THREE-DIMENSIONAL MODELING

Course objectives

Educational goals: The course aims to provide students with the basic knowledge for the recognition, classification and analysis of fossils and for their use in biostratigraphy and paleoenvironmental analysis. Learning outcomes: Acquired knowledge: Successful students will acquire basic elements of general paleontology, zoological nomenclature and systematics (in particular, phylogenetic systematics), species concepts, extinction and evolution. They also will acquire basic knowledge on the identification of various systematic groups of protists and invertebrates, their paleoecology, evolution and stratigraphic distribution, with particular reference to the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. They will also possess basic knowledge of taphonomy (biostratinomy, fossilization, fossil diagenesis) and biostratigraphy. Acquired skills: Students who have passed the exam will be able to use fossils of invertebrates and microfossils for geological, paleontological and biostratigraphic purposes; use the Linnaean nomenclature and apply classification systems; transmit the acquired biostratigraphic, paleoenvironmental and evolutionary knowledge, including the historical development of the discipline.

Channel 1
JOHANNES PIGNATTI Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Prerequisites
Previous knowledge (from previous courses or from the educational career): None
Frequency
Optional (course attendance is not mandatory, but encouraged)
Exam mode
Evaluation Practical tests during the course; final practical (microscope) and oral examinations. Mid-term assessment: At the end of Module 1 (usually, in the month of November), written assessment (time limit: ca. 60 minutes) on the micropaleontological analysis of thin sections. This is a non-mandatory test, serving as intermediate performance monitoring and self-assessment tool. Final examination: At the end of the course, written assessment, consisting in the micropaleontological analysis of thin sections and washing residues (at least five samples), including microfossil identification, biostratigraphy and paleoenvironmental interpretation; the use of atlases, textbooks and course material is permitted (no time limit; average time, ca. 240 minutes); oral assessment with discussion of the written assessment (average time, ca. 15-20 minutes).
  • Academic year2025/2026
  • CourseGeological Sciences
  • CurriculumSingle curriculum
  • Year2nd year
  • Semester1st semester
  • SSDGEO/01
  • CFU6