Tele-course > Presentation and Information

General description

The DEB2025 Tele-course will be held from Feb 27 - Apr 17, 2025

The Tele-course is a 7-week online course on Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) theory, in which biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics all come together to describe and explain metabolic organisation.

The course is provided in the open EDX Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) format through the University of Lisbon. This MOOC provides the basic concepts for modelling metabolism at the organism level, covering the full life-cycle, using DEB theory. It specifies, step by step, all the important metabolic processes such as ingestion, assimilation, growth, maintenance, development and reproduction for all species. The Tele-course covers topics described in chapters 1-4 of the third edition of the "DEB book", by S.A.L.M. Kooijman, which present the principles of the theory and univariate DEB models. A free PDF of the book and other supplementary reading material are available in the Zotero DEB library. Become a library member to access all PDFs.

Registration to the DEB2025 Tele-course is FREE. Enrollment is not open yet, stay tuned!

Practical Information

This 2025 edition of the DEB Tele-course is a great opportunity to learn the basics of the theory, as well as deepen one's knowledge ahead of the School and Symposium later that year. Many DEB researchers and former students with a wide diversity of backgrounds will be interacting via the discussion board. Weekly discussion groups formed based on geographical location will include experienced as well as novice researchers.

Over the course of each week, we encourage all participants to contribute to a discussion board, asking questions and detailing concepts of the theory. In the material section, a list of additional resources will also be available, including websites, books and papers.

We will encourage participants to form local study groups (more info to come on group leader nominations). Discussions within a group or with course members can serve a number of functions. Apart from being entertaining, it can help you to understand specifc concepts or find solutions to a question about the theory. Don’t be shy! You will meet (via the discussion board) many interesting researchers and students applying DEB in their own work. So be curious, ask questions and get inspired!

An online evaluation will be done through weekly quizzes. To get a participation certificate you will need to answer the quizzes and get at least 60% correct.

Interested in the full school and/or need information? Feel free to write to us and ask.