Stanford University Explore Courses

ESS 60: Food, Water and War: Life on the Mekong

Preparatory course for Bing Overseas Studies summer course in Cambodia. Prerequisite. Requires instructor consent.

ESS 61Q: Food and security (EARTHSYS 61Q, INTNLREL 61Q)

The course will provide a broad overview of key policy issues concerning agricultural development and food security, and will assess how global governance is addressing the problem of food security. At the same time the course will provide an overview of the field of international security, and examine how governments and international institutions are beginning to include food in discussions of security.

Last offered: Autumn 2015

ESS 101: Environmental and Geological Field Studies in the Rocky Mountains (EARTHSYS 100, GS 101)

Three-week, field-based program in the Greater Yellowstone/Teton and Wind River Mountains of Wyoming. Field-based exercises covering topics including: basics of structural geology and petrology; glacial geology; western cordillera geology; paleoclimatology; chemical weathering; aqueous geochemistry; and environmental issues such as acid mine drainage and changing land-use patterns.

Terms: Aut | Units: 3

Instructors: Chamberlain, P. (PI)

ESS 106: World Food Economy (EARTHSYS 106, EARTHSYS 206, ECON 106, ECON 206, ESS 206)

The economics of food production, consumption, and trade. The micro- and macro- determinants of food supply and demand, including the interrelationship among food, income, population, and public-sector decision making. Emphasis on the role of agriculture in poverty alleviation, economic development, and environmental outcomes. (graduate students enroll in 206)

Terms: Spr | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: WAY-SI

Instructors: Burke, M. (PI) ; Naylor, R. (PI) ; Bieler, S. (TA) ... more instructors for ESS 106 »

Instructors: Burke, M. (PI) ; Naylor, R. (PI) ; Bieler, S. (TA) ; Budiansky, E. (TA) ; Maue, C. (TA)

ESS 107: Control of Nature (EARTHSYS 107)

Think controlling the earth's climate is science fiction? It is when you watch Snowpiercer or Dune, but scientists are already devising geoengineering schemes to slow climate change. Will we ever resurrect the woolly mammoth or even a T. Rex (think Jurassic Park)? Based on current research, that day will come in your lifetime. Who gets to decide what species to save? And more generally, what scientific and ethical principles should guide our decisions to control nature? In this course, we will examine the science behind ways that people alter and engineer the earth, critically examining the positive and negative consequences. We'll explore these issues first through popular movies and books and then, more substantively, in scientific research.

Terms: Spr | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: WAY-ER

Instructors: Jackson, R. (PI) ; Reji, L. (PI) ; Lebel, E. (TA)

ESS 108: Research Preparation for Undergraduates

For undergraduates planning to conduct research during the summer with faculty through the MUIR and SUPER programs. Readings, oral presentations, proposal development. May be repeated for credit.

Terms: Spr | Units: 1

Instructors: Field, C. (PI) ; Jackson, R. (PI)

ESS 111: Biology and Global Change (BIO 117, EARTHSYS 111)

The biological causes and consequences of anthropogenic and natural changes in the atmosphere, oceans, and terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. Topics: glacial cycles and marine circulation, greenhouse gases and climate change, tropical deforestation and species extinctions, and human population growth and resource use. Prerequisite: Biology or Human Biology core or graduate standing.

Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA

Instructors: Arrigo, K. (PI) ; Vitousek, P. (PI) ; Paulus, L. (TA)

ESS 112: Human Society and Environmental Change (EARTHSYS 112, HISTORY 103D)

Interdisciplinary approaches to understanding human-environment interactions with a focus on economics, policy, culture, history, and the role of the state. Prerequisite: ECON 1.

Terms: Aut | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: WAY-SI

Instructors: Naylor, R. (PI) ; Wolfe, M. (PI)

ESS 117: Earth Sciences of the Hawaiian Islands (EARTH 117, EARTHSYS 117)

Progression from volcanic processes through rock weathering and soil-ecosystem development to landscape evolution. The course starts with an investigation of volcanic processes, including the volcano structure, origin of magmas, physical-chemical factors of eruptions. Factors controlling rock weathering and soil development, including depth and nutrient levels impacting plant ecosystems, are explored next. Geomorphic processes of landscape evolution including erosion rates, tectonic/volcanic activity, and hillslope stability conclude the course. Methods for monitoring and predicting eruptions, defining spatial changes in landform, landform stability, soil production rates, and measuring biogeochemical processes are covered throughout the course. This course is restricted to students accepted into the Earth Systems of Hawaii Program.

Terms: Aut | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: WAY-SMA

Instructors: Cina, S. (PI) ; Erickson, A. (PI) ; Fendorf, S. (PI) ... more instructors for ESS 117 »

Instructors: Cina, S. (PI) ; Erickson, A. (PI) ; Fendorf, S. (PI) ; Maples, S. (PI) ; Petterson, R. (PI) ; Reineman, D. (PI) ; Vitousek, P. (PI) ; Francis, E. (TA)