Students will learn the basic physical, chemical, and geological 
oceanographic processes which operate in the coastal zone.  
Emphasis will be placed on the interrelationship among the 
subdisciplines of coastal oceanography,with intensive 
instruction in laboratory methods and field measurements.  Field 
trips will include day cruises on an oceanographic research 
vessel and participation in ongoing investigations on estuarine, 
coastal, and shelf processes.  In addition to learning
about the basic oceanographic research problems in the
nearshore zone, students will also learn about environmental 
problems inherent to this region.  Students will be evaluated on 
their participation in the lecture, laboratory, and field 
components and on an independently-designed and executed 
research project.

All undergraduate and graduate students will take the same 
exams.  In addition, graduate students will be required to write 
a 5-10 page research proposal outlining a research project on a 
current problem in oceanography.

Experiential Learning: This course is at its core experiential.  
It is taught off-campus at the Marine Institute on Sapelo 
Island, at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, or at field 
sites such as Costa Rica, Moorea and Fiji; it gives students 
hands-on experience with state-of-the-art oceanographic 
equipment and techniques; and it provides students with the 
opportunity to work closely with a faculty member to design and 
carry out a research project, to analyze and synthesize the 
results, and to communicate those results to other course 
participants.

Lectures, laboratory, and field exercises will cover the following topics as they
apply to the coastal zone.  Emphasis will be placed on 
interrelationships between physical, chemical, biological, and geological processes,
with some consideration of anthropogenic influences
on coastal processes.

Coastal Physical Oceanographic Processes
	Tides
	Wind-Driven Currents
	Estuarine Processes
	Stratification
Coastal Depositional Processes and Environments
Biogeochemical Processes and Cycling In the Coastal Zone
	Organic Matter Sources and Sinks
	Diagenesis
	Origin and Fate of Anthropogenic Compounds in Coastal Regions
Benthic Processes
	Organism-Sediment-Flow Interactions
	Organism-Geochemical Interactions
	Bethic Primary Production
Water Column Processes
	Primary and Secondary Production
	Planktonic Ecosystems
	Microbial Food Webs
	Reproductive Ecology/Larval Transport
	Remote Sensing

It is the student's responsibility to be familiar with the 
University of Georgia's policy on academic honesty as published 
in the booklet "A Culture of Honesty: Policies and Procedures on 
Academic Honesty." Evidence of academic dishonesty will be 
turned over to the Office of the Vice President for Instruction 
for consideration and possible action. The minimum penalty for a 
student found guilty of academic dishonesty is a grade of "F" in 
the course and a note on the student's transcript. There have 
been several recent changes in the academic honesty policy at 
UGA.  This information is available on-line at 
[http://www.uga.edu/~vpaa]. Click on the UGA Academic Honesty 
Policy statement.