GEOS5315 - The Earth: An Overview

GEOS 5315 The Earth: An Overview (3 semester credit hours) Nucleosynthetic processes, condensation of the solar system, and the formation of the Earth-Moon system. Discussion of the scientific method and natural, non-linear systems. Tectonic and magmatic processes driven by internal heat. Plate tectonics and magmatic cycles. Rock weathering and the external, sun-driven processes of erosion, transport, and deposition, and the sedimentary record. Biogenic sediments. Continental collisions, mountain building, rock deformation, and metamorphism. Methods of dating and correlating rocks. A history of the Earth through time. Current problems and trends in the geosciences. Pleistocene/Holocene boundary and emergence of the human species. (3-0) F