GEOLOGIC HAZARDS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

(EEES 1050, Section 2)

FALL 2008

Write your personal web-access ID number here:

 
 
 

 

 


Instructor:      Dr. James A. Harrell

                        Professor of Geology

 

Office:            BOL 3022 (office hours T & Th 5:00-7:00 PM and by appointment; you can call me at any time during the afternoon or evening. I am usually in my office during afternoons and evenings on M, W & F)

 

Phone:            530-2193 (office with Voice Mail); messages may also be left with the EEES departmental secretary at 530-2009

 

E-mail:            james.harrell@utoledo.edu

 

Classes Meet: Tuesday & Thursday, 2:00-3:15 PM in Snyder Memorial (SM) 2100

 

Course Web Site:      http://www.eeescience.utoledo.edu/faculty/harrell/courses/courses.htm

 

Textbook:      E. A. Keller and R. H. Blodgett, 2006/2008, “Natural Hazards – Earth’s Processes as Hazards, Disasters, and Catastrophes” (either 1st or 2nd Ed.), Pearson-Prentice Hall. Note that this book should include the “Hazard City: Assignments in Applied Geology” CD.

 

UT Catalog Description for the Course: Introduction to hazardous geological processes and materials : volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, floods, ground subsidence and collapse, landslides, coastal flooding and erosion and others. Causes and risk mitigation are discussed. [Fall, Spring, Summer]. No prerequisites. Natural Sciences core course. Spring and Summer sections are offered only in a Distance Learning format.

 

Lecture Topics                                                                                    Readings

 

INTRODUCTION                                                                               Chap. 1

 

BASIC GEOLOGIC CONCEPTS                                                       Chap. 1

            Earth Materials

            Plate Tectonics                                   

 

GEOLOGIC HAZARDS

            Overview                                                                                Chap. 1                       

            Earthquakes                                                                             Chap. 2

 

            * * * * * * * * * * Exam I (probable) * * * * * * * * * *

 

            Earthquakes continued

            Volcanic Eruptions                                                                  Chap. 3

            Flooding Rivers                                                                      Chap. 4

                       

            * * * * * * * * * * Exam II (possible) * * * * * * * * * *

 

            Mass Wasting (Landslides)                                                     Chap. 5

            Ground Subsidence and Collapse                                           Chap.  6

            Expansive Soils                                                                      Chap.  6

            Coastal Flooding and Erosion                                                 Chap.  8

            Meteorite Impacts                                                                   Chap.  11

 

            * * * * * * * * * * * * * Exam III  * * * * * * * * * * * *

__________________________________________________________________

 

  ·        No classes on September 2 (Labor Day extension), September 25 (I’m in Israel), October 21

            (Fall Break), November 11 (Veterans Day), and November 27 (Thanksgiving Break).

 

            Exams:           I ..........…….. Thursday, October 2

                                    II..........…….. Thursday, November 6

                                    III (final).….. Friday, December 19, 12:30-2:30 PM

  

   ·       Each exam will count for 33.3 percent of the final grade. The first two exams are not comprehensive, but about 10 percent of the questions on the final exam will come from the material covered on the first two exams.

 

   ·       The exams will consist entirely of multiple-choice questions. There will be roughly 75-80 questions on each of the exams. The answer sheets will be scored by computer and so you will need to bring a no. 2 pencil to the exams; if you use anything else it will cause the computer to automatically mark your answers wrong.

 

   ·       Exam questions will come from both the book and lectures. For the most part, the lectures will follow the book but much additional information will also be added. Some topics on the assigned pages in the book will not be discussed in class but you are still responsible for them on the exams. The “Summary”, “Key Terms”, “Review Questions” and “Critical Thinking Questions” sections at the end of each chapter will include nearly all the terms and concepts that you will be tested on from the book. 

 

            The exam questions will focus primarily on concepts, processes, and terminology. With a few exceptions you will not be tested on the detailed information for such things as statistics, measurements and other numerical data; geographic place names; field examples; etc. Some questions will test your understanding of the diagrams figured in the textbook, but in such cases the figures will be given to you with the exam.

 

   ·       No early exams will be given. If you miss an exam, you can take a make-up but it will consist entirely of essay questions. In order to qualify for a make-up, you must speak with me (and not just leave a message) before the next class meeting after the exam you missed and schedule the make-up. After that date no make-up will be allowed! If you miss a scheduled make-up, you will receive a zero score for that exam (i.e., there are no make-ups for missed make-ups). Although my essay questions are very reasonable, many students find them more difficult than my multiple-choice questions, and so you probably would not want to miss the regularly scheduled in-class exams.

 

            Make-up exams can be taken weekdays (M-F) at the "Make-Up Test Center" (Student Classroom Annex, Room 1140; on west side of Carlson Library; tel. 419-530-2011) between 8:30 am and 4:45 pm. No appointment is necessary for taking a make-up exam but you can only do it on the date scheduled by me.

 

   ·       Students with a disability that requires them to take the exams in the Make-Up Test Center must make the arrangements themselves and notify me no later than the class period preceding the date of the scheduled exam.

 

   ·       You are not allowed to use a language dictionary, calculator, ipod or any other electronic devices during exams.

 

   ·       A photo ID (University Rocket Card or Driver's License) is required to take an exam. Be prepared to show it when you hand in your answer sheet.

 

Grading: The following grading scale will be used for the exams and final course grade.

 

                        85-100% A      50-59%  C

                        80-84%   A-     45-49%  C-

                        75-79%   B+    42-44%  D+

                        70-74%   B      38-41%  D

                        65-69%   B-     35-37%  D-

                        60-64%   C+      <35%   F

 

            I reserve the right to make slight adjustments (up or down) to this scale to compensate for differences in the rigor of the exams. The numerical scores for the three exams will be averaged to obtain the final grade.

 

Viewing Your Exam and Other Grades on the Course Web Site:

 

You can use your personal web access ID number to view your exam, homework and final grades in this course. This number is given to you on the last page of this syllabus. Fill in your name and return the last page to me as soon as possible. If you loose this number then you will have to come to my office (BO 3022) to get it again. Be sure to bring a photo ID.

 

Go to the course web site at http://www.eeescience.utoledo.edu/faculty/harrell/courses/courses.htm and click on the line labeled “Grades for Students in Section 002 (T & Th)”. In the spreadsheet that appears, your grades will be on the line corresponding to your web access ID number in the leftmost column.

 

The final grade distributions for the last three times I taught this course are as follows:

 

                                    F 05                 F 06                 F 07    

            A,A-                10.0%              12.1%              12.0%

            B+,B,B-           16.7%              19.8%              15.8%

            C+,C,C-           38.3%              45.0%              36.8%

            D+,D,D-          15.0%              17.6%              15.8%

            F                      20.0%                5.5%              19.5%

 

Extra Credit Assignments: students may increase their average exam score by up to 10% by doing optional extra credit work. This involves exercises on the “Hazard City” CD that comes with your textbook, and these include five of the eight geologic hazards covered in this course: earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding rivers, mass wasting, and shoreline erosion and sedimentation. Each of these assignments is worth a maximum of 2.0% points. Note, however, to get any extra credit points you must have over 50% of the answers correct. You do not have to do all the assignments to get extra credit. Due dates for the assignments will be announced in class as each of the hazards is covered. There will be no extra credit given for assignments handed in after the due date.

 

How to Study for This Course:

 

1.         Print the "Lecture Outline" and "Things to Know for the Exams" from the course web site (see first page for address). Bring the former to lecture, and keep the latter handy when reading the book or studying.

 

2.         Prior to coming to lecture, read the relevant pages in the book. Take notes on the important geologic facts, products, processes and concepts included on the "Things to Know" list.
  

3.         At the end of each chapter, do a 'self-test' by reviewing the terms and questions at the end of the chapter.

 

4.         Attend the lectures. These will help to reinforce the material in the book through alternative explanations and illustrations. You need not take copious notes on everything I say in lecture, but you should write down anything I say that clarifies for you material in the book and "Things to Know" list.

 

5.         Ask questions in class! Never let a class period go by where you have an unanswered question. If you are too shy to ask questions in class, then either ask after class, give me a call or pay me a visit at my office.

 

6.         You might consider forming or joining a study group. A group of three or four students that can get together on a weekly basis will usually learn more than when studying alone. Groups of three or more students may receive a free tutor from Tutoring Services (ext. 7915).

 

7.         Do not wait until the day before or the day of the exam to start studying! If you have been studying all along (as recommended above), it should be sufficient for you to start your comprehensive review of the course material one or two days prior to the exam. There is factual information that needs to be memorized, but there are also concepts that need to be understood. Be sure you know the difference.

 

Lecture Times:

 

            Classes start promptly at 2:00 pm and end at 3:15 pm (NOT 3:00)!). It is disruptive when people come in late or leave early — so please try to arrive on time and stay until the end of the lecture. If you do have to enter or leave when I am lecturing, please try to do so quietly.

 

Attendance:

 

            I will not take attendance but I strongly recommend that you not miss any lectures. If you do miss a class I will not supply you with a copy of my notes. These you must get from a classmate.

 

            * * * * * Please turn off your cell phone or pager  while in class! There is also no text messaging allowed in class * * * * *

 

Withdrawals and Incompletes:

 

If you "drop" this class before 5:00 PM on the 15th calendar day of the semester (Sept. 8) it will not appear on your transcript. From this date until the last day of the 10th week of the semester (Oct. 31) you may "withdraw" from the class without my permission but a "W" will appear permanently on your transcript. If you have not withdrawn from the course and by the end of the semester have missed one or two of the three exams, those missed will be given a zero score and averaged with the other exam(s) to obtain the final letter grade. A grade of “incomplete” will not be given in this case except for reasons of well-documented medical exigency. If you do receive an I grade, you will have one semester to erase it (afterwards it changes to an F). In this case, the missed exam(s), which will have essay questions, must be taken through me and not with another geology professor. 

 

Our Respective Responsibilities:

 

            As the instructor, my responsibilities are: (1) to prepare informative, well-organized and well-illustrated lectures on the material covered in the textbook; (2) to counsel students on how to learn the course material; and (3) to evaluate how well the students have learned. It is not my responsibility to entertain or motivate students! I am familiar with the scholarly literature that says that today's students (the Generation X'ers who are raised on television and video games) do not learn well from lectures, no matter how well delivered. To learn, they apparently require courses with 'interactive engagement' and 'inquiry-based' learning (i.e., with 'minds-on' discussions and writing assignments, and 'hands-on' experiments). Unfortunately, given the large size of this class, it is not practical for me to teach such a course. It is, therefore, doubly important that students take their responsibilities very seriously. 

 

            As the student, your responsibilities are: (1) to already have or to generate an interest in the course material, and (2) to be sufficiently self-disciplined and self-motivated that you come to class regularly, and study hard and continuously. Coming to class "most of the time", studying only occasionally, and cramming the night before exams is not good enough. Such a weak commitment to the course will surely result in a low grade. It is also the students' responsibility to learn continuously throughout the course and not forget the material that was covered on earlier exams. One of the recurring disappointments for me is when I ask students about something we previously covered in class or that they were supposed to read. Instead of correct answers, I am often greeted by blank disbelieving stares and a kind of sullen wounded silence, which seems to signify that they think I’m being unreasonable for expecting them to remember what they ‘learned’ or read. It would not be like this if people in the class lived up to their responsibilities as students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT – WEB ACCESS FOR GRADES (Fall 2008, EEES 1050-002)

 

 

Your Name (please print)

 

          Last name __________________________________________

 

          First name __________________________________________

 

          Middle Initial _____

 

 

 

Your Personal Web Access ID Number  __________

 

 

Please return this sheet to the instructor as soon as possible and preferably on the first day of class.

 

 

It is important to remember your personal web access ID number. Write it both in the box on the first page of the syllabus (which you should keep) and also in your notebook.