Earth Materials – GEOL 110

H
Earth Materials – GEOL 110
Spring Semester 2015
Instructor: Dr. Julia Perdrial, Office: 213C; Tel: (802) 656 0665;
Email:[email protected]
Teaching Assistant: John Gilbert, ([email protected]).
Office hours: MW 10:30-11:30 and by appointment;
Meeting Time: Lecture TR 1:00-2:15; Lab either T or R 2:30:5:15
Credits: 4, Pre/co-requisites: GEOL 001, GEOL 005 or GEOL 055..
Book: Earth Materials: Introduction to Mineralogy and Petrology, Cornelius Klein and
Anthony Philpotts, Cambridge University Press
Welcome to Earth Materials!
Human history is closely coupled to Earth materials. For example early cultural
evolution is classified based on Earth Materials (Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age) and we
would not have buildings, toothpaste or I-phones without minerals and assemblages of
minerals (rocks). The exploration and use of Earth Materials, especially since the industrial
revolution, confronts us with important issues of social, environmental and economic
sustainability. But Earth materials go much further back in time than the ~ 2 million years
of human history: they can tell us about Earth processes over the last billion years and
provide us with a window into the fascination history of our universe.
Whether we want to explore the Earth’s history of sea-level change, rise and fall of
mountain ranges, or the occurrence of gold, we need to be able to identify minerals and
rocks and place them into the local and regional context. In this course we will therefore
introduce basic concepts of mineralogy (chemistry, structure and properties of minerals)
and petrology (composition, structure, origin and distribution of rocks) in lab and lecture.
Course Goals: at the end of this course you will be able to
-identify samples of the common rock-forming minerals in hand samples and thin sections of
the common rocks.
-synthesize mineralogical data (visual inspection, petrographic microscopy, XRD and
SEM/EDS) to make inferences on the (plate tectonic) setting producing selected rocks.
- Critically evaluate how the use of specific Earth materials impacts social, environmental
and economic sustainability.
Lectures:
We will use lecture class meeting times to explore the necessary background across time
and spatial scales ranging from molecular scale structures to plate tectonic settings and the
history of our solar system to challenges of the Anthropocene. Using group work, discussions
and paper presentation, everybody will be engaged during class meeting times. Please get a
copy of “Earth Materials” from Klein and Philpotts to follow along.
We will also use lecture meetings for a paper presentation from each of you. For this you
will be asked to choose a scientific paper dealing with Earth materials and their importance
for human life (as a power point) to the class. Your presentation will be evaluated by me
(50%) and by your class mates (50%) but also your classmates understanding of the paper
will be assessed. We’ll have a dry run so that you’ll know what to expect and can prepare
accordingly.
Labs:
You will spend most of the lab meeting times in the petrology lab working with rocks and
minerals but we will also use the computer lab occasionally. You will receive training in the
identification minerals and rocks in hand specimen and thin sections. You will also work
towards structured, easy to read writing using language appropriate for a scientific
audience. Peer feedback will be one of the tools we will use to improve your writing skills.
Make it to the labs, it will be hard to make up for missed sessions and more that 2 missed
labs result in the failure of the course!
Transferable Skills: During this course you will also learn the following skills that are helpful
outside the scope of this course:
You will train you 3-D visualization
You will learn how to synthesize observations and data into a process interpretation
You will practice comprehensive, concise scientific writing
You will learn to solicit/use feedback to improve your own performance
Learning assessment: I will assess your learning in the following principle ways (you will
have rubrics for each of these):
•
•
•
•
•
Assignments: In two assignments will you will synthesize you knowledge (lecture) and
skills (labs) to provide a fact sheet on rocks and minerals of your choice (2*15% of
the grade).
Your final group poster will synthesize knowledge and skills you improved in labs and
lectures and include selected aspects of sustainability (20% of the grade).
Quizzes on reading and material covered in lab and lecture will test your preparation
throughout the semester (25% of the grade)
Oral presentation of a paper of your choice (20 minutes and discussion) will
contribute 10% to the final grade
Your contribution to lab and lecture discussions, group work etc. contributes 15% to
the final grade.
Teaching and Learning Style:
It’s always helpful to know about your own learning style and know what you can do to
support your own learning. Please take the “Index of Learning Styles Questionnaire”
following this link:
http://www.engr.ncsu.edu/learningstyles/ilsweb.html
The results are for yourself only, but this very simple test will help you to better
understand your learning (and probably my teaching).
Rules:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Make it to class: you can miss class twice, more missed classes will impact you
grade. If you miss classes more than 6 times you may fail the class.
If you miss more than 2 labs you will fail the course.
Please turn in your assignments in time; it will decrease your grade by 10% if
you turn it in late.
Please complete your reading, we will have graded quizzes in lab and lecture.
Please mute cell phones during class and don’t text.
Adhere to the Code of Academic Integrity (no plagiarism, fabrication,
collusion, and cheating). Deliberate offense against the code will be forwarded
to
the
Center
for
Student
Ethics
and
Standards
(see
http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmppg/ppg/student/acadintegrity.pdf
for
more
information).
Student learning accommodations: Any student with a documented disability interested in
utilizing accommodations should contact ACCESS, the office of Disability Services on
campus. ACCESS works with you to create reasonable and appropriate accommodations via
an accommodation letter to their professors as early as possible each semester.
Contact ACCESS: A170 Living/Learning Center - 802-656-7753 - [email protected].
Reading:
Earth Materials, Klein and Philpots, Cambridge University Press
Schedule (subject to changes):
Week 1:
Introduction to Earth Materials (reading Chapter 1)
(No lab)
Week 2:
Introduction to Earth Materials (reading Chapter 2)
Lab: Mineral identification (reading Chapter 4)
Week 3:
Crystal structures (reading Chapter 4)
Lab: Crystal maker
Week 4:
Crystallography (reading chapter 5)
Lab: Crystallography
Week 5:
How do igneous rocks form? (Chapter 8)
Lab: optics, igneous rocks and minerals under the microscope (Chapter 6)
Assignment due: Mineral fact sheet
Week 6:
Occurrence, classification and setting for igneous rocks (Chapter 9)
Lab: optics, igneous rocks and minerals under the microscope (Chapter 6)
Week 7:
Occurrence, classification and setting for igneous rocks (Chapter 9)
Lab: optics, igneous rocks and minerals under the microscope (Chapter 6)
Week 8: Spring break
Week 9:
Formation of Sedimentary rocks (Chapter 11)
Lab: sedimentary rocks
Week 10:
Occurrence, classification and setting of sedimentary rocks (Chapter 12)
Lab: sedimentary rocks
Week 11:
Metamorphic rocks and minerals (Chapter 14)
Lab: metamorphic rocks under the microscope
Assignment due: fact sheet of your favorite rock type under the microscope
Week 12:
Metamorphic rocks and minerals (Chapter 14)
Lab: metamorphic rocks under the microscope
Week 13:
Earth Materials and sustainability (Chapter 15, 16, 17)
Lab: Earth materials of environmental, economic and social importance
Week 14:
Environmental, social and economic aspects of Earth Materials (Chapter 15, 16, 17)
Lab: open lab
Week 15:
Work shopping the final Poster
Lab: open lab