A course for both Bachelor and Master in Physical Geography at Marburg University

In order to assess how animals and plants react to environmental changes, spatially and temporally high-resolution information on their species composition, numbers of individuals and possible reactions and interactions is required. Efforts are therefore being made to increasingly replace traditional survey methods with automated monitoring and to collect information directly at the study sites using sensors. This course aims to provide an insight into this rapidly developing field and the various ecological, technical and data-related aspects involved. Its primary objective is to cultivate critical thinking skills and foster discussions among students.

Intended learning outcomes

At the end of this course you should be able to

  • Know the most important components and sensor types
  • Understand the requirements of a monitoring system
  • Describe basic codes for controlling the sensor
  • Describe the basic concepts of data acquisition, storage and analysis
  • Evaluate the limitations of different methods
  • Document the steps required to build a sensor box

MSc students should also be able to develop and present a project to improve one aspect of a Proximate Sensor.

Setting

This course will take place in a synchronous setting in presence in room F 14 | 00A19 with the options of visiting real-world examples of proximate sensors around the city.

Syllabus

The course encompasses 12 sessions from 18.14.2024 to 18.07.2024. Subject to changes.

Session Date Aim Content
    Basics  
01 18.04.2024 First things first How this course works, Why is proximate sensing relevant? How do proximate sensing methods differ from traditional ones?
02 25.04.2024 Sensors & targets, conceptualization Which sensor boxes are there and how do they work? How to build your sensor box?
    DIY Sensor Box  
03 02.05.2024 Programming How to program your sensor box?
Christi Himmelfahrt    
04 16.05.2024 Programming How to program your sensor box? (II)
05 23.05.2024 Power & Data transfer How to transfer data/ Preperation of field test
30.05.2024 Fronleichnam  
    The Senor Box vs. nature  
05 06.06.2024 Field visit/test How effective are sensor boxes in capturing the target? (I)
06 13.06.2024 Field visit/test How effective are sensor boxes in capturing the target? (II)
    Analysing  
07 20.06.2024 Machine Learning How does machine learning work?
08 27.06.2024 Training How to generate your very own data
    Seminar block  
09 04.07.2024 Project day Improve your sensor box
10 11.07.2024 Seminar block Present a specific sensor box
11 18.07.2024 Wrap up Time for questions and feedback, individual projects problems, goodbye

Deliverables

The graded course certificate will be based on an project report presented either as written report or as a personal repository on GitHub. Additionally, there will be a 12 minute presentation on a recent manuscript, followed by a 3 minute discussion.

Team

Lea Heidrich

University of Marburg