32. Concepts in microbial ecology

• What are microbial ecosystems ?
• Characteristics of habitats, hosts, living conditions and composition of organismic populations.
• Ecologic resolution and dimensions: space, reactions in time, interactions between organisms.
• Microbially mediated reactions in global physiology: modern and acient biogeochemical cycles.
• Kinds of interactions between microbial populations.
• Principles of life derived from microbial ecology.
• Basic biological concepts emerging from studying prokaryote ecology.
• Limits for microbial existence are the limits of life.