Results for GS

Introduction to the history of the Earth, with a focus on processes that maintain or threaten habitability. Principles of stratigraphy, correlation, the geological timescale, the history of biodiversity, and the interpretation of fossils. The use of data from sedimentary geology, geochemistry, and paleontology to test theories for critical events in Earth history such as mass extinctions. One half-day field trip.

Explore the history and natural science of three national parks proximal to Stanford. Under the guidance of instructors, students will work in teams to learn about chosen aspects of these parks, develop dynamic self-guided tours for public consumption, and implement (and publish) these tours using the XibitEd app for iPhones. Students will learn how to present their findings to a general, non-scientific audience, delineate physical locations at which storytelling will take place through the XibitEd system, and create and configure the content for the system. The course will culminate in the publishing of the experiential learning tours, as well as a weekend-long field trip to the Pinnacles National Park

This course examines the motivations and experiences of polar explorers under the harshest conditions on Earth, as well as the chronicles of their explorations and hardships, dating to the 1500s for the Arctic and the 1700s for the Antarctic. Materials include The Worst Journey in the World by Aspley Cherry-Garrard who in 1911 participated in a midwinter Antarctic sledging trip to recover emperor penguin eggs. Optional field trip into the high Sierra in March.

Preference to sophomores. Components of multidisciplinary environmental problems and ethical questions associated with decision making in the regulatory arena. Students lead discussions on environmental issues such as groundwater contamination from point and nonpoint sources, cumulative watershed effects related to timber and mining practices, acid rain, and subsurface disposal of nuclear waste.

In order to reduce CO2 emissions and meet growing energy demands during the 21st Century, the world can expect to experience major shifts in the types and proportions of energy-producing systems. These decisions will depend on considerations of cost per energy unit, resource availability, and unique national policy needs. Less often considered is the environmental impact of the different energy producing systems: fossil fuels, nuclear, wind, solar, and other alternatives. One of the challenges has been not only to evaluate the environmental impact but also to develop a systematic basis for comparison of environmental impact among the energy sources. The course will consider fossil fuels (natural gas, petroleum and coal), nuclear power, wind and solar and consider the impact of resource extraction, refining and production, transmission and utilization for each energy source.

Preference to sophomores. Topics include: geologic processes that led to the concentration of gold in the river gravels and rocks of the Mother Lode region of California; and environmental impact of the Gold Rush due to population increase, mining operations, and high concentrations of arsenic and mercury in sediments from hard rock mining and milling operations. Recommended: introductory geology.

The chemistry of the solid earth and its atmosphere and oceans, emphasizing the processes that control the distribution of the elements in the earth over geological time and at present, and on the conceptual and analytical tools needed to explore these questions. The basics of geochemical thermodynamics and isotope geochemistry. The formation of the elements, crust, atmosphere and oceans, global geochemical cycles, and the interaction of geochemistry, biological evolution, and climate. Recommended: introductory chemistry.

Use of petrographic microscope to identify minerals and common mineral associations in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. Crystallization histories, mineral growth and reaction relations, deformation textures in metamorphic rocks, and provenance of siliciclastic rocks. Required lab section. Prerequisite 102.

Techniques for mapping using GPS and differential geometry to characterize structures; dimensional analysis and scaling relations; kinematics of deformation and flow; measurement and analysis of stress; elastic deformation and properties of rock; brittle deformation including fracture and faulting; linear viscous flow including folding and magma dynamics; model development and methodology. Models of tectonic processes are constructed and solutions visualized using MATLAB. Prerequisites: GS 1, MATH 51

Explore the history and natural science of three national parks proximal to Stanford. Under the guidance of instructors, students will work in teams to learn about chosen aspects of these parks, develop dynamic self-guided tours for public consumption, and implement (and publish) these tours using the XibitEd app for iPhones. Students will learn how to present their findings to a general, non-scientific audience, delineate physical locations at which storytelling will take place through the XibitEd system, and create and configure the content for the system. The course will culminate in the publishing of the experiential learning tours, as well as a weekend-long field trip to the Pinnacles National Park

This class connects the science behind natural disasters with the real-world constraints of disaster management and development. In each iteration of this class we will focus on a specific, disaster-prone location as case study. By collaborating with local stakeholders we will explore how science and engineering can make a make a difference in reducing disaster risk in the future. Offered every other year.

(Students with a strong background in mathematics and the physical sciences should register for 222.) Motions of planets and smaller bodies, energy transport in planetary systems, composition, structure and dynamics of planetary atmospheres, cratering on planetary surfaces, properties of meteorites, asteroids and comets, extrasolar planets, and planetary formation. Prerequisite: some background in the physical sciences, especially astronomy, geophysics, or physics.

The what, when, and how do we know it regarding life on land¿including plants, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates (yes, dinosaurs)¿and how all of those components interact with each other and with changing climates, continental drift, atmospheric composition, and environmental perturbations like glaciation and mass extinction.

Materials of the Earth and hydrologically driven landscape processes. Topics: hillslope hydrology, weathering of rocks and soils, erosion, flow failures, mass wasting, and conceptual models of landscape evolution. Current and classic theory in geomorphology.

Solid, aqueous, and gaseous phases comprising the environment, their natural compositional variations, and chemical interactions. Contrast between natural sources of hazardous elements and compounds and types and sources of anthropogenic contaminants and pollutants. Chemical and physical processes of weathering and soil formation. Chemical factors that affect the stability of solids and aqueous species under earth surface conditions. The release, mobility, and fate of contaminants in natural waters and the roles that water and dissolved substances play in the physical behavior of rocks and soils. The impact of contaminants and design of remediation strategies. Case studies. Prerequisite: 90 or consent of instructor.

Field seminar. Three class meetings during Winter quarter followed by a 6-day field trip over Spring Break to Mojave Desert, Death Valley, and Owens Valley. Basin-and-range faulting, alluvial fans, playas, sand dunes, metamorphic rocks, granites of the Sierra Nevada, lava flows and and the deposits of supervolcanic eruptions, hot springs, ore deposits, and desert landscapes. Involves camping and some hiking. Recommended: introductory geology. Enrollment limited to 25 students; preference given to freshman and sophomores; additionally graduate students in the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences.

Four- to seven-day field trips to locations of geologic and environmental interest. Includes trips offered during Thanksgiving and Spring breaks. May be repeated for credit.

Field-, lab-, or literature-based. Faculty supervision. Written reports. May be repeated for credit.

For seniors who wish to write a thesis based on research in 192 or as a summer research fellow. May not be repeated for credit; may not be taken if enrolled in 199.

Reading and instruction under faculty supervision. Written reports. May be repeated for credit.

Research on a topic of special interest. See "Undergraduate Honors Program" above.nMay be repeated for credit.

Microstructures in metamorphic rocks reveal temperature, pressure, and rates of deformation in the crust and variations in its thermo-mechanical behavior. Topics include the rheology of rocks and minerals, strain partitioning, shear zones and brittle-ductile transition in the crust, mechanisms of foliation and lineation development, preferred crystallographic fabrics, and geochronologic methods useful for dating deformation. Labs involve microstructure analysis of suites of rocks from classic localities. 5 units for extra project.

For upper division undergraduates and graduate students. Topics vary each year but the focus is on current developments and problems in sedimentary geology, sedimentology, and basin analysis. These include issues in deep-water sediments, their origin, facies, and architecture; sedimentary systems on the early Earth; and relationships among tectonics, basin development, and basin fill. May be repeated for credit.

Quantitative field and laboratory data integrated with solutions to boundary value problems of continuum mechanics to understand tectonic processes in Earth's crust that lead to the development of geological structures including folds, faults, fractures and fabrics. Topics include: techniques and tools for structural mapping¿ differential geometry to characterize structures¿ dimensional analysis and scaling relations¿ kinematics of deformation and flow¿ traction and stress analysis, conservation of mass and momentum in a deformable continuum¿ linear elastic deformation and elastic properties¿ brittle deformation including fracture and faulting¿ model development and methodology. Data sets analyzed using MATLAB. Prerequisites: GS 1, MATH 53, MATLAB or equivalent.

This class connects the science behind natural disasters with the real-world constraints of disaster management and development. In each iteration of this class we will focus on a specific, disaster-prone location as case study. By collaborating with local stakeholders we will explore how science and engineering can make a make a difference in reducing disaster risk in the future. Offered every other year.

(Students with a strong background in mathematics and the physical sciences should register for 222.) Motions of planets and smaller bodies, energy transport in planetary systems, composition, structure and dynamics of planetary atmospheres, cratering on planetary surfaces, properties of meteorites, asteroids and comets, extrasolar planets, and planetary formation. Prerequisite: some background in the physical sciences, especially astronomy, geophysics, or physics.

For earth scientists and engineers. Environmental, geologic, and water resource problems involving migration of contaminated groundwater through porous media and associated biogeochemical and fluid-rock reactions. Conceptual and quantitative treatment of advective-dispersive transport with reacting solutes. Predictive models of contaminant behavior controlled by local equilibrium and kinetics. Modern methods of contaminant transport simulation and reactive transport modeling using geochemical transport software. Some Matlab programming / program modification required. Prerequisite: Physical Hydrogeology ESS 220 / CEE 260A (Gorelick) or equivalent. Recommended: course work in environmental chemistry or geochemistry (e.g., one or more of the following: ESS 155, ESS 156/256 GS 90, GS 170/279, GS 171, CEE 177 or CEE 270).

The what, when, and how do we know it regarding life on land¿including plants, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates (yes, dinosaurs)¿and how all of those components interact with each other and with changing climates, continental drift, atmospheric composition, and environmental perturbations like glaciation and mass extinction.

Comprehensive overview and taxonomy of data science (statistics, machine learning & computer vision) relevant for geological sciences, as well as other Earth Sciences. Areas covered are: extreme value statistics for predicting rare geological events; compositional data analysis for geochemistry; multivariate analysis for design of geological data & computer experiments; probabilistic aggregation of evidence for potential mapping; functional data analysis for multivariate environmental datasets, dimension reduction methods for analysis & visualization of geological data & models; sensitivity analysis of coupled physical/chemical numerical models; machine learning-based classification & regression for building surrogate computational models; identification & learning of geological objects with computer vision. Focus on practicality rather than theory. Matlab exercises on realistic data problems.

Examine the physical processes operating in sedimentary basins by deriving the basic equations of fundamental, coupled geologic processes such as fluid flow and heat flow, deposition, compaction, mass conservation, and chemical reactions. Through hands-on computational exercises and instructor-provided "recipes," students will deconstruct the black box of basin modeling software. Students write their own codes (Matlab) as well as gain expertise in modern finite-element modeling software (PetroMod, COMSOL).

Solid, aqueous, and gaseous phases comprising the environment, their natural compositional variations, and chemical interactions. Contrast between natural sources of hazardous elements and compounds and types and sources of anthropogenic contaminants and pollutants. Chemical and physical processes of weathering and soil formation. Chemical factors that affect the stability of solids and aqueous species under earth surface conditions. The release, mobility, and fate of contaminants in natural waters and the roles that water and dissolved substances play in the physical behavior of rocks and soils. The impact of contaminants and design of remediation strategies. Case studies. Prerequisite: 90 or consent of instructor.

Current topics including new analytical techniques, advances in isotopic measurements, and new isotopic approaches and systems. May be repeat for credit for total completion of 5 and total unit allowed 15.

Current research topics. Presentations by guest speakers from Stanford and elsewhere. May be repeated for credit.

Field trips for teaching and research purposes. Trips average 5-10 days. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.

May be repeated for credit.

Two-three week field research projects. Written report required. May be repeated three times.

Quantitative methods to analyze digital topography and to interpret rates of tectonic and geomorphic processes from topographic metrics. Topics include analysis of digital topography using local and neighborhood-based methods, spectral methods, and wavelet methods. Course consists of two one hour lectures per week and one laboratory section that will help students gain proficiency in calculating topographic metrics using ArcGIS and Matlab.

Classic studies and current journal articles. May be repeated for credit.

Weekly student presentations on continental collision tectonics, sedimentology, petrology, geomorphology, climate, culture, and other topics of interest. Students create a guidebook of geologic stops in advance of field trip. May be repeated for credit.

On-the-job training in the geosciences. May include summer internship; emphasizes training in applied aspects of the geosciences, and technical, organizational, and communication dimensions. Meets USCIS requirements for F-1 curricular practical training.n (Staff)

Graduate research projects that lead to reports, papers, or other products during the quarter taken. On registration, students designate faculty member and agreed-upon units.

Faculty supervision. On registration, students designate faculty member and agreed-upon units.