- Ecology & Evolution of Infectious Disease

Catalog description

An integrative approach to the study of ecology and evolution of infectious disease. Students gain an understanding of one of the greatest challenges our society faces: responding to infectious disease threats to human health, agriculture, and biodiversity. Students lead discussions of current research that spans the multifactorial and multi-scale (from sub-cellular to biological communities) dynamics of disease within biological communities. Given that the most common strategy for life on this planet is parasitic, host-parasite interactions result in very diverse outcomes. Thus, students gain an appreciation for this diversity through case studies, activities, guest lectures, and computer simulations of evolutionary and ecological processes. In lab, students complete group research projects of their design to gain experience in quantitative methods and science communication.