6 EC
Semester 2, periode 5
5131VGEH6Y
| Eigenaar | Bachelor Future Planet Studies |
| Coördinator | dr. A.C. Seijmonsbergen |
| Onderdeel van | Bachelor Future Planet Studies, jaar 1Minor Fysische Geografie, jaar 1 |
Welcome to the Virtual Globe - Environmental Hazards course!
Environmental hazards have large impact on society, e.g. on our behavior, our food security, our water resources, our climate and on the development of landscapes. Environmental hazards, such as volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, floods, landslides and avalanches, potentially have an enormous direct impact, while other processes are slow, such as desertification, weathering, soil erosion, permafrost melt, glacial retreat, wind erosion and deposition, may cause indirect impacts. Their distribution, their frequency of occurrence, their impact and their extent is of paramount importance. Therefore, studying past events and processes improves the understanding of future impacts, which is the focus of this course.
Lectures by physical geographers are central to the first four weeks, and will focus on landforms that result from geological (tectonic, volcanic) and geomorphological (weathering, fluvial, coastal, glacial/periglacial, mass movement and Aeolian) processes. Scientific understanding of past landforms created by such environmental hazards, in combination with the geomechanical, hydrological and rheological behavior of (sub) surface materials and those parameters that determine the rate and extent of environmental hazards, is key to quantify the impact of the underlying processes. To identify, and quantity environmental hazards, you will learn to identify both the landscape scale patterns and processes from satellite imagery and aerial photographs - available on a Virtual Globe (Google Earth) - and from thematic information, for example historic air-photos, and geological / topographical maps across a wide variety of landscapes. For that, information from Google Earth Pro (for example distances, height, slopes) will be measured and will serve as input in analytical formulas, which are needed to quantify for example flow velocities of lava flows, solution rates in karst landscapes, safety factor analyses for the evaluation of slope stability, permafrost melt rates in high latitude areas, and erosive power in river landscapes.
A short project during the last three weeks of the course offers opportunities to apply the knowledge and practical skills from the first part in a case study in which natural patterns and processes, and human interventions in the landscape are evaluated in the light of past, current and future development. A student team will select an area, which will be evaluated on (multiple) environmental hazards, and quantitatively analyzed in relation to past, current and future process activity. The findings will be reported in a Virtual Globe project.
The VG - Env-H Team
Christopherson, R.W. & Birkeland, G. (2015). Geosystems: An Introduction to Physical Geography, 9th edition, Pearson, ISBN 139781292057750. See Canvas modules for exact chapters and pages
Each laptop practical has additional information which is published on Canvas - see the modules section
See Canvas: datasets, quizzes and tutorials will be published along with the modules
Google Earth Pro, Word, Excel, TestVision
Scientific calculator needed during the course and exam
The lectures will offer context and a solid theoretical overview to the laptop practicals, e.g. on pattern recognition, hazard classification and mathematical process formulas. During the practicals students will gain expert-knowledge on environmental hazards by recognizing, identifying and quantifying environmental processes through exercises that integrate patterns and processes.
|
Activiteit |
Aantal activiteiten |
Totaal uren |
|
College |
8 |
16 |
|
Werkcolleges in week 14 t/m 17 |
7 |
14 |
|
Proeftentamen vanaf week 17 |
1 |
2 |
| Vragenuur week 19 | 1 |
2 |
| Zelfstudie week 14 t/m 17 en week 19 |
56 |
|
|
Tentamen week 19 |
1 |
2 |
|
College week 20 |
1 |
2 |
|
Werkcollege week 20 t/m 22 |
3 |
6 |
|
Zelfstudie week 20 t/m 22 |
|
68 |
|
Totaal |
|
168 |
Aanwezigheidseisen opleiding (OER-B):
| Onderdeel en weging | Details |
|
Eindcijfer | |
|
0.6 (60%) Tentamen digitaal | Moet ≥ 5 zijn |
|
0.4 (40%) Project | Moet ≥ 5 zijn |
The Digital exam will be in the TestVision software. Google Earth Pro will be used, and a scientific calculator is allowed.
The weekly quizzes are not part of the end grade, but a for each quiz a grade of 70% is mandatory, all weekly quizzes can be retaken multiple times. Should, for any reason a quiz is not passed successfully, a new additional quiz must be taken, which will be available after the last laptop practical and until the digital exam, again with 70% minimum score.
For the project and the digital exam there is an official retake date in the first week of July, see the official schedules for date.
The combined grade of the digital exam and the project must be 5.5, while individual scores should be ≥5.0.
| Learning objective | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Quizzes | Digital exam | Project |
| 1. Can explain the rock cycle, the geomorphological cycle and the hydrological cycle | x | x | x | x | |||
| 2. Can identify and reconstruct the genesis of main exogenic and endogenic landforms and processes in the context of the landscape | x | x | x | x | |||
| 3. Can classify igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks | x | x | x | ||||
| 4. Can apply the mathematical formulas that describe the principles of physical and hydrological processes | x | x | x | x | x | ||
| 5. Can quantify the speed, rate and impact of environmental hazards in the context of a landscape | x | x | x | x | x | ||
| 6. Is able to create an environmental hazard impact assessment for a future scenario in the context of land use and land cover change | x | ||||||
Students that failed either for the digital exam, or the project, should:
- retake the digital exam, they are free to practice with weekly quizzes
- retake the project again, with the same team member, updating their former project or start a new one, in communication with the coordinator, at least three weeks before the end of the course
Feedback and grade percentages of weekly quizzes will be posted on Canvas. Feedback is automatically provided via Canvas.
The digital exam will be evaluated within 10 working days after which the grades will be announced via Canvas and the solutions of the exam will be published. Students can make an appointment with the coordinators/responsible assistants to review their work.
The project results can be reviewed through the feedback Rubrik form. If necessary, the students can make an appointment with the coordinators/responsible teaching assistants for additional feedback.
The weekly quizzes prepare for the digital exam. We encourage you to regularly proceed with these quizzes and reach the 70% minimum progress percentage. The digital exam is an individual, graded activity. The project is a team effort of two students and will be graded as a team, although exceptions, with fair reasons, are possible.
Dit vak hanteert de algemene 'Fraude- en plagiaatregeling' van de UvA. Hier wordt nauwkeurig op gecontroleerd. Bij verdenking van fraude of plagiaat wordt de examencommissie van de opleiding ingeschakeld. Zie de Fraude- en plagiaatregeling van de UvA: http://student.uva.nl
| Week number + general topic | (Content/Overview) | To learn - see details op Canvas |
| 14. Introduction and volcanism |
- Course set-up, logistics - Volcanic processes, structural landforms and materials. Rheology / rate of lava flows |
1. Lecture 2. Lecture, Handout
|
| 15. Weathering and rocks |
- Weathering processes and landforms - chemical / physical, landscape denudation related to karst - Identification of rocks - practical |
1. Lecture, Handout 2. Lecture, Handout |
| 16. Mass movements and Rivers |
- Mass movement processes and landforms, slope stability and safety factor analysis - Fluvial processes and landforms - erosion speed, Hjullstrom curve, gully and canyon formation |
1. Lecture, Handout 2. Lecture, Handout |
| 17. Coasts, wind, glaciers |
- Coastal and Aeolian processes and landforms, erosion, transport and sedimentation - Glacial and periglacial processes and landforms - mass balances, methane release |
1. Lecture, Handout 2. Lecture, Handout |
| 18. No education activities | ||
| 19. Question hour / Digital exam | Week 14 t/m 18 - see also Canvas announcements | Study materials from weeks 14 to18 |
| 20. Project Environmental hazards | Select topic via Canvas | First part of the course + scientific literature |
| 21. Project Environmental hazards | Select topic via Canvas | First part of the course + scientific literature |
| 22. Project Environmental hazards | Select topic via Canvas | First part of the course + scientific literature |
Het rooster van dit vak is in te zien op DataNose.
Not applicable
We vinden het belangrijk dat je je op de UvA en bij Future Planet Studies veilig voelt. Krijg je onverhoopt te maken met ongewenst gedrag of voel je je onveilig, dan kun je terecht bij verschillende personen. Je melding wordt altijd vertrouwelijk behandeld. Kijk op onze website voor meer informatie over waar en bij wie je terecht kunt.
It is important that everyone feels safe at the UvA and Future Planet Studies. We are committed to provide social safety and we offer various forms of support for people experiencing inappropriate or unsafe situations. Consult the UvA website or Future Planet Studies Canvas page for more information and contact info.
Vanaf 2013-2014 hebben we ervoor gekozen om d.m.v. onderstaande info de studenten meer inzicht te geven in de kwaliteitszorg. Daarom nemen we een korte weergave van de studentenevaluatie op en de daaruit voortvloeiende acties ter verbetering van het vak.
Belangrijk punt was de instructie bij het verslag ende verdeling van werkdruk over de cursus, daartoe nemen we de volgende acties:
- We stappen dit jaar af van summatieve deeltoetsen tijdens de laptopcolleges >> formatieve toetsen worden de standaard
- We sterven er naar om dit jaar alle quizzen in Canvas in het nieuw forat te herschrijven, en daarbij de link tussen processen/patronen en kwanticering van processen aan te scherpen
- De instructie voor het project zal beter gecommuniceerd worden via Canvas, het intro college en tijdens de laptopcolleges, terwijl er ook een eerder begin gemaakt kan worden. Voorbeelden zulen beschikbaar worden gemaakt.