Fall 2024 Courses

Prerequisites for Bowdoin Coastal Studies Semester

  1. BIO 1102 or 1109 or placement in 2000 or higher;
    or CHEM 1102 or 1109 or placement in 2000 or higher;
    or EOS 1105 or 1305 or 1505 or 2005;
    or PHYS 1140 or placement in 2000 or higher
  2. Math 1050 or placement in 1600 or above
  3. or Permission of the Program Director in consultation with instructors.

Fall 2024 Course Offerings

BCSS Requirements

Benthic Ecology, BIOL 2233/ENVS 2333, (a. INS, MCSR), TBD
The principles of ecology emphasizing the hard- and soft-bottom communities of Casco Bay and Harpswell Sound. Field trips and field exercises demonstrate the quantitative principles of marine ecological research, including good practices in sampling designs and field experiments. A class field project designs and implements a long-term study, based at the Bowdoin Marine Laboratory, to monitor and detect changes in community structure driven by climate change in the twenty-first century. Assumes a basic knowledge of biological statistics. Taught in residence at the Schiller Coastal Studies Center. Benthic Ecology is a course-module in the Bowdoin Marine Science Semester and is taught with three other co-requisite courses.

The American Shore Ode, ENG 2806 (c) Anthony Walton
As described by the critic Paul Fussell, The American Shore Ode "is a lyric of some length and philosophic density spoken (usually at a specific place) on an American beach; its theme tends to encompass the relationship of the wholeness and flux of the sea to the discreteness and fixity of land objects. This kind of poem does more than simply engage in transcendental meditations about the sea: the important thing is this dissimilarity between shore and sea, sand and water, separateness and cohesiveness, analysis and synthesis––a dissimilarity which explains and justifies their paradoxical marriage." Students will study a series of poems from this genre, including work by Whitman, Eliot, Stevens, Crane, Bishop, Clampitt, Ammons, and several others.

Current Topics in Marine Science, BIOL 3117/ENVS 2217, Jaret Reblin
Current Topics and Research in Marine Science is an experiential research course in which students design and carry out an individual semester long research project. In an advanced seminar setting, students choose topics and learn to (1) search for information in the scientific literature; (2) evaluate the utility of papers to their research topic; (3) identify gaps in existing understanding; (4) formulate hypothesis-driven research questions; and (5) utilize the R programming environment for analysis and presentation of scientific data. Ultimately, students design and carry out a research project that includes integration of their understanding of the scientific literature. Students present their results in a final oral presentation and written paper.

BCSS Electives (students choose one of two)

Science Communication, BIOL 2024, Barry Logan
Scientists are communicators, using images, graphical representations, written and spoken words to convey their findings. Those findings achieve their greatest impact through dissemination; a research project is not complete until it has been described for others. Mindfulness of the intended audience and the goals of communication dictate the most suitable forms. Science Communication explores and develops effective communication with peer scientists, potential funders (i.e., grant proposals), non-specialist scientists, children and adult lay audiences through written work, presentations, posters, displays, podcasts, short videos and documentary films. Involves individual and group projects, critiques, site visits, and engagement with scientists and communication professionals (including journalists, filmmakers, and museum curators).

Ocean Acidification, EOS 2625, (a.), Michele LaVigne
Recent trends of carbon dioxide emissions are causing acidification of the ocean at a rate unprecedented in the geologic record. The associated changes in ocean chemistry present myriad potential difficulties for marine ecosystems and the shellfish industries that rely upon them. Considers the causes, consequences, and policy implications of ocean acidification, including the highly variable and extreme coastal carbonate chemistry conditions of the Gulf of Maine. Laboratory component includes student research projects in collaboration with community partners and the Bowdoin Coastal Studies Semester to study questions related to climate, carbon, and biogeochemical cycling in local ecosystems.

Course Divisions and Distribution Requirement Designations

a: Natural Science and Math
c: Humanities
INS: Inquiry in Natural Science
MCSR: Math Comp Stat Reasoning