Teaching

Geohydrologic principles, applications, and design considerations concerning ground-water occurrence, flow, and quality. Ground-water and surface-water relations; theory of aquifer tests; flow nets; head distribution by graphical, analytical, and digital models; ground-water contamination. Laboratories include water budgets, chemistry of ground water, design of exploration programs and aquifer tests, computer solutions, and field trips to areas of geohydrologic interest. A design project with written and oral presentations is required.

Application of basic probability theory to geology and geological engineering; probability distributions; cluster analysis; machine learning and principal component analysis; spatial correlations and geostatistics with emphasis on applications in geology and geological engineering. The use of spreadsheets, geostatistical software, and Python will be included.

Practical applications of digital models as tools in the study of groundwater flow systems. Methods of simulating aquifer systems and solute transport will be used. Specific emphasis will be placed on the development, application, and limitations of finite-difference and finite-element computer models.

Field course offered by Black Hills Natural Sciences Field Station to accommodate field education needs of scientists and engineers in multiple disciplines such as geology, geological engineering, petroleum engineering, environmental engineering, etc. Course offerings will take place in the summer months, and content of each camp will be defined by staff from the SDSM&T Geology and Geological Engineering Department and industry partners.