MORE INFO ABOUT LIFE SCIENCE AT RHODES Rhodes is particularly strong in the variety of subjects it offers in the Life Sciences - Botany, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Zoology, Marine Biology, Entomology and Ichthyology. Botany involves the study of the plant kingdoms, which includes aquatic as well as terrestrial life forms, such as seaweeds, mosses, ferns, pteridophytes, bryophytes, gymnosperms and, the largest, most successful and widely spread of all, the angiosperms. Botany at Rhodes focuses on many aspects and includes the systematics and classification of plants, plant ecology, plant structure and plant physiology. Botany includes the disciplines of taxonomy, ecology, morphology to name but a few, and relates to human ecology, biogeography, and environmental sciences, which form important aspects of the undergraduate programme at Rhodes. Postgraduate research at Rhodes encompasses many facets - including studies of the immense diversity of the floras of Africa and Madagascar, coastal and rehabilitation ecology, specialist ultrastructural and physiological studies on transport processes in plants, as well as studies on the effects of changing environment on agriculturally important plants and natural ecosystems. The department maintains research ties with people at institutions such as the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew, and the Missouri Botanical Garden at St Louis. Biochemistry deals with the chemistry of living cells and links many of the physical sciences with the biological sciences. It involves the study of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, nucleic acids and vitamins and the role of these in biological reactions in animals, plants and microorganisms. It also involves the application of biological systems in industry. At Rhodes, Biochemistry is a very popular two-year major course for BSc students, and the department has a very large number of Honours and postgraduate research students. Microbiology is a study of those microscopic life forms (bacteria, viruses, fungi, algae and protozoa) that are invisible to the naked eye, but which play crucial roles in our everyday lives, and in medicine, agriculture, industry and biological research. After studying their basic structure, physiology, ecology, genetics and classification, the Rhodes course discusses the role of these organisms in other areas such as the causation and prevention of infectious diseases, their application in pollution control and bioremediation, their usefulness in industry for fermentations and fine chemical production, their exploitation as vehicles for the introduction of novel genes into plants and animals, and their usefulness in the study of basic biological processes such as gene structure and function, and cell differentiation. As with Biochemistry, with which it is often linked, Microbiology is a favourite course for undergraduate and postgraduates alike, and the Department has significant research ties with industry both in South Africa and further afield - for example, Australia. Zoology is the study of animals but includes many different disciplines such as cell biology, physiology, entomology, marine biology and ecology, to name but a few. Zoologists study animals from the level of the cell, through whole animals, and to the level of the community or ecosystem. Potential careers for zoologists include industry, research at tertiary institutions or museums, environmental consulting, conservation, and game management and agriculture. The Rhodes department has a very strong research school, which includes the Southern Ocean Group (involved in the study of biological oceanography in the ocean stretching from South Africa to Antarctica) and the Institute for Water Research (which carries out research into fresh water ecosystems). Marine Biology deals specifically with the biology of the teeming life found between our estuaries and the deep sea, and opens up career opportunities in several of the fields mentioned above, as well as in sea fisheries, oceanography and marine resource conservation. Marine Biology is taught only at the post-graduate level at present. Entomology - the study of insects - is a very important sub-discipline of Zoology because of the great economic importance of of insects to man, both as valuable pollinators or control agents of problem species, and as enemies of agricultural crops and carriers of disease. Rhodes offers Entomology as a major course, and our graduates follow commercial, industrial, agricultural, veterinary, ecological, forensic and educational careers, both here and overseas. Ichthyology deals specifically with the biology of fishes, both as found in fresh water and in the oceans. As with many other departments, Rhodes has an internationally recognized Ichthyology department, which also teaches Fisheries Science and Aquaculture - the specializations that deal with how best to manage and optimize the important food resources that inhabit our lakes, rivers and oceans. Associated with the University is the acclaimed South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (formerly known as the JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology), first made famous when Professor JLB Smith identified the coelacanth, and renowned in the world ever since for its work in researching the fishes of the southern hemisphere. Who fancies Rhodes?
Posted on: Sun, 25 Aug 2013 10:28:07 +0000
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