Geology

Introductory Courses appropriate for Prospective Majors

In Geology you have three introductory courses from which to choose this fall:

     History of Life, GEOL 101
     Geology of Natural Disasters, GEOL 105
     Earth Systems Science, GEOL 131

There are no prerequisites or prior knowledge of geology required for any of these three courses. If you are looking for a different science from the ones you took in high school, geology is a good, practical option. All of these courses discuss how earth systems (atmosphere, biosphere, oceans, deep earth and surface earth) interact with each other and change over geological time. There is a significant component of the interaction of humans with these earth systems in these courses including global warming, extinction of species, flooding, earthquakes and volcanoes, erosion and soil development, water resources and so forth. All of these courses take local afternoon field trips and some day trips within Pennsylvania.The courses have 36 students and labs are even smaller, allowing for individual attention and deeper discussion of issues relevant to all liberally educated persons. One or more of these courses counts toward the Archaeology major and may be useful to students in Anthropology, Economics, Environmental Studies/Science, and International Studies.

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Updated June 20, 2005