GEOL 1401 - EARTH SCIENCE FOR NON-MAJORS I

> catalog > geology > GEOL 1401 - EARTH SCIENCE FOR NON-MAJORS I

Survey of geology, meteorology, oceanography, and astronomy. 

Lab activities will cover methods used to collect and analyze data in geology, meteorology, oceanography, and astronomy.

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Explain the current theories concerning the origin of the Universe and of the Solar System.

• Explain the place of Earth in the Solar System and its relationships with other objects in the Solar System.

• Relate the origin and evolution of Earth’s internal structures to its resulting geologic systems, including Earth materials and plate tectonic activities.

• Explain the operation of Earth’s geologic systems and the interactions among the atmosphere, the geosphere, and the hydrosphere, including meteorology and oceanography.

• Explain the history of the Earth including the evolution of earth systems and life forms.

• Classify rocks and minerals based on chemical composition, physical properties, and origin.

• Apply knowledge of topographic maps, diagrams, and/or photographs to identify landforms and explain the processes that created them.

• Differentiate the types of plate boundaries, explain the processes that occur at each and identify associated structural features on maps, block diagrams and cross sections.

• Apply relative and numerical age-dating techniques to construct geologic histories.

• Measure atmospheric processes that affect weather and climate.

• Describe the composition and motion of ocean water and analyze the factors controlling both.

• Compare properties and motions of objects in the solar system.

• Demonstrate the collection, analysis, and reporting of data.

Grade Basis: L
Credit Hours: 4
Lecture hours: 48.0
Lab hours: 32.0

GEOL 1402 - EARTH SCIENCES FOR NON-MAJORS II

> catalog > geology > GEOL 1402 - EARTH SCIENCES FOR NON-MAJORS II

Extension of the study of geology, astronomy, meteorology and oceanography, focusing on natural resources, hazards and climate variability. This laboratory-based course will focus on methods used to collect and analyze data related to natural resources, hazards and climate variability.

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Identify the influence of geologic and hydrologic processes on Earth’s surface.

• Describe the causes and effects of tectonic, meteorological, oceanographic, and astronomical hazards.

• Relate climate change to changes in tectonic configurations, astronomical relationships and atmospheric composition.

• Discuss potential effects of climate variability on Earth systems, including biological systems.

• Recognize how scientific models represent an abstraction of complex systems, such as ocean circulation and climate variability.

• Describe natural resources used by humans and their occurrence and extraction.

• Discuss the effects of renewable and nonrenewable resource development and sustainability.

• Locate on maps and/or photographs localities susceptible to tectonic, meteorological, and oceanographic hazards.

• Discuss methods of hazard prevention and mitigation such as early warning techniques, construction methods, and civil planning.

• Describe contributing factors to past and current climate change.

• Analyze effects of climate variability on geological and biological systems.

• Analyze diverse sources of data that document climate variability such as ice cores, dendrochronology, fossils, and pollen.

• Relate the distribution of fossil fuel, metal and nonmetal resources to geologic processes.

• Describe the methods of extraction of natural resources and their effect on the environment.

• Describe renewable resources and methods of sustainability.

Grade Basis: L
Credit Hours: 4
Lecture hours: 48.0
Lab hours: 32.0

Prerequisites:

• GEOL 1401 - EARTH SCIENCE FOR NON-MAJORS I