Physical-biological Oceanography (MARS3012)

Course overview

This course will provide students with a clear understanding of the physical and biological processes in the ocean, and the influence of physical dynamics on biology - from open ocean to coral reefs, from phytoplankton to fisheries. Our changing climate is affecting the circulation and properties of our oceans, and the biology is responding. In order to understand the effects of climate change, we first need to understand how the ocean works. This course will challenge students with understanding the functioning of our oceans, and how the patterns and distribution of life in the ocean are controlled by the physical oceanography. The course consists of integrated lectures on physical-biological oceanography and climate change effects to provide the interdisciplinary foundation increasingly required in the contemporary environmental sciences. It covers the influence of the oceans on human activities and the influence of human activities on the characteristics of the oceans. Practicals will focus on learning to acquire and work with oceanography data platforms.

This course will challenge students to understand the large-scale circulation of the ocean, and how the patterns and distribution of life in the ocean are influenced by the physical and chemical oceanography. The course consists of a series of integrated problem-based learning workshops on physical-chemical–biological oceanography including aspects of climate change. In the workshops, students will learn how to visualise and analyse a range of oceanography data. During the field trip experience students will also learn the methods and use of instruments and how to measure physical and biological oceanographic data.

The 3-day field trip to Moreton Bay Research Station (MBRS) on North Stradbroke Island from the 4-6th May 2025 (week 10). The field trip will incur an additional cost. Payment details will be provided to students.

Course requirements

Assumed background

Recomended subjects: MARS1001; MARS2001ﾠMarine Science. If you have not taken these courses previously please contact the course coordinator to get some additional reading.ﾠStudents will need their own laptop for use in the workshop with permission to upload free software. 

Prerequisites

You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:

GEOS2100 or MARS2001 or equivalent; STAT1201 or equivalent

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

Please refer to your timetable for the most accurate timetable details, noting the compulsory field trip that will be run from the 3rd to the 5th of May

Aims and outcomes

This oceanography course is designed to provide students with a clear understanding of the physical-biological processes and interactions in the oceans, including:

• How and why the oceans circulate;
• How physical and chemical processes and dynamics influence the biology, from phytoplankton to fish;
• How oceanographic processes drive productivity in the coastal environment;
• Why the oceans are critical for other global systems such as our weather and climate system;
• How climate change is influencing our coastal and open ocean ecosystems through its effect on physical and chemical oceanographic properties, and how this may increase in the future.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment details

Oceanography of Australia

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation

Weight

40%

Due date

17/04/2025 2:00 pm

Task description

Submission guidelines

Online submission by Turnitin only by the due date. No hard copy or assignment cover sheets required.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

See the Additional assessment information section further below for information relating to extension and deferral applications.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 

Field Trip Report

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation

Weight

20%

Due date

12/05/2025 2:00 pm

Task description

Submission guidelines

Online submission by Turnitin only by the due date. No hard copy or assignment cover sheets required.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

See the Additional assessment information section further below for information relating to extension and deferral applications.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 

Research Project

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation

Weight

40%

Due date

9/06/2025 2:00 pm

Task description

Submission guidelines

Online submission by Turnitin only by the due date. No hard copy or assignment cover sheets required.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

See the Additional assessment information section further below for information relating to extension and deferral applications.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Should you fail a course with a grade of 3, you may be eligible for supplementary assessment. Refer to my.UQ for information on supplementary assessment and how to apply.

Supplementary assessment provides an additional opportunity to demonstrate you have achieved all the required learning outcomes for a course.

If you apply and are granted supplementary assessment, the type of supplementary assessment set will consider which learning outcome(s) have not been met.

Supplementary assessment can take any form (such as a written report, oral presentation, examination or other appropriate assessment) and may test specific learning outcomes tailored to the individual student, or all learning outcomes.

To receive a passing grade of 3S4, you must obtain a mark of 50% or more on the supplementary assessment.

Additional assessment information

Assessment Submission

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure the on time, correct and complete submission of all assessment items.

Please ensure you receive and save the submission confirmation for all submitted items, you may be asked to produce this as evidence of your submission.

Applications for Extensions to Assessment Due Dates

Extension requests are submitted online via my.UQ – applying for an extension. Extension requests received in any other way will not be approved. Additional details associated with extension requests, including acceptable and unacceptable reasons, may be found at my.UQ.

Please note:

• Requests for an extension to an assessment due date must be submitted through your my.UQ portal and you must provide documentation of your circumstances, as soon as it becomes evident that an extension is needed. Your application must be submitted on or before the assessment item's due date and time.
• Applications for extension can take time to be processed so you should continue to work on your assessment item while awaiting a decision. We recommend that you submit any completed work by the due date, and this will be marked if your application is not approved. Should your application be approved, then you will be able to resubmit by the agreed revised due date.
• If an extension is approved, you will be notified via your my.UQ portal and the new date and time for submission provided. It is important that you check the revised date as it may differ from the date that you requested.
• If the basis of the application is a medical condition, applications should be accompanied by a medical certificate dated prior to the assignment due date. If you are unable to provide documentation to support your application by the due date and time you must still submit your application on time and attach a written statement (Word document) outlining why you cannot provide the documentation. You must then upload the documentation to the portal within 24 hours.
• If an extension is being sought on the basis of exceptional circumstances, it must be accompanied by supporting documentation (eg. Statutory declaration).
• For extensions based on a SAP you may be granted a maximum of 7 days (if no earlier maximum timeframe applies). See the Extension or Deferral availability section of each assessment for timeframes. Your SAP is all that is required as documentation to support your application. However, additional extension requests for the assessment item will require the submission of additional supporting documentation e.g., a medical certificate. All extension requests must be received by the assessment due date and time.
• An extension for an assessment item due within the teaching period in which the course is offered, must not exceed four weeks in total. If you are incapacitated for a period exceeding four weeks of the teaching period, you are advised to apply for Removal of Course.
• If you have been ill or unable to attend class for more than 4 weeks, you are advised to carefully consider whether you are capable of successfully completing your courses this semester. You might be eligible to withdraw without academic penalty - seek advice from the Faculty that administers your program.
• Students may be asked to submit evidence of work completed to date. Lack of adequate progress on your assessment item may result in an extension being denied.
• There are no provisions for exemption from an assessment item within UQ rules. If you are unable to submit an assessment piece then, under special circumstances, you may be granted an exemption, but may be required to submit alternative assessment to ensure all learning outcomes are met.

Turnitin

All written assessment must be submitted via the appropriate Turnitin submission portal, which can be found within the Blackboard site. You are responsible for ensuring that your submission is complete. It is wise to re-enter the Turnitin portal and confirm that your submission is there and that it has not been altered during the submission process.

By submitting work through Turnitin you are deemed to have accepted the following declaration “I certify that this assignment is my own work and has not been submitted, either previously or concurrently, in whole or in part, to this University or any other educational institution, for marking or assessment”.

In the case of a Blackboard outage, please contact the Course Coordinator as soon as possible to confirm the outage with ITS.

Assessment/Attendance

Please notify your Course Coordinator as soon as you become aware of any issue that may affect your ability to meet the assessment/attendance requirements of the course. The my.UQ website and the Course Profile for your course also provide information about your course requirements, the rules associated with your courses and services offered by the University.

A note for repeating students in this course

Any student who enrols in a course must not be given exemption or partial credit from their previous attempt(s) for any individual piece of assessment. Instead, the student must successfully complete all of the learning activities and assessment items within the study period of enrolment (PPL Assessment - Procedures).

If the same assessment item is set from one year to the next, repeating students are allowed to submit the same work they submitted in previous attempts at the course. Where possible SENV recommends that you use the feedback you received in your last attempt to improve parts of the item where you lost marks. Resubmission of an altered or unaltered assessment item by a repeating student (where the same assessment has been set) will not be considered as self-plagiarism.

Plagiarism

You should be aware that the University employs purpose built software to detect plagiarism. It is very important that you understand clearly the practical meaning of plagiarism.

DEFINITION OF PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is the act of misrepresenting as one's own original work the ideas, interpretations, words or creative works of another. These include published and unpublished documents, designs, music, sounds, images, photographs, computer codes and ideas gained through working in a group. These ideas, interpretations, words or works may be found in print and/or electronic media.

EXAMPLES OF PLAGIARISM:

1. Direct copying of paragraphs, sentences, a single sentence or significant parts of a sentence;

2. Direct copying of paragraphs, sentences, a single sentence or significant parts of a sentence with an end reference but without quotation marks around the copied text;

3. Copying ideas, concepts, research results, computer codes, statistical tables, designs, images, sounds or text or any combination of these;

4. Paraphrasing, summarising or simply rearranging another person's words, ideas, etc without changing the basic structure and/or meaning of the text;

5. Offering an idea or interpretation that is not one's own without identifying whose idea or interpretation it is;

6. A 'cut and paste' of statements from multiple sources;

7. Presenting as independent, work done in collaboration with others;

8. Copying or adapting another student's original work into a submitted assessment item.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.

Additional learning resources information

The library has Ebook copies of:

Lalli, CM and TR Parsons (1997). Biological Oceanography: An Introduction.

Talley LD, Pickard GL, Emery WJ and JH Swift (2011). Descriptive Physical Oceanography, An Introduction.

Online text book -ﾠReefimages

Copies will also be available on short-term loan for:

Garrison T (2007, 2010). Oceanography: An invitation to marine science.

Additional costs

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.