ST2302 Stochastic population models/MA8002 - Applied Biomodellling for PhD Students, spring 2022

Jan 21: Due to the small number of students it will only be possible to take this course as self-study. We will arrange an oral exam in May. If you plan to take the course as self-study, send me an email.

Lecturer: Jarle Tufto

The course textbook is available here.

The syllabus is as follows: Chapters 1-5.

References to much of the primary literature can be found in Lande, Engen & Sæther (2003) but this book has much less detailed mathematical derivations so is probably harder to read. Some of the material on diffusion processes is based on Karlin and Taylor, 1981, ch. 15. You may be able to find a pdf version online.

Engen, Lande, Sæther & Dobson 2009 covers much of the same material on reproductive value dynamics as Ch. 4. Age-structured models more generally is covered in much greater detail in Caswell's book on Matrix population models

We also offer an advanced phd-course on stochastic differential equation.

There will be an oral exam (about 45 mins per student). Date sometime between May or early June to be decided. We will do the exam via zoom.

There will not be arranged ordinary exercise hours, but there are several excersies in the compendium you are encouraged to try to solve.

Exercises of "suitable" difficulty - Chapter 1: 1,2,5,6,7,12-18. Some suggested solutions

And from Chapter 2: 7,8,9,10.

And from Chapter 3: 1-7, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21. Suggested solutions to Chapter 2 and 3

From Chapter 4: 1, (2, 3, 4, 5), 10, 16, 17.

From Ch. 5: 2,5,7,8,9,16,17,18,19 (lots of calculations), 20

More solutions from Chapter 1 to Chapter 5 here.