Earth processes and utilization of geological materials (plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanism, hydrology, erosion). Pollution, sustainability, and energy resources related to environmental geology, rocks and minerals, and evolution of landforms. Emphasis on scientific methods, quantitative reasoning for the calculation of geomechanical properties, geologic hazards and risks, and spatial analysis.
Athena Title
Earth Processes and Environs
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in GEOL 1121, GEOL 1121H, GEOL 1250, GEOL 2350H
Non-Traditional Format
This course will be taught 95% or more online.
Semester Course Offered
Offered summer semester every year.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student Learning Outcomes
Student will organize the processes and concepts of geologic time, plate tectonics, surficial processes, energy and mineral resource extraction and use, and pollution/waste disposal over the range of spatial and temporal scales at which they apply.
Students will be able to interpret these processes at larger or smaller spatial and temporal scales based on observations at any particular scale.
Students will contrast and compare the physical processes whereby the Earth formed in the past to modern processes currently observable.
Students will interpret responses to system perturbation that are natural and/or anthropogenic.
Students will assess human impacts on natural systems, including consequences of energy production and mineral extraction, water use, waste disposal, water and air pollution, and estimate how these activities affect global element cycling, climate change, and resource depletion as well as impacts to society.
Students will analyze geologic processes, evaluate data-driven conclusions, and develop solutions to problems related to Earth's dynamic systems and human interactions with the environment.
Topical Outline
Earth in Space
Earth Materials: The Rock Cycle
Plate Tectonics: The Plate Cycle
Rocks and Plate Boundaries
Earthquakes and Plate Boundaries
Surface Processes
Climate Change and Sustainability
Water Cycle
Earth Resources
Water Resources
Mineral Resources
Fossil Fuels
Air Quality
Impact of Resource Utilization: Mitigation and Alternatives
