Geology 150 - Earth Revealed Lecture

Spring Quarter 2007 (11511, SEC 2)	Instructor: Sonjia Leyva

Hours: T & Th. 9:50 – 11:05 PM	Office: PS 221, 323-343-2149

Room: SH C260	Office Hours: T & Th. 1:00 – 1:30 PM

Webpage: www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sleyva	Email: sleyva@calstatela.edu

Course Description: Origin and nature of earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, the sea floor, deserts, mountains, and beaches. Students may choose either classroom or field trip laboratory. Lecture 3 Hours. Partially satisfies G.E. block B2 requirement (must take concurrently with a laboratory)
Course Objectives: This general geology class is an introduction to minerals, rocks, maps and plate tectonics. Minerals are the basic building blocks of rocks and to geologists rocks are the keys to understanding Earth's history and the rock-forming processes that operate within the Earth and on its surface. At the end of this course students should be able to identify major rock types and minerals, in addition to understanding and identifying natural hazards such as earthquakes, volcanoes, mass wasting, etc.
Text & Materials: Visualizing Geology , 1/e by Murck, Skinner & Mackenzie, available in the bookstore. The website for your textbook can be accessed via my website.

WEEK	DATE	TOPIC	ASSIGNMENT
1	3/27	Introduction	Chapter 1
3/29	Plate Tectonics	Chapter 2
2	4/3	Plate Tectonics	Chapter 2
4/5	Minerals	Chapter 3
3	4/10	Igneous Rocks	Chapter 4
4/12	Sedimentary Rocks	Chapter 5
4	4/17	Metamorphic Rocks	Chapter 6
4/19	EXAM 1!
Essay Paper Due
5	4/24	Volcanoes and Other Igneous Activity	Chapter 7
4/26	Earthquakes	Chapter 8
6	5/1	Mountain Building & Crustal Deformation	Chapter 9
5/3	Geologic Time	Chapter 10
7	5/8	Earth History	Chapter 11
5/10	EXAM 2!
8	5/15	Mass Wasting
Chapter 13
5/17	Running Water	Chapter 14
9	5/22	Groundwater	Chapter 16
5/24	Deserts	Chapter 17
10	5/29	Memorial Day - Campus Closed
5/31	Glaciers
Chapter 18

There are three exams scheduled: two midterms and one final. Make-up exams will be given only to those who can verify a valid excuse for missing an exam. The make-up will be given at a time that is mutually agreeable to both the student and myself, but must be arranged prior to the initial exam. Failure to take the make-up will result in the missed exam counting in as a zero. In addition, the exam question sheet must be returned to me after the exam and after the exam review. Failure to do so will result in a ten (10)-point reduction in the student's grade for that exam. Your grades will be available on the class website, www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sleyva/grades/index.html.
As students, our views, comfort zones, and preferred subjects affect the way and manner in which we learn. Please reflect on your experiences with science – both as a child and as an adult – and provide your present perspective on how science currently affects your life. To what extent do you utilize science in your daily life? How comfortable are you with science? How does science relate to your chosen field of study? How does science – and, in particular, this class, relate to your chosen field of study? Paper is due on the day of the first exam.
Students are expected to attend each class session and to arrive on time. It will be difficult to make up missed class sessions. However, if you miss a class session of valid reasons (illness), it will up to you to make arrangements to complete the lab exercise. You will receive 2 points per lecture session or attendance.
Internet access is suggested for this class because much of the course content will be posted on the class web site, www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sleyva. Access at home or work is fine as long as you can view the web pages regularly and have a reasonably fast connection. If you don't have access at home or work, you can get free access through an account here at Cal State LA. To get a computer account at Cal State LA, go to the Academic Technology Support (ATS) Office in (basement) King Hall D140. You will need identification and proof of registration.

Total possible class points will come from the following assignments. YOUR LAB GRADE IS WORTH ONE QUARTER (25%) AND YOUR LECTURE GRADE IS WORTH THREE QUARTERS (75%) OF YOUR OVERALL GEOLOGY 150 GRADE.

Exams	3 tests @ 80 points each	240	60.0%
Science Statement