Courses

Lecture + exercise, 4 SWS, summer term

Contents:

• Develop a comprehensive understanding of the physical principles governing surface water flow, including hydrodynamics, wave mechanics and stratification.
• Explain the interaction between flow processes and natural landscapes, including rivers, lakes and reservoirs, estuaries.
• Analyze and quantify physical processes such as sediment transport, erosion, deposition, and pollutant dispersion in surface water systems.
• Evaluate the impact of natural and anthropogenic influences, such as climate change, urbanization, and dam construction, on surface water dynamics.
• Validate and interpret model results to support decision-making in water resource management.

Lecturer(s): Dr. Elisa Calamita, Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl

Block course, 2 SWS, winter term

Contents:

• Discusses fundamentals of water science including hydrological processes, quantitative figures of water use and concepts related to the socio-hydrological cycle
• Approaches water-related challenges and water-human relations from scientific, technical, historic, socio-economic and political perspectives
• Explores solution strategies through the lens of water ethics, including principles of water justice, water rights and water-related responsibility ethics

Lecturer: Dr. Jonas Schaper

Lecture + exercise, 4 SWS, summer term

Contents:

• Model development
• Growth models
• Steady state
• Stability, sensitivity, uncertainty

Lecturer(s): Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl, Dr. Rebecca Peters, Matthias Böckmann

Exercise, 1 SWS, summer and winter term

Contents:

• the basics of matlab
• editor and plots
• matrix operations
• loops
• functions
• differential equations

Lecturer(s): Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl, Matthias Böckmann

Block course, 3 SWS, winter and summer term

Contents:

• Überblick über grundlegende ökologische Konzepte und die Geschichte der Mensch-Natur Beziehungen aus umweltnaturwissenschaftlicher Perspektive.
• Bedeutung der naturwissenschaftlichen Ökologie innerhalb der Kultur- und Globalgeschichte

Lecturer: Dr. Jonas Schaper

Lecture + exercise, 4 SWS, winter term

Contents:

• Distribution of pollutants in the environment
• Sorption behaviour of non-polar and polar compounds
• Non-linear sorption
• Diffusion and transport of pollutants in different media
• Bioaccumulation

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl (together with Prof. Dr. P. Grathwohl, Prof. Dr. S. Haderlein)

Block course, 2 SWS, winter term

Contents:

• reading, writing, manipulating and plotting data
• matrix algebra, solving linear equation systems and linear regression
• programming loops and conditional statements and writing functions
• solving simple differential equations and parameter inference

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl, Dr. Jonas Schaper

Block course, 2 SWS, summer term

Contents:

This course provides an introduction into spatial data analysis with GIS, specifically using the software ArcGIS. Contents include:

• GIS: definitions, vector (vs. raster) data, projections
• Tools for spatial data analysis for vector data
• Data compilation, data pre-processing
• Data representation, map design

The course is a combination of lecture and hands-on exercises from georeferenced data acquisition to poster presentation. The final assignment includes the preparation and presentation of a poster.
Note that the course is intended for GIS beginners.

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl & Dr. Rebecca Peters

Lecture + exercise, 4 SWS, summer term

Contents:

• Introduction into different mathematical modelling approaches to describe environmental processes with a specific focus on freshwater ecosystems (including differential systems but beyond), parameter estimation techniques and uncertainty analysis
• Understanding interdependent environmental system dynamics within the (socio-)hydrological cycle across scales and system boundaries
• Application of models to environmental challenges
• Models as tools for decision/discussion support/ sustainable water management

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christiane Zarfl, Dr. Jonas Schaper