GRG 301C
The Natural Environment
Fall 2011
Lecture: T-Th 9:30-10:45AM, ART 1.102
Professor: Dr. Robert Dull
 e-mail: [email protected]
 phone: 232-3245
 office: GRG 318, 132 (lab)
 office hours: Mon. 10-11:30,
Tues. 11-11:30 or by appointment
Course Content
This class is intended to provide an overview of physical geography, a subfield of
geography that focuses on the systematic study of geographic patterns,
processes, and systems within the hydrosphere, biosphere, atmosphere,
lithosphere, and cryosphere. This course will be broken down roughly into four
parts: 1) the energy-atmosphere system; 2) the water, weather, and climate
systems; 3) the Earth-atmosphere interface; and 4) soils, ecosystems, and
biomes. A strong emphasis will be placed on the following three physical
geography subfields: climatology, geomorphology, and biogeography. This class
is for the most part qualitative and only basic math is required for lab
assignments. This course has no prerequisites.
Textbook & Lab Manual (both required)

Textbook: Elemental Geosystems, 6th Edition, by Robert W.
Christopherson. Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2010. ISBN-10: 0321595211
 Lab Manual: Applied Physical Geography: Geosystems in the
Laboratory, 8th Edition. By Christopherson and Thompsen.
Prentice Hall, 2012. ISBN-10: 0321732146
Online: http://www.prenhall.com/christopherson/
Class Format
The course will be divided into lectures and labs. The lectures will be given on
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30-10:45 in ART 1.102. Lab sections will meet
in GRG 312 & 316 (Geography Building). Each student will attend their lab
section once a week on the designated day (according to unique #). Labs run for
1.25 hours.
Grading
Your overall grade in this course is calculated according to the following
percentages:
Midterms: 40%
Final:
35%
Lab:
25%
Overall: 100%
Final grades will be determined using a standard grading scale, including plusses
and minuses: A= 90-100%, B=80-89%, C=70-79%, D=60-69%, F=59% and
below. Dr. Dull reserves the right to curve your final grade at the end of the
semester if the overall class average is lower than expected.
Lab Sections
Lab/discussion sections will be conducted by the graduate student instructors.
These weekly sessions will include discussion of material from the lectures and
text, and ten written lab exercises. The lab exercises will be assigned from your
lab manuals. Labs are to be removed from manuals and turned into TAs. There
are no labs the first week of classes. The first lab sections will be held on
Monday, August 29th.
Examinations
Two midterm exams (20 pts. each) and a final exam (35 pts.) will be given. The
midterms are not cumulative, and will cover only material presented since the last
exam (or 1st day of class). The final exam (Sat. May 15th, 9AM-NOON) will be
cumulative, covering material presented throughout the semester. Examination
grades will be posted on Blackboard (accessible via U-Texas website).
What to bring to the exams:
- No. 2 pencil
Examination Absence Policy
If you miss either of the midterms or the final exam, you will be given a grade of
zero. NO MAKEUP EXAMS WILL BE GIVEN, PERIOD! NO EXCEPTIONS!
Students who miss an exam because of an authorized university event or illness
will have that exam point total subtracted from their overall point total for the
course. For example, if you miss a midterm – and you have a valid written
excuse - your final grade will be calculated out of 80 points (100 minus 20 pt
midterm), instead of 100. You will need to present Dr. Dull with a copy of the
valid written excuse. If you miss more than one exam due to valid written
excuses, you may be asked to take an incomplete and to complete the course
requirements the following semester.
What is a valid written excuse?
 Doctor’s note. This note should specifically say that you were unable to
come to class because of a verified illness. This means that you must go
to see a medical doctor and have proof of the visit.
 Note from athletic department, music department, etc. asking for an
excuse due to a university function. These notes need to be presented
well before the exam, preferably by the end of the second week of class
(Sept. 9, 2011).
 Military Service activation note.
 Trial or jury duty note.
 Religious holy day. Religious holy day conflicts must be brought to the
attention of Dr. Dull within the first two weeks of class. Please check the
syllabus to be sure that your religious holy days don’t conflict with exams.
If there is a conflict: please provide a written, signed request before the
end of the second week of class (Sept. 9, 2011).
► All notes must be on letterhead, signed, include a contact name and
phone number.
What are some kinds of unacceptable excuses?
 I am going on vacation at the end of the semester
 I am going to my brother’s graduation
 I am getting married, my aunt’s cousin is getting married, etc.
 I slept in, my alarm clock didn’t work, etc.
 I had a rough night, my girlfriend broke up with me, etc.
 My car broke down, I ran out of gas, etc. (Get a cab!).
If you foresee that any of these unacceptable excuse events may happen this
semester, please plan to take this class next semester or some other time. If you
request leniency based on an unacceptable excuse, you will receive a zero
percent ‘F’ on the exam. **Please do not ask Dr. Dull to bend the rules for
you! If you do not have a valid excuse, you will receive a zero for that exam.
This is in your hands.
HOW TO WRITE AN E-MAIL TO YOUR PROFESSOR or TA…..
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal antidiscrimination statute that provides comprehensive civil rights protection for
persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all
students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for
reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a
disability requiring an accommodation, please call SSD at (512) 471-6259, TTY
(512) 471-4641, or go in person to the Student Services Building, Suite 4.400.
If you have a documented disability, please make arrangements for examination
time allowances and/or other accommodations with Dr. Dull and your TA during
the first two weeks of class.
Course Schedule for Geography 301C – fall 2011
8
10
15
17
22
24
29
1
Lecture Topic
Syllabus, geography essentials – course introduction
spatial analysis, Earth’s systems, cartography, maps, projections,
GPS, remote sensing, GIS
Solar energy, electromagnetic spectrum, seasonality, Earth’s
modern atmosphere
Air pollution, smog, ozone depletion, acid deposition
Solar insolation, albedo, greenhouse effect, global temperature
controls and patterns, urban heat island
Winds, pressure gradient, Coriolis effect, global pressure cells
geography, upper atmospheric circ., multi-year oscillations, winds,
wind power, ocean circulation
Water and atmospheric moisture, clouds, fog, weather – air
masses, fronts, mid latitude cyclones;
violent weather – thunderstorms, tornadoes, tropical cyclones
Hydrologic cycle, water budget, drought, groundwater, water
resources in the U.S.
Catch-up day..
- EXAM #1 Earth’s climate system – tropical, midlatitudes, polar, desert;
Global climate change, ENSO, global warming
Earth’s structure and internal energy, the geologic cycle, plate
tectonics, Pangaea, hot spots, global physiography, orogenesis ,
faulting
Earthquakes, volcanism
Geophysical hazards
Weathering, karst, mass wasting
Fluvial geomorphology, streams, floods and river management
- EXAM #2 Aeolian processes, arid lands geomorphology
Coastal processes – tides, waves, landforms; wetlands, coral reefs,
human impacts
Glacial geomorphology, the Pleistocene, paleoclimatology
Soils, ecosystems, nutrient cycles
Global biogeography – terrestrial biomes
Global biogeography – terrestrial biomes
Catch-up day..
Thanksgiving Holiday
Human use of the Earth – human impacts
Final Exam Review Session
9
Cumulative Final Examination 2:00-5:00PM - Friday
Date
Aug
Sept
25
30
1
6
8
13
15
20
22
Oct
Nov
.
Dec
27
29
4
6
11
13
18
20
25
27
1
3
Reading
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
TEST
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
TEST
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Please Note that “catch-up” days are inserted to allow time flexibility throughout the semester.