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Note: This is the 2014–2015 edition of the eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or click here to jump to the newest eCalendar.
Note: This is the 2014–2015 edition of the eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or click here to jump to the newest eCalendar.
The Major in Earth System Science (ESYS) is offered jointly by the following departments:
Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (ATOC)
Earth and Planetary Sciences (EPSC)
Geography (GEOG)
Earth System Science (ESYS) views Earth as a single integrated system that provides a unifying context to examine the interrelationships between all components of the Earth system. The approach concentrates on the nature of linkages among the biological, chemical, human, and physical subsystems of the Earth. Earth System Science primarily involves studying the cycling of matter and energy through the atmosphere, biosphere, cryosphere, exosphere, and hydrosphere. It examines the dynamics and interrelationships among these processes at time scales that range from billions of years to days, and seeks to understand how these interrelationships have changed over time.
Computer Science (Sci) : Introduction to programming in a modern high-level language, modular software design and debugging. Programming concepts are illustrated using a variety of application areas.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Lyman-Abramovitch, Melanie; Gamboa Higuera, Juan Camilo; Tremblay, Jonathan (Fall) Tremblay, Jonathan; Cheung, Jackie; Oakes, Bentley (Winter) Manjanna, Sandeep (Summer)
3 hours
Prerequisite: a CEGEP level mathematics course
Restrictions: COMP 202 and COMP 208 cannot both be taken for credit. COMP 202 is intended as a general introductory course, while COMP 208 is intended for students interested in scientific computation. COMP 202 cannot be taken for credit with or after COMP 250
Environment : This course deals with how scientific-technological, socio-economic, political-institutional and behavioural factors mediate society-environment interactions. Issues discussed include population and resources; consumption, impacts and institutions; integrating environmental values in societal decision-making; and the challenges associated with, and strategies for, promoting sustainability. Case studies in various sectors and contexts are used.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Manaugh, Kevin; Barrington-Leigh, Christopher; Kosoy, Nicolas; Bennett, Elena (Fall)
Fall
Section 001: Downtown Campus
Section 051: Macdonald Campus
Earth System Science : Complex interactions among the atmosphere, biosphere, geosphere and hydrosphere. Biological, chemical and physical processes within and between each "sphere" that extend over spatial scales ranging from microns to the size of planetary orbits and that span time scales from fractions of a second to billions of years.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: McKenzie, Jeffrey; Lehner, Bernhard; Galbraith, Eric Douglas (Winter)
Winter
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite(s): ENVR 200 or permission of instructor.
Earth System Science : An understanding of the biological, chemical and physical fundamentals of the Earth system and how the different components interact. The mechanisms controlling interactions between reservoirs are quantitatively investigated. Special emphasis on the development and response of the Earth system to perturbations.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: McKenzie, Jeffrey (Fall)
Fall
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: ESYS 200 or equivalent.
Earth System Science : Principal concepts of systems modelling related to earth system science and environmental science. Students explore the ideas of state, stability, equilibria, feedbacks, and complexity using simple models.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Tremblay, Bruno (Winter)
Earth System Science : Individual research projects that contribute to a group project that addresses one of the six scientific "Grand Challenges" crucial to humanity: global cycles (water and biogeochemical); climate variability and change; land use and land cover change; energy and resources; earth hazards; earth-atmosphere observation, monitoring, analysis and prediction.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Galbraith, Eric Douglas (Fall)
Fall
3 hours seminar
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Examples of statistical data and the use of graphical means to summarize the data. Basic distributions arising in the natural and behavioural sciences. The logical meaning of a test of significance and a confidence interval. Tests of significance and confidence intervals in the one and two sample setting (means, variances and proportions).
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Best, Ana; Wolfson, David B (Fall) Correa, Jose Andres (Winter) Correa, Jose Andres (Summer)
No calculus prerequisites
Restriction: This course is intended for students in all disciplines. For extensive course restrictions covering statistics courses see Section 3.6.1 of the Arts and of the Science sections of the calendar regarding course overlaps.
You may not be able to receive credit for this course and other statistic courses. Be sure to check the Course Overlap section under Faculty Degree Requirements in the Arts or Science section of the Calendar. Students should consult for information regarding transfer credits for this course.
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Taylor series, Taylor's theorem in one and several variables. Review of vector geometry. Partial differentiation, directional derivative. Extreme of functions of 2 or 3 variables. Parametric curves and arc length. Polar and spherical coordinates. Multiple integrals.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Brandenbursky, Michael; Xu, Jian-Jun (Fall) Tsogtgerel, Gantumur (Winter) Eswarathasan, Suresh (Summer)
One of the following two courses:
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : An introduction to physical meteorology designed for students in the physical sciences. Topics include: composition of the atmosphere; heat transfer; the upper atmosphere; atmospheric optics; formation of clouds and precipitation; instability; adiabatic charts.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Yau, Man K (Fall)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : An introduction to the basic topics in atmospheric chemistry. The fundamentals of the chemical composition of the atmosphere and its chemical reactions. Selected topics such as smog chamber, acid rain, and ozone hole will be examined.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Preston, Thomas (Winter)
Winter
3 hours lecture
Prerequisites: CHEM 110 and CHEM 120, and one of MATH 139 or MATH 140 or MATH 150, or a CEGEP DEC in Science, or permission of instructor.
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken CHEM 219, CHEM 419 or ATOC 419
Offered in odd years. Students should register in CHEM 219 in even years
One of the following two courses:
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Crystal chemistry and identification of the principal rock-forming and ore minerals. Elementary crystallography. Optional 2-day field trip.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Paquette, Jeanne (Fall)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Basic concepts in geochemistry and the application of geochemical principles of chemistry to geological subdisciplines. Particular emphasis on origin of elements, controls on their distribution in Earth and cosmos, isotopes, organic geochemistry and water chemistry. Application of phase diagrams to geology.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Baker, Don (Fall)
Fall
2 hours lecture, 3 hours laboratory
One of the following two courses:
Geography : Formal introduction to a computer-based Geographical Information System (GIS). Topics will focus on map analysis and on transforming and displaying spatial data. GIS will be used by students to solve problems in both physical and human geography.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Lehner, Bernhard (Winter)
Winter
2 hours and laboratory
Prerequisite: GEOG 201
Geography : A conceptual view of remote sensing and the underlying physical principles. Covers ground-based, aerial, satellite systems, and the electromagnetic spectrum, from visible to microwave. Emphasis on application of remotely sensed data in geography including land cover change and ecological processes.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Arroyo Mora, Juan Pablo; Kalacska, Margaret (Fall)
One of the following two courses:
Environment : A systems approach to study the different components of the environment involved in global climate change: the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. The interactions among these components. Their role in global climate change. The human dimension to global change.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Ricciardi, Anthony; Atallah, Eyad Hashem; McCourt, George; Fyles, James W; Fabry, Frederic (Fall)
Fall
Section 001: Downtown Campus
Section 051: Macdonald Campus
Geography : An introduction to system-level interactions among climate, hydrology, soils and vegetation at the scale of drainage basins, including the study of the global geographical variability in these land-surface systems. The knowledge acquired is used to study the impact on the environment of various human activities such as deforestation and urbanisation.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Moore, Timothy R; Chmura, Gail L (Fall)
Fall
3 hours
Restriction: Because of quantitative science content of course, not recommended for B.A. and B.Ed. students in their U0 year.
One of the following two courses:
Biology (Sci) : An introduction to the fundamental processes of ecology and evolution that bear on the nature and diversity of organisms and the processes that govern their assembly into ecological communities and their roles in ecosystem function.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Price, Neil; De Martino, Gemma (Fall)
Environment : Formation of the Earth and the evolution of life. How geological and biological change are the consequence of history, chance, and necessity acting over different scales of space and time. General principles governing the formation of modern landscapes and biotas. Effects of human activities on natural systems.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Leung, Brian; Lechowicz, Martin J; Paquette, Jeanne; McCourt, George; de Blois, Sylvie (Winter)
Winter
Section 001: Downtown Campus
Section 051: Macdonald Campus
One of the following courses:
Anthropology : Intensive study of theories and cases in ecological anthropology. Theories are examined and tested through comparative case-study analysis. Cultural constructions of "nature" and "environment" are compared and analyzed. Systems of resource management and conflicts over the use of resources are studied in depth.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Scott, Colin H (Winter)
Geography : An introduction to urban geography. Uses a spatial/geographic perspective to understand cities and their social and cultural processes. Addresses two major areas. The development and social dynamics in North American and European cities. The urban transformations in Asian, African, and Latin American societies that were recently predominantly rural and agrarian.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Forest, Benjamin; Oswin, Natalie (Winter)
Note: Winter
Note: 3 hours
Geography : This course introduced physical and social environments as factors in human health, with emphasis on the physical properties of the atmospheric environment as they interact with diverse human populations in urban settings.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Strachan, Ian Brett; Ross, Nancy (Winter)
Winter
3 hours
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking NRSC 221.
Note: This course is also offered as NRSC 221. Students enrolled in downtown campus programs register in GEOG 221; students enrolled in Macdonald campus programs register in NRSC 221. In Winter 2013, GEOG 221/NRSC 221 will be taught on the downtown campus.
Geography : The course will examine research approaches in human ecology since its inception early in this century. Emphasis will be placed on the theoretical shifts that have led to its emergence as an important social science perspective. The course will also involve case studies to evaluate the methodological utility of the approach.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Wenzel, George (Winter)
Geography : Geographical dimensions of rural/urban livelihoods in the face of socioeconomic and environmental change in developing regions. Emphasis on household natural resource use, survival strategies and vulnerability, decision-making, formal and informal institutions, migration, and development experience in contrasting global environments.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Wenzel, George; Turner, Sarah; Unruh, Jon (Winter)
Geography : Foundations and applications of earth citizenship. Foundations: sustainability, tragedy of the commons, dominion, privatization and public welfare, resilience, precautionary principle, and land ethic are critically considered. Applications: implications for relationship between human and natural economies; human population size and control; and morality of modern agricultural and forestry practices.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Winter
Restrictions: Not open to students who have taken or are taking NRSC 374. Restricted to U2 or U3 students. Enrolment limited to 50.
Geography : This course will examine the human dimensions of climate change focusing on the vulnerability of human systems, climate change adaptation and mitigation, key policy debates, and current and future challenges. Case studies will be utilized to provide context and help investigate and understand key concepts, trends, and challenges.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Ford, James (Winter)
15 credits from the following course list, with at least 3 credits from each of subject codes ATOC, EPSC, and GEOG. At least 9 of the 15 credits must be at the 400 level or higher.
Note: Courses at the 300 level or higher in other departments in the Faculties of Science and Engineering may also be used as complementary credits, with the permission of an academic adviser. Please see the list posted on the Departmental web page.
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Laws of motion, geostrophic wind, gradient wind. General circulation of the atmosphere and oceans, local circulation features. Air-sea interaction, including hurricanes and sea-ice formation, extra-tropical weather systems and fronts, role of the atmosphere and oceans in climate.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Yau, Man K (Winter)
Winter
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: ATOC 214
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Basic notions of radiative transfer and applications of satellite and radar data to mesoscale and synoptic-scale systems are discussed. Emphasis will be put on the contribution of remote sensing to atmospheric and oceanic sciences.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Fabry, Frederic; Huang, Yi (Winter)
Winter
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: ATOC 215
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Buoyancy, stability, and vertical oscillations. Dry and moist adiabatic processes. Resulting dry and precipitating convective circulations from the small scale to the global scale. Mesoscale precipitation systems from the cell to convective complexes. Severe convection, downbursts, mesocyclones.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Ioannidou, Evangelia (Fall)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Introduction to the fluid dynamics of large-scale flows of the atmosphere and oceans. Stratification of atmosphere and oceans. Equations of state, thermodynamics and momentum. Kinematics, circulation, and vorticity. Hydrostatic and quasi-geostrophic flows. Brief introduction to wave motions, flow over topography, Ekman boundary layers, turbulence.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Bartello, Peter (Fall)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Linear theory of waves in rotating and stratified media. Geostrophic adjustment and model initialization. Wave propagation in slowly varying media. Mountain waves; waves in shear flows. Barotropic, baroclinic, symmetric, and Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. Wave-mean flow interaction. Equatorially trapped waves.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Merlis, Timothy (Winter)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Application of statistical and semi-empirical methods to the study of geophysical turbulence. Reynolds' equations, dimensional analysis, and similarity. The surface and planetary boundary layers. Oceanic mixed layer. Theories of isotropic two- and three- dimensional turbulence: energy and enstrophy inertial ranges. Beta turbulence.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Straub, David N (Winter)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Selected areas of atmospheric chemistry from field and laboratory to theoretical modelling are examined. The principles of atmospheric reactions (gas, liquid and heterogeneous phases in aerosols and clouds) and issues related to chemical global change will be explored.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Prerequisites: CHEM 243, and CHEM 263 or CHEM 213 and CHEM 273, MATH 222 and MATH 315 (or equivalents) or permission of instructor.
Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken or are taking ATOC 419, ATOC 619, CHEM 419, CHEM 519 or CHEM 619.
Winter
3 hours lecture
Offered in odd years. Students should register in CHEM 519 in even years.
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Review of dry and moist atmospheric thermodynamics concepts. Atmospheric aerosols, nucleation of water and ice. Formation and growth of cloud droplets and ice crystals. Initiation of precipitation. Severe storms and hail. Weather modification. Numerical cloud models.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Zuend, Andreas (Fall)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Solar and terrestrial radiation. Interactions of molecules, aerosols, clouds, and precipitation with radiation of various wavelengths. Radiative transfer through the clear and cloudy atmosphere. Radiation budgets. Satellite and ground-based measurements. Climate implications.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Huang, Yi (Winter)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Introduction to the components of the climate system. Review of paleoclimates. Physical processes and models of climate and climate change.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Winter
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite (Undergraduate): MATH 315, or permission of instructor
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : The general circulation of the atmosphere and oceans. Atmospheric and oceanic general circulation models. Observations and models of the El Niño and Southern Oscillation phenomena.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Tremblay, Bruno (Winter)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Analysis of current meteorological data. Description of a geostrophic, hydrostatic atmosphere. Ageostrophic circulations and hydrostatic instabilities. Kinematic and thermodynamic methods of computing vertical motions. Tropical and extratropical condensation rates. Barotropic and equivalent barotropic atmospheres.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Atallah, Eyad Hashem (Fall)
Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences : Analysis of current meteorological data. Quasi-geostrophic theory, including the omega equation, as it relates to extratropical cyclone and anticyclone development. Frontogenesis and frontal circulations in the lower and upper troposphere. Cumulus convection and its relationship to tropical and extratropical circulations. Diagnostic case study work.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Atallah, Eyad Hashem (Winter)
Biology (Sci) : Principles of population, community, and ecosystem dynamics: population growth and regulation, species interactions, dynamics of competitive interactions and of predator/prey systems; evolutionary dynamics.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Fussmann, Gregor; Guichard, Frederic (Fall)
Biology (Sci) : Application of finite difference and differential equations to problems in cell and developmental biology, ecology and physiology. Qualitative, quantitative and graphical techniques are used to analyze mathematical models and to compare theoretical predictions with experimental data.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Glass, Leon (Fall)
Fall
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: one year of calculus. An additional course in calculus is recommended
Biology (Sci) : Ecological bases of the natural causes and consequences of current global environmental changes, including how biodiversity and ecosystem processes are defined and measured, how they vary in space and time, how they are affected by physical and biological factors, and how they affect each other and human societies.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Davies, Thomas (Winter)
Biology (Sci) : A study of the physical, chemical and biological properties of lakes and other inland waters, with emphasis on their functioning as systems.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Fussmann, Gregor; Gregory-Eaves, Irene (Fall)
Fall
2 hours lecture; 2 weekends at field station equivalent to 3 hours laboratory per week
Prerequisites: BIOL 206 and BIOL 215 or permission of instructor.
This course, involving two field weekends, has an additional fee of $280, which includes room and board and transportation. The fee is refundable during the period where a student can drop the course with full refund. The Department of Biology subsidizes a portion of the cost for this activity.
Restrictions: Not open to students who have taken or are taking ENVB 315.
Biology (Sci) : Study of theoretical ecology and of mathematical tools available to explore the dynamical behaviour of model populations, communities and ecosystems. Models addressing major ecological theories including population stability, community dynamics and ecosystem functioning, epidemic and disturbance dynamics, spatial models, game theory.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Guichard, Frederic (Winter)
Biology (Sci) : An introduction to how the ocean functions biologically: biology and ecology of marine plankton; regulation, extent and fate of production in the sea.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Price, Neil (Winter)
Biology (Sci) : Discussion of relevant theoretical and applied issues in conservation biology. Topics: biodiversity, population viability analysis, community dynamics, biology of rarity, extinction, habitat fragmentation, social issues.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Gonzalez, Andrew; Gray, Heather; Green, David M (Fall)
Biology (Sci) : Causes and consequences of biological invasion, as well as risk assessment methods and management strategies for dealing with invasive species.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Biology (Sci) : Terrestrial vertebrate fossils (i.e. dinosaurs, crocodiles and other reptiles) and palaeocommunity analysis, including practical training with fossil identification, mapping, collecting, and stratigraphic interpretation.
Terms: Summer 2015
Instructors: Larsson, Hans Carl (Summer)
Summer
Prerequisites: BIOL 304 and BIOL 352 or permission of instructor.
Notes: Spring field course with completed project and presentation by the end of the Summer. Given in a selected Late Cretaceous Alberta and/or Saskatchewan site. Enrolment limited to 15 students.
This course, given at selected localities in Alberta and/or Saskatchewan in May, has an additional fee of $1044.48 which includes room and board, museum entrance fees, and transportation during the course, but not tuition or transportation to western Canada. The fee is refundable during the period where a student can drop the course with full refund.
This course is offered in the summer.
Bioresource Engineering : Measurements and analysis of components of the water cycle. Precipitation, evaporation, infiltration and groundwater. Analysis of hydrologic data. Hydrograph theory. Hydrologic estimations for design of water control projects; flood control and reservoir routing. Integrated watershed management and water conservation. Water management systems for environmental protection.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Prasher, Shiv (Winter)
3 lectures, one 2-hour lab
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ABEN 217.
Note: This course carries an additional course charge of $30 to cover transportation costs for two field trips, which may include a visit to a national weather station and a trip to gain hands-on experience on monitoring water flow in streams.
Bioresource Engineering : Advanced topics in engineering mathematics, including special functions, orthogonal functions and Fourier series, boundary value problems in various coordinate systems, integral transforms, partial differential equations and introduction to complex variable theory. The use of computer-based mathematical tools will be an integral part of the course.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Daneshmand, Farhang (Fall)
Bioresource Engineering : Use of deterministic and stochastic models to analyze components of the hydrologic cycle on agricultural and forested watersheds, floods frequency analysis, hydrograph analysis, infiltration, runoff, overland flow, flood routing, erosion and sediment transport. Effects of land-use changes and farm and recreational water management systems on the hydrologic regime.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
3 hour lectures
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ABEN 509.
Bioresource Engineering : A holistic examination of methods in watershed management with a focus on integrated water resources management (IWRM). Topics include: integration, participatory management, water resources assessment, modeling, planning, adaptive management, transboundary management, and transition management.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Adamowski, Jan (Fall)
(3-2-4)
Restrictions: U3 students or above.
Note: Case studies and a project.
Bioresource Engineering : A review of computer simulation models for designing subsurface drainage systems. Use of CAD systems for designing and drafting drainage plans.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
3 lectures and one 3-hour lab
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ABEN 515.
Bioresource Engineering : Management of water quality for sustainability. Cause of soil degradation, surface and groundwater contamination by agricultural chemicals and toxic pollutants. Screening and mechanistic models. Human health and safety concerns. Water table management. Soil and water conservation techniques will be examined with an emphasis on methods of prediction and best management practices.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Qi, Zhiming; Madramootoo, Chandra A; Biswas, Asim (Fall)
Restriction: Not open to students who have taken BREE 625 (formerly ABEN 625).
Economics (Arts) : The course focuses on the economic implications of, and problems posed by, predictions of global warming due to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Attention is given to economic policies such as carbon taxes and tradeable emission permits and to the problems of displacing fossil fuels with new energy technologies.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015
Instructors: Galiana, Isabel (Fall) Galiana, Isabel (Winter)
Economics (Arts) : Topics include: Malthusian and Ricardian Scarcity; optimal depletion of renewable and non-renewable resources; exploration, risk and industry structure, and current resources, rent and taxation. Current public policies applied to the resource industries, particularly those of a regulatory nature.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Cairns, Robert D (Winter)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : A survey of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks and the processes responsible for their formation. The laboratory will emphasize the recognition of rocks in both hand-specimen and thin section using optical microscopes.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Berlo, Kim (Winter)
Winter
2 hours lectures, 3 hours laboratory
Prerequisite: EPSC 210
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Interaction of minerals with electromagnetic radiation. Optical mineralogy on thin and polished sections. Demonstrations of other spectroscopic techniques applied to the identification of minerals and to the analysis of their composition and structure.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Baker, Don (Winter)
Winter
6 hours laboratory and relevant in-lab lectures
Prerequisite: EPSC 210
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Physical properties of Earth and the processes associated with its existence as inferred from astronomy, geodesy, seismology, geology, terrestrial magnetism and thermal evolution.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Liu, Yajing (Fall)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Seismic wave theory; body waves, surface waves and free oscillations; seismicity and earthquakes; seismology and Earth's internal structure.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Two week field studies in selected branches of the geosciences.
Terms: Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Stix, John; Kirkpatrick, James (Winter) Stix, John; Kirkpatrick, James (Summer)
Two-week intensive field school to a range of national and international locations.
Prerequisites: enrolment in U2 or U3 EPS program and permission of the instructor.
Alternates years with EPSC 341.
The field school will be based around the Bay of Fundy, and central Nova Scotia and has an additional fee of $550 to cover the costs of transportation and accommodation as well as other field expenses. Six days will be spent around the Chignecto peninsula, including visits to Parrsboro, Joggins, and Cape Chignecto park. The remaining time will be spent between Pictou, Wolfville and the Annapolis valley, and the coast south of Halifax.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Preservation of fossils; the fossil record of invertebrates; use of fossils in stratigraphy and paleoecology; fossils in evolutionary studies. Fossils of invertebrates are studied in the laboratory.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Paquette, Jeanne (Winter)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Introduction to modern techniques for combining geological, geophysical, and geochemical measurements with theoretical knowledge about Earth and other planets. Use of tools from time series analysis and inverse methods to build models and test hypotheses within the Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Wing, Boswell (Fall)
Fall
2 hours lectures, 3 hours laboratory
Prerequisites: Completion of U1 year in Earth & Planetary Sciences or permission of instructor
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Two week field studies in selected branches of the geosciences to examine processes in geology.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Two week intensive field school to a range of national and international locations.
Prerequisites: Enrolment in U2 or U3 EPS program and permission of the instructor.
Alternates years with EPSC 331.
This course, given every alternate year, has an additional fee of $550 to cover the costs of airfare, meals and accommodation as well as other field expenses. The fee is only refundable prior to the deadline to withdraw with full refund. The department of Earth and Planetary Science subsidizes a portion of the cost for this activity.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Rheology of the Earth, mechanics of the crust and mantle and core, convection in the mantle, evolution and kinematics and deformations of the oceanic and continental plates, thermal evolution of the Earth, the unifying theory of plate tectonics.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Winter
3 hours lectures
Prerequisite(s): EPSC 320
Earth & Planetary Sciences : The origin, classification, diagenesis and economic importance of sedimentary rocks. The physical properties of sedimentary rocks, the processes by which sediments are transported and deposited, and the environments in which they accumulate. Introduction to techniques for describing and analyzing sedimentary rocks in thin section, hand specimen, and on the outcrop.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Halverson, Galen (Fall)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Physical properties, nucleation, crystallization, differentiation and emplacement of magmas. Integrated studies on various rock suites.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Advanced techniques for interrogating the stratigraphic record. Topics include cyclicity in the sedimentary record, sequence stratigraphy, chemostratigraphy, sedimentary control on the fossil record, and the record of deep sea sediment cores.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : The origin, classification and petrological significance of metamorphic rocks, from the point of view of theory, experiment and field observations.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: van Hinsberg, Vincent Johan (Winter)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : A systematic review of the nature and origin of the major types of metallic and non-metallic mineral deposits; typical occurrences; geographic distribution; applications to exploration. Emphasis on magmatic ores, massive sulfides, iron formations.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Williams-Jones, Anthony E (Fall)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Geochronology, the fractionation of the stable isotopes, and applications to petrology and mineral deposits.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Fall
3 hours lectures
Prerequisites: equivalent of the U2 core program.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : The physical mechanisms which drive volcanoes and volcanic activity are presented. Descriptive, practical and theoretical approaches to the study of volcanoes are discussed.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : History of chemical oceanography. Seawater composition and definition of salinity/chlorinity. Minor and trace-element distribution in the ocean. Geochemical mass balance. Dissolved gases in sea water. CO2 and the carbonate system. Chemical speciation. Physical chemistry of seawater. Organic matter and the carbon cycle in the marine environment. Sediment geochemistry.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Introduction to groundwater flow through porous media. Notions of fluid potential and hydraulic head. Darcy flux and Darcy's Law. Physical properties of porous media and their measurement. Equation of groundwater flow. Flow systems. Hydraulics of pumping and recharging wells. Notions of hydrology. Groundwater quality and contamination. Physical processes of contaminant transport.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: McKenzie, Jeffrey (Winter)
Winter
3 hours lectures, 1-2 hours laboratory
Prerequisite: permission of the instructor
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Physicochemical controls of hydrothermal mineral deposition. Discussion of fluid inclusion theory and application; stable isotope systematics, wall-rock alteration; ore mineral solubility and speciation; and mechanisms of mineral deposition.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Earth & Planetary Sciences : An in-depth approach to physical and chemical processes associated with volcanic systems. Examination of magma chamber dynamics, magma behaviour in conduits, and eruption mechanisms. Study of eruptive products including pyroclastic deposits, lava flows and lava domes, and volcanic gases. Volcanic-tectonic and magma-hydrothermal interactions.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Stix, John (Winter)
Prerequisite: EPSC 530 or permission of instructor
Earth & Planetary Sciences : The use of chemical thermodynamics to study fluid-rock interactions with an emphasis on the aqueous phase. The course will introduce basic concepts and will discuss aqueous complexation, mineral surface adsorption, and other controls on crustal fluid compositions. Applications will range from considering contaminated groundwater systems to metamorphic reactions.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Mucci, Alfonso (Fall)
Earth & Planetary Sciences : Seminar course devoted to field case studies that illustrate the applications of geochemical principles to solving geologic problems. Each student will prepare and lead a class devoted to a geochemical subject of their own choosing.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: McKenzie, Jeffrey; Williams-Jones, Anthony E (Winter)
Winter
3 hours seminar
Prerequisite: permission of instructor
Geography : Introduction to the study of landforms as products of geomorphic and geologic systems acting at and near the Earth's surface. The process geomorphology approach will be used to demonstrate how landforms of different geomorphic settings represent a dynamic balance between forces acting in the environment and the physical properties of materials present.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Pollard, Wayne H (Fall)
Fall
3 hours
Geography : Discussion of the major properties of soils; soil formation, classification and mapping; land capability assessment; the role and response of soils in natural and disturbed environments (e.g. global change, ecosystem disturbance).
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Moore, Timothy R (Fall)
Fall
3 hours and laboratory
Prerequisite: GEOG 203 or introductory course in biology or geology
Geography : GIS applied to the spatial analysis of socioeconomic and market data. Topics include geographic market segmentation, geodemographics, spatial decision-support systems and modelling applications of GIS. Empirical focus is on analysing spatial patterns of population and consumption characteristics in cities and on facility location problems. Emphasis on visualization and problem solving.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Sengupta, Raja (Winter)
Geography : The earth-atmosphere system, radiation and energy balances. Surface-atmosphere exchange of energy, mass and momentum and related atmospheric processes on a local and regional scale. Introduction to measurement theory and practice in micrometeorology.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Strachan, Ian Brett (Winter)
Geography : Quantitative, experimental study of the principles governing the movement of water at or near the Earth's surface and how the research relates to the chemistry and biology of ecosystems.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Roulet, Nigel Thomas; Lehner, Bernhard (Winter)
Winter
3 hours
Prerequisite: GEOG 203 or equivalent
Geography : The study of the patterns of distribution of organisms in space and time with emphasis on plant communities. Ecological, geographical, historical and anthropological factors affecting these distribution patterns will be discussed. Particular consideration is given to methods for description and classification of plant communities.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Geography : Multiple regression and correlation, logit models, discrete choice models, gravity models, facility location algorithms, survey design, population projection.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Malhotra, Avni (Winter)
Winter
3 hours
Prerequisite: MATH 203 or permission of instructor
You may not be able to get credit for this course and other statistic courses. Be sure to check the Course Overlap section under Faculty Degree Requirements in the Arts or Science section of the Calendar.
Geography : The course focuses on the physical habitat conditions found in streams, rivers, estuaries and deltas. Based on the laws governing flow of water and sediment transport, it emphasizes differences among these environments, in terms of channel form, flow patterns, substrate composition and mode of evolution. Flooding, damming, channelisation, forestry impacts.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Lapointe, Michel F (Fall)
Geography : An examination of the structure, function and utility of wetlands. Topics include the fluxes of energy and water, wetland biogeochemistry, plant ecology in freshwater and coastal wetlands and wetlands use, conservation and restoration. Field trip(s) are envisaged to illustrate issues covered in class.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Chmura, Gail L (Fall)
Fall
3 hours
Restriction: Permission of instructor.
Geography : Field research projects in physical geography. Held locally in Monteregian or Eastern Township regions. The course is organised around field projects designed to formulate and test scientific hypotheses in a physical geography discipline. May Summer session.
Terms: Summer 2015
Instructors: Pollard, Wayne H (Summer)
2-week field school
Prerequisites: 6 credits from the following list of Systematic Physical Geography courses: GEOG 305, GEOG 321, GEOG 322, GEOG 350, GEOG 372
Instructor's approval required. Additional Dept. fee $470.02 will be charged to student fee account to cover the cost of transportation, accommodations, local fees and all meals for approximately 12 nights, as the course is held at the Gault Estate at Mont St.-Hilaire during May. Application forms avail. Geog. Office or web page.
**Since this is a field course, the Victoria Day statutory holiday will not be taken into consideration. Therefore, students are expected to attend their lecture on Monday, May, 18, 2015.
Geography : An introduction to the geography of the subarctic with emphasis on the application of field methods in physical and/or human geography.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Pollard, Wayne H (Fall)
Fall
Instructor's approval required.
This fee of $1,887.43 is charged to all students registered in GEOG 499 Subarctic Field Studies. This course is held at Schefferville, Quebec in late August through early September. The fee is used to support the cost of transportation, accommodations, local fees and all meals. The department subsidizes a portion of the cost of this compulsory activity for each student registered in a Geography Major or Honours program.
Geography : Most problems in environmental science deal with weak relationships and poorly defined systems. Model development and simulation will be used in this course to help improve understanding of environmental systems. Simulation of environmental systems is examined, focusing on problem definition, model development and model validation.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Roulet, Nigel Thomas (Fall)
Fall
1.15 hours lecture, 0.58 hours seminar, 0.69 hours project, 0.58 hours laboratory
Restriction: open only to U2 or U3 students who have completed six or more credits from courses at the 300 level of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, Biology, Chemistry, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Geography, Natural Resource Sciences, or a Æ»¹ûÒùÔº School of Environment domain, or permission of the instructor
Prerequisites: MATH 139 or MATH 140, MATH 141, and MATH 203, or equivalent
Enrolment limited to 20 students by availability of workstations
Geography : An examination of the storage, transfers and cycling of major elements and substances, with an emphasis on the global scale and the linkages between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Moore, Timothy R; Roulet, Nigel Thomas (Winter)
Geography : Critically analyse major themes in geographic information science and draw out the practical ramifications for spatial technologies and research. Topics such as spatial interoperability, data quality, scale, visualization, location based services and ontologies are covered.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Sieber, Renee; Sengupta, Raja (Fall)
Geography : Linkages and feedbacks among climate, ecosystems, and human land use at global scales. How global-scale ecological processes (primary production, carbon cycle, etc.) are driven by variations in climate and land use practices such as agriculture and deforestation. How natural and human-modified ecosystems exchange carbon and water with the atmosphere.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Fall
3 hours
Prerequisite: GEOG 203 and 321 or equivalent, or permission of the instructor
Geography : Linkage of physical processes (hydrology and ecosystems) with issues of societal and socio-economic relevance (land, food, and water use appropriation for human well-being). Application of a holistic perspective on land, food and water issues in an international setting, highlighting linkages, feedbacks and trade-offs in an Earth system context.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Geography : Basic photogrammetry and interpretation procedures for aircraft and space craft photography and imagery.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Winter
3 hours
Prerequisite: GEOG 308 and written permission of instructor
Geography : Study of the unique geomorphic aspects of periglacial and permafrost environments. The focus will be on processes in cold climates, the impact of human activity on permafrost landscapes and potential impacts of climatic change.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Fall
3 hours
Prerequisite: GEOG 272 and any 300-level geomorphology course approved by instructor
Geography : An examination of current advances in fluvial geomorphology: sediment entrainment and transport, alluviation and river channel evolution.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Lapointe, Michel F (Winter)
Winter
Prerequisite (Undergraduate): permission of instructor
Geography : Principles and methods of Quaternary paleoecology and vegetation reconstruction. Examination of ecosystem response to human disturbance and environmental change.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Derivative as a matrix. Chain rule. Implicit functions. Constrained maxima and minima. Jacobians. Multiple integration. Line and surface integrals. Theorems of Green, Stokes and Gauss. Fourier series with applications.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015
Instructors: Klemes, Ivo (Fall) Sancho, Neville G F (Winter)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : First order ordinary differential equations including elementary numerical methods. Linear differential equations. Laplace transforms. Series solutions.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Roth, Charles (Fall) Xu, Jian-Jun (Winter) Reimer, Krista (Summer)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Error analysis. Numerical solutions of equations by iteration. Interpolation. Numerical differentiation and integration. Introduction to numerical solutions of differential equations.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Wan, Andy (Fall)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : First order equations, geometric theory; second order equations, classification; Laplace, wave and heat equations, Sturm-Liouville theory, Fourier series, boundary and initial value problems.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Bartello, Peter (Winter)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Sample space, events, conditional probability, independence of events, Bayes' Theorem. Basic combinatorial probability, random variables, discrete and continuous univariate and multivariate distributions. Independence of random variables. Inequalities, weak law of large numbers, central limit theorem.
Terms: Fall 2014, Winter 2015, Summer 2015
Instructors: Anderson, William J (Fall) Kelome, Djivede (Winter) Kelome, Djivede (Summer)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Linear systems of differential equations, linear stability theory. Nonlinear systems: existence and uniqueness, numerical methods, one and two dimensional flows, phase space, limit cycles, Poincare-Bendixson theorem, bifurcations, Hopf bifurcation, the Lorenz equations and chaos.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Nave, Jean-Christophe (Fall)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Least-squares estimators and their properties. Analysis of variance. Linear models with general covariance. Multivariate normal and chi-squared distributions; quadratic forms. General linear hypothesis: F-test and t-test. Prediction and confidence intervals. Transformations and residual plot. Balanced designs.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Stephens, David (Fall)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : The formulation and treatment of realistic mathematical models describing biological phenomena through qualitative and quantitative mathematical techniques (e.g. local and global stability theory, bifurcation analysis and phase plane analysis) and numerical simulation. Concrete and detailed examples will be drawn from molecular and cellular biology and mammalian physiology.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Mackey, Michael C; Khadra, Anmar (Fall)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Conditional probability and conditional expectation, generating functions. Branching processes and random walk. Markov chains, transition matrices, classification of states, ergodic theorem, examples. Birth and death processes, queueing theory.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Wolfson, David B (Winter)
Mathematics & Statistics (Sci) : Simple random sampling, domains, ratio and regression estimators, superpopulation models, stratified sampling, optimal stratification, cluster sampling, sampling with unequal probabilities, multistage sampling, complex surveys, nonresponse.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Natural Resource Sciences : Discussion of current debates and problems related to water, especially in developing countries. Topics include: gender relations and health in the context of cultural and economic systems, and the impacts of new technologies, market structures and population growth.
Terms: This course is not scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Instructors: There are no professors associated with this course for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Winter
Prerequisite: A 300- or 400-level course in water or permission of instructor.
3-hour seminar
Physics : Forced and damped oscillators, Newtonian mechanics in three dimensions, rotational motion, Lagrangian mechanics, small vibrations, normal modes. Introduction to Hamiltonian mechanics.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Gale, Charles (Winter)
Physics : The electrostatic field and scalar potential. Dielectric properties of matter. Energy in the electrostatic field. Methods for solving problems in electrostatics. The magnetic field. Induction and inductance. Energy in the magnetic field. Magnetic properties of matter. Maxwell's equations. The dipole approximation.
Terms: Fall 2014
Instructors: Lovejoy, Shaun MacDonald (Fall)
Physics : Maxwell's equations. The wave equation. The electromagnetic wave, reflection, refraction, polarization. Guided waves. Transmission lines and wave guides. Vector potential. Radiation. The elemental dipole; the half-wave dipole; vertical dipole; folded dipoles; Yagi antennas. Accelerating charged particles.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Cline, James M (Winter)
Physics : The physical properties of fluids. The kinematics and dynamics of flow. The effects of viscosity and turbulence. Applications of fluid mechanics in biophysics, geophysics and engineering.
Terms: Winter 2015
Instructors: Cumming, Andrew (Winter)
* MATH 315 is a required course for the B.Sc. Honours Earth System Science.