I. Overview

The purpose of this course is to introduce the basic concepts involved in applying physics to understand the Earth. We will also discuss fundamental techniques of geophysical data collection and analysis.

We will cover the fundamentals of Gravity, Seismology, Geochronology, Heat Flow, Electromagnetism, and Geodynamics as they apply to the Earth. If time allows, we will discuss GPS and InSAR geodetic technqiues near the end of term.

II. Texts

Required:

Lowrie, William, Fundamentals of Geophysics, Cambridge University Press.

Suggested Reading:

Reynolds, J. M., An Introduction to Applied and Environmental Geophysics, Wiley, 1997.

Dobrin and Savit, Introduction to Geophysical Prospecting, Fourth Edition, McGraw-Hill, 1988.

This was the textbook for the Applied Geophysics course for several years. Nice text but very exploration oriented.

Telford, W.M., L.P. Geldart, R.E. Sheriff, and D.A. Keys, Applied Geophysics, Cambridge University Press, 1976.

This is an encyclopedia for various techniques. A good resource but a bit difficult to read.

Dobrin, M., Introduction to Geophysical Prospecting, McGraw-Hill, 3rd Edition, 1973.

Somewhat outdated but a classic. Information is still accurate.

Grant, F.S., and G.F. West, Interpretation and Theory in Applied Geophysics.

This book goes a little deeper into the theory behind the kind of techniques we will discuss.

Stacy, F.D., Physics of the Earth, Wiley, 1977.

A general geophysical theory book that can be used to shore up your background.

Other Reading:

Various articles and notes may be left for you to review in the E&ES headquarters on the ground floor of the Science Center. You may read them in the office but they are not to be removed. There is a photocopy machine available in the office. Some of the articles from scientific journals may also be available in the main library, or you can find them online.

Electronic Communication:

An important form of communication for this course is the Intro Geophysics Web Site that will have pages with news relevant to the class such as updates on lectures, problem sets, exams, and various review materials. The page will be updated about once a week; more often if important items come up. The address of the website is http://www.rpi.edu/~roecks/Geophys.html

III. Grades

Grades will be determined according to the following weights:

Late homeworks will be penalized by subtracting 20% of the total value per day (including holidays and weekends). Thus, any homework more than 4 days late gets no credit. Note that a "day" is considered over at 5PM. If your homework is not delivered to me or in my mailbox by that time it will be docked an extra day.

Missed exams/quizzes may be retaken only if the instructor is satisfied with the reasons given by a student for being absent from the exam/quiz. If a student has an unavoidable conflict of significance which he/she knows about in advance of an examination he/she MUST notify the instructor prior to the day of the exam. In cases of emergency (e.g., health problems) the student MUST provide sufficient evidence of the emergency (e.g., a note from a doctor) to the instructor before any action will be considered. Exams will be retaken only at the discretion of the instructor.

How can I figure out how well I am doing?

Given the weights shown above, you can figure your standing at any point first by computing your current percentage. To do so, let

Roughly, you might estimate MYSUML/SUML to be the fraction of lectures you have attended.

Then, your current percentage can be calculated from

Your current grade is estimated from the following binning:

The final grade will be base on a curve, and that curve ALWAYS lowers the cutoffs on the letter grades. Where exactly that cutoff will eventually wind up will depend on the performance of the class throughout the term (along with some consi deration of the performance of pervious classes), BUT you can be sure that your grade will NEVER be LOWER than what is indicated in t he table above. For example, if you wind up with an 85% score, you are guaranteed a B, but that may eventually be rounded up to an A. Plusses and minuses are scores in the upper and lower thirds of the grade bin.

IV. Material Covered (More or less in order of appearance):

• Review of basic Geological Concepts

• Gravity

• Seismics

• Geochronology

• Thermal properties and Heat Flow

• Electrical Methods (SP,IP,MT,Resistivity)

• Magnetics

• Radar

• GPS

• Geodynamics

For more detailed information on what will be done when, consult the Course Schedule.

V. Regarding academic honesty:

"Student-teacher relationships are built on trust. For example, students must trust that teachers have made appropriate decisions about the structure and content of the courses they teach, and teachers must trust that the assignments which students turn in are theirs. Acts which violate this trust undermine the educational process.

The Rensselaer Handbook defines various forms of Academic Dishonesty and procedures for responding to them. All forms are violations of the trust between students and teachers. Students should familiarize themselves with this portion of the Rensselaer Handbook and should note that the penalties for plagiarism and other forms of cheating can be quite harsh.

What constitutes cheating? The Commission on Academic Integrity suggest the following wording: Collaborative or group work is permitted except when explicitly forbidden".

For purposes of this class: collaborative/group work is not permitted on homeworks, nor, (of course) on the tests. Collaborative effort generally is permitted in the collection and reduction of any data from any field trip. If you have questions about homework or about the material in general, talk to the instructor.

• Pay attention to the material in the lectures (in class and on-line). Don't just go by the book.

• Excuses always sound better if I hear them BEFORE something is due.

• You are responsible for knowing what goes on in class. If you miss some part of class, you need to find out what happened. Talk to a friend, talk to me, check the web site.

Go to the Intro Geophysics Home Page