Download GEOG 1101 Physical Geography - Normandale Community College

Common Course Outline
GEOG 1101
Physical Geography
4 credits
Semesters: Fall and Spring
Prequisites: none
Catalog Description: A study of the earth's physical environment, its systems and the physical processes
that drive them. Interactions of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere with human
activity. Laboratory assignments provide application of these concepts.
General Course Purpose: The course is intended as an introduction to the earth's environment. The
readings, lectures, and assignments are structured to help students understand the basic components of
the earth's environmental system (weather, climate, vegetation, soils, hydrology, landforms, and geology),
their interrelationships, and their global regional distribution. The lab exercises and in-class assignments
will help students gain a stronger working knowledge of key concepts and relationships.
Furthermore, the course highlights some of the basic interactions between human activity and the natural
environment -- especially the ways in which human activities threaten the integrity of the earth's natural
systems. The Physical Geography course is, in fact, one of the few courses in the curriculum that
provides a solid scientific foundation for understanding global warming and other critical environmental
issues.
The course uses this focus on the earth's environment as an introductory experience in the study of
natural science -- what science is; how scientists define problems, ask questions about those problems,
collect and analyze data to answer those questions, and evaluate the answers; how the scientific
perspective helps people understand the earth's environments; and how a scientific understanding of the
environment guides (or should guide) decisions made about resource utilization and other human
activities.
Much of the tangible experience of science is provided by the lab exercises. In these activities, students
collect data from field studies, from lab experiments (such as those using the stream table), from maps,
and from scientific publications. Students analyze the data as a basis for evaluating alternative
hypotheses and summarize the results of their work in both mathematical and narrative formats. Several
of the lab exercises may be conducted outside, on or close to campus.
Classroom Hours: Three hours of lecture and two hours of lab each week.
General Education Competencies – This course applies toward the following MnTC general education
goals: Natural Science (Goal Three) and People and the Environment (Goal Ten)
Learning Outcomes: Upon completion of the course the student should be able to:
Describe and explain the earth's environmental system both verbally and quantitatively, including
the various components of the environment, their controls, their interrelationships, and their global
regional distribution. (3a, 10a)
Articulate and explain the scientific theories that explain the ways that these environmental
components function and interact. (3a)
Interpret and analyze graphic data bases, including a variety of maps and remote sensing
images. (3b)
Demonstrate, in lab, the understanding and ability to formulate hypotheses about environmental
processes collect and analyze measurements of the processes, and assess the validity of your
hypotheses on the basis of your data analysis. (3b)
Communicate lab analyses and conclusions both orally, within lab work groups, and in the form of
prepared written responses. (3c)
Portray the fundamental interrelatedness of bio/physical systems and socio/cultural systems in
terms of some of the ways in which people affect the environment and the ways in which humans
adapt to natural systems. (3d, 10a and b)
Describe the range of responses that have been developed by various political and social
institutions to meet the challenges of natural resources management. (10c)
Develop a basis for evaluating critical social issues and as a basis for considering alternate
solutions to environmental problems from a scientific perspective such problems. (10 d and e)
Use that critical perspective to construct and explain appropriate personal responses to a variety
of environmental issues. (10 e and f)
Assessment of Learning: Individual instructors will develop their own criteria for evaluating student
performance. Those criteria will include a minimum of three 50-minute long examinations, each
consisting of a combination of objective questions and essay responses; and a complete set of weekly
written lab reports. Additional work may also be required. Students should consult their course syllabus
for specific grading policies.
Major Areas of Course Content:
Introduction
Earth Systems
Energy in the Climate System
Earth/Sun Relations
The role of the atmosphere
Solar Radiation
Energy Budget
The role of water in the atmosphere
Humidity
Clouds & Precip.
Atmospheric Dynamics
Atmospheric Pressure
Wind (Atm. Motion)
Global Winds
Local Winds
Climate
Climate Patterns
Climate Change
Vegetation
Vegetation Patterns
Ecology
Soils
Soil Types
Soil Patterns
Landforms
Hydrology & Streams
Stream Erosion
Glaciers
Glacial Erosion
Glacial Deposits
Geology
Plate Tectonics
Volcanoes