ESS 202: Earthquakes
Time
and Classroom:
Lectures:
MWF 1:30 – 2:20 Room
175 Johnson Hall
Laboratory
sections: T 12:30-3:20, Th 12:30-3:20, Room 117 Johnson Hall
F
9:30-12:20 Room 011 Johnson Hall
Final
exam: 2:30-4:20 PM on Monday June 8.
No makeup exams will be allowed.
Profs:
John
Vidale Room 208A ATG Bldg. (206)
543-6790 john_vidale@mac.com
Ken
Creager Room 222 ATG Bldg. (206) 685-2803 kcc@ess.washington.edu
Office
hours: JV: Tues 2:00-3:00, KCC: Wed 2:30-3:30, or by appointment.
TA:
Josh Jones, Geophysics graduate student
(206)
543-0570, josh@ess.washington.edu
Room 202 ATG Bldg.
Office
hours: Tue and Thu 3:30-5:00.
Website:
http://courses.washington.edu/ess202/
Learning
Objectives:
á Understand earthquakes: Why and where they occur, and their consequences.
á Learn about earth processes associated with
earthquakes, including plate tectonics, volcanoes, tsunamis, and landslides.
á Be able to understand articles about earthquakes
in the newspapers or popular science press. Make informed decisions about matters related to earthquakes
in your own life.
á Improve quantitative, writing, and presentation
skills.
Quantitative
Approach:
Understanding
earthquakes requires some concepts from mathematics and physics. There will be a few equations, and the
lab exercises are somewhat quantitative, so you need some algebra and geometry
from high school. At least one
quarter of physics or math at university level would be helpful. Centimeters and kilometers will be used
as units of distance.
Grading:
There
will be 10 in-class pop quizzes, which cannot be made up. Attendance at the weekly lab section is
required – no more than two labs can be missed without prior permission
of the TA. Also required is a
group presentation and a paper on a topic related to earthquakes. The grade will be based 30% on
laboratory assignments, 20% on in-class quizzes, 15% on the paper, 10% on the
group presentation, and 25% on the final exam.
Course
content:
We
will follow this text, available at the bookstore:
Living
with Earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest (2nd Ed.), by Robert Yeats, Oregon State University Press,
2004.
Other
useful texts include:
Earthquakes, by Bruce A. Bolt, W.H. Freeman and Co., 1999.
Peace of mind in earthquake country, by Peter Yanev, Chronicle Books, 1991.