3000 Courses
Listings and course requirements are subject to continuing revision and updating; for precise details of current courses and requirements, consult the current edition of the Saint Mary's University Calendar. In cases of discrepancy between these pages and the University Calendar, the University Calendar takes precedence.
3300 Field Methods 3 credit hours Prerequisites: GEOL 1200, 1201 (or their predecessors GEOL 1214 and 1215), and attendance at Field Camp, held prior to the semester, or permission of instructor. This course introduces the student to basic field techniques used by geologists. Field observations and measurements collected during a one week field camp and during the course are summarized by the student as a series of reports. Classes 3 hrs. a week plus field work. |
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3312 Igneous Petrology 3 credit hours
This course emphasizes the mineralogical and chemical characteristics of igneous rocks, and their classification, petrography and tectonic setting. The processes responsible for the evolution of diverse igneous rock associations are also considered. Laboratory work involves the study of igneous rocks in hand sample and thin section. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week. |
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3313 Metamorphic Petrology 3 credit hours Prerequisite: GEOL 2302 This course introduces aspects of the description and interpretation of metamorphic rocks by citing the effects of the progressive metamorphism of mafic, pelitic and carbonate rocks. Other topics include the use of composition-assemblage diagrams, methods of quantitative geothermobarometry, and the interpretation of pressure-temperature-time trajectories for metamorphic rocks. Laboratory work involves the study of metamorphic rocks in hand sample and thin section. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week.
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3323 Palaeontology: History of Life 3 credit hours Prerequisite: one of GEOL 1200, GEOL 1201 (or their predecessors GEOL 1214 and 1215), GEOL 1202, GEOL 1208; or BIOL 1201, BIOL 1202; or GEOG 2100. An account of the 3800 million-year history of life on Earth, including theories of the origin of life, and modes of preservation of organisms, and the practical use of fossils for geological age, paleogeographic, and paleoenvironmental determinations. The course covers the expression of biological evolution in the fossil record, and the major patterns and crises in the history of life, such as mass extinctions. Although the main focus is on the paleontology of invertebrate macrofossils, there will be some coverage of fossil plants, vertebrates, and microfossils. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week.
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Asteroceras obtusum An ammonite from the Jurassic
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3326 Sedimentary Petrology and Stratigraphy 3 credit hours Prerequisites: GEOL 2302 and 2325 (which may be taken concurrently). Composition, provenance, and diagenesis of clastic sedimentary rocks, including conglomerates, sandstones, and shales. Components and diagenesis of the main classes of non-clastic sediments, including carbonates, evaporites, siliceous sediments and iron-rich sediments. Stratigraphy: correlation and the definition of stratigraphic units in outcrop and in the subsurface. Unconformities, sequences, sea-level change and the stratigraphic record. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week.
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3340 Surface and Groundwater Hydrology 3 credit hours
This course examines the fundamentals of hydrology, including the precipitation, infiltration and storage of water. It emphasizes practical approaches to the examination of water supply, the movement of groundwater through various geological materials, groundwater exploration, contaminant modeling and water resource management. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week. |
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3373 Geomorphology [GEOG 3313] 3 credit hours
The study of geomorphological processes and related landforms, with an emphasis on fluvial activity. Processes of weathering, soil formation and characteristics, landsliding and slope development will be discussed. Laboratory work will include methods of field and data, interpretation, soil analysis, sediment analysis and geomorphological mapping. Classes 2 hrs. and lab 2 hr. a week. Some field work may be required
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3413 Structural Geology 3 credit hours Structures produced by deformation in the Earth's crust, including fabrics, folds, faults, and shear zones. Geometric, kinematic, and dynamic analysis of structures. Use of geometric and stereographic projection techniques in the interpretation of geological structures and geological maps. Introduction to stress and strain. Structures characteristic of selected tectonic environments, including rifts, thrust belts, and zones of strike-slip movement. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week. |
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3453 Principles of Geochemistry 3 credit hours This course exposes students to the application of chemical thermodynamics for the prediction of geochemical processes in surficial and hydrothermal systems, igneous environments of the Earth and of the rest of the solar system. Mineral formation and mineral stability are examined through the construction and use of phase and mineral stability diagrams for aqueous environments. The geochemical basis for the origins of life on Earth, the carbon cycle, stable and radiogenic isotopes, and the evolution of the most important reservoirs of Earth materials are evaluated through problem sets and laboratories. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week.
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3454 Applied Geochemistry 3 credit hours The application of graphical and numerical tools for classifying Earth materials according to their chemical composition is studied through field-based and computer-based laboratories. This course examines geochemical sampling, instrumental analysis, statistical evaluation of real geochemical data, and the methods of proper reporting and quality control. The students are introduced to novel methods (fluid inclusion microanalysis, alteration mapping in ore deposits, reaction path modeling) and their application in characterizing geochemical processes on Earth. Classes 3 hrs. and lab 3 hrs. a week. |
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This page last modified Tuesday, 05-Jul-2011 14:38:32 ADT