Earth Environments: Land and Water

Faculty
Humanities & Social Sciences
Department
Geography and the Environment
Course Code
GEOG 1120
Credits
4.00
Semester Length
15
Max Class Size
28
Method Of Instruction
Lecture
Lab
Hybrid
Field Experience
Typically Offered
Fall
Summer
Winter
Campus
Online

Overview

Course Description
Geography 1120 is an introduction to land and water environments of Earth. This course examines surface materials and landforms, and the processes responsible for shaping them. Topics include rivers, glaciers, coasts, sand dunes, landslides, earthquakes, volcanoes, rocks and minerals. Practical and theoretical concepts will be explored through lectures, labs, and field trips.
Course Content
  1. Introduction
    • Physical geography
    • Geographic spatial analysis
    • Scientific method
    • Systems theory and its application to physical geography
  2. Minerals
    • Mineral families
    • Diagnostic properties
    • Mineral identification
  3. Rocks
    • Rock Cycle
    • Igneous rocks, their characteristics and rock-forming environments
    • Sedimentary rocks, their characteristics and rock-forming environments
    • Metamorphic rocks, their characteristics and rock-forming environments
    • Rock identification
  4. Geological Time and Principles
    • Geologic time scale
    • Earth science principles of original horizontality, superposition, cross-cutting relationships and faunal succession
  5. Plate Tectonics and Structural Landforms
    • Development of, and evidence for, plate tectonic theory
    • Plate boundary types, interactions and resulting patterns of tectonic landforms and phenomena
    • Volcanism
    • Crustal deformation processes and resulting landforms
  6. Topographic Maps
    • Projections
    • Map elements: scale, locational coordinate systems, direction indicators, and legends
    • Contour line construction, interpretation and analysis
    • Topographic profile construction and analysis
    • Calculation of vertical exaggeration and gradients
    • Landform measurement, analysis and identification
  7. Weathering and Soils
    • Chemical weathering types, causes, and characteristics
    • Physical weathering types, causes, and characteristics
    • Influences on rates of weathering,
    • Products of weathering
    • Soil characteristics: pedons, profiles, horizons, properties
    • Canadian system of soil classification
  8. Mass Movement
    • Slope processes
    • Influences of slope stability
    • Mass movement characteristics and classification
  9. Fluvial and Groundwater Systems
    • Hydrology
    • Drainage basin morphology
    • Channel morphology
    • Fluvial erosional and depositional processes and landforms
    • Groundwater processes
    • Karst processes and landforms
  10. Glacial and Periglacial Systems
    • Glacial development and classification
    • Glacial mass balance
    • Glacial erosional and depositional processes and landforms
    • Periglacial distribution, processes and landforms
  11. Coastal Systems
    • Components of the coastal environment
    • Coastal sediment transport mechanisms
    • Coastal erosional and depositional processes and landforms
    • Types of coastlines
  12. Aeolian Systems
    • Geographic distribution of aeolian environments
    • Aeolian erosional and depositional processes and landforms

 

Methods Of Instruction

The course will employ a variety of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives, including some of the following:  lecture, labs, field work, analysis and interpretation of graphs, maps and air photos, multimedia, individual and/or team projects and small group discussions.

Means of Assessment

 

Evaluation will include some of the following:

 

Laboratory Assignments

 10-50%

Laboratory Exams

 30-50%

Exams

 25-50%

Field Work

 10-20%

Term Project

 10-25%

 

 

Note:  This course received a standing variance from Education Council in June 2016 to allow up to a 20% lab exam during the final 14 calendar days of the semester.  This is not a final exam; it is an assessment of student learning of lab work performed in the second half of the semester.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of the course the successful student will be able to:

 

  1. Describe and use the frameworks of science applicable to first-year physical geography.
  2. Analyze and interpret minerals, rocks, sediment and soils to identify their environment of origin.
  3. Describe and explain the processes that occur within earth’s lithosphere and hydrosphere, as well as their interactions with the atmosphere.
  4. Think critically and examine geomorphological issues in a scientific context at local, regional and global scales.
  5. Communicate effectively using the language, graphical presentation methods and quantitative methods employed in physical geography.

 

Textbook Materials

Texts will be updated periodically. A typical example is:

 

  • Christopherson, R.W. Birkeland, G.H., Byrne M-L., and Giles, P. (2016). Geosystems: 4th Canadian edition.   Toronto: Pearson Canada Inc.

 

Requisites

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

Course Transfers

Institution Transfer Details Effective Dates
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU GEOG 112 (4) 2014/09/01 to -
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU GEOG 112 (3) 2008/09/01 to 2014/08/31
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU GEOG 112 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Coast Mountain College (CMTN) CMTN GEOG 160 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Coast Mountain College (CMTN) CMTN GEOG 160 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
Coquitlam College (COQU) COQU GEOG 102 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU GEOG 1120 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU GEOG 1120 (3) 2008/09/01 to 2020/08/31
Langara College (LANG) LANG GEOG 1190 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Langara College (LANG) LANG GEOG 1190 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
Okanagan College (OC) OC GEOG 121 (3) 2017/09/01 to -
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU EASC 101 (3), B-Sci; DOUG GEOG 1110 (4) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (4) = SFU GEOG 111 (3), B-Sci & SFU EASC 101 (3) - B-Sci & SFU GEOG 1XX (1); DOUG GEOG 1110 (4) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (4) = SFU EASC 101 (3) & SFU GEOG 111 (3) & SFU GEOG 1XX (1), B-Sci 2008/09/01 to -
Simon Fraser University (SFU) DOUG GEOG 1110 (3) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (4) = SFU EASC 101 (3) & SFU GEOG 111 (3), B-Sci 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU EASC 101 (3), B-Sci; DOUG GEOG 1110 (3) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (3) = SFU GEOG 111 (3), B-Sci & SFU EASC 101 (3) - B-Sci 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU GEOG 112 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU GEOG 112 (3) 2008/09/01 to 2010/08/31
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU GEOG 1120 (3) 2010/09/01 to -
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU GEOG 1XX (3), *lab-science course. 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU GEOG 1XX (3), *lab-science course. 2008/09/01 to -
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO GEOG 109 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO GEOG 109 (3) 2005/05/01 to 2008/08/31
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV GEOB 103 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV GEOG 103 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC GEOG 1XX (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC GEOG 210 (3) 2008/09/01 to -
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV GEOG 102 (4) 2008/09/01 to 2019/12/31
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV GEOG 102 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC GEOG 1XX (1.5); DOUG GEOG 1110 (4) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (4) = UVIC GEOG 103 (1.5) & UVIC GEOG 1XX (1.5) 2011/09/01 to -
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC GEOG 120 (1.5) 2008/09/01 to 2011/08/31
University of Victoria (UVIC) DOUG GEOG 1110 (4) & DOUG GEOG 1120 (4) = UVIC GEOG 103 (1.5) & UVIC GEOG 1XX (1.5) 2011/09/01 to -
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC GEOG 120 (1.5) 2004/09/01 to 2008/08/31
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU GEOG 111 (3) 2004/09/01 to 2007/04/30

Course Offerings

Fall 2020

CRN
Days
Dates
Start Date
End Date
Instructor
Status
Location
32104
Mon
Wed
Runnalls
Kathryn
Waitlist
Online
GEOG 1120 001-Considered UT Lab Science for Associate Degree.

This course will include synchronous on-line activities with field trip(s) or alternative. Students should plan to be available on-line at scheduled course times.

Max
Enrolled
Remaining
Waitlist
28
28
0
98
Days
Building
Room
Time
Mon
Wed
11:30
-
13:20
CRN
Days
Dates
Start Date
End Date
Instructor
Status
Location
33694
Tue
Thu
Hales
Wendy
Waitlist
Online
GEOG 1120 004-Considered UT Lab Science for Associate Degree.

This course will include synchronous on-line activities with field trip(s) or alternative. Students should plan to be available on-line at scheduled course times.


Max
Enrolled
Remaining
Waitlist
28
28
0
99
Days
Building
Room
Time
Tue
Thu
10:30
-
12:20
CRN
Days
Dates
Start Date
End Date
Instructor
Status
Location
36633
Mon
Wed
Runnalls
Kathryn
Full
Online
GEOG 1120 005-Considered UT Lab Science for Associate Degree.

This course will include synchronous on-line activities with field trip(s) or alternative. Students should plan to be available on-line at scheduled course times.
Max
Enrolled
Remaining
Waitlist
28
28
0
100
Days
Building
Room
Time
Mon
Wed
14:30
-
16:20
CRN
Days
Dates
Start Date
End Date
Instructor
Status
Location
36634
Tue
Thu
Hales
Wendy
Open
Online
GEOG 1120 001-Considered UT Lab Science for Associate Degree.

This course will include synchronous on-line activities with field trip(s) or alternative. Students should plan to be available on-line at scheduled course times.
Max
Enrolled
Remaining
Waitlist
28
13
0
100
Days
Building
Room
Time
Tue
Thu
14:30
-
16:20