PHYSICAL GEOLOGY (GEOL 100, Spring 2005) SYLLABUS

Michelle Markley, office: Clapp 326/328a, mmarkley@mtholyoke.edu

Amanda Tyson, office: Clapp 302, x 3236, atyson@mtholyoke.edu

Al Werner, office: Clapp 321, awerner@mtholyoke.edu

Mark McMenamin, office: Clapp303, mmcmenam@mtholyoke.edu

GOAL OF THIS COURSE

At the end of this course, you will:

-- be able to interpret the geology of your surroundings when traveling to new places.

-- understand how geologic setting influences how people live.

TEXTS

An undergraduate physical geology textbook is required. They are all similar, except for the order of chapters and the details of ongoing research and applications to current events. The chapters and readings in this syllabus are specific to: James S. Monroe and Reed Wicander, 2001, Physical Geology; Exploring the Earth, 4th edition, Brooks/Cole Thomson Learning, ISBN 0534572227. You can get it at the Odyssey. But any edition ( that is less than 10 years old) of any undergraduate text on physical geology will suit you, if you can figure out which chapters to read by using the schedule in this syllabus. You decide.

An optional book for this course is also at the Odyssey: Colin Fletcher, 1989 (or 1967, 1968, or 1972 editions), The Man Who Walked Through Time: The Story of the First Trip Afoot Through the Grand Canyon, Vintage, ISBN: 0679723064. You will need to write a paper on this book if you miss a lab, and you might want to read it for fun.

WEEKLY LABS

Lab exercises will introduce you to new material and give you a chance to have hands-on experience with rocks and geologic data. During the first half of the semester, you will confront topics in lab before we discuss them in lecture, so please complete the reading specified in the schedule before you attend lab.

Most lab exercises include group work, but write up your own stuff because you will be graded on your own work. We expect you to attend lab each week from 1 to 3:50 p.m. If you finish early, you must hand in your completed assignment before you go. If you have not finished the exercise by 3:50 p.m., hand it in the following week at the beginning of lab.

***MISSED LABS*** If you miss a lab, you may instead read Colin Fletcher's The Man Who Walked Through Time, and write a 3-5 paper on this book. See your lab teacher for guidance on paper topics. Any other missed labs receive a grade of zero, unless you have a note from a doctor or a dean. In addition, you are responsible for knowing the material covered in labs that you have missed.

LECTURES

The purpose of lectures is to deepen your knowledge of geology. We expect you to complete the reading listed in the syllabus before each lecture. You may know a lot about some lecture topics because of your work in the labs. During lectures, you will see slides that will illustrate concepts in more detail. Lectures aren't always about lecturing; short activities during this time will give you the opportunity to work with new concepts, interpret charts and graphs, and practice solving problems similar to those on the exams.

EXAMS

Four noncumulative exams (see Class Schedule for dates) will cover material from labs, lectures, and the reading. The format of exams will include, fill-in-the-blank, short answer and true/false questions. Exams are in class, and the first segment of your time will be spent on your own exam. The exam you turn in after this first segment will constitute most of your exam grade (two thirds). During an optional second segment, you will receive a fresh copy of the exam and have the opportunity to take the exam again while working with your book and other students (one third). The exam you turn in after this second segment will constitute part of your exam grade only if it is an improvement over your first exam.

Your lowest exam grade will be dropped from your record. In other words, only three of your four exams will count towards your final grade. If you miss an exam, the resulting grade of zero will be your lowest exam grade. If you have a documented learning disability, please contact Michelle well in advance to consider a different arrangement.

ACTIVITIES and ASSESSMENT

50% exams (each exam has equal weight)

45% labs (each lab has equal weight)

5% lab quiz (see schedule)

Final grades will be in the form of A (94-100%), A- (90-93%), B+ (87-89%), B (83-86%), B- (80-82%), C+ (77-79%), C (73-76%), C- (70-72%)... We will consider a curve if and only if the final median grade of the class is lower than a B.

Week	Day/Date	Lecture: Chapter/Topic	Lab:	Reading	Lab Topic
1st day	Wed 1/26	Introductory Lecture: Understanding Earth		Ch. 1	No lab this week
Week 1	Mon 1/31	Ch. 9 - Earthquakes		Ch. 2	Lab 1 - Mineral Identification
	Wed 2/2	Ch. 10 - Earth's Interior
Week 2	Mon 2/7	Ch. 2 - Minerals*		Ch. 3	Lab 2 - Bowen's reaction series (2-4 PM)
	Wed 2/9	EXAM #1
Week 3	Mon 2/14	Ch. 3 - Igneous Rocks		Ch. 3, 6	Lab 3 - Igneous & Sedimentary Rock Identification
	Wed 2/16	Ch. 4 - Volcanism
Week 4	Mon 2/21	Ch. 5 - Weathering, Erosion, and Soil		Ch. 1, 7	QUIZ and Lab 4 - The Rock Cycle
	Wed 2/23	Ch. 6 - Sediment and Sedimentary Rocks
Week 5	Mon 2/28	Ch. 7 - Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rocks		App. D	Lab 5a - Topographic Maps
	Wed 3/2	Ch. 8 - Geologic Time
Week 6	Mon 3/7	Ch. 12 - Plate Tectonics		App. D	Lab 5b - Topographic Maps
	Wed 3/9	EXAM #2
March 14 Week: SPRING BREAK!
Week 7	Mon 3/21	Ch. 13 - Deformation, Mtn. Building, and Continents		Ch. 13	Lab 6 - Geologic Maps
	Wed 3/23	The Bedrock Geologic History of the CT River Valley
Week 8	Mon 3/28	Ch. 14 - Mass Wasting		Ch. 5, 6	Lab 7 - Grand Canyon
	Wed 3/30	Ch. 15 - Running Water
Week 9	Mon 4/4	Ch. 16 - Ground Water		Ch. 16	Lab 8 - Groundwater
	Wed 4/6	EXAM #3
Week 10	Mon 4/11	Ch. 17 - Glaciers and Glaciation		lab manual & Ch. 16	Lab 9 - Yucca Mountain Project, Nevada
	Wed 4/13	Quaternary History of the CT River Valley
Week 11	Mon 4/18	Ch. 18 - Wind and Deserts		class notes 3/23	Lab 10 - Field Trip: Mesozoic Bedrock of the CT River Valley
	Wed 4/20	Ch. 11 - The Seafloor
Week 12	Mon 4/25	Ch. 19 - Shorelines and Shoreline Processes		class notes 4/13	Lab 11 - Field Trip: Quaternary History of the CT River Valley
	Wed 4/27	Ch. 20 - A History of the Universe
Last Day	Mon 5/2	EXAM #4