natural History’s Role in Science

(Wilson, 1998)

(Dayton & Sala, 2001)

(Pruvost et al. 2011)

The recorded first natural history observations, dating back 25,000 years

First Step: Observation

What is Natural History ?

Natural history tells the story of our living earth. Comprises the biosphere and all of its inhabitants. Focuses on description and quantification. Relies on observations, rather than experiments. (http://naturalhistorynetwork.org)

Class Project - Scope

The Natural Histories Project explores experiences and values that combine to create a wide range of natural histories, and through this exploration, we hope to initiate an international conversation on the value and future of Natural History.

http://naturalhistoriesproject.org/

What is Natural History ?

Setting: This Class

Who are we ? Why are we here?

Setting: North Pacific

Where are we? Latitude: 21.47° N Longitude: 157.98° W

4000 km

7600 km

4400 km

5000 km

In the middle of the North Pacific Ocean The world’s most isolated archipelago

Setting: Hawaiian Archipelago

18.9200° N 155.2700° W

28.4167° N 178.3333° W

Kure

Atoll

Age: ? :

2600 km (1600 miles)

Lo’ihi

Loʻihi

Volcano

Age: 0

Kure

Setting: Hawaiian–Emperor Chain

Contains over 80 undersea volcanoes, stretches over 5,800 km (3,600 mi) from the Aleutian Trench to Loʻihi seamount, 35 km (22 mi) SE of the Big Island of Hawaiʻi.

Setting: Volcanic Hotspot

The Hawaiian Islands are the exposed southernmost summits of the volcanoes of the Hawaiian-Emperor chain. This line of volcanoes has formed over the last 70 million years, as the Pacific Lithospheric Plate has moved to the northwest over a magmatic hot spot in the mantle.

Setting: Pacific Plate

Ongoing northwestward migration of the Pacific Plate at 3.4 inches /year (9 cm / year)

Setting: Lithosphere

The Earth’s rigid outermost shell. (180 - 220 km thick) Contains the crust and the upper mantle. The Earth has two types of lithosphere: oceanic and continental. The lithosphere is broken up into tectonic plates. (read more here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/earth_climate/geology/)

Your Tasks for This Week

Come up with your definition of natural history For inspiration, visit: http://naturalhistoriesproject.org

What’s Coming up Next Week Monday – Lecture 2: - Review oceanographic / climatological setting of Hawai’i

Wednesday - Lecture 3: - Hawaiian Volcanism