Whilst you may share resources and sources with other students, the work must be your own. This living wealth is the product of hundreds of millions of years of evolutionary history. In places as ancient as Australia, this history can still be seen today in 'living fossils' whose origins date back hundreds of millions of years. The concept emphasises the interrelated nature of the living world and its processes. Genetic diversity refers to the variety of genetic information contained in all of the individual plants, animals and microorganisms.
Genetic diversity occurs within and between populations of species as well as between species.
Species diversity refers to the variety of living species. Ecosystem diversity relates to the variety of habitats, biotic communities, and ecological processes, as well as the tremendous diversity present within ecosystems in terms of habitat differences and the variety of ecological processes. Grading for the course was based on two reports based on replicate samplings done at Stradbroke and Lady Elliot Islands, an hour exam covering the theoretical basis and methodologies of biodiversity, and a final project described below. For students who have not had any course in statistics, this course with its emphasis on nonparametric statistics will offer a sound introduction to the subject. For students who have had some statistics before, it is quite likely that you spent much of the time working with parametric statistics using statistical tests based on the normal distribution and its relatives.