Courses taught Winter 2011/2012:
Ge 121b: Advanced Field and Structural Geology (Guadalupes)
12 units (0-9-3); first, second terms. Prerequisite: Ge 120 or equivalent, or instructor’s permission.
Field mapping and supporting laboratory studies in topical problems related to the geology of the southwestern U.S. Course provides a breadth of experience in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. Instructor: Grotzinger
Previous courses taught:
Ge 112a: Sedimentology and Stratigraphy
Ge 112a is 12 units (3-5-4) and is offered during the first term. Prerequisite: Instructor’s Permission. A lecture and lab course that provides an introduction to the production, transport and deposition of sediments, and the formation of sedimentary rocks. Physics and chemistry of sedimentary materials. Scale and geometry of near-surface sedimentary bodies. Survey of major sedimentary rock types and deposition in modern environments. Analysis of depositional systems and facies architecture, including seismic data interpretation. Several field trips explore depositional systems.
Instructor: John Southard.
Ge 104. Introduction to Geobiology.
9 units (3-1-5); Prerequisite: instructor’s permission.
Lectures about the coevolution of life and Earth. Basic concepts in geology and biology are presented in the context of significant events in Earth’s history. The course provides a brief introduction to essential concepts in biology and geology to provide a common foundation for all students. Important geobiological processes and major events are discussed, including fossilization, the earliest records of life, evolution of photosynthesis and the oxygenation of Earth’s environment, origin of animals at the Precambrian-Cambrian boundary, extinction of invertebrates at the Permian-Triassic boundary, and the Eocene-Paleocene thermal crisis. A weekend field trip to modern and ancient geobiological sites. (Past Instructors: Grotzinger, Orphan) Current Instructor: Fischer
Ge 121 ab. Advanced Field and Structural Geology.
12 units (0-9-3); first, second terms. Prerequisite: Ge 120 or equivalent, or instructor’s permission.
Field mapping and supporting laboratory studies in topical problems related to the geology of the southwestern U.S. Course provides a breadth of experience in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. Either 121 a or 121 b may be taken more than once for credit.
Ge 112. Sedimentology and Stratigraphy.
12 units (3-5-4); Prerequisite: Ge 11 ab.
Systematic analysis of transport and deposition in sedimentary environments and the resulting composition, texture, and structure of both clastic and chemical sedimentary rocks. The nature and genesis of sequence architecture of sedimentary basins and cyclic aspects of sedimentary accumulation will be introduced. Covers the formal and practical principles of definition of stratigraphic units, correlation, and the construction of a geologic timescale. Field trip and laboratory exercises.
Instructor: Grotzinger.