We will use EOS as the source for many of the readings for the course, and
this syllabus will be updated as the semester progresses.
| Wed |
01/07/09
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Course introduction |
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| Mon |
01/12/09
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Visit these web sites, and
come to class ready to discuss the functions of a
scientific society:
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Discuss the role of scientific professional
societies in holding meetings, publishing papers,
and publishing newsletters.
Describe the funding of scientific research with
grants, and the difference between
"hard" and "soft" money.
Understand the role of "big science"
versus individual research projects.
Know the major funding agencies for earth
sciences: NSF and ONR, and the difference between
NRL and ONR.
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| Wed |
01/14/09
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Scientific writing and presentations |
Discuss the importance of priority in scientific
research, and the role of refereed and peer
reviewed journals.
Understand the importance of abstracts, and the
need for clear, concise, and informative
abstracts.
Describe the importance of oral and poster
presentations for scientific research.
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| Tues |
01/20/09
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Anatomy of a Scientific Paper
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- Discuss the parts of a scientific paper
- Discuss the citation style used in science, and
the preponderance of journal articles in the
references cited
- Discuss the weaving of geology, biology, climatology, and GIS in this paper's tracing of
past climates and snakehead distribution.
- Paper
analysis checklists
We need pairs of students to discuss:
Abstract,
Introduction/Background,
Methodology,
Results,
Summary
and conclusions
A single student will discuss:
Graphics,
References |
| Wed |
01/21/09
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Research topics 1 |
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| Mon |
01/26/09
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EOS anatomy |
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| Wed |
01/28/09
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Research topics 2 (during 1st period; you will have SO513
during 2d period) |
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| Mon |
02/02/09
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Time Series |
- Understand the definition of a time series.
- Know the use of filtering, detrending, and anomaly computation
- Understand the use of cross correlation.
- Interpret a correlogram, in terms of time series periodicity and
what the lags mean.
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| Wed |
02/04/09
|
Time series part two |
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| Mon |
02/09/09
|
Exam 1 (30 minutes) Then Tarrant
and S. Neuer, Monitoring Algal Blooms in a
Southwestern U.S. Reservoir System, EOS
|
- Discuss the value of MODIS imagery, with its near daily imagery
at 250 m resolution.
- Discuss how we can monitor algal blooms from space.
|
| Wed |
02/11/09
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Time series and climate |
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| Wed |
02/18/09
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Studying Stream Morphology With
Airborne Laser Elevation Data, EOS |
- Discuss the characteristics and uses of LIDAR topography.
- Discuss why we want a variety of digital elevation models (DEMs)
at different scales or resolutions.
|
| Mon |
02/23/09
|
Google Earth Mapping (finding Bin Laden) |
- Discuss the use of Google Earth imagery, and models for what he
would be looking for, to suggest possible location for Bin Laden.
- Discuss the use of nighttime lights for an indication of the
situation in Baghdad.
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| Wed |
02/25/09
|
GIS introduction |
- Discuss what makes a GIS (data and map coordinates), and why it
is so important for the earth sciences.
- Discuss the importance of registration for imagery, and how it
is done using world files or by KML with Google Earth.
|
| Mon |
03/02/09
|
Remote sensing |
- Discuss the types of resolution with satellite imagery, and the
tradeoffs required to get an acceptable S/N ratio with the sensors.
- Differentiate multispectral and hyperspectral imagery.
- Discuss why we use contrast enhancement when displaying imagery.
- Discuss the use of filtering and principal components in imagery
analysis.
- Discuss how we can classify satellite imagery
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| Wed |
03/04/09
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Remote sensing |
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| Mon |
03/09/09
|
References |
- Discuss the use of citation databases, especially the ability to
find newer sources that cite a classical old paper.
- Understand that spaces in file names can cause issues for some
ancient legacy software.
- Discuss the relative speed of data access from different
computer media, and how that should influence where you store data
files.
- Understand the importance of seniority in paper authorship, and
the need for accurate reference lists in papers.
|
| Wed |
03/11/09
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Paper topic due |
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| Mon |
03/23/09
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Ref list corrections, Drought in Mexico (EOS) |
- Discuss the use of tree rings to get long term climate records
for PDSI
|
| Wed |
03/25/09
|
PLOS--connections of science Nature--flu and Google
searches |
- Understand the difference between static and dynamic IP
addresses
- Discuss how internet search queries can be used, and how we can
locate a web address
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| Mon |
03/30/09
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| Wed |
04/01/09
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Exam 2 |
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| Mon |
04/06/09
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| Wed |
04/08/09
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| Mon |
04/13/09
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| Wed |
04/15/09
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Paper reference list due, correct format |
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| Mon |
04/20/09
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| Wed |
04/22/09
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Paper due |
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| Mon |
04/27/09
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Course Review |
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