printer friendly pageGS 4: Coevolution of Earth and Life (EARTHSYS 4)
Earth is the only planet in the universe currently known to harbor life. When and how did Earth become inhabited? How have biological activities altered the planet? How have environmental changes affected the evolution of life? Are we living in a sixth mass extinction? In this course, we will develop and use the tools of geology, paleontology, geochemistry, and modeling that allow us to reconstruct Earth¿s 4.5 billion year history and to reconstruct the interactions between life and its host planet over the past 4 billion years. We will also ask what this long history can tell us about life¿s likely future on Earth. We will also use One half-day field trip.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
GS 5: Living on the Edge (EARTH 15)
A weekend field trip along the Pacific Coast. Tour local beaches, geology, and landforms with expert guides from the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences. Enjoy a BBQ dinner and stay overnight in tents along the Santa Cruz coast. Get to know faculty and graduate students in Stanford Earth. Requirements: Two campus meeting and weekend field trip (Fall Quarter: Nov 5-6; Spring Quarter: April 8-9) to Pacific Coast. Enrollment limited to 25. Freshman have first choice. If you are interested in signing up for the course, complete this form:
http://web.stanford.edu/~aferree/GS5.fb
Terms: Aut, Spr
| Units: 1
GS 42N: Landscapes and Tectonics of the San Francisco Bay Area
Active faulting and erosion in the Bay Area, and its effects upon landscapes. Earth science concepts and skills through investigation of the valley, mountain, and coastal areas around Stanford. Faulting associated with the San Andreas Fault, coastal processes along the San Mateo coast, uplift of the mountains by plate tectonic processes, and landsliding in urban and mountainous areas. Field excursions; student projects.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: WAY-AQR, WAY-SMA
GS 101: Environmental and Geological Field Studies in the Rocky Mountains (EARTHSYS 100, ESS 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)
GS 102: Earth Materials: Introduction to Mineralogy
The minerals and materials that comprise the earth and their uses in modern society. How to identify, classify, and interpret rock-forming minerals. Emphasis is on information provided by common minerals about the nature of the Earth's interior and processes such as magmatism and metamorphism that operate there, as well as the major processes of weathering and erosion that link plate tectonics to earth cycles. Required lab section. Prerequisite: introductory geology course. Recommended: introductory chemistry.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
GS 105: Introduction to Field Methods
Two-week, field-based course in the White Mountains of eastern California. Introduction to the techniques for geologic mapping and geologic investigation in the field: systematic observations and data collection for lithologic columns and structural cross-sections. Interpretation of field relationships and data to determine the stratigraphic and deformational history of the region. Prerequisite:
GS 1, recommended:
GS 102.
Terms: Aut, Spr
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Grove, M. (PI)
GS 121: What Makes a Habitable Planet? (GS 221)
Physical processes affecting habitability such as large impacts and the atmospheric greenhouse effect, comets, geochemistry, the rise of oxygen, climate controls, and impact cratering. Detecting and interpreting the spectra of extrasolar terrestrial planets. Student-led discussions of readings from the scientific literature. Team taught by planetary scientists from NASA Ames Research Center.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
GS 130: Soil Physics and Hydrology
The occurrence, distribution, circulation, and reaction of water at the surface and within the near surface. Topics: precipitation, evapotranspiration, infiltration and vadose zone, groundwater, surface water and streamflow generation, and water balance estimates. Current and classic theory in soil physics and hydrology. Urban, rangeland, and forested environments.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER: DB-NatSci, WAY-SMA
Instructors:
Loague, K. (PI)
GS 150: Senior Seminar: Issues in Earth Sciences (GEOPHYS 199)
Focus is on written and oral communication in a topical context. Topics from current frontiers in earth science research and issues of concern to the public. Readings, oral presentations, written work, and peer review.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Bird, D. (PI)
;
Martin, V. (PI)
GS 163: Introduction to Isotope Geochemistry (GS 263)
Isotopic variations in nature provide key insights into the age of the Earth and its rocks, as well as the evolution of Earth's major reservoirs, including the mantle, crust and hydrosphere. How do we know the age of the Earth? When did continents first form? How have the oceans changed through time? This course will address these and related topics by focusing on the fundamental processes that govern isotopic variations, including radioactive decay, mass dependent isotope fractionation and dynamic transfers between reservoirs.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Maher, K. (PI)
;
Turner, K. (TA)
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