All Results
GeographyCredits
This course surveys various environmental issues within the United States with an emphasis on state and federal legislation and policies. The forces prompting environmental legislation, its subsequent implementation and modification by the courts, and various perspectives about the problems, their possible solutions, and the assessment of current efforts are discussed.
The focus of this/these course(s) will be on Meteorology/Climatology. This course may be repeated up to three times.
Student culminating experience in lieu of a thesis.
An applied work and learning practicum. The student will provide a written report on their own learning. The work supervisor will be consulted regarding students' accomplishments.
A culminating project related to basic or applied research
GeologyCredits
Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and flooding are three examples of naturally recurring events on the Earth that ultimately influence all of our lives. This course introduces the physical features and processes of the Earth that control these events. The course has a laboratory component.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences | Goal Area 10 - People and the Environment
- Programs:
An introduction to the multidisciplinary field of soil science and fertility. The course will examine the basic physical, chemical, and biological properties of soils. Further topics will explore soil genesis, soil health and management, and their relationships to crop production. Field trips and lab activities will be used to explore key concepts, with emphasis on examples relevant to the soils of southern Minnesota. Local field trips included.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences | Goal Area 10 - People and the Environment
- Programs:
From mineral formation to mountain building, this course introduces all the main areas of geologic study and places them in the context of environmental justice. We will consider the social and political backdrop of geological processes, practices, and resources, and consider how ignoring the world's complicated history has resulted in the repetition and perpetuation of practices that have disproportionately harmed diverse peoples. Lecture discussions and laboratory exercises are designed for general education and students seeking a major or minor in one of the natural sciences.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences | Goal Area 10 - People and the Environment | Diverse Cultures - Purple
- Programs:
An introduction to the world's oceans: how they work, what they contain, how they impact everything on Earth, and how humans impact them.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences | Goal Area 10 - People and the Environment
- Programs:
Physical geology is the study of how the earth works. From mountain building to soil erosion, this course provides an introduction to all the main areas of geologic study. Lecture discussions and laboratory exercises are designed for students seeking a major or minor in one of the natural sciences.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences | Goal Area 10 - People and the Environment
- Programs:
An examination of the development and evolution of life on earth. In addition to reviewing the range of life forms and global climates existing on earth during various times in its geologic past, we will also look at how global industrialization could lead to the earth's next period of mass extinction. Weekly laboratory assignments help illustrate principles discussed in lectures.
- Graduation Requirements:
- Goal Area 3 - Natural Sciences
- Programs:
Examination of the elemental composition and crystal structure of various common minerals. Laboratory time is spent practicing techniques of identifying crystals and minerals. The importance and occurrence of many economic minerals is also covered thoroughly in this course.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 or GEOL 107 or GEOL 121
- Programs:
Introduction to laboratory analyses of aqueous solutions and soils in support of civil engineering or geological applications. Includes techniques of analysis of water and soil samples. Water analysis includes biological and chemical oxygen demand, corrosion, pH, phosphorus, chlorine, VOCs, nitrogen, hardness, turbidity, thermal measurement and flow tracing. Soil analysis includes pH, loss on ignition, redox, and fertility.
Study of the compositions and origins of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks in a plate tectonic context. Topics include mineral optics and geochemistry. Lab portion of course emphasizes identification and study of rocks.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 201
- Programs:
An integrated, multi-disciplinary study of the Earth and the solar system. The course builds on basic concepts of astronomy, chemistry and geology to give students an enhanced understanding of the nature and relationship among the forces that control the Earth's evolution. Learning outcomes partially fulfill licensure requirements for secondary science educators.
- Prerequisites:
- AST 101, CHEM 201, GEOL 121
- Programs:
Focused studies of the origins and processes of transportation, deposition, burial, and diagenesis of sedimentary materials. Lab assignments focus on sedimentary material identification and analysis. Field trips required.
- Prerequisites:
- Select one course: GEOL 100, GEOL 107, GEOL 121
- Graduation Requirements:
- Writing Intensive
- Programs:
Study of the processes and results of rock deformation at scales ranging from microscopic to plate tectonic, and at conditions ranging from the Earth's surface to the deep interior.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 or GEOL 107or GEOL 121
- Programs:
This course is devoted to the study and practice of geological field investigations. Students will first learn basic field investigative methods. Students will then be appropriately versed in the geological history and importance of a region selected for in-depth study. Finally, students will participate in a field trip to a regional site of geologic importance over an extended weekend (4-6 days). Potential study sites may include Minnesota's North Shore and Iron Range, the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota, the Ozarks, or the Rocky Mountains.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 or GEOL 121 and GEOL 122
- Programs:
Study of the origin, composition, texture, morphology, and stratigraphy of glacial deposits. Topics include the geologic record of glaciation, techniques used to reconstruct histories of glaciation, glacial depositional systems, provenance of glacial sediments, influence of glaciation on soil texture, and interpretation of glacial geologic maps. Emphasis will be placed on description and interpretation of glacial features in southern Minnesota. Field trips required.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 or GEOL 107or GEOL 121
- Programs:
Comprehensive survey of geophysical methods utilized in geologic resource exploration, and basic principles of applied seismology in industry.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 121, GEOL 201, GEOL 122
- Programs:
Geologic field mapping and interpretation in diverse settings. Course is offered by universities throughout the U.S. and elsewhere.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 121, GEOL 122, GEOL 201, GEOL 320W, GEOL 330
Soil Hydrology covers the physical principles of water, solute, heat, and gas transport in soils. Topics will cover the hydrology and contaminant transport in the root zone and vadose zone. We will consider the application of these soil principles to water quality concerns and local and regional land use.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 GEOL 104 or GEOL 107 or GEOL 121
- Programs:
This course introduces physical and chemical studies of hydrogeology. The main areas of discussion will include the physical and chemical attributes of aquifers, movement of ground-water and solute through soils and rocks, and reactions between earth materials and pollutants in ground-water systems. The class includes extensive use of MODFLOW and MT3D, the two most commonly usedgroundwater modeling programs currently available.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 100 or GEOL 107or GEOL 121
- Programs:
Biogeochemical processes specific to soil and engineered sediments, including applications of solubility, adsorption/desorption, ion exchange, oxidation/reduction, acidity, alkalinity. Discussion of problems related to environmental degradation, plant nutrition, soil genesis, and element cycling (e.g. P, N, C). Structural chemistry, origin/identification of crystalline soil clay minerals, and soil organic matter will be covered in context with the mechanisms for reactivity in the soil environment. Prerequisites or instructor consent.
- Prerequisites:
- GEOL 104, and CHEM 191 or CHEM 201
- Programs:
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