A survey of theory and applications of DNA technologies to the study of evolutionary, ecological and behavioral processes in natural populations. Topics to be covered will span a variety of hierarchical levels, timescales, and taxonomic groups, and will include the evolution of genes, genomes and proteins; the neutral theory of molecular evolution and molecular clocks; population genomics and phylogenetic principles of speciation and phylogeography; metagenomics of microbial communities; relatedness and behavioral ecology; molecular ecology of infectious disease; and conservation genetics.

Notes: Weekly computer laboratories will introduce the use of the internet and computational software in DNA sequence alignment and phylogenetic and population genetic analysis.
Requisite(s): Recommended - Life Sciences 1b, OEB 10, OEB 53 or MCB 52.