Geography 361  Environmental Hazards

Spring 20008 Schedule
Fall 2008 Schedule

Tuesdays and Thursdays  12:30 - 1:45 in P281
Recommended: Geography 104 or Geology 106/110/115
Instructor: Harry M. Jol                                  
Office: Phillips Hall 249                                             
Email address: jolhm@uwec.edu                  
Office Phone #: 836-3472        
Office Hours: TBA or by appointment    
Rental Text: Hyndman, D. and Hyndman D., 2009. Natural hazards and disasters, Boston, MA, Brooks Cole, 576 pp. Text Website

Student Campanion Website
Course Content: The course focuses on environmental hazards and disasters (including geomorphic, atmospheric, and human) and how the normal processes on the Earth concerntrate their energies and deal destructive blows to humans and their structures.
Course Organization: The class schedule will be divided between lecture periods, discussions, assignments, individual exams, team exams, team and/or gropup projects, field excursions, and project presentations.
Course Objectives:

Students will be able to locate and constructively criticize available resources to be able to explain and characterize environmental hazards worldwide.Please note that final course objectives will be dependent upon class discussions.
Course Topic Schedule: Possible Topics include: Natural Hazards and Disasters, Plate Tectonics and Physical Hazards, Earthquakes and their Causes, Earthquake Prediction, and Mitigation, Tsunami,Volcanoes: Tectonic Environments and Eruptions; Volcanoes: Hazards and Mitigation, landslides and toerh Downslope Movements, Sinkholes, Land Subsidence, and Swelling Soils, Climate Change and Weather Related to Hazards, Streams and Flood Processes, Floods and Human Interations, Waves, Beaches, and Coasal Erosion, Hurricanes and Nor'Easters, Thunderstorms and Tornadoes, Wildfires, Impact of Asteroids and Comets, Biophyiscal, Extinctions, Human Popution Dynamics. Please note that final topic schedule will be dependent upon class discussions.
Evaluation:
Assignments 20%
Field Trip Reports 10%
Project Presentations 20%
Examinations 50%

                      Total:

 100%
Other Comments:
  • If you have any scheduling conflicts that would negatively affect your performance, you must let us know about them as soon as possible. We will make arrangements to accommodate reasonable conflicts if, and only if, you provide us with adequate warning.
  • Late assignments will be deducted 20% per day late to maximum of 5 school days; assignments more than five days late will be graded a zero.
  • All components/assignments need to be completed and achieve a passing grade to receive a passing grade in the course.
  • No alternative arrangement for writing exams will be made unless exceptional, properly documented circumstances occur before the exam (e.g. valid medical reasons).
  • The final examination will be scheduled during the University's examination period.
  • Academic misconduct will be dealt with according to university regulations. Please review the literature on this subject supplied by the Office of Student Development and Diversity, which is on the web at http://www.uwec.edu/sdd/chap14.htm. At a minimum - plagiarism or cheating on assignments or exams will result in a grade of zero for that particular assignment or exam
  • If you have a disability and are in need of classroom accommodations, please contact us and the Services for Students with Disabilities Office at 836-4542. We, along with the university, are committed to equality of educational opportunity for all students, but it is your responsibility to initiate the provision of any accommodations (see http://www.uwec.edu/ssd/services/index.htm).