CCST9018 - Origin and Evolution of Life - Schedule 2022

Lectures
Week Date Lecture
1 19/1 Lec 1: Chemistry of Life
2 26/2 Lec 2: Earth - A rare habitable world
- 2/2 (Chinese New Year)
3 9/2 Lec 3: What is life and mechanisms of evolution
4 16/2 Lec 4: Exoplanets
5 23/2 Lec 5: Earth’s (and Mars’?) early oceans
6 2/3 Lec 6: Titan: an early Earth-like environment?
7 9/3 (Reading week)
8 16/3 Lec 7: Europa
9 23/3 Lec 8: Proxima B
10 30/3 Lec 9: SETI and Drake
11 6/4 Lec 10: Evidence for evolution
12 13/4 Lec 11: Story of Life
13 20/4 Lec 12: Human Evolution
14 27/4 Lec 13: Poster presentation session

Tutorials
Week Date Tutorial
1 17/1 - 21/1 -
2 24/1 - 28/1 -
- 31/1 - 4/2 (Chinese New Year)
3 7/2 - 11/2 Tut 1: Introductions and observations (“field-trip”) (+ assignment info)
4 14/2 - 18/2 Tut 2: Scientific method and evolution
5 21/2 - 25/2 Tut 3: Debate arguments feedback
6 28/2 - 4/3 Tut 4: Debate!
7 7/3 - 11/3 (Reading Week)
8 14/3 - 18/3 Tut 5: RNA World Hypothesis
9 21/3 - 25/3 Tut 6: Assignment info & Drake Equation
10 28/2 - 1/4 Tut 7: Natural selection and phenotypic plasticity
11 4/4 - 8/4 Tut 8: Evolution of… (behaviour)
12 11/4 - 15/4 Tut 9: Phylogenetics
13 18/4 - 22/4 Easter break: Friday classes do tutorial 9
14 25/4 - 29/4 Tut 10: Geo museum tour (Covid-permitting)

Assignments
Assignment Weighting Date Notes
Online quizzes Open 1230 - 1830
Quiz 1 10% Mon 14/3
Quiz 2 10% Thu 7/4
Quiz 3 10% Mon 25/4
Debate 20% 28/2 - 4/3 During tutorial 4
Popular article
Draft submission 2.5% Fri 31/3 Submit via Moodle
Peer review 2.5% Fri 8/4 Submit via Moodle
Final article 15% Fri 15/4 Submit via Moodle
Poster presentation 30% Wed 27/4 During lecture 13