ERB202 Marine and Atmospheric Systems
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| Unit code: | ERB202 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Timetable | Details in HiQ, if available |
| Availabilities |
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| CSP student contribution | $1,118 |
| Domestic tuition unit fee | $4,680 |
| International unit fee | $5,244 |
Unit Outline: Semester 1 2024, Gardens Point, Internal
| Unit code: | ERB202 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Coordinator: | Luke Nothdurft | l.nothdurft@qut.edu.au |
Overview
Oceans make up 70% of the Earth's surface, yet less than 5% of them have been explored. There is therefore still much to learn about the marine environment, marine resources, and management, and how oceans affect atmospheric circulation. This unit takes a bottom-up approach introducing students to the major geological processes and geomorphology features that shape the ocean floor, dynamic sediments and biology that are sourced and distributed by ocean currents and chemistry, followed by an overview of the factors governing ocean circulation and ocean water properties and finally looking at how oceans affect atmospheric circulation and climate. The interaction of all these processes has a direct societal impact such as management of marine resources, including the Great Barrier Reef, infrastructure, natural hazards, weather patterns, and climate change.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Identify depositional environments in the marine realm and fundamental principles of sediment transport and deposition during the formation of ocean basins
- Identify and interpret the geological and biological products from marine depositional environments.
- 3. Interpret and analyse the interactions between the atmosphere and ocean that drive weather and climate worldwide.
- Collect and integrate scientific data sets.
Content
The unit covers the following topics in both theoretical and applied terms:
- Marine depositional environments - shallow to deep water environmental conditions, sedimentation, marine biota
- Marine biological assessment and management - distribution of biota in the oceans, reef structure and fauna
- Introduction to fields of oceanography, marine geoscience, marine biota with the analysis of processes and products in the shallow through to the deep marine environment.
- Influence of ocean processes on atmospheric conditions affecting climate and weather patterns
Learning Approaches
The unit combines lectures, and practicals/workshops to provide both theoretical knowledge and important practical experience with modern marine processes and products. The combination of collaborative investigation in practicals/workshops and individual assessment tasks will allow you to formulate and present marine science concepts and ideas related to a range of scientific disciplines.
Lectures: 2 hours per week for 12 weeks. Active lectures will present fundamental base knowledge that will be explored further in the workshops and field trips.
Practicals or Workshops (including online): 2 hours a week for 12 weeks. These hands-on and online classes will provide experience in observation and analysis of marine data. A non-compulsory multi-day field trip will be part of the learning experience.
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
Feedback will be provided through the following mechanisms:
Written and oral feedback will be provided for all assessment items according to each assessment criteria with verbal feedback and examples in class
Assessment
Overview
Assessment includes applied scientific work in the laboratory through a portfolio of related practical activities, a field and laboratory based project and a final timed online assessment to assess conceptual theoretical knowledge. All work is individually assessed.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Portfolio
Progressive practical projects will provide you with experience in the analysis of the marine environment, coastal and ocean processes and products.
This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.
Assessment: Report
Data synthesis and analysis.
This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.
Assessment: Project
Atmospheric data collections and analysis.
This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.
Academic Integrity
Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.
Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Resources
Lecture notes and workshop reading made available on Canvas.
Resource Materials
Recommended text(s)
Boggs, 2011. Principles of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy (5th Edition). Prentice Hall. 688 pp.
(This is the same textbook for ERB203 Sedimentology and Stratigraphy in the Earth Science major).
Risk Assessment Statement
There are no extraordinary risks associated with the unit, but the field excursion will require your particular attention to university safety guidelines. Complete safety information will be provided.