COURSE SYLLABUS

Sedimentology and Stratigraphy, 2009

Professor: Ben Greenstein, Norton 102, ext. 4307

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Meeting Times:

We will meet mornings 9-11, and afternoons 1:15-3, although class meetings may not last the entire time, nor will we meet every afternoon.

Field Trips:

There are two required field trips, Friday, October 2nd and Friday, October 9th. The van departs from the Commons at 8:00 a.m. for the first trip, and 8:30 for the second. We will return from each trip by 5 p.m.

Course text: Prothero and Schwab, 2004, Sedimentary Geology, 2^nd Edition, W. H. Freeman & Co., N. Y.

Evaluation: I will use a variety of methods to assess your performance in this course. Graded work will include exams, laboratory reports (both written and oral) two extended projects and a term paper/field project. I will not grade any work turned in late! Enthusiasm and thoughtful participation in discussions, lab and on the field trip counts, even if only subjectively. Formula for grading will be as follows:

Lab projects (6) 40%

Exam I 20%

Term paper/project 20%

Exam II 20%

Cornell College is committed to providing equal educational opportunities to all students. If you have a documented learning disability and will need any accommodation in this course, you must request the accommodation(s) from me as early as possible and no later than the third day of the term. Click here for more information about the policies and procedures for accommodation of learning disabilities.

COURSE SCHEDULE

WEEK ONE – Siliciclastic Deposition

DAY 1

Introduction, Depositional Basins (Chap 1); Lab 1: Qualitative and quantitative analysis of siliciclastic sediments

DAY 2

Weathering (Chap. 2, to p. 25); Hydrodynamics I: Entrainment, transport and deposition; Library info session

DAY 3

Hydrodynamics I –cont-; Hydrodynamics II: Bedforms (Chap. 3)

DAY 4

Lab 1 due, 9 a.m., Oral Reports, Lab 2: Sedimentary structures (Chap. 4)

DAY 5

Field trip: Wyoming Hill; Wildcat Den State Park;

WEEK TWO – Non-siliciclastic Deposition

DAY 6

Lab 2 due, 9 a.m.. Siliciclastic,rocks, Lab 3: Siliciclastic rock classification,

(Chaps. 5, 6, 7)

DAY 7

Nonsiliclastic Rocks, Lab 4: Carbonate Rocks

(Chap. 11, 13, 14)

DAY 8

Limestone and Dolomite

(Chap. 11)

DAY 9

Midterm Exam; Special Guest Speaker, Dr. Mike Savarese, Florida Gulf Coast University

“Oyster Reefs, Sea-level Rise, and Their Effects on the Holocene Development of Coastal Geomorphology in Southwest Florida”

DAY 10

Field Trip: Conklin Quarry ; Lab 3 due, 8:30 a.m.

WEEK THREE – Depositional Systems, Stratigraphy

DAY 11

Introduction to depositional systems, Stratigraphy I: Facies, Lithostratigraphy, Lab 5: Biostratigraphy (Chap. 15, 16)

Lab 4 due, 9 a.m.

DAY 12

Alluvial and deltaic systems

(Chap. 8 through p. 144; Chap. 9 through p. 168)

DAY 13

Stratigraphy II, Lab 6: Basin Analysis

(Chap. 17, 18)

DAY 14

Coastal systems, Lab 5 due, 9 a.m.

(Chap. 9, 12)

DAY 15

Coastal Systems, continued

WEEK FOUR

DAY 16

Carbonate Systems, Lab 6 due, 9 a.m

DAY 17

Term Paper/Project due, 9 a.m., Catch-up as needed

DAY 18

Final Exam

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