BI7138 - Biodiversity Informatics

Aims

This module provides students with an introduction to graduate-level approaches to biodiversity data analysis, and introduce two important software platforms for statistical exploration, simulation and spatial data analysis. The first half of this module uses R to teach data exploration and statistical analysis. The second half of this module introduces geographic information systems and their use in the analysis of spatially-explicit biological data, including raster and vector data.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this module students should be able to:

• Use the “R” computing environment to design experiments, statistically test and simulate patterns in biological systems
• Explain and use statistical analysis in the context of conservation biology including simple statistical tests, linear and non-linear regression and ordination.
• Demonstrate an ability to create, manage and manipulate spatial data through the ArcGIS computing platform;
• Transform vector and raster data into biologically relevant information;
• Interpret and manipulate remotely sensed spatially explicit data to elucidate underlying patterns and drivers of biodiversity distributions;

Module content

This module provides learners with a graduate-level overview of the following topics in biostatistics, geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing:

• Introduction to the “R” platform
• Basic statistical methods
• Experimental design and exploring biological data
• Advanced statistical methods – GLM and GLMM
• Introduction to spatial dataand its management
• Vector data analysis
• Raster data analysis
• Remote-sensing