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Oceanography Syllabus
36124 Instructor:
Prof. T.
Stadelmann Office:
S-109, tel. ex.
1925 E-mail
Address: tstadelmann@massasoit.mass.edu Office
hours: Posted
on office door Text: World’s
Oceans by Sverdrup, Duxbury and Duxbury, 7th Ed. published by WCB/McGraw
Hill Boston, MA. Course description: This
course is intended to acquaint students with the physical aspects of the
marine environment . Major topics included in the course are: the origin of
the Earth and its oceans, the role of plate tectonics in forming the ocean
basins, the physical geography of the ocean basins, the physical and chemical
properties of water, the influence that the Earth's atmosphere and oceans
have on each other and the planet, ocean currents, waves, tides, coastal
processes, and the nature of marine sediments. Grading: Grades
are determined in the following way: Student's
grades for this course will be determined at the end of the semester based on
the results of quizzes taken during the semester, a final exam, and an
evaluation of each student’s daily class and laboratory work. Quizzes will be
given frequently during the semester and their average at the end of the
semester will constitute 50% of the final grade. The final exam counts 30%
and the student’s labs and daily work count 20% as well. Note. There
are no makeups for missed tests. The score obtained on the cumulative
final exam will be inserted for any missed test.
Attendance: Attendance
in class is essential if students are to be successful in this course. You
are allowed four absences from this class without any academic penalty. For each
absence(for whatever reason) in excess of this number your semester average
will drop two points. For example, if at the end of the semester, your
numerical average is an 81 your letter grade for the term would be a B-,
provided that you had four or less cuts. If you had 5 cuts your grade for the
course would be reduced to a 79 and your letter grade would change to a C+. If you have to miss a class make sure
that you speak with your instructor as soon as possible to determine what was
covered in class and if there were any class assignments that you missed. Teaching
Procedures: Classes
are conducted in an informal lecture/discussion format in which students are
expected to participate. Frequent use of audio/visual materials is made in
order to enhance the learning process. In addition there are weekly
laboratory exercises. Using Your Text Effectively:
Learning
oceanography, like acquiring any new knowledge or skill, requires work. In my
on-going, personal process of continuing education, I’ve found the following
steps to be very effective in the educational process. Most importantly, be realistic, while some
concepts can be understood easily and almost immediately, understanding other
concepts may come more slowly and require a great deal more effort on your
part. All of us will have this experience so be patient with yourself. The
important thing is to set aside time each day for study and/or review
in all your subjects. In
reading any assignment, begin by reading the introductory paragraph and by
looking at the pictures in order to get a general sense of the subject
matter. Turn the pages of the chapter and familiarize yourself with what the
objects you will be reading about look like. Pictures can be worth a thousand
words. Next, turn to the summary at the end of the chapter. Finally, start
again and read the assigned material. Depending on the length of the
assignment, you may not be able to complete this task in one sitting. If not,
read the assignment by section so that you don’t end in the middle of a
topic. This way, when you are refreshed, you can come back to the assignment
at a logical beginning point. As you read, make notes of things you don’t
understand. For example, if you don’t understand why the pattern of tides
occur as they do each month, make a note. You should ask your instructor for
help in understanding these questions. I would urge you not to rely on
highlighting as you read. It will be much more effective for you to get into
the habit of writing down short notes and constructing a simple outline of
what you have read. Look
carefully at the pictures and diagrams. If the caption of a figure poses a
question, try to answer it. Make your own diagrams, without referring to the
one in the text, to be sure you understand what they represent. As
you encounter words or terms in the text that you aren’t familiar with, look
them up in the index or glossary at the back of the book. It is a waste of
your time to be reading a description of an object or concept without having
an understanding of the terms used in describing it. If
you encounter some math that presents a problem for you, don’t let it bog you
down during your first reading. Skip it for the time being, but be sure to
read the material leading into the math and if possible try to express the
meaning of the law in your own words. After you have read the chapter you can
go back to the math parts and try to work through them. You should seek help
from your professor and/or assistants in the academic resource center whenever
that assistance is needed. Don’t be shy about asking questions. This is how
we get to an understanding of new ideas. Students with Disabilities: Students
with disabilities who believe that they may need accomodations in the
classroom are encouraged to contact the Learning Disability Coordinator,
Nancy Sullivan at extension 1082, or Disability Councilor, Stan Oliver at
extension 1464, as soon as possible, in order to ensure that such
accomodations are implemented in a timely fashion. Course Outline
Oceanography Objectives by Chapter
After
reading and studying each of the following chapters, students should be able
to: Chapter 2, Introduction to Earth. 1.
Describe the development of Earth, its atmosphere and its oceans. 2.
Relate the size, shape, and scale of the Earth and its crustal features. 3.
Know the age of the Earth and understand radiometric dating and geologic time
scale. 4.
Describe the location system of longitude and latitude. 5.
Explain the hydrologic cycle. 6.
Relate the distribution of oceans and land with elevation. 7.
Compare the dimensions of the three major oceans. Chapter 3, Plate Tectonics. 1. Describe the basic internal structure of the
Earth, and explain how this information has been obtained. 2.
Explain the relationship between lithosphere and asthenosphere. 3.
Trace the development of the theory of seafloor spreading. 4.
Relate mantle convection cells to seafloor spreading. 5.
List the major discoveries of the 1960’s that provide evidence for seafloor
spreading. 6.
Explain the relationship between seafloor spreading and magnetic reversals. 7.
List the major lithospheric plates. 8.
Describe the processes that occur at plate boundaries. Chapter 4, The Sea Floor. 1.
Describe the divisions and features of the continental margin. 2.
Describe the formation of a submarine canyon. 3.
Describe the features of the ocean basin floor. 4.
Understand the use of echo sounding to map the sea floor. 5.
Compare ocean sediments by source, properties and distribution. 6.
Relate sediment particle size and sinking rate. 7.
Describe the instruments used to sample seafloor sediments. 8.
Give examples of seafloor mineral resources. Chapter 5, Water 1. Describe the structure of the water molecule
and how this structure affects the behavior of water. 2.
Describe what happens during the changes in phase that water undergoes. 3.
Define density and explain how it is affected by changes in salinity,
temperature and pressure. 4.
Describe how water transmits energy in the form of heat, light and sound. 5.
Understand the presence of ions in seawater and the constancy of seawater
composition. 6.
Explain variations in salinity along coasts and in the surface waters of the
deep sea. 7.
Discuss the processes that add and remove salt from seawater. Chapter 6, The Air and the Oceans 1.
Explain the variation of solar radiation with latitude. 2.
Define the Earth’s heat budget. 3.
Define heat capacity and compare the heat capacity of the land and oceans. 4.
Describe and explain the changes in sea surface temperatures that occur over
the year. 5.
Describe the formation of sea ice and icebergs. 6.
Explain how the atmosphere moves with changes in density. 7.
Understand the formation of winds and the role of the Coriolis effect. 8.
Explain the greenhouse effect. 9.
Describe the distribution and direction of the major wind belts on Earth. 10.
Explain the jet stream and its relationship to surface winds. 11.
Describe how the wind systems change during the year. 12. Describe and explain the wind changes that
occur along coasts and those caused by monsoon effects. 13.
Understand how El Nino is related to changes in oceanic and atmospheric
conditions. 14.
Explain what causes a storm surge. Chapter 7, Circulation Patterns and Ocean Currents. 1.
Understand the effects of changing surface temperatures and salinities. 2.
Know how temperature and salinity influence density with depth. 3.
Describe how surface densities vary with latitude. 4.
Explain density-driven circulation and relate it to surface changes at
different latitudes. 5. Discuss the layered structure of the
Atlantic Ocean and compare it with the Pacific and Indian Oceans. 6.
Describe how temperature and salinity are measured at sea. 7.
Relate the effects of surface winds to the movement of water and ocean
surface currents. 8.
Explain the processes that produce the oceanic gyres. 9.
Describe the major ocean surface current systems. 10.
Compare the processes of divergence and convergence. 11.
Identify major areas of coastal upwelling and downwelling. Chapter 8, Waves and Tides. 1.
Recognize and identify the various parts and properties of waves. 2.
Compare deep-water and shallow-water waves. 3.
Describe the development of waves from creation to breaking. 4.
Describe the interactions that occur between waves. 5.
Describe wave effects in shallow water and on beaches. 6.
Discuss techniques of extracting power from waves. 7.
Discuss the factors that are responsible for producing differences in wave
height and length. 8.
Describe the general features of tides along a coast. 9.
Understand the forces causing tides. 10.
Explain the modifications that produce the observed tides. Chapter 9, Coasts, Estuaries and Environmental Issues. 1.
Understand the differences between primary and secondary coasts and explain
their features.. 2.
Describe the principal features of a beach. 3.
Describe different types of beaches. 4.
Understand the processes that form a sand beach. 5.
Relate sediment transport in a coastal zone to beach formation. 6.
Relate changes in shoreline characteristics to sea level changes. 7.
Define an estuary and describe the different types. 8.
Discuss the importance of coastal wetlands. 9.
Describe the effects of people and their structures on beaches and beach
processes. |