8 January 2005
Geol 20A- Introduction to Geology: Geohazards
Posted by Andrew under: College; Study Guides .
As Ian (Prof. Macmillian) will tell, this class will teach you about the earth and… how it will kill you. Supposedely, since the course has been taught by Ian, it has become more difficult. Many students wishing to cover their science GEs have gone on to other courses, such as the Living Sea, Astronomy, Phrenology, and the Science of Weapons of Mass Destruction. However, for those looking for a science course, which is not as tough as biochemphys, but will teach you valuable knowledge about Mother Earth, then you should take a geology course.
The course consists of a lab every Wednesday, MWF lectures, homework from each lab, one midterm and one final (both consisting of short answer and things from the lab). Some labs may range from rock identification to a field trip to identify the San Andreas Fault (brown bag lunch provided). Ian makes the course fun and challenging, but sometimes the course requires additional effort outside of class to understand a particular lab. This class used the book Natural Disasters by Patrick Leon Abbott, and the following study guides should be of help in Ian’s class:
Class Notes- These notes are essential for the midterm and test.
Midterm Study Guide- This guide has all of the readings up to the Midterm (i.e. Ch.1- Energy Sources of Disaster; Ch. 2- Plate Tectonics & Earthquaks; Ch. 3- Basic Principles of Earthquake Geology and Seismology; Ch. 4- Some Earthquakes in Western North America; Ch. 6- Volcanoes; Ch. 7- Volcanism and Plate Tectonics)
Ch. 5- More United States and Canadian Earthquakes
Ch. 8- Mass Movements
Ch. 9- Climate Change
Ch. 10, 11; 13- Severe Weather; Hurricanes & the Coastline; Fire
With Ian’s courses, make sure to take copious notes. On the test, cover all of your bases from the reading and from the lectures. Ian also has guest lecturers, e.g. Eric, Bob, and Linda (all Professors that go by their first names). If you’re considering becoming a Geology major or would like an interesting course to cover your Science GE or would like a science course, you should consider Geologic Hazards. Who knows? With the way that the world is changing, you might really need the information someday.
