Course Description
Chemical composition, dynamics, and processes of life in the oceans and the role the life of the oceans plays in global processes.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
All undergraduate and graduate students will take the same midterm and final exams. In addition, graduate students will be required to write a 10-15 page term paper on a current problem in oceanography which will integrate the subdisciplines of oceanography discussed in lectures.
Athena Title
Biol Chem Oceanography
Prerequisite
[(BIOL 1108 and BIOL 1108L) or BIOL 2108H] and CHEM 1212
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Students will know the chemical composition, dynamics and processes of life in the oceans and the role the biochemistry of the oceans play in global processes. Students will understand the basic principles by which the ocean lives function and learn how to explain complex natural systems using their knowledge of basic sciences (chemistry and biology). Students will be evaluated on their knowledge on both chemical and biological oceanography and their ability to incorporate the components from the two disciplines into a coherent picture of biochemical cycling in the oceans. An essay component to the course will require students to write effectively in a mature style, assimilating information and presenting the results of their analysis on a specific topic. Tests and homeworks will be geared towards critical thinking and process oriented problems, requiring integration of material from all the areas of oceanography covered in the course. Students will be expected to be able to assimilate, analyze and present information in written form suitable for a variety of academic contexts. Students will be expected to interpret evidence and develop inferences and arguments from them.
Topical Outline
Introduction to the ocean environment: Properties of water Salts and minor components of seawater Vertical distributions of elements Vertical and global distributions of density, temperature, salinity Mixed layer dynamics Thermohaline circulation Wind-driven circulation Chemical Oceanography: Carbon and the global carbon cycle The carbonate system Organic carbon: dissolved and particulate Biological and solubility pumps Residence times pH and ocean acidification Gases: oxygen, carbon dioxide, and trace gases Oxygen minimum zones and hypoxia Major nutrients cycles: N, P, Si Nutrient ratios and stoichiometry Iron and trace elements Primary productivity: Light in the oceans Phytoplankton Production dynamics: responses to light and mixing Measuring rates of production and respiration Limitation styles Microbial communities: Bacteria and viruses Microbial metabolism Microbial food webs Higher trophic levels: Zooplankton Grazing and secondary production The herbivorous food web Fish Marine Fisheries Marine environments: Mesopelagic environments Surface biome classifications Subtropical gyres Equatorial Regions and Upwelling Systems North Atlantic Sub-Arctic Arctic Ocean Southern Ocean Global climate change: effects on ecosystems and ocean chemistry
Syllabus