Natural Resources & Environmental Science

ECO 201

This course will introduce you to the economic way of thinking and provides basic tools of economic theory used to study markets, individual consumer behavior, and the behavior of firms. It employs concepts such as scarcity, opportunity costs, tradeoffs, marginal thinking, and gains from trade. This course will examine how markets work and how supply and demand interact to determine prices, explore market failure such as externalities, the tragedy of the commons and public goods and the role of the government in market activity. Students will also be introduced to theories of the firm and individual behavior, competition and monopoly, and welfare economics. Students successfully completing this course should leave with an understanding of these basic economic principles and their applicability to real world situations. Students should also be able to incorporate the tools of economic analysis into their own decision-making processes as they weigh costs and benefits to make choices.

STA 296

Introduction to principles of statistics with emphasis on conceptual understanding. Students will articulate results of statistical description of sample data (including bivariate), application of probability distributions, confidence interval estimation and hypothesis testing to demonstrate properly contextualized analysis of real-world data.

Prereq: MA 113, MA 123, MA 137, or equivalent.

NRE 201

An introductory course in natural resources and environmental science. Students will study contemporary issues in natural resource and environmental science from local to global systems. Students will interact with a wide range of natural resource professionals; in so doing, we anticipate and intend that students will gain insight toward their concentration areas within the major. An overnight field trip is required. This course has an additional fee of $73.40.

Prereq: NRES major, or permission of instructor.

BIO 148

BIO 148 introduces the student to the biological mechanisms operating at the molecular, cellular, and population level that contribute to the origin, maintenance, and evolution of biodiversity including the origins and history of the evolutionary process. Course material is presented within a phylogenetic context, emphasizing the shared history of all living organisms on earth through common ancestry. The first semester of an integrated one-year sequence (BIO 148 and BIO 152).

Prereq: Math ACT 25 or Math SAT 590 or HS GPA of 3.6 or MA 109 or BIO 155 grade of B or better, or permission of instructor.

PHI 336

An introduction to moral problems that arise in human interaction with the natural environment. Topics to be addressed include questions such as: what is man's place in nature? Do nonhuman animals or ecosystems have intrinsic moral worth, and if so, how can it be respected? What problems and ambiguities arise in attempting to live in an environmentally responsible fashion? How can we adjudicate conflicts between social and environmental values?

EES 220

How the Earth Works: an integrated course in physical geology, covering the physical, chemical and biological processes that combine to produce geological processes. Attention is focused on plate tectonics, earth surface processes, and properties and formation of earth materials. Lab exercises emphasize identification and interpretation of geologic materials and maps. Lecture/Discussion, three hours per week; laboratory, three hours per week.

BIO 152

The second semester of an integrated one-year sequence (BIO 148 and 152) that is designed to develop understanding and appreciation for the biocomplexity of multicellular eukaryotes, with emphasis on animals and terrestrial plants. Structure and function relationships will be explored at many levels of organization.

Prereq: C or better in BIO 148 or permission of Department.

NRE 381

This course examines the historical development of natural resource and environmental policies, provides an overview of the policy process and key federal agencies which manage natural resources or implement environmental regulations, and introduces basic policy analysis techniques so students can prepare and present a case-specific analysis of existing resource or environmental policy.

PLS 366

Study of the physical, chemical and biological properties of soils and how these properties relate to plant nutrient availability and plant growth, land- use planning and management issues, and soil and water quality issues. Lecture, three hours; laboratory, three hours.

Prereq: CHE 105.

NRE 320

A field-oriented course taught off campus as a three-week summer camp. Emphasis is placed on methodologies for field data collection necessary to evaluate a variety of natural resources in multiple ecosystem contexts (for example--forested and agricultural). Students will become familiar with sampling instrumentation, collection, preservation, analysis, and data interpretation. Lecture, 10 hours, laboratory, 30 hours per week (Monday-Friday) for three weeks.

Prereq: BIO 148/152 and CHE 105.

FOR 325

Plants have played a major role in human affairs. Course will relate plant life processes and chemistry to human uses: food crops, spices, medicinals, and materials. Major units are the origins agriculture and early domesticates, ethnobotany, and a selection of plants and plant products with major historical impacts - potato, nutmeg, pepper, chocolate, sugar cane, cotton, quinine, rubber, tobacco. Contemporary themes include herbal medicine and plant-based pharmaceuticals.

Prereq: PLS 104, PLS 210, one year of introductory biology, or permission of the instructor.

FOR 340

Forest ecology is the study of the structure, function and dynamics of forested ecosystems. Forest ecologists study how different components of the physical environment, climate, land use, and species interactions have come to shape the forests of today and how changes in patterns across the landscape will influence how forests look and function in the future. This course provides students with an overview of the distribution, nature, and dynamics of forested ecosystems. Throughout the semester, we will examine the ecological principles governing processes at the scale of the ecosystem, community, and organism in forested landscapes. Students will also gain some understanding of the importance of forests in human history and the importance of managing forests with an underlying understanding of ecological principles. Through lecture material, discussions and activities, students will develop an understanding of ecological concepts and, in the process, develop the ability to apply those concepts. Ecology is an evolving science that requires the assimilation of information to address new questions and problems, leaning heavily on the complementary skills of observation and analysis.

Prereq: BIO 103 or BIO 148.

AEC 326

Provides a basic knowledge of the principles of United States environmental law. Addresses the framework of the American Legal system as it applies to environmental regulation. Covers the sources of environmental law and reviews major federal environmental statutes and judicial decisions addressing specific issues.

Prereq: C or higher in ECO 201. AEC majors who have completed AEC 324 or AEC 325 are not eligible to take AEC 326 without consent of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

AEC 445G

Economic analysis of the problems of assuring resource availability and environmental quality. Theoretical concepts and empirical tools for evaluating resource and environmental policy.

Prereq: "C" or better in ECO 201 or consent of the instructor.

NRE 355

An introduction to the concepts and methods of compilation, management, analysis, and display of spatially-referenced and tabular data utilizing vector and raster data models. Lecture will be complemented with computer based laboratory exercises. Lecture, two hours; laboratory, four hours per week.

Prereq: LA 222 or junior/senior NRES major, or permission of instructor.

NRE 400

This course utilizes the experience from NRE 395 or NRE 399 to expand the composition and communication knowledge, skills, and abilities developed in CIS/WRD 110/111/112 or equivalent while integrating discipline specific sources in a process that requires a draft, feedback, and revision on composition and communication products. This course is a Graduation Composition and Communication Requirement (GCCR) course for NRES; thus it is unlikely that requests to replace this course with a course transferred from another institution will be approved.

Prereq: Composition and Communication I & II, 30 credit hours or more completed, AND NRE 395 or 399.

NRE 471

This course is designed to provide students with the opportunity to apply the skills and information acquired in previous courses to a real world problem in natural resources and environmental science. The class will focus on a single current issue in Kentucky and will research that issue in depth, using a variety of techniques, including library research, interview, and data collection and analysis. In addition to research and problem-solving skills, written and oral skills will be emphasized. Lecture, three hours; laboratory, two hours per week.

Prereq: NRE 201, NRE 320, FOR 340, PLS 366, NRE 381, FOR 460/EES 385 (or concurrent enrollment), NRE 355 (or concurrent enrollment), and senior standing.

FOR 435

Review the ethical foundations of conservation biology, discuss the scientific evidence that illustrates recent rapid loss of biological diversity at multiple spatial and temporal scales, identify and elaborate on the causative factors of biodiversity loss, discuss various strategies for conserving biodiversity, and discuss ways that various human cultures and associated resource use influence non-human life and the human societies that depend on them. Conservation biology is multidisciplinary in scope and discussion topics include wildlife management, restoration ecology, economics, ethics, geology, evolution, philosophy, phylogeny, taxonomy, genetics, behavioral ecology, population ecology, disease, sociology, sustainable living, and human dimensions. Conservation topics will be global in scope, with well- studied case examples used to support class activities.

Prereq: Introductory biology course, or consent of instructor.