This module aims to introduce students to a wide range of statistical models grouped by the unifying theory of generalized linear models: linear, logistic, multinomial, cumulative ordinal and Poisson regression, as well as log-linear models are presented, with emphasis on the underpinning theory and practical examples. Students are also exposed to the basic foundations of estimation for GLMs.
In this module you will explore Generative AI, the recent advance in AI system capability that produces text, images, video, audio or software code in response to a user’s prompting. The module explains some of the novel techniques used in this form of AI (e.g. large language models, transformers, attention) and gives you the opportunity to use generative AI to solve specific problems with hands-on experience of deployment through training large language models (LLMs), prompt engineering and fine tuning. Students will develop a responsible AI perspective by examining the problems, limitations , economic and human costs of these technologies in terms of hallucinations, energy consumption, intellectual property violations, the social impact on labour markets and challenges to the cultural sector. The module will also address the claims made by technology leaders concerning the future evolution of Generative AI chat-bots into Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), and the so-called “existential” risks of AI.
This module is only compulsory for the MSc Genomics (Informatics) pathway, and optional for other pathways. This module will allow students to develop skills in analysis of data generated by different omic technologies, particularly giving experience in the analysis of transcriptomic and cancer genomic data using command line tools.
This module explores the state-of-the-art genomics techniques used for DNA sequencing (e.g. targeted approaches, whole exome and whole genome sequencing) and RNA sequencing, together with current technologies routinely used to investigate genomic variation in both clinical and research settings. The module will cover the fundamental principles of informatics and bioinformatics applied to genomics. The students will be taught to find and use major genomic and genetic data resources; use software packages, in silico tools, databases and literature searches. Specifically, students will learn to align sequence data to the reference genome, critically assess, annotate and interpret findings from genetic and genomic analyses. Theoretical sessions will be coupled with practical assignments of analysing and annotating predefined data sets. A comprehensive introduction to the functional interpretation of genomic data will be included. Students will also learn about the strategies employed to evaluate pathogenicity of variants for reporting and acquire the skills to analyse genomic data in a graphical user interface (GUI).
The dissertation module provides a context within which research skills can be developed. It provides the opportunity to apply and demonstrate the skills and knowledge acquired throughout the taught component of the MSc programme. The dissertation is a hypothesis-driven small-scale empirical research project involving quantitative or qualitative research methods and may be laboratory based, data analysis/bioinformatics or a systematic literature review. Students are supported to identify a project and supervisors aligned to their interests. Dissertation projects are undertaken over a period of approximately 4 months (full-time students) or 10 months (part-time students), with submission in late September.
This module puts genomics into practice, with a focus on the interpretation of genomic data in a clinical context. The module covers the synthesis of genomic information, and aligned research skills. The skills developed in this module will support the development of the research project within the dissertation module.
This module will introduce the fundamental chemical processes that operate within the Earth and Ocean system. You will learn about the origin, distribution and abundance of chemical elements in the Earth and Ocean. Via lectures, in-class exercises and practicals, we will introduce fundamental geochemical principles and explain how elements cycle through the Earth and Ocean. Practicals will be delivered within the Centre for Earth Research and Analysis Southampton (CERAS), a world-class facility for the chemical and isotopic analysis of natural and anthropogenic materials. We will introduce different isotope systems (including radiogenic and stable isotopes) and relate these to exciting real-world practical examples. By the end of this module, you will have developed a holistic and quantitative understanding of geochemical cycles in the Earth and Ocean system and how these interact in a diverse range of past, present and future environments.
The module will introduce the concepts and techniques underpinning geographic information systems.
This is a Module not about learning new facts or figures, or necessarily huge swathes of substantive knowledge about food consumption and food production (a dominant theme). Rather it invites you to develop a repertoire of theories and concepts to think critically about your own ideas, practices in relation to environmental citizenship, what you eat, how you relate to the natural world, who we are as humans in what has been named as the ‘anthropocene’ and the era of the ‘post-human’. These different areas of interest are connected by how they position societies relationship to, the naming of and production of what is unproblematically often called ‘nature, Nature or natural’.
The module will explore risk, hazard, exposure, vulnerability, resilience, and sustainability, all in the context of climate change: how these concepts relate to the Earth's physical and ecological systems, and to cultural and socio-economic structures of different societies. Case studies, presented by experts in their fields of human and physical geography, will illustrate how understanding interactions and feedbacks between human and physical systems might help societies mitigate and/or adapt to environmental hazard and risks of this dangerous world.
The module will introduce students to critical geographical themes as they relate to welfare, rights and social justice, including the state and territorialisation, community, confinement, deinstitutionalisation, landscapes of care, fragmentation and localism etc.
In contemporary neoliberal societies individuals are increasingly positioned as responsible for their own wellbeing. In the first half of this module we look at how health and wellbeing are often reduced down to a lifestyle choice. But is health and wellbeing about personal choice, or does the state have a role to play in ensuring citizens can flourish? The second half of the module introduces some of the ways in which geographers have sought to analyse health inequalities. How does place matter for health and wellbeing? Why is health unequal across space, and how do we explain these inequalities? Working across different scales (from the local to the global), the module covers important contemporary case studies: such as humanitarianism and the refugee crisis, food poverty, environmental racism, and housing insecurity.
Independent research project to produce a thesis of original geographic research.
Students will be able to apply logic and reason to prove basic results in geometric group theory. They will be able to use the geometry of the hyperbolic plane and other related simple geometric artefacts to demonstrate many of the standard features of geometric group theory. Students will also be able to work with free groups and group presentations. While developing theoretical understanding, students will be able to use examples to illustrate different aspects of geometry and group theory.
Geometry has grown out of efforts to understand the world around us, and has been a central part of mathematics from the ancient times to the present. Topology has been designed to describe, quantify, and compare shapes of complex objects. Together, geometry and topology provide a very powerful set of mathematical tools that is of great importance in mathematics and its applications. This module will introduce the students to the mathematical foundation of modern geometry based on the notion of distance. We will study metric spaces and their transformations. Through examples, we will demonstrate how a choice of distance determines shapes, and will discuss the main types of geometries. An important part of the course will be the study of continuous maps of spaces. A proper context for the general discussion of continuity is the topological space, and the students will be guided through the foundations of topology. Geometry and topology are actively researched by mathematicians and we shall indicate the most exciting areas for further study. One of the pre-requisites for MATH3076, MATH3080, MATH3086, MATH6079, MATH6094, MATH6095, MATH6137 and MATH6138
This field course is designed to simulate the methods you would conduct on a daily basis as a geoscientist working in environmental geophysical consultancy/site investigation. You will receive hands-on training using a range of different geophysical instruments, which are widely used in industry, and the course has been developed with direct guidance from industry partners. The techniques you will employ are vital for monitoring and characterising the environment and ensuring the sustainability of infrastructure projects. The applications of the surveys you will conduct include but are not limited to detection of underground voids such as buried mine workings and limestone karsts; characterisation of ground suitability for emplacement of infrastructure such as onshore wind turbines; detection of buried utility services; monitoring leachate from landfill sites; characterise the internal structure of geomorphological structures such as sand dunes; and mapping archaeological sites.
The module aims to introduce students to field of critical development and issues related to poverty, inequality, injustice and policy. As a team-taught module, specific topics may change with occasional changes to the teaching team.
