Economic botany and zoology
A.A. 2023/2024
Obiettivi formativi
The main purposes of the course are:
1. to identify the most important plants and animals (both useful and harmful), their approximate taxonomic placement and their economic relevance on a local and global scale
2. to recognize animals and plants and products thereof encountered in everyday life.
3. to understand the issues related to the process of domestication of plants, its consequences, the potential of technology to improve sustainability of agriculture and wildlife exploitation, and the effects, both positive and negative, of regulatory oversight.
1. to identify the most important plants and animals (both useful and harmful), their approximate taxonomic placement and their economic relevance on a local and global scale
2. to recognize animals and plants and products thereof encountered in everyday life.
3. to understand the issues related to the process of domestication of plants, its consequences, the potential of technology to improve sustainability of agriculture and wildlife exploitation, and the effects, both positive and negative, of regulatory oversight.
Risultati apprendimento attesi
At the end of the course the students should be able to evaluate both domesticated and wild forms of plants and animals as resources of economic relevance and to identify species for their potential to be or to become useful or harmful to humans and ecosystems.
Periodo: Primo semestre
Modalità di valutazione: Esame
Giudizio di valutazione: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Corso singolo
Questo insegnamento può essere seguito come corso singolo.
Programma e organizzazione didattica
Edizione unica
Responsabile
Periodo
Primo semestre
Programma
The following topics will be covered during the course:
- General: hunters and gatherers: not so savage, after all. Origins of crops/ domestic animals and the domestication syndrome: major and minor traits; consequences on food safety, food security and environmental safety.
- Economic botany: Characteristics of crop plants, major classes thereof, their uses and major commodity classes. The nutritional components of crop edible parts: carbohydrates, proteins, oils, vitamins, micronutrients, fibres. Concepts of yield, harvest index and yield potential and their evolution in human history. Relevance of crop processing /storage. Are crops /domestic animals natural?
- Agrobiodiversity: value, mechanisms creating diversity and domestication centres. The Convention on Biodiversity and the Cartagena Protocol: effects vs. desires. Available technologies strategies to improve agricultural sustainability and wild plants exploitation, with emphasis on ag-biotechnology. Positive and negative effects of regulatory oversight of old and new technologies.
- Economic zoology: exploitation of beneficial animals: a brief history of domestication of wild animals; exploitation of wild animals: economical values and sustainability issues (fishing, aquaculture, insects culture, hunting, etc.); alternative food resources to reduce the environmental impact of protein production for human consumption.
- Invasive Alien Species: impacts and pathways of introduction; relationships between trade, economy, and the spread of alien invasive animals and plants; impacts of invasive alien species on humans, economy, and ecosystems; services provided by biodiversity and impacts of IAS on ecosystem services.
- Working lands conservation: strategies to support biodiversity while providing goods and services for humanity over the long term, assuring sustainability and resilience
- Species distribution modelling in R: how to retrieve occurrence data on species distribution and information on climate and other environmental features; modelling the distribution and spread of alien species.
- General: hunters and gatherers: not so savage, after all. Origins of crops/ domestic animals and the domestication syndrome: major and minor traits; consequences on food safety, food security and environmental safety.
- Economic botany: Characteristics of crop plants, major classes thereof, their uses and major commodity classes. The nutritional components of crop edible parts: carbohydrates, proteins, oils, vitamins, micronutrients, fibres. Concepts of yield, harvest index and yield potential and their evolution in human history. Relevance of crop processing /storage. Are crops /domestic animals natural?
- Agrobiodiversity: value, mechanisms creating diversity and domestication centres. The Convention on Biodiversity and the Cartagena Protocol: effects vs. desires. Available technologies strategies to improve agricultural sustainability and wild plants exploitation, with emphasis on ag-biotechnology. Positive and negative effects of regulatory oversight of old and new technologies.
- Economic zoology: exploitation of beneficial animals: a brief history of domestication of wild animals; exploitation of wild animals: economical values and sustainability issues (fishing, aquaculture, insects culture, hunting, etc.); alternative food resources to reduce the environmental impact of protein production for human consumption.
- Invasive Alien Species: impacts and pathways of introduction; relationships between trade, economy, and the spread of alien invasive animals and plants; impacts of invasive alien species on humans, economy, and ecosystems; services provided by biodiversity and impacts of IAS on ecosystem services.
- Working lands conservation: strategies to support biodiversity while providing goods and services for humanity over the long term, assuring sustainability and resilience
- Species distribution modelling in R: how to retrieve occurrence data on species distribution and information on climate and other environmental features; modelling the distribution and spread of alien species.
Prerequisiti
Knowledge of basic taxonomy and physiology of plants and animals.
Metodi didattici
Lectures will be delivered in traditional format using powerpoint slides.
Materiale di riferimento
Lectures will be made available through the Ariel website as ppt or pdf files, as well as additional material (original literature, notes and bibliographic material).
Modalità di verifica dell’apprendimento e criteri di valutazione
Learning will be assessed by the evaluation of practical exercises (e.g. gathering displaying and interpreting data from public databases such as FAO-stat), and by an oral examination of approximately 20 minutes for each part on the topics and issues discussed during lectures.
BIO/04 - FISIOLOGIA VEGETALE
BIO/05 - ZOOLOGIA
BIO/05 - ZOOLOGIA
Lezioni: 48 ore
Docenti:
Falaschi Mattia, Morandini Piero Angelo
Docente/i
Ricevimento:
Via Celoria, 10
Ricevimento:
Contattare tramite email per fissare un appuntamento
via Celoria 10, edificio 22120, piano sotterraneo