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Courses

Fall 2009

Undergraduate

GEO 103Natural Disasters(ST)An introduction to natural (and some society-induced) hazards and the importance of public understanding of the issues related to them. Emphasis is on the geological processes that underlie the hazards, with some discussion of relevant policy issues. Principal topics: Earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tsunami, hurricanes, floods, meteorite impacts, global warming. Intended primarily for non-science majors.
GEO 202Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate(ST)An introduction to the ocean, atmosphere, and climate from the perspective of oceanography. Covers coastal processes including waves, beaches, tides and ecosystems; open ocean processes including atmospheric circulation and its impact on the surface ocean, the wind driven circulation, and surface ocean ecosystems; and the abyssal ocean including circulation, the cycling of chemicals, and ocean sediments and what they tell us about the climate history of the earth. The final part of the course will cover humans and the earth system, including a discussion of ocean resources and climate change.
ANT 206/EEB 306/GEO 208Human Evolution(EC)An investigation of the evidence and background of human evolution. Emphasis will be placed on the examination of the fossil and other evidence for human evolution and its functional and behavioral implications.
GEO 255/AST 255/CHM 255/EEB 255Life in the Universe(QR)This course introduces students to a new field, Astrobiology, where scientists trained in biology, chemistry, astronomy and geology combine their skills to discover life's origins and to seek extraterrestrial life. Topics include: the origin of life on Earth, the prospects of life beneath the surfaces of Mars and Europa, a moon of Jupiter; extra-solar planets nearby that offer targets for NASA space telescopes searching for life.
GEO 255/AST 255/CHM 255/EEB 255Life in the Universe(QR)This course introduces students to a new field, Astrobiology, where scientists trained in biology, chemistry, astronomy and geology combine their skills to discover life's origins and to seek extraterrestrial life. Topics include: the origin of life on Earth, the prospects of life beneath the surfaces of Mars and Europa, a moon of Jupiter; extra-solar planets nearby that offer targets for NASA space telescopes searching for life.
GEO 255/AST 255/CHM 255/EEB 255Life in the Universe(QR)This course introduces students to a new field, Astrobiology, where scientists trained in biology, chemistry, astronomy and geology combine their skills to discover life's origins and to seek extraterrestrial life. Topics include: the origin of life on Earth, the prospects of life beneath the surfaces of Mars and Europa, a moon of Jupiter; extra-solar planets nearby that offer targets for NASA space telescopes searching for life.
GEO 366Current and Future Climate(STX)This course explores the causes and consequences of human-induced climate change, and the range of potential policy responses. By studying the natural climate system and how it is influenced by human perturbation, we will develop a quantitative understanding of how climate is expected to change in the future as greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere. The course also examines scientific themes that should frame any public policy based on risk management, including irreversibility, uncertainty, and surprise. We will also examine the ways in which people, governments and other institutions are actually responding to climate change.
GEO 370/CEE 370/ENV 370Sedimentology(ST)This course presents a treatment of the physical and chemical processes that shape Earth's surface, such as solar radiation, deformation of the solid Earth, and the flow of water (vapor, liquid, and solid) under the influence of gravity. In particular,the generation, transport, and preservation of sediment in response to these processes is studied in order to better read stories of Earth history in the geologic record and to better understand processes involved in modern and ancient environmental change.
GEO 370/CEE 370/ENV 370Sedimentology(ST)This course presents a treatment of the physical and chemical processes that shape Earth's surface, such as solar radiation, deformation of the solid Earth, and the flow of water (vapor, liquid, and solid) under the influence of gravity. In particular,the generation, transport, and preservation of sediment in response to these processes is studied in order to better read stories of Earth history in the geologic record and to better understand processes involved in modern and ancient environmental change.
GEO 416Evolution of the ContinentsThe origin and evolution of the continental crust, with emphasis on Himalayas, Tibet and India. The goal is to understand the physical, chemical, and tectonic processes that shape the continents, using a broadly defined geographic area for focusing readings of journal articles.
GEO 419/PHY 419Physics of the EarthThe Earth is a physical system whose past and present state can be studied within the framework of physics and chemistry. Topics include current concepts of geophysics and the physics and chemistry of Earth materials; origin and evolution of the Earth; and nature of dynamic processes in its interior. One emphasis is to relate geologic processes on a macroscopic scale to the fundamental materials properties of minerals and rocks.
GEO 428Biological OceanographyFundamentals of Biological Oceanography, with an emphasis on the ecosystem level. We will consider the organisms in the context of their chemical and physical environment; the properties of seawater, atmosphere and ocean dynamics that affect life in the ocean; primary production and marine food webs; global cycles of carbon and other elements; current research approaches. In addition to lectures by the professors, the course will delve deeply into the current and classic literature of oceanography and students will be expected to participate in seminar type presentations and discussions.
GEO 430Climate and the Terrestrial BiosphereEarth's climate is inextricably intertwined with the terrestrial biosphere. In this course, we will explore the key mechanisms that link climate (e.g., cloudiness, rainfall, and temperature) with the terrestrial biosphere (e.g., ecosystem composition, structure, and functioning), and how these mechanisms are altered by humans. We will review basic aspects of climate, surface energy balances, and terrestrial plant ecology, and then investigate feedbacks and forcings arising from biophysical properties of the land surface, biogeographical properties of ecosystems, deforestation, fires, increases in atmospheric CO2, and other factors.
GEO 441/APC 441Computational GeophysicsAn introduction to weak numerical methods, in particular finite-element and spectral-element methods, used in computational geophysics. Basic surface & volume elements, representation of fields, quadrature, assembly, local versus global meshes, domain decomposition, time marching & stability, parallel implementation & message-passing, and load-balancing. In the context of parameter estimation and 'imaging', will explore data assimilation techniques and related adjoint methods. The course offers hands-on lab experience in meshing complicated surfaces & volumes as well as numerically solving partial differential equations relevant to geophysics
GEO 464Radiogenic IsotopesTheory and methodology of radiogenic isotope geochemistry, as applied to topics in the geosciences, including the formation and differentiation of the Earth and solar system, thermal and temporal evolution of orogenic belts, and the rates and timing of important geochemical, biotic, and climatic events in earth history.
GEO 470/CHM 470Environmental Chemistry of SoilsFocuses on the inorganic and organic constituents of aqueous, solid, and gaseous phases of soils, and fundamental chemical principles and processes governing the reactions between different constituents. The role of soil chemical processes in the major and trace element cycles, and the biogeochemical transformation of different soil contaminants will be discussed in the later parts of the course.

Graduate

GEO 506Fundamentals of the Geosciences IIA survey of fundamental papers in the Geosciences. Topics include present and future climate, biogeochemical processes in the ocean, geochemical cycles, orogenies, thermochronology, rock fracture and seismicity. This is the second of two core geosciences graduate courses.
ENV 531/CEE 583/GEO 531Topics in Energy and the EnvironmentCourse explores science, technology and business of oil & gas extraction, highlighting historical role of global politics and environmental expectations; examine the history of oil & gas production; review current techniques to quantify discovered resources and maximize production. Drilling & production operations are reviewed in the context of achieving maximum recovery providing a basis for examining definitions of reserves and resources under a variety of economics models. Review of the industry's evolution, response to demand for secure, ever-increasing supplies, and running safe & environmentally responsible operations.
GEO 535Biogeochemical Cycles in Earth HistoryExamines the evidence for changes in the cycles of biologically important elements (Carbon, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, etc.) over Earth history. Topics will include the development and evolution of the biogeochemical cycles, their significance for the geologic and fossil records, and biogeochemical change during the last ice age. Overview lectures by the instructor and student presentations based on readings from the scientific literature and/or ongoing research.
GEO 539Paleoecol, Paleoclimat, PaleoceanographyInvestigation of paleoenvironments and biotic effects associated with major volcanic eruptions (large igneous provinces), (e.g. Deccan Traps, Siberian Traps) and recent volcanic eruptions and their biotic and environmental consequences.
GEO 544Structural Geology SeminarAn introduction to the relationship of fold-thrust belts to the orogenic systems they are a part of. Papers in the literature are read chronologically: from early papers (~1970) that first introducted the technique, to recent papers (2003-2004) that apply the technique of balances cross sections to understand the development of mountain ranges.
GEO 570SedimentologyTreatment of the physical and chemical processes that shape Earth's surface, such as solar radiation, deformation of the solid Earth, and the flow of water (vapor, liquid, and solid) under the influence of gravity. In particular, the generation, transport, and preservation of sediment in response to these processes are studied in order to better read stories of Earth history in the geologic record and to better understand processes involved in modern and ancient environmental change. Taught in parallel with GEO 370.
AOS 577/GEO 577Weather and Climate DynamicsDynamics and physical interpretation of principal tropospheric circulation systems, including stationary and transient phenomena observed in middle and low latitudes. Roles of the atmospheric general circulation in maintaining various components of the Earth's climate system. Characteristics of atmospheric variability on intraseasonal and interannual time scales.
CEE 588/AOS 588/GEO 588Boundary Layer MeteorologyBasic dynamics of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL) and how it interacts with other environmental and geophysical flows. Topics covered include: mean, turbulence, & higher order flow equations; similarity theories; surface exchanges and their impact on the stability of the atmosphere; different ABL flow regimes (convective, neutral, and stable); role of the ABL in the hydrologic cycle; the fundamentals of scalar (pollutant, water vapor, etc) transport; modeling and measurement approaches for the ABL; and the role of the ABL in large-scale atmospheric flows and how it is represented in coarse atmospheric models.

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