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Saturday, August 20

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

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Age and Growth Analysis with R

“] Instructor: Derek H. Ogle, Ph.D., Professor of Mathmatics and Natural Resources, Northland College

This is a one-day course for fisheries professionals interested in expanding their R skills to include analysis of age and growth data.  Through a sequence of demonstrations and hands-on application exercises, participants will use R to construct appropriate metrics and graphics for comparing precision (APE, CV) and bias (age agreement table, tests of symmetry, and age-bias plots) between two sets of estimated ages, construct and apply an age-length key to estimate ages of individual fish from their lengths, summarize mean length-at-age with a von Bertalanffy growth model, and statistically compare von Bertalanffy growth model parameters between two or more groups of fish.  Participants should be familiar with the fundamentals of R, including basic applications.

• Student Member: $125
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175
• Non-Member: $250

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Bayesian I: Intro to Bayesian Inference Using Gibbs Sampling (BUGS) for Fish Biologists

“] Instructors: Benjamin Staton, Auburn University; Troy Farmer, Auburn University

There has been a large increase in the use of Bayesian methods to analyze ecological and fisheries data over the last decade. This increase is in part due to availability of Markov chain Monte Carlo methods in a variety of free software packages. Advantages of Bayesian methods include a formal approach to incorporating previous information into the analysis and parameter estimation of complex problems. This course will meet a growing need among fisheries biologists and researchers to apply Bayesian statistical methods to analyze fisheries data. A brief overview of Bayesian statistics will be provided, but the course will focus on practical application of the BUGS language for Bayesian inference using basic fisheries sampling data.

• Student Member: $125
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175
• Non-Member: $250

AFS members registering for both the Bayesian I and Bayesian II course will receive a discounted price that will cover the registration of both courses.

• Student Member: $200
• Young Professional Member: $250
• Member: $300

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Beginning/Intermediate GIS for Fisheries Scientists

“] Instructors: Jacob Schwoerer, University of Missouri – Columbia; Nick Sievert, University of Missouri – Columbia

This course will provide an overview of beginning/intermediate GIS skills for fisheries biologist using ArcGIS, including use of existing data, creating your own data, and review of fundamental concepts for GIS.

• Student Member: $125
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175
• Non-Member: $250

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8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

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Electrofishing I: Power-Based Standardization in Electrofishing

“] Instructor: James B. Reynolds, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Fisheries, University of Alaska – Fairbanks

This half-day course will be presented in three 70-minute sessions with two intervening 15-minute breaks. Basic electrical principles, including power transfer, will be covered in the Session 1; elements of power-based standardization in Session 2; and development of standardized power procedures in Session 3. The course will give participants an overview of the proper approach to the standardization of electrofishing, regardless of method (e.g., boat, backpack).  No prerequisites are required.

• Student Member: $75
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $100
• Member: $125
• Non-Member: $200

AFS members registering in both the Electrofishing I and Electrofishing II workshop will receive a discounted price that will cover the registration of both courses.

• Student Member: $125
• Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175 

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NEW! Imaging Technologies in Fisheries: Side Scan Sonar in Management and Research

“] Commercially available sonar imaging technology is rapidly advancing and quickly becoming of interest in various fisheries research applications.  This course will provide an overview of the current sonar technology with topics including availability of sonar imaging technology (e.g., Humminbird, Lowrance, Garmin, etc.), tips-and-tricks for its use, applications to fisheries management such as evaluating fish habitat structures in reservoirs and the general use and advancement of sonar imaging overall.

• Student Member: $75
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $100
• Member: $125
• Non-Member: $200

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1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

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Electrofishing II: Electrofishing Equipment Operations and Troubleshooting

“] Instructors: Jan C. Dean, Ph.D.; James B. Reynolds, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Fisheries, University of Alaska – Fairbanks

This NEW course will be co-instructed by two electrofishing experts that have taught electrofishing courses worldwide and will cover topics relevant to fisheries biologists/scientists wanting to learn more about how to evaluate and troubleshoot common electrofishing equipment.

• Student Member: $75
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $100
• Member: $125
• Non-Member: $200

AFS members registering in both the Electrofishing I and Electrofishing II workshop will receive a discounted price that will cover the registration of both courses.

• Student Member: $125
• Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175

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Sunday, August 21

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

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Bayesian II: Intermediate Bayesian Inference Using Gibbs Sampling (BUGS) for Fish Biologists

“] Instructors: Benjamin Staton, Auburn University; Troy Farmer, Auburn University

There has been a large increase in the use of Bayesian methods to analyze ecological and fisheries data over the last decade. This increase is in part due to availability of Markov chain Monte Carlo methods in a variety of free software packages. Advantages of Bayesian methods include a formal approach to incorporating previous information into the analysis and parameter estimation of complex problems. By focusing on the practical application of BUGS language for the intermediate topics covered, this course will meet a growing need among fisheries biologists and researchers to apply Bayesian methods to the analysis of fisheries data.

• Student Member: $125
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175
• Non-Member: $250

AFS members registering for both the Bayesian I and Bayesian II course will receive a discounted price that will cover the registration of both courses.

• Student Member: $200
• Young Professional Member: $250
• Member: $300

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Bioenergetics

“] Instructors: Steven Chipps, Ph.D., U.S. Geological Survey, South Dakota Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit; David Deslauriers, Ph.D., University of Manitoba

Bioenergetics models are widely used as a tool in fisheries management and research. Although Fish Bioenergetics 3.0 (Hanson et al. 1997) remains a popular software package, it is now over 18 years old and is incompatible with many new operating systems.  Moreover, since Fish Bioenergetics 3.0 was released, the number of published fish bioenergetics models has increased from 33 to 115 models. This workshop will introduce Fish Bioenergetics 4.0, an R-based platform that consists of a graphical user interface application (Shiny by RStudio). Instructors will provide an overview of bioenergetics concepts and applications, and introduce attendees to the new modeling platform.  Example exercises and group projects will be covered to aid in navigating the software and to answer basic and applied questions in fish ecology.

• Student Member: $125
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $150
• Member: $175
• Non-Member: $250

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8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

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Human Dimensions and Conflict Resolution in Fisheries

“] Instructor: Susan Steffen, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism

Conflict resolution skills are required at all levels of the fisheries profession and fisheries management and research increasingly relies on human dimensions data to be successful.  This course will cover communication analytics, conflict resolution, and future trends in human dimensions related to fisheries.  These topics will be related to examples of applied human dimensions as they have been used in projects related to commercial bait fish, float line fishing, and a Walleye initiative.  Overall this course will provide an overview of the critical human dimensions and conflict resolution considerations that play an important role in successful fisheries management and research.

• Student Member: $75
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $100
• Member: $125
• Non-Member: $200

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Leadership at All Levels in AFS (FREE)

“] This workshop is designed for new and emerging leaders in AFS.  It addresses the need for new and emerging leaders to better understand how AFS functions, the roles of Unit leaders in AFS, and how to be an effective leader in an all-volunteer organization such as AFS. [/su_spoiler]
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1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

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NEW! Fisheries Information Network System (FINS) Application and Analysis Tools

“] FINS was developed by the Missouri Department of Conservation and is a centralized, web-based application used for data entry, analysis and reporting tools used to record/analyze fish frequency, age and growth plus standardize the format for data collection, ease the entry and storage of said data.  FINS is currently being used in two other states as well, and is being made available for use by other interested states/agencies as well.  This course will provide an overview of the application and use of this web-based data storage solution.

• Student Member: $75
• Student Non-Member or Young Professional Member: $100
• Member: $125
• Non-Member: $200

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Scientific Publishing & Communication (FREE)

“] Instructors: Beth Beard, Digital Content and Engagement Strategist, American Fisheries Society; Richard McBride, Ph.D., Chief, Population Biology Brand & Supervisory Research Fishery Biologist, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service; Martha Wilson, Director of Communications, American Fisheries Society

Communication skills are demanded of every project, for every discipline, and at all steps of your research: whether you seek funding, to persuade your peers about your latest results, or translate your findings to a diverse audience. This workshop will present techniques and tips about speaking, writing, and outreach.  Topics include (1) writing for scientists, (2) designing an effective oral presentation, (3) using storytelling techniques, and (4) mastering social media for science communication. This course is geared toward early career professionals and includes interactive exercises and panel discussions. [/su_spoiler]
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