Course Project

PROJECT: A required project will constitute a major portion of the grade. The project will require synthesis of all of the course elements, and application to solving a real or hypothetical management problem. A separate sheet describes the project in more detail. An example write up and presentation from a previous' year's project are provided to give an idea of what might be expected.

Please see the attached timetable for a schedule of proposed deadlines for progress on the project.

Presentations: As you know, a presentation is expected for this project. Please plan on about 30 minutes including questions and discussion. Your presentation must be a professional quality (e.g., Powerpoint or equivalent) presentation, and should be clear and concise. Teams may either have a single presenter, or switch off among team members. Either way, you should be sure to practice your talk, ideally in front of a live audience, before you give your class presentation.

Report: Your final report must also be of professional quality, and in manuscript form. Follow Journal of Wildlife Management or Ecology format for headings, literature cited style, etc. You may organize the report as you wish but the following elements must be included:

• A clear statement of the biological/ resource management problem. Cite sufficient literature to place your work in the context of existing literature.
• A clear exposition of the model(s) used to solve the biological/ resource management problem, including figures (flow charts, graphs, etc.), tables, and equations as needed. Be certain that all parameter values, assumptions, model forms, etc. are justified, either in terms of literature support, data analysis, or clearly stated assumptions.
• Completely describe and document all statistical analyses and other quantitative methods. Cite the primary literature unless absolutely necessary otherwise (i.e, there is no primary literature source for a method). You may cite the course textbook [Williams et al. (2002)] but if you do cite the relevant section (not page) number; vague references to the book or to the course notes are not acceptable.
• Again, your analysis must include assessment of sources of uncertainty in the dynamic model, including:
• (1) uncertainty over system relationships,
• (2) statistical error in parameter estimates, and
• (3) intrinsic system variability (e.g., due to environmental influences).
• As previously noted, all the model elements must be assembled into a formal, working "decision" model that allows decision making under uncertainty, using either program ASDP, a spreadsheet analysis, or some other approach. As part of this I expect worked examples to be reproduced in tables, graphics, or via other devices, and included in the report
• Provide a synthesis and summary of the modeling and statistical analyses, including discussion as to
• The reliability of the model(s) as a decision making or learning tool
• Steps that may be taken to improve the model for the stated purposes (e.g., data acquisition, experiments, improved computation methods)
• Any other discussion you feel is germane to the model's utility for solving the chosen biological/ resource problem

There is no specified length for the report, so long as all the requisite items are covered. However, as a general guideline, I can't imagine a report shorter than about 10pp double spaced (excluding figures and tables); on the other hand, I see no reason for a report longer than 25 pp.

Last updated 28 April 2008