Geology 220
Introduction
Plate tectonic theory gained widespread acceptance in the earth science community less than 40 years ago. The theory explains the origins of volcanoes and earthquakes and the locations of mountain belts and oceans. We will explore topics such as the structure of the Earth, earthquake analysis and prediction, the creation and destruction of the ocean floor, and the location and style of mountain building across the globe. Weekly writing assignments, homework exercises, and a group laboratory project are required.Learning goals
Much of your success in this course will be measured on your ability to think like a scientist and solve problems using a variety of tools rather than your ability to recall facts (although a moderate amount of recollection is necessary, too). Upon your successful completion of this course, I hope you will:- Cultivate curiosity: develop observational and quantitative skills appropriate for analytical and modeling methods of geoscience inquiry.
- Communicate orally: ask questions, collaborate with peers, and engage thoughtfully and respectfully in discussions.
- Communicate in writing: write about scientific data, observations, and interpretations using appropriate vocabulary and style.
- Communicate visually: be able to extract information from maps as well as draw and describe graphical representations of data and ideas.
- Plate tectonics content: describe the behavior and characteristics of mid-ocean ridge systems, transform faults, subduction zones, and lithospheric plates.
Text
Kearey, Klepeis, and Vine. Global Tectonics, third edition. Blackwell Science. (It's purple and quite different from the second edition, which is green.)Bring to class daily
- the geoKit with various supplies
- a calculator
- the textbook
Technology guidelines
In general, I do not allow laptops during class but they can be useful in lab (but turn off all notifications, please). Tablets are a maybe--check with me first. I loathe seeing phones during class and lab unless you are using them for the calculator app. And even then, I’d prefer that you use a real calculator. You will need access to a calculator for exams, so you might as well locate one. Also, you may not photograph the board or record classes without permission. Come talk to me about your technology needs if any of these statements are an issue.Grading
This is the breakdown for grading. For more information about each category, continue reading below this list.- 30% - Exams
- 15% - Homework and quizzes
- 15% - Laboratory exercises
- 10% - Group laboratory project
- 30% - Plate tectonics wiki
Exams
There will be two midterms for this course (probably weeks 4/5 and 8th weekend) and no final exam. At least one of the midterms may be a take-home exam.Homework and quizzes
There are ~5 homework exercises that I will assign throughout the term. These are designed to allow exploration of important concepts in plate tectonics, often in a bit more mathematical detail, than we’ll cover in class. Be sure to start the homework early so you can come talk to me if you have questions.Labs
Labs represent one of the best ways for you to practice and really understand ideas and concepts discussed in class. Please be neat and turn in work on time.Participation
It is always important to attend class. During the pandemic, this is true both for your education and for the social connections that the course can provide. We will work around illness as best we can--be sure to email me if you need to miss class.Group project
There will be a group project for this course carried out during several of the lab meetings later in the term. Details to come.Plate tectonics wiki
In this course, you will be writing an article about a tectonic plate, or part of a plate, on the lab wiki. Please note at the start that I do not know all the answers about each plate; you will often be discovering information on your own. ChatGPT and other generative AI are not permitted for any aspect of this assignment. Writing is form of thinking. I want to see how you think and write and I want to help you become even better at both.The structure of this assignment is not like a normal term paper that you write in a few days at the end of term. Instead, there will be short, focused, weekly writing assignments that are often loosely related to the course material. This way, you have a chance to apply what we discuss in class to your own personal test case. Peer editing is an important part of this writing assignment - you'll edit other's pages each week following a new writing assignment. At the end of the term, you will have time to revise and reorganize your article based on comments of your peers and Sarah.
Please note that this assignment may (and should) take 3-4 hours per week outside of class, especially later in the term as the topics become more research-based. Sophomores may want to consider including part or all of their article in their writing portfolio.
You may have one late assignment in the term. Late means that there is no substantial text at the time that I provide comments. I suggest that you skip that section until the end of the term and keep up with the remaining assignments. I will provide comments for one late section if there is text by Friday of Week 9.
In addition to grading each section, I also pay attention to the following components in your wiki grade: figures, quality of revisions, number and quality of citations, formatting, peer editing, meeting the wiki TA, and completing sections on time.