EES 717 - Spring 2008

Earth System Science II

Instructors: Frank Buonaiuto

Phone: (212) 650-3092

Instructors: Haydee Salmun

Phone: (212) 772-5224

Overall Course Description

The earth sciences provide a framework to understand Earth and Earth’s systems evolution. Earth sciences investigate the chemical and mineralogical evolution of rocks (mineralogy, petrology, geochemistry), planetary structures and Earth’s interior (geophysics, stratigraphy, tectonics) and the evolution and dynamics of oceans and atmospheres (oceanography, paleontology, meteorology). Many aspects of these sub-disciplines converge into studying the Earth’s climate evolution and dynamics (global climate change, climatology, paleoclimate, paleoceanography). The study of the Earth’s climate is a synonym with “systems interactions”. These are the interactions that take place on all time and space scales among the subcomponents of the Earth’s systems. The means of these interactions is the flow of materials and energy through the system’s components. For example differential heating of the Earth’s surface gives rise to the forcing that in turn leads to the meridional redistribution of heat by the ocean. These ocean currents also transport other oceanic constituents around the globe. These systems interactions play an increasingly central role in any predictions of global climate change, as well as being used to understand the ever-increasing number of environmental issues.

Second Semester of ESS
This second semester stresses the physical aspects of earth system science. In particular this course focuses on the movement (flow) and transfer of materials and energy (heat) through the earth system. General topics to be covered include

1. The interior of the Earth.
2. The atmosphere.
3. The oceans.
4. The interactions: climate.
5. Special Topics.
            a. Bio-physical interactions: the ocean and its biota.
            b. ENSO (El Nino-Southern Oscillation): air-sea interactions.
            c. Ocean floor and Earth interior: large-scale recycling in the Earth’s system.

Course Structure

This course is intended for a broad range of first-year graduate students that have already taken ESS 716, those with geoscience backgrounds and/or those from cognate fields, such as physics, chemistry, biology and geography. The course will be structured in the form of lectures, seminar discussions, and special presentations. We will use a text as a guide, however substantial supplemental material will be provided. Therefore there will be an important reading component to this course. For each broad topic presented, current short research articles (mostly from Journals like Science and Nature) will be assigned to students and discussed during the following class. When appropriate, and time permitting, guest lecturers will be included. This course has a webpage listed above where all the supplemental readings, updated information and other announcements will be posted. It is your responsibility to check the site regularly.

Required Text: The Oceans and Climate, Second Edition, Grant Bigg, 2003, Cambridge University Press, pp. 273.

Evaluations in this course are based on performance in the usual academic endeavors: seminar discussions, reports and examinations and research. Therefore, grading will be as follows:

Class Participation                    30%
Midterm Examination                30%
Class Project                            40%

An overall evaluation of 90% or more results in a grade of A, 80-89% results in a grade of B, 70-79% results in a grade of C. Students unable to accumulate these percentages throughout the semester fail the course.

As mentioned above, for class participation students will have to read in detail the assigned related research articles and will be responsible for initiating a discussion of the material with colleagues. These supplemental articles are designed to provide the current state of research in various sub-disciplines of Earth science.

Class Project: It is anticipated that students enrolled in this course and pursuing a doctorate degree within the EES Department have an active area of research focused on some aspect of Earth science or are in the process of developing a research area/topic. Students therefore will be given the option of selecting their own topic for the class final project, and it is recommended that they choose a topic directly related to their research to present to the class. The outcome of the research for the final project will be in the form of 20-30 minutes overview presentation to the class which will include discussion of two recent papers, announced prior to the discussion, and a final scholarly paper.