“Uncommon Courses” is an irregular series from The Conversation US that presents unconventional teaching approaches.
Course title:
“The Science of Cats”
How did the concept for the course come about?
I’m an evolutionary biologist who has spent his profession researching the evolution of small lizards within the Caribbean. I’m also a lifelong cat lover, however it never occurred to me to do anything scientific with domestic cats. They are difficult to check – have you ever ever tried to follow your cat to see what it’s doing? And unlike the extensively studied lions, tigers and other wild cats, I got the impression that there was no interesting research on the domesticated representative of the cat clan, Cat.
Twelve years ago I learned that I used to be completely mistaken. Thanks to John Bradshaw’s book “Cat sense“ and the BBC programme “The secret life of the cat”, I discovered that Ailurologists We used the identical cutting-edge methods—GPS tracking, genome sequencing, isotope evaluation—to check domestic cats that I exploit to check lizards and that other researchers use on all varieties of other creatures.
That's how my course on the science of cats was born. I lured students in with their love of cats after which, after they weren't looking, taught them how scientists study biodiversity – ecology, evolution, genetics and behavior.
What does the course examine?
Essentially, this course is in regards to the past, present and way forward for cats: where they got here from, why they do what they do, what the longer term might hold. And, crucially, how we all know what we all know – that’s, how scientists approach these sorts of questions.
The course culminates in students writing an original paper or making a mini-documentary. These projects have covered a big selection of topics in biology and beyond, equivalent to the impact of cats on bird populations, sexism and the crazy cat lady stereotype, the health effects of living with cats, the role of hybridization as a creative or limiting force in evolution, the top-down role of larger predators equivalent to coyotes and dingoes in controlling cat populations, and the prospects for brand new genetic technologies to create allergen-free cats or curb free-roaming cat populations.
Unexpectedly, the scholars weren’t the one ones writing about cats: the category and its topics inspired me to write down my very own book: “The cat's meow: How cats evolved from the savannah to your sofa.”
Sabina Ja/500px via Getty Images
Why is that this course relevant now?
Society needs more biodiversity researchers to grasp our rapidly changing world. Cats raise scientific questions of broad interest and may function an entry point into the world of biological research.
What is a vital lesson from the course?
Important natural science research doesn’t require travel to distant corners of the world. Studying common animals of their native environments – even pets – can result in vital advances in basic and applied knowledge.
What materials does the course contain?
In addition to reading research papers, we went on field trips that were each informative and entertaining. We set out at dawn to affix a homeless cat activist feeding stray cats in a run-down a part of town, learned about cats in precedent days from an Egyptologist, visited a cat show to marvel at the range of cat breeds, observed feral cats on the Saint Louis Zoo, and examined cats in artwork at university museums.
What does the course prepare students for?
Cat research is a way for college students to see the applicability of scientific ideas to animals they know and care about. Not only does the course require students to synthesize knowledge from many alternative fields, it also gets them eager about current real-world debates, equivalent to what to do with outdoor cats and the ethics of breeding.
image credit : theconversation.com