An introduction to natural (and some society-induced) hazards and the importance of public understanding of the issues related to them. Emphasis is on the geological processes that underlie the hazards, with discussion of relevant policy issues tied to reading recent newspaper/popular science articles. Principal topics: Earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tsunami, hurricanes, floods, meteorite impacts, global warming. Intended primarily for non-science majors.
Courses
Undergraduate Courses
Spring 2021
Fall 2018
Geodynamics
An advanced introduction to setting up and solving boundary value problems relevant to the solid earth sciences. Topics include heat flow, fluid flow, elasticity and plate flexure, and rock rheology, with applications to mantle convection, magma transport, lithospheric deformation, structural geology, and fault mechanics.
Instructors: Allan Mattathias Rubin
Graduate Courses
Spring 2020
Fundamentals of the Geosciences
A yearlong survey, in sequence, of fundamental papers in the geosciences. Topics in 505 (Spring) include the origin and interior of the Earth, plate tectonics, geodynamics, the history of life on Earth, the composition of the Earth, its oceans and atmospheres, past climate. Topics in 506 (Fall) include present and future climate, biogeochemical processes in the ocean, geochemical cycles, orogenies, thermochronology, rock fracture and seismicity. A core course for all beginning graduate students in the geosciences.
Instructors: John Andrew Higgins, Gerta Keller, Allan Mattathias Rubin, Daniel Mikhail Sigman, Frederik Jozef Simons, Jeroen Tromp, Xinning Zhang
Fall 2019
Rock Fracture
Application of fracture mechanics to a wide range of geologic processes, including dike and hydrofracture propagation, fault and joint growth and earthquake rupture. Topics include engineering fracture mechanics, analytic solutions for cracks in elastic media, numerical boundary element methods, and applications to geologic examples including observed fracture paths and patterns, small-scale structures associated with faults and dikes, and interpretation of geodetic data and seismological data.
Instructors: Allan Mattathias Rubin
Spring 2019
Responsible Conduct of Research in Geosciences (Half-Term)
Course educates Geosciences and AOS students in the responsible conduct of research using case studies appropriate to these disciplines. This discussion-based course focuses on issues related to the use of scientific data, publication practices and responsible authorship, peer review, research misconduct, conflicts of interest, the role of mentors & mentees, issues encountered in collaborative research and the role of scientists in society. Successful completion is based on attendance, reading, and active participation in class discussions. Course satisfies University requirement for RCR training.
Instructors: Regan Hunt Crotty, Leo Donner, Thomas S. Duffy, Stephan Andreas Fueglistaler, Stephen Matthew Griffies, Sonya Allayne Legg, Tullis C. Onstott, Samuel George H. Philander, Allan Mattathias Rubin, Frederik Jozef Simons, Jeroen Tromp, Gabriel Andres Vecchi, Rong Zhang
Fall 2018
Fundamentals of the Geosciences II
A survey of fundamental papers in the Geosciences. Topics include present and future climate, biogeochemical processes in the ocean, geochemical cycles, orogenies, thermochronology, rock fracture and seismicity. This is the core geosciences graduate course.
Instructors: Stephan Andreas Fueglistaler, John Andrew Higgins, Tullis C. Onstott, Laure Resplandy, Allan Mattathias Rubin, Blair Schoene, Bess Ward