Course Announcement: Stable Isotope Ecology

[Chris Merkord]

COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT

STABLE ISOTOPE ECOLOGY: Concepts, Methods and Applications

Instructor: Dr. Björn Wissel
Course Date: May 27-31, 2013.
Course Place: University of Regina. Regina, SK, Canada

Applications (resume or CV, and letter of interest) will be received via email to: CIEE-ICEE@uregina.ca The deadline for applications is 05 April 2013.
The Canadian Institute of Ecology and Evolution (CIEE) will provide room and board for successful graduate student applicants, as well as the course fee and all course materials and analytical supplies.  Students and their supervisors will be responsible for travel costs to Regina.

More information below, or please visit: http://ciee-icee.com/news-and-announcements

Pour plus d'informations en français : http://www.ciee-icee.ca/fr/annonces-et-nouvelles



STABLE ISOTOPE ECOLOGY: Concepts, Methods and Applications

Instructor: Dr. Björn Wissel 1 (University of Regina)

Course Date: May 27-31, 2013.
Course Place: Institute of Environmental Change and Society (IECS) 2 University of Regina. 3737 Wascana Pkwy. Regina, SK, Canada.

Target Audience: Graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and early-career researchers. This course is ideal for ecologists, evolutionary biology, and environmental scientists who are new to isotopic analysis, as well as more experienced researchers interested in innovative techniques and pioneering new uses.

Course Emphasis: The course will cover main concepts on stable isotope ecology, and look at the most important techniques that use natural abundance isotopes to follow whole ecosystem element cycling. Topics will include: concepts, notations and history of stable isotope ecology, theoretical principles and lab demonstrations of isotope mass ratio spectrometry (IRMS), techniques for sample collection and preparation, isotope circulation in the biosphere (C, N, S, H, and O), stable isotope fractionation (open and closed systems), and stable isotope food-web models.

This course will highlight new and emerging uses of stable isotope analysis in a variety of ecological disciplines. While the use of natural abundance isotopes in ecological research is now relatively standard, new techniques and ways of interpreting patterns are developing rapidly. The course will provide a thorough, up-to-date examination of these methods of research. In each case, the instructor will explain the background to the methodology, look at the underlying principles and assumptions, and outline the potential limitations and pitfalls.

Course Format: Lectures, assigned readings, discussion, laboratory demonstrations and exercises, and short practice of techniques for sample collection and preparation. Classes will be Monday to Friday, 9-12 am, and 1:30-4:30 pm.

Application:
Applications will include a resume or CV, and letter of interest: Indicate please why the course interests you, and how your own research could be benefited from taking this course. Include brief details of your background on isotope stable ecology, and any relevant experience you have on the application of stable isotope techniques in ecology studies.
All applications will be received via email to: CIEE-ICEE@uregina.ca

The deadline for applications is 05 April 2013.

The enrollment capacity is 12 students. The Canadian Institute of Ecology and Evolution (CIEE) will provide room and board for successful graduate student applicants, as well as the course fee and all course materials and analytical supplies.  Students and their supervisors will be responsible for travel costs to Regina.

For additional information, please contact the Associate Director of CIEE, Dr. Diego Steinaker: CIEE-ICEE@uregina.ca


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1 Dr. Wissel is Associate Director of the Institute of Environmental Change and Society (IECS) at the University of Regina, and has over 12 years of research and teaching experience using stable isotopes. http://www.uregina.ca/science/biology/people/faculty-research/wissel-
bjoern/index.html

2 The course will take place at the Institute of Environmental Change and Society (IECS), a unique 6500 sq. ft research centre that provides world-
class infrastructure and research expertise. The facility includes all equipment required to conduct stable isotope analyses, including Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometers (IRMS), Cavity Ring-Down Spectrometers (CRDS), as well as comprehensive field equipment, superb analytical capabilities, advanced cellular analysis capabilities, a numerical analysis facility and database, scientific synthesis centre, and dedicated research science staff.=20=20