Fall 2007 Dr. Natasha J. Vidic vidic@geology.ucdavis.edu Class hours: MW 11:00 -11:50, 1001 Giedt Office: 275 A Office Hours: MW 12:30 - 1:30 PM                      (or by appointment or chance) Catalog description: This course will help you to develop an appreciation of the geologic framework underlying the inherent beauty of U.S. National Parks. Each park provides a visual focus for understanding a variety of geologic processes such as mountain building, volcanism, stream erosion, and glacial action.

[ Course Syllabus ] [ Class Notes ] [ Links of Interest ]

CLASS SMARTSITE HAS BEEN CREATED!

Goals for the course:

1 ) When you visit a National Park, I'd like you to be able to combine your aesthetic appreciation of the natural landscape with a deeper understanding of its geologic origins. I'd like you to know what processes were active in producing a particular landscape, as well as the chronology of events that occurred to create it.

2 ) I'd like you to have some perception as to how science works. How do scientists (geologists in particular) go about their business and how do they know for sure about events that occurred long ago.

3 ) I'd like to heighten your awareness of the diverse environmental problems affecting our National Parks. They are hardly pristine, quasi-spiritual places, even though we'd like them to be.

Textbook: We're going to use select websites that I'll provide to you along with the class notes.  I would suggest that you download as many images as you can and build folders of images for each park to study for exams.  I'll also place certain images on this website for you to refer to as you study.

Lecture notes for individual topics will be posted on the class website as far in advance of each class as possible (I'll tell you when they'll be posted late - I update and modify them yearly). These are reasonably comprehensive and should be used as a study guide - they are not a substitute for coming to class.

Print the notes to use as a guide during class, annotate them with details from the lectures, and study them for exams. The notes need to be supplemented by selectively reading the relevant portions of websites that I suggest visiting. The notes are password-protected (I'll provide you with the userID and password in class) and are available at GEL 25 notes.

Buy an inexpensive notebook and a three-hole punch.  Use them to organize the notes that I provide to you.  Many students come to visit me with their notes chaotically strewn about a single folder - a recipe for disaster on an exam.  Learning this simple organizational skill will help you through your entire college career. 

Class Structure: Geology is perhaps the most visual of sciences. It is much more exciting and fun to see geologic features of our National Parks than it is to read about them. So in the absence of fieldtrips (unwieldy with so many students), you'll see lots and lots of images and a few video clips. The photographs and diagrams provide context for the note outlines and are critical to understanding the notes.

I strongly encourage you to speak up in class - any question is legitimate and I'll take the time to answer it.

Come to class - You'll spend much less time during the hour you spend listening to me and watching images than you will trying to teach the material to yourself from notes and websites. In my experience , the students who come to class invariably get the best grades. This class should not be difficult - With just a moderate amount of time, energy, and concentration, you can earn an A or B and propel yourself on to fame, fortune, and a six-figure income.

Exams & Grading:

• Midterm - Monday, November 5 = 40%   (bring Scantron 2000)

• Final - Wednesday, December 12, 6-8 PM = 60%   partly comprehensive (bring Scantron 2000)

Exams will be all multiple choice - be forewarned, these exams will make you synthesize information, not just spew memorized notes. I will provide a brief study guide and a list of key terms to know during the class before the exams.

- I don't give extra credit assignments. - NO EARLY EXAMS OR MAKEUP EXAMS.
- I'll explain my grading system in class. 

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GEL 25 - Geology of National Parks - Fall 2007

Schedule is tentative and may change as the quarter progresses. Check class web site for updates.

A sampling of websites devoted to our National Parks . . .

• National Park Service

• NPS Geology Tour of National Parks

• USGS Geology in the Parks

• California's National Park Units

• National Parks Conservation Association

• Paleogeography of the Southwestern U.S.

Interested in teaching science at the K-12 level?   Then consider the Natural Sciences major at UCD.

You might also like to visit the website of the Future Science Teachers Program, a program designed with freshman in mind.

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