Introduction to the application of GIS and related technologies for both the natural and social sciences. Conceptual issues in GIS database design and development, analysis, and display.
Introduces the principles of map design, production and analysis.
Students will be introduced to fundamental concepts associated with modern day agricultural industries to help them understand legal concepts as well as public policy that affects the commodities markets, natural resources in their "raw form", consumer attitudes, and market forces that affect various agribusiness industries of the west. Students will receive exposure to the framework of the United States legal system, with a brief review of the three distinct branches of government and how each branch impacts the development of law and policy as related to the production agriculture. The majority of the course will focus on four (4) primary areas: 1.) Animal welfare, law and policy, 2) Food safety regulations and organic growing standards in production agriculture and organic livestock standards, 3.) An overview of Environmental law, policy and 4.) Water law and policy. Students will be able to demonstrate how science, law and policy impact the modern day agriculturist as well as natural resource users.
General survey of principles of geographic information systems (GIS); applications of GIS to issues such as land assessment and evaluation of wildlife habitat; problem-solving with GIS.
Qualified students working on an individual basis with professors who have agreed to supervise such work.
Specialized work on an individual basis, consisting of training and practice in actual service in a technical, business, or governmental establishment.
Individual or small group research under the guidance of faculty where students complete a substantive part of the research and analysis and a final report.
Introduction to resource management practices used to achieve societal goals. Includes practices used to produce water, wood, forage, wildlife and other renewable resources; to protect water, soil, wilderness and scenic attractions; and to mitigate the adverse impacts of management and land-use activities on the environment.
The course aims to provide students with a broad, balanced understanding of fire as a biophysical process. We will explore fire from many perspectives, including physics, ecology, biogeography, management, policy, and economics. The course will strive to make our study of fire interesting and relevant in the contemporary world by examining how such factors as climate change, invasive species, and land use influence how fire interacts with the landscape. We will examine a variety of fire management strategies including fire suppression, prescribed fire, wildland fire use, and landscape restoration ecology. The course will provide a global perspective on fire, with primary emphasis on ecosystems of western North America.
General principles for quantifying attributes of natural resources in ways that facilitate conservation and management. Fundamentals of sampling design, field surveys, data collection, and data analysis, with emphasis on methods for plant and animal populations. Explore how sampling design affects the scope of inference and quality of data that result from a study.