EARTH SCIENCES (ESCI)

ESCI 1101. Earth Science‑Geography. (3) (S) Basic geographical principles and processes in physical geography and the earth sciences: geographic locational methods, earth-sun relationships, earth radiation balance, atmospheric tempreature and pressure, interpretation and simple forecasting of weather from mapped data, interpretation of soil-moisture and evapotranspiration balances, soil, climate systems, and biomes. (Fall, Spring) (Evenings)

ESCI 1101L. Earth Science-Geography Laboratory. (S) (1) Prerequisite or co-requisite: ESCI 1101. Experimental study and investigation of the basic principles and processes in physical geography and the earth sciences; geographic locational methods, earth-sun relationships, earth radiation balance, atmospheric temperature and pressure, interpretation and simple forecasting of weather from mapped data, interpretation of soil-moisture and evapotranspiration balances, climate systems and biomes. One laboratory period of two hours per week. (Fall, Spring) (Evenings)

Although the laboratory and lecture sections of ESCI 1101 are taught as separate courses, it is strongly recommended that students take ESCI 1101L concurrently with ESCI 1101. Students with scheduling problems or students not fulfilling the University science and technology requirements may take the lecture without the laboratory. Students fulfilling the University science and technology requirements must either: (a) Take ESCI 1101 and ESCI 1101L concurrently; or (b) Take ESCI 1101L in a semester subsequent to taking ESCI 1101.

ESCI 2101. The Environmental Dilemma. (3 (V Nature, causes, and responses to major environmental problems. (Yearly)

ESCI 2105. Oceanography. (3) (S) Oceanography with emphasis on physical, chemical, and geological aspects of the world oceans. Oceanic circulation, seawater composition and chemistry, and marine sedimentation and geology. (On demand)

ESCI 2200. Introduction to Earth Sciences Research. (3) Prerequisites or corequisites: ESCI 1101; GEOL 1200 and 1200L. Basic techniques common to research in all of the earth sciences. Research design and organization, utilization of literature resources, and the use of quantitative methods. (Fall, Spring) (Evenings)

ESCI 2210. Field Methods in the Earth Sciences. (4) Prerequisites: ESCI 1100; GEOL 1200, 1200L; and ENGL 2116 or consent of instructor. Field techniques used in studies of geology, topography, and earth sciences. Skills related to the collection and presentation of scientific data emphasized. Three lecture hours, two hours of lab per week. Earth Sciences majors should take ESCI 2210 as soon as possible after completion of ESCI 1101 and 1200‑1200L. (Spring, Fall)

ESCI 3000. Selected Topics in Earth Sciences. (1‑4) Prerequisite: ESCI 1101 or GEOL 1200-1200L and consent of instructor. In‑depth treatment of specific topics selected from one of the fields of the earth sciences. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (Yearly)

ESCI 3150. Natural Environments of North America. (3) Prerequisites: ESCI 1101 or GEOL 1200‑1200L. Regional geomorphology and ecology of North America with emphasis on development, maintenance, and interaction of the geomorphic and ecological provinces. (On demand)

ESCI 3170. Environmental Quality Management. (3) Selected methods of air and water resource analysis with emphasis on conceptual models and statistical techniques of environmental and risk assessment. (Fall)

ESCI 3180. Environmental Impact Analysis. (3) Prerequisite: junior‑senior standing. Environmental impact requirements and associated procedures, guidelines, and methods of assessing physical environmental impacts. Three hours per week of combined lecture and supervised field work leading to the preparation of an environmental impact statement for a locally proposed action. (On demand)

ESCI 3210. Soil Science. (3) Prerequisites: GEOL 1200, 1200L. Corequisite: CHEM 1251 or consent of the instructor. Study of soils‑forming processes, with emphasis on management and use of soils. Two hours of lecture, three hours of lab per week with occasional field trips. (Fall)

ESCI 3240. Boundary-Layer Meteorology. (4) Prerequisites: ESCI 1101, MATH 1241, or consent of instructor. Examines the flows of energy, water, and gases within the planetary boundary layer and the exchange of energy and mass at the earth’s surface. Theories of interactions within the boundary-layer. Three hours of lecture, three hours of lab. (Spring)

ESCI 3250. Dynamic Meteorology. (4) Prerequisite: ESCI 1101 and MATH 1241 or consent of instructor. In‑depth examination of atmospheric dynamics, including the nature of thermodynamics and water vapor, horizontal motion in the atmosphere, characteristics of fluid flow applied to the atmosphere, and the general circulation models. Three hours of lecture and one three‑hour lab per week. (Fall)

ESCI 3251. Synoptic Meteorology. (4) Prerequisite: ESCI 3250. An extension of ESCI 3250 to include atmospheric modeling, analysis of air mass structure, synoptic analysis with quantitative forecasting techniques, severe storm characteristics, wind shear, boundary‑layer meteorology, and techniques for differentiating climatic regime traits and analysis of their variation through time. Three hours of lecture and one three‑hour lab per week. (On demand)

ESCI 3252. Weather Analysis Laboratory. (1) Prerequisite or corequisite: ESCI 3250 and consent of instructor. Weather observation, meteorologic data collection and analysis, and techniques of weather forecasting. May be repeated for credit. (On demand)

ESCI 3500. Earth Sciences Cooperative Education Experience. (O Enrollment in this course is required for the Department's earth sciences cooperative education students during each semester that they are working. Evaluation is Pass/No Credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

ESCI 3501. Earth Sciences Cooperative Education Seminar. (1) This course is required of earth science cooperative education students in each semester following a work assignment for presentation of earth science reports on the co‑op learning experience. (Fall, Spring, Summer)

ESCI 4000. Selected Topics in Earth Sciences. (1-4) Prerequisites: ESCI 1101, GEOL 1200-1200L, or permission of the instructor. In-depth treatment of specific topics selected from one of the fields of the earth sciences. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (On demand)

ESCI 4140. Hydrologic Processes. (4) Prerequisite: ESCI 1101 or GEOL 1200‑1200L. Atmospheric, soils, and geologic aspects of surface and ground water processes. Three lecture hours and one three‑hour lab per week. (Fall)

ESCI 4150. Applied Climatology. (3) Prerequisite: ESCI 3250 or consent of instructor. Methods of acquiring and analyzing climatic data in various types of applied problems. Emphasis on methods to assess and reduce the impact of weather and climate upon human activities. (Spring)

ESCI 4155. Fluvial Processes. (4) Hydrologic and geomorphic study of the transport of water and earth materials within stream systems. Erosion, mass wasting, open channel flow, sediment transport, flooding, stream channel morphology, morphometry of drainage basins, and related topics. Three lecture hours, three lab hours per week. (Spring)

ESCI 4170. Fundamentals of Remote Sensing. (4) Prerequisite: ESCI 1101 or GEOL 1200, or consent of instructor. Physical fundamentals of remote sensing and overview of airborne and satellite systems operating in the visible, infrared, and radar regions, and a review of applications for resource exploration, environmental studies, land use and land cover analysis, and natural hazards. One 2-1/2 hour lecture, and one three-hour lab per week. (On demand) (Evenings)

ESCI 4180. Digital Image Processing in Remote Sensing. (4) Prerequisite: ESCI 4170 or consent of instructor. Scientific and computational foundations of digital image processing techniques for extracting earth resource information from remotely sensed data. Three lecture hours and three lab hours per week. (Spring)

ESCI 4222. Watershed Science. (3) Prerequisites: Earth Science Majors and M.A. Geography students: ESCI 4140 or 4155 or GEOL 4145; Biology Majors and M.S. Biology students: BIOL 4149 and consent of the instructor; Civil Engineering Majors and M.S.C.E. students: CEGR 3141 or 5144 and consent of the instructor; all others require the consent of the instructor. Examinations of the cycling of water and chemical elements in natural and perturbed watersheds with emphasis on linkages between the hydrologic and biogeochemical processes which control runoff water quality. Topics include runoff processes, evapotranspiration, nutrient export and stream, riparian and hyporheic zone hydrochemical dynamics. (Spring)

ESCI 4233. Geoenvironmental Site Characterization. (4) Prerequisites: Earth Sciences, Geology, and M.A. Geography majors: ESCI 4140 or 4155. Others require consent of the instructor. Advanced field-based examination of hydrologic and geologic condition in the southeastern United States within the context of current state and federal regulatory requirements and site characterization activities currently performed by professional environmental geoscientists. Hydrologic investigation and water quality characterization, and geological and geophysical site investigations. (Summer)

ESCI 4400. Internship in Earth Sciences. (3‑6) Prerequisite: consent of the Department. Research and/or work experience designed to be a logical extension of a student's academic program. The student must apply to Department for an internship by submitting a proposal which specifies the type of work/research experience preferred and how the internship will complement his or her academic program. The Department will attempt to place the selected students in cooperating community organizations to complete specified research or work‑related tasks which are based on a contractual arrangement between the student and community organization. The student can receive three to six hours credit, depending on the nature and extent of the internship assignment. (On demand)

ESCI 4600. Earth Sciences Seminar. (1) (O) Prerequisites: ESCI 1101, 1101L, GEOL 1200, 1200L and senior standing for Earth Sciences and Geology majors or permission of the instructor. Advanced seminar series examining major historical and modern research themes in the Earth Sciences. Course work consists of a series of independent and group oral presentations. The seminar meets weekly for two hours. Course may be repeated for credit as topic varies. (Fall, Spring)

ESCI 4800. Individual Study in Earth Sciences. (1‑4) Prerequisite: permission of the Department and credit hours established in advance. Tutorial study or special research problems. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (On demand)