The Earth
From GeoClasses
- Spring 2006: MW 12:40-2:05PM in Johnson Hall Room #105
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Course Description
The Earth is a complex system in which the atmosphere, biosphere and geosphere interact with humans actions to affect the environment; the formation of rocks; the shape the surface of the Earth; changes weather and climate; natural hazards. Prerequisites: None
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Required text
Foundations of Earth Science (4th ed) by F. Lutgens and E. Tarbuck, Prentice Hall, New Jersey. ISBN 0-13-144750.
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Instructor
| Instructor: Lensyl Urbano, Ph.D. | Email: lurbano |
| Office: 204 Johnson Hall | Office Phone: 678-4543 |
| Office Hours: MW 9:00AM to 10:00AM or by Appointment | |
| web page: http://lurbano-5.memphis.edu:16080/Classes/index.php/The_Earth | |
Course objectives: To understand the Earth and atmospheric systems that determine the shape and climate of the Earth and to explore their interaction with humans in terms of natural and anthropogenic hazards.
Nature of students to be served: Undergraduate, lower division, majors and non-majors
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Grading
Student grades (+ and – grading will be used) will be earned from
- Exams
- Scores achieved on 3 out of 4 exams throughout the semester. Each exam is worth a total of 31 points and your lowest score will be dropped. You will therefor have the option to drop or miss one of the four exams so THERE ARE NO MAKE-UP EXAMS IN THIS CLASS.
- Weather Log - Students will be expected to keep a log of the weather during the semester that will be worth 7% of the final grade.
- This is an individual project. Each person must keep the log independently.
- Log must be kept at the website: http://lurbano-5.memphis.edu:16080/weatherlog/
- You can keep a written log but the computer must be updated at least once a week. (Written logs will not be accepted at the end of the semester).
- Weather logs are to be submitted two weeks before the end of the semester.
- Extra credit
- All Extra Credit assignments MUST BE COMPLETED two weeks before the end of the semester. All projects MUST BE APPROVED by the instuctor before the end of the week after the second exam.
The approximate grading scale: 90 – 100 = A; 80 – 89 = B; 70 – 79 = C; 67 – 69 = D; 60 – 67 D; < 60 = F (remember + - will be used)
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Important Notes
- Incompletes are rarely handed out. Only in extreme documented cases will an incomplete be given.
- Lab: Each student will receive a separate one-credit lab grade from the lab instructor. You will not be tested in lecture on material presented solely in lab.
- Attendance is expected. Lectures will cover material from the book as well as other sources. Exams will be based on 95% lecture materials. If you cannot make it to lecture, it is in your best interest to obtain notes from a classmate.
- Academic misconduct: Cheating, plagiarism, and classroom misconduct will be handled in accordance with university procedures as described in the U of M Student Handbook.
- Auditorium conduct: ABSOLUTELY NO TALKING WHILE I AM LECTURING (though questions are welcomed). The auditorium is large and hearing me is hard enough without unneeded distractions. You will be asked to leave if it becomes a problem.
- CELL PHONES WILL BE TURNED OFF DURING THE LECTURES!!!
- Students with learning disabilities are welcome to discuss them with the instructor during office hours or contact me via e-mail.
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Course Outline
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Week 1: Origins
These lectures cover the origin of the Earth and the solar system, viewed through the lens of the scientific method.
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Reading
- Lecture Presentations
- Textbook
- Chapter 15 - The nature of the solar system
- Chapter 16 - p.422-424
- Links
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Week 2: Maps and Remote sensing: How we know what we know about the Earth
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Reading
- Lecture Presentations
- Textbook
- Chapter 16: Stella Brightness p.417-421
- Chapter 11: Radiation p.292-294
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Week 3: Plate tectonics
Reading: Chapter 5
- Of mountain ranges and jigsaw puzzels
- History of theory – alternate explanations
- Explanation of concept
- Effects
- Orogenesis
- Earthquakes
- Volcanism
- etc.
- How plate tectonics results in the different rock types – sed, ig, met
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Week 4: Tectonic features and landforms
- Faults and folds
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Week 5: Rocks and minerals
Reading: Chapter 1. Pg 15-20 Chapter 2.
- Atoms and molecules
- Rock id and characteristics – and what they can tell us
- Rocks as markers of geologic history
- Mineral pedagogy
- What minerals tell us about the world
- Weathering – definition and description
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Exam 1
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Week 6: Weathering and Mass Wasting
Reading: Chapter 2. Pg 43-46 Chapter 3. Pg 62-65
- Weathering
- Mass movements – mechanics and description
- Natural hazards
- Karst
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Week 7: Fluvial systems
Reading: Chapter 3. Pg 65-78
- Fluvial geomorphology
- Stream power
- Affect of climate
- River types: Meandering and braided
- Floodplains and human populations
- Natural hazards: Flooding and avulsions
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Week 8: Global atmospheric circulation
Reading: Chapter 13.
- The formation of Hadley cells and how they result in different climatic regions
- Atmospheric pressure regions
- Atmospheric wind patterns
- Global ocean circulation patterns
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Exam 2
- This is a take-home examination.
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Week 9: Glacial geomorphology
Reading: Chapter 4. p. 93-107
- Ice ages: Milankovitch cycles
- Paleoclimatology
- Glacial landforms
- Alpine features
- Continental features
- Alternative notes:
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Week 10: Coastal Geomorphology
- Wave action and erosion
- Coastal landforms
- Coastal hazards: Extreme weather, erosion
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Week 12: Arid processes and landscapes
Reading: Chapter 4. p. 107-114
- Aoelian processes
- Depositional landforms
- Erosional landforms
- Desertification
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Fill in the blanks
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Week 13 & 14: Humans on the Earth
- Anthropogenic effects on a global and local scale
- Historical catastrophies
- Environmental economics
- Global environmental change
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Week 10: Climate types and soils and ecology?
- Koppen climatic classification
- Influence of climate on culture
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Grades
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Links
- The short movies (and music) produced by students.
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