DEPARTMENT OF EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCES

Spring 2021 Class Schedule

:NOTE: This course schedule is subject to change based on instructional guidelines to comply with COVID restrictions. Courses may be added, cancelled, or moved quarters as deemed necessary.

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• Spring 2021 Class Schedule
• Spring 2021 Course Descriptions

Spring 2021 class Schedule

Spring 2021 course descriptions

102-6 – Sustainability & Social Justice (First-Year Seminar)

The challenge of sustainability to "meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" has evolved over the past few decades. This course will introduce fundamental concepts of sustainability, consider the application of these concepts in diverse societal, economic, and cultural settings, and explore the potential of climate science and sustainable development to act as forces for environmental and social justice.

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105 – Climate Catastrophes in Earth History

The objective of this course is to introduce students to the fundamental components of the Earth system--the atmosphere, hydrosphere and solid Earth--and more importantly, examine how these components interact in response to internal and external influences to control climate. Within this Earth systems context, we will explore how climate is changing today, how it has changed (sometimes catastrophically) in the geologic past, and how it may change in the future. Natural Sciences Distro Area

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108 - Geological Impacts on Civilization

Impacts of geological processes and materials upon human civilizations. Geological, archaeological, and historical records. Societal responses to disasters, environmental changes, resource distributions, etc. Ancient and modern examples. Natural Sciences Distro Area

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201 – Earth Systems Revealed

Introduction to Physical Geology: The study of Earth systems and their interactions. This course will approach the study of Earth systems from two perspectives: 1) description and classification of Earth's features, including Earth materials, internal structure, and landforms and 2) description and explanation of the physical, chemical and biological processes that form and modify these features. Topics include minerals; sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks; the interior Earth, oceans, and atmosphere; solid Earth processes, such as volcanism, seismicity, and plate tectonics and their interactions with the atmosphere and hydrosphere to drive surface Earth processes, such as climate, weathering, and glaciation; geologic time; global change. Natural Sciences Distro Area

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352 – Global Tectonics

Kinematics of plate tectonics. Geometry, determination, and description of plate motions. Paleomagnetism, marine magnetism, and hot spots. History of ocean basins and mountain-building processes. Recommended Background: EARTH 202-0, and completion of first-year calculus and physics.

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370 – Geobiology

This course will evaluate the interplay between biological and physical processes in shaping the surface Earth. Major topics include: the role of microbes in major element cycling (C, N, S, P), historical geobiology (how has life changed the planet over time?), methodologies applied in geobiology, humans as agents of geobiology, and the related fields of astro/exobiology. Recommended Background: At least one course in biology, chemistry, and earth or environmental science. Taught with CIV_ENV 317-0; may not receive credit for both courses. Natural Sciences Distro Area

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390 – Special Topics: GIS Level 2 (Geographic Information Systems 2)

This course offers digital representation and analysis of geospatial phenomena and provides foundations in methods and algorithms used in GIS analysis. The course is designed for students who want to get a comprehensive understanding of GIS and advanced spatial analyses. Each week we will focus on a specific topic and practice the skills in a mini-project. Course project will apply these skills in solving real-world problems based on students' interest of topics.

This course requires knowledge of GIS principles at an introductory level. Students are required to have taken ENVR_SCI 390 GIS Level 1, EARTH 390 GIS level 1, PBC 470 GIS level 1, or GEOG 343, or equivalent. The department will verify that this requirement has been met.

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390 – Special Topics: Hydrology

Storage and flux of water in near-earth terrestrial surface: surface water hydrology, shallow groundwater hydrogeology, and lake limnology. Pre-requisite: Three courses in EARTH or ENVR SCI at the 200 or 300 level, or permission of the instructor.

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440 – Advanced Topics: Stable Ca and Sr Isotope Geochemistry

During this seminar course, we will examine advanced topics concerning the geochemistry of Ca and Sr isotopes. The course is aimed at graduate students and upper level undergrads and will require reading and synthesis of the primary literature.

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450 – Advanced Topics: Sequence Stratigraphy, Facies Analysis, and Sea Level Change

This course is a seminar-style class in which students will read, present and summarize selected readings and the class will discuss them. The course builds on the foundation of EARTH 330 and 331 but will go into great depth on the topics of sequence stratigraphy, facies analysis and sea level change.

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