Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Natural Disasters

“Civilization exists by geological consent, subject to change without notice.”

- Will Durant

This course surveys natural hazards and their impact on the Earth system and humanity. Special emphasis is given to how these disasters affect our local community and humanity at large. This class will explore extreme events in the Earth system and teach you how to understand risk. The following disasters are covered:

• Earthquakes

• Tsunamis

• Volcanoes

• Extreme weather: Atmospheric rivers, thunderstorms, hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards

• Flooding

• Landslides and other mass movements

• Droughts

• Wildfires

• Coastal erosion

• Climate Change

• Bolide impacts

• Mass extinctions

• The Anthropocene

This class is offered every semester.

Catalog Description:

This course will emphasize the geology of Earth's natural hazards including earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, landslides, global warming and ozone depletion. Students will learn how geologic processes can directly affect people, property and human made structures. Procedures to mitigate such hazards will be explored. In addition to earth's natural hazards, some other important concepts to be addressed include population growth pressures on natural resources, uniformitarianism and geology as a foundation to understanding our environment. Course entails three hours of lecture per week and four 3-5 hour mandatory laboratory exercises per semester.

Sample Syllabus

Click here for a sample syllabus.