Duration
25h Th, 25h Pr
Number of credits
| Bachelor in bioengineering | 5 crédits |
Lecturer
Coordinator
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The fluxes and budgets in ecosystems class aims to lay out the conceptual foundations common to any system budget (stocks, fluxes, the mass conservation equation), then applies this framework to two major biogeochemical cycles - the water cycle and the carbon cycle.
For both cycles, the course will start from a global, planetary view before moving down to a more local scale, that of the watershed and/or the ecosystem. Fluxes and budgets will be addressed by comparing contrasting systems across the main biomes, and concepts of quantitative analysis associated with these different levels will be covered in lectures and in dedicated practical sessions.
A third, shorter section addresses the interconnections between cycles (nitrogen, the role of animals) through a field excursion.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
By the end of this teaching unit, students are able to formalize a system in terms of its stocks and fluxes and to establish its budget using a dedicated approach.
They can apply this conceptual framework to the water and carbon cycles, articulating scales of analysis from the planetary budget down to the watershed and the ecosystem, and they are able to transpose this analysis to ecosystems not covered in the course.
Finally, they can situate these two cycles within a broader perspective of biogeochemical interconnections, particularly with the nitrogen cycle.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
lectures
tutorials
practical sessions
fieldwork and site visits
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face-to-face course
Course materials and recommended or required readings
Exam(s) in session
Any session
- In-person
written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire, open-ended questions )
Continuous assessment
Out-of-session test(s)
Work placement(s)
Organisational remarks and main changes to the course
Contacts
Jean-François Bastin jfbastin@uliege.be
Aurore Degré aurore.degre@uliege.be