Our respirometry courses attract participants from around the world. The image below is a panorama of our respirometry laboratory, taken during our fifth course. The part closest to the camera is the break/discussion area; part of the human metabolic station, one of five different stations, can be seen near the center back of the room, near the windows.

The tenth respirometry course will be on 19-22 October 2008 in our state-of-the-art respirometry laboratory in alluring Las Vegas. The course will concentrate on state-of-the-art measurement of metabolic rates of specimens ranging in size from insects to humans, but the emphasis will be on small mammals.

The eleventh respirometry course will be on 11-14 November 2008 in our state-of-the-art respirometry laboratory in alluring Las Vegas. The course will concentrate on state-of-the-art measurement of metabolic rates of small animals, primarily insects.This is a perfect course for anyone using Drosophila or other small animals as model organisms.

Either course gives you invaluable training. Anyone interested in physiology (pure or applied), quantitative ecology, or any scientific discipline involving animals as model systems, will benefit. Ideal for anyone needing expertise in respirometry, whether they are established researchers, students or technicians. The course includes all aspects of the subject from designing a respirometry system, plumbing it, and acquiring data from it, to analyzing the data, reducing and transforming the analyzed data, and performing statistical operations (linear and power regressions, ANOVA, ANCOVA, etc.) on the reduced data. Dr. John Lighton, who is an author of over 80 publications using respirometry as a central methodology, teaches the course. He is the author of the definitive textbook of animal respirometry, "Measuring Metabolic Rates: A Manual for Scientists", published by Oxford University Press. Its companion website, which is still under construction, is www.respirometry.org.

We have spared no expense in assembling a superb multi-station respirometry laboratory. A variety of equipment from different, reputable manufacturers is used. One of the many unusual features of our courses is that the equipment remains available in our premises for the continued use of students for up to a week following each course. Those who wish to can therefore explore projects or approaches in greater detail. We encourage you to bring your study organisms with you, if possible.

Contact us for registration information and a prospectus for the course. Limited free accommodation may be available to students; contact us for further information.

Incidentally, we have assembled a condensed, one-day course on respirometry basics for companies (group size of 6 - 10 people). Ideal for people with an engineering or pharmaceutical background. No prior knowledge of biology is assumed. Email us for more information plus an application form and a prospectus if you're interested.

Future course topics include an intensive, four-day course in mammalian metabolic respirometry with a multiple-animal, biomedical emphasis (perfect for obesity researchers, among others), plus further courses on field respirometry; distributed data acquisition; very large animal respirometry (from humans to white tigers); and others. Course suggestions are welcomed. Stay tuned.