Students present research from the Paleontology's Great Debates (BOT 1101) class

Were dinosaurs warm blooded or cold blooded?

Why did Carnotaurus have such wimpy arms?

What caused the Permo-Triassic Mass Extinction?

What did our early human ancestors eat?

These topics and more were the focus of posters presented May 4, 2017 in the Geological Museum as the culmination of Botany 1101: Paleontology's Great Debates.

Over the course of a semester focused on finding, evaluating, and synthesizing scientific information, first year seminar students chose their favorite paleontological controversy, researched it, and designed a poster that presented multiple sides of the controversy, picked a side, and then proposed next research steps. Lively discussions were had around all posters.

Mushrooms fruting in AV

The choice edible and medicinal mushroom Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) is putting on a fantastic showing in the display case on second floor outside AV 207, thanks to the efforts of the students in the Spring 2011 BOT 4330 Cultivation of Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms course.  


The course is taught in the Spring Semester, and these sawdust mushroom blocks have been overwintering since the end of the course in May 2011.  The cool temperature in the basement of the Aven Nelson building has encouraged these mushrooms to begin fruiting earlier than expected.


The course will begin again in January.  Further details about this course can be found in the University Catalog.  Contact Dr. Steve Miller for additional questions.

New Remote Sensing Minor

                                            Landsat 5 image:  Can you name the place?

The Botany Department just approved the addition of a Minor in Remote Sensing to our list of offerings.  This gives students from any department the chance to add a valuable qualification to their diplomas while learning about how we use satellite imagery to study the earth's surface. 

Students pursuing the minor will be required to take three courses:  Introductory and Advanced Remote Sensing (BOT 4111 and 4211), and Vegetation Ecology (BOT 4700).  The latter is required because remote sensing isn't limited to sitting in front of a computer processing images -- it requires a detailed knowledge of the environmental factors that drive the distribution of plants across landscapes. 

In addition to the three required courses, students can choose from a list of electives that cover other aspects of remote sensing, GIS, and spatial modeling. 

We're excited about the new minor, and the opportunities that it will provide for students to learn about this increasingly valuable science.

If you are interested in the new minor and want to find out more, contact the Botany Department.