PRINCIPLES OF PHYLOGENETICS: SYSTEMATICS
Syllabus: Spring 2008
Professors:
David R. Lindberg - phone: 2-3926, email:drl@berkeley.edu
Brent D. Mishler - phone: 2-6810, e-mail: bmishler@calmail.berkeley.edu
Kipling W. Will - phone: 2-4296, e-mail: kiplingw@nature.berkeley.edu
Graduate Student Instructor:
Stephanie A. Stuart - phone: 3-5430, email:sastuart@berkeley.edu
Class meeting time: Tu-Th, 12:30 - 3:30 pm; lecture is in room 3083 VLSB. Labs are sometimes in either the computer
teaching room in front of library (Macs), or room 3056 near the IB office (PCs). Lab time can vary also, but will be announced in lecture. Additional drop-in lab sessions will be set up for students to do homework and/or projects.
Tentative schedule
Jan. 22: Introduction - contemporary issues in systematic biology - what is at stake? (DRL, BDM, KWW, & SAS)
LAB: Discussion: student interests
Jan. 24: What is Systematic Biology? History & Philosophy (BDM)
LAB: Tour of systematics collections, labs, and resources
Jan. 29: The Hennig Principle: Homology; synapomorphy; rooting issues (BDM)
LAB: A simple parsimony algorithm by hand (BDM)
Jan. 31: Character analysis - what is a data matrix? (BDM)
LAB: Matrices in MacClade and Mesquite
Feb. 5: Morphological data I - the importance of incorporating fossils into phylogenetics (DRL)
LAB: Introduction to PHYLIP
Feb. 7: Morphological data II - ontogeny & structure of animals (DRL)
LAB: PROJECT TOPIC DUE
Feb. 12: Morphological data III - character coding: primary homology, polarity, additivity, etc. (KWW)
LAB: GENBANK; sequence analysis
Feb. 14: Morphological data IV - ontogeny & structure of plants (BDM)
LAB: Introduction to WinClada, Nona, TNT
Feb. 19: Molecular data I - general introduction; types of molecular data (BDM)
LAB: Introduction to POY and Clustal
Feb. 21: Molecular data II - sequence alignment (KWW)
LAB: Alignment Assignment
Feb. 26: DNA bar coding and DNA taxonomy (KWW)
LAB:Introduction to PAUP
Feb. 28: Classification I - nomenclature; Zoological & Botanical Codes; practical systematics, monography (KWW)
LAB: Discuss progress on projects in class
March 4: Classification II - introduction to phylogenetic classifications (monophyly, information content) (DRL)
LAB: Advanced PAUP
March 6:Classification III - phylogenetic taxonomy; Phylocode (DRL)
LAB: Discussion of phylogenetic taxonomy
March 11: Classification IV - species concepts (BDM)
LAB: Matrix day: analyze your own matrix
March 13:Classification VI - integrating fossils into classifications (DRL)
LAB: Discussion of molecular application papers (students to bring papers from their groups)
March 18:Phylogenetic trees I - reconstruction; models, algorithms & assumptions (BDM)
LAB: Discussion of molecular application papers (students to bring papers from their groups)
March 20:Phylogenetic trees II - Parsimony (KWW)
LAB: QUIZ 1 (covers through March 13th)
April 1: Phylogenetic trees III - phenetics; distance-based algorithms (DRL)
LAB: UPGMA and neighbor-joining using PAUP
April 3: Phylogenetic trees IV - Maximum likelihood; molecular evolution and phylogenetics (KWW)
LAB: Maximum likelihood applications using PAUP and Modeltest
April 8: Phylogenetic trees V - Bayesian methods (Jimmy M. or John H.?)
LAB: Mr Bayes
April 10: Phylogenetic trees VI - measures of support; methods of testing robustness and threshold values (KWW)
LAB: Bootstrap, jackknife, and Bremer support
April 15: Phylogenetic trees VII - tree-to-tree comparisons; consensus methods (KWW)
LAB: Tree comparisons
April 17: Phylogenetic trees VIII - below the "species level;" phylogeography; dealing with reticulation (BDM)
LAB: Discuss progress on projects in class
April 22: Morphometrics (DRL)
LAB: Morphometrics
April 24: Dating in the 21st century: estimating divergence times, clocks & calibrations (DRL)
LAB: R8S
April 29: Historical Biogeography (KWW)
LAB: Biogeographic software; COMPONENT, DIVA
May 1: Introduction to macroevolution (diversification, extinction, coevolution)(DRL)
              LAB: Discussion on the use of phylogenetic trees in macroevolution
May 6: Introduction to comparative methods for evolution, ecology & behavior (BDM)
              LAB: Advanced MacClade & Mesquite
May 8: Conclusion, summary and discussion: the central role of phylogenetic systematics in comparative biology - future directions? (DRL, BDM, KWW, & SAS)
              LAB: QUIZ 2 (covers March 18th through May 8th)
FINALS WEEK | Student minisymposium (date to be chosen later) | |
Projects due (May 21st @ 5:00pm) |
Requirements & Grading
(1/3) Participation. Do the reading, come to each class and lab, and participate in discussions. Several homework assignments will also be given. Phylogenetics Discussion Group: attendance is suggested for this
student-run group as well - it includes other faculty and students but complements our course well.
(1/3) Quizzes. Two equally-weighted, one-hour quizzes will be given, that emphasize problem solving and conceptual understanding.
(1/3) Project. This will be an analysis of the interrelationships (in all senses) among a set of unit
taxa. Students select a study group (with approval of the instructors) by Feb. 7 containing about 6-10 unit taxa. You must be able to obtain actual samples of each unit taxon, which you will study to discover and describe characters, incorporating pertinent literature, databases, etc. This will be followed by an analysis of interrelationships using all major available data and methodologies. A written report will be turned in during finals week, in the form of a professional journal publication, that is, with an introduction and literature review, materials and methods section, results, and a discussion (being sure to compare results from the different methodologies applied, and to reach some ecological/biogeographic/evolutionary conclusions if possible). We will schedule a minisymposium at the end of the term where students can give a short presentation of their results.
Begin this project immediately:"things always take longer than you think, even when you take into account Hofstaeder's Law..." (Hofstaeder's Law - from his Goedel, Escher, Bach).