Discovering the language of life
Chemical communication is one of the most abundant types of information exchange in life. Chemical signals or cues may be produced by macro-organisms or by their associated micro-organisms. Chemical communication can also be exploited by a third party such as a predator exploiting cues from its prey. Thus, chemical signals may be perceived by individuals of the same species or different species at different trophic levels, to make decisions on e.g. whether to hide or forage, to approach a sexual partner, to search for a resource or avoid a competitor or natural enemy. Chemical information may consist of individual compounds or complex mixtures. Responses to this information may be hardwired or phenotypically plastic. As a result, chemical communication and its exploitation shapes interactions between individuals, shapes population processes and structures communities. In the postgraduate course Chemical Communication we will focus on chemical information at different levels of biological organisation and pay attention at ecological processes and their underlying mechanisms, including production of chemical information and its perception. We will include microorganism, plants and animals, their interactions and consequences for community dynamics.
The course is composed of a poster session, a series of lectures, model demonstrations, and development of a research proposal in a group setting.
Lectures and discussion
Each day starts with two speakers giving a lecture on one of the key course topics, covering both the general theory and applied aspects. After each lecture, a discussion of 45 minutes is held, which is convened by participants who challenge the speaker on the presentation and papers that the speaker submitted (which participants will receive before the course).
Poster session
Prior to the course, participants must submit a poster of their work (A1-size) in PDF, which will be printed by the course office. The poster must contain your name and affiliation, title and short description of your research project with one highlight (something exciting) and the reason why you want to participate in this course. Participants briefly highlight the poster followed by ample time for participants and lecturers to visit individual posters. Posters will remain in the lecture room throughout the course.
Group activities
In the afternoons, participants will be split into working groups and will develop a research proposal. Each group will present the results to all course participants on Thursday. Group activities will be supervised by the lecturers and course organisers, so that the participants can optimally benefit from experts that are among the leaders in their fields.
Below, you can find the list of currently confirmed lecturers in this course. We are in the process of inviting more lecturers, so keep coming back to see updates!
Target Group | The course is aimed at PhD candidates, postdocs and other academics |
Group Size | Min. 15, max. 35 participants |
Course duration | 4 days |
Language of instruction | English |
Frequency of recurrence | Once every four years |
Number of credits | 1.5 ECTS |
Prior knowledge | An academic background with at least an MSc degree. |
Location | Parkhotel de Bosrand, Ede, the Netherlands |
EARLY-BIRD FEE 2 | REGULAR FEE 2 | |
PE&RC / EPS / WIMEK / WASS / WIAS / VLAG / RSEE PhD candidates with an approved TSP | € 300,- | € 350,- |
a) All other PhD candidates b) Postdocs and staff of the above mentioned Graduate Schools |
€ 680,- | € 730,- |
All others | € 980,- | € 1.030,- |
1 The course fee includes accommodation, all meals, course materials, coffee/tea, and water. It does not include beverages in the bar.
2 The Early-Bird Fee applies to anyone who REGISTERS ON OR BEFORE 10 JANUARY 2020
Note:
Note: If you would like to cancel your registration, ALWAYS inform us and do not assume that by NOT paying the participation fee, your registration is automatically cancelled, because it isn't (and do note that you will be kept to the cancellation conditions).
Dr. Lennart Suselbeek (PE&RC)
Phone: +31 (0) 317 485426
Email: lennart.suselbeek@wur.nl
To register, please enter your details below and click "Register".