Stable isotopes in ecology, environmental sciences and forensic analysis - MO550P133

• Title: Stable isotopes in ecology, environmental sciences and forensic analysis
• Czech title: Stabilní izotopy v ekologii, environmentálních vědách a forenzní analýze
• Guaranteed by: Institute for Environmental Studies (31-550)
• Faculty: Faculty of Science
• Actual: from 2023
• Semester: summer
• E-Credits: 3
• Examination process: summer s.:
• Hours per week, examination: summer s.:1/1, C+Ex [HT]
• Capacity: unlimited
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: not taught
• Language: English
• Explanation: pro LS 2023/24 nevyučován
• Note: priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: Mgr. Kateřina Jandová, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): Mgr. Kateřina Jandová, Ph.D.

Annotation

Last update: RNDr. Jolana Tátosová, Ph.D. (13.04.2022)

The students will learn what the stable isotopes of biogenic elements are, how they are distributed throughout the
world, how their distribution is affected by various processes, how we can measure them and what we can imply
from the measurements. It is focused on stable isotopes of light elements (H, C, N, O, S) in ecology,
environmental sciences, and forensic analysis.

Literature

Last update: RNDr. Jolana Tátosová, Ph.D. (13.04.2022)

Fry, B. (2006) Stable Isotope Ecology, Springer, New York.

Sharp, Z. (2007) Principles of Stable Isotope Geochemistry, Pearson Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Meier-Augenstein, W. (2018) Stable Isotope Forensics: Methods and Forensic Applications of Stable Isotope Analysis, 2nd edn, John Wiley & Sons Ltd., London.

Lajtha, K. and Michener, R. (2007). Stable isotopes in Ecology and Environmental Science. Methods in Ecology, 2nd edn, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford.

Audio-visual resources:

Requirements to the exam

Last update: RNDr. Jolana Tátosová, Ph.D. (13.04.2022)

• Students will attend the lectures as well as the exercises (with exception of being sick or other serious reasons in which case the teacher should be informed beforehand)

• Students will prepare and perform a presentation based on a published article using stable isotope techniques which is thematically related to the student’s research interests

• Students will read the literature that is to be presented by other students and they will actively participate in discussion with the presenting students during the performance

• Students will be tested by a written quiz covering the topics of the lectures

Syllabus

Last update: RNDr. Jolana Tátosová, Ph.D. (13.04.2022)

• Lectures on physicochemical theoretical foundations

• Lectures on instrumental techniques and quality control over analytical performance

• Excursion into a stable isotope lab

• Practicing stable isotope calculations

• Presentation of case studies covering fundamental research as well as practical applications

Topics to be covered: fractionation of C isotopes during photosynthesis, monitoring of C isotope composition of atmospheric CO2, water cycle, Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation (GNIP), food web studies, provenance analysis, animal and human migration, isoscapes, labelling with stable isotopes, other related tracers like 14C or trace elements.

Entry requirements

Last update: RNDr. Jolana Tátosová, Ph.D. (13.04.2022)

• High school level of biology, chemistry, and physics required

• Personal motivation to learn the techniques and will to use them in research