D:\352\2009\generalinfo.wpd EPSc 352: Earth Materials Fall, 2009General Information about the CourseGoals: To provide a sound introduction to mineralogic concepts that are important for moderngeoscientists with a wide range of intended fields of specialization, including environmentalgeology and space sciences. Topics of particular concern are crystal chemistry, basicsymmetry and structure of crystals (minerals), basic X-ray analysis of crystalline materials,fundamental information on the important mineral groups (definition of the groups; composition,structure, physical properties, occurrence, and usage of major mineral species), and opticalmicroscopy. By the end of the course, the student should have a fundamental knowledge of themajor mineral groups, the geologic and chemical relations among minerals, and the importanceof earth materials to the broader fields of geoscience and environmental science.Pre-requisites for course: prior completion of EPSc 201A and first-semester college chemistry.Class time: 3 one-hour lectures and 1 two-hour lab scheduled per week. Note: students willspend several additional hours per week in the lab. There is also a scheduled 1-day field trip.Texts: One text is required, which includes an accompanying CD-ROM:Klein, C. and Dutrow, B. 2008. Manual of Mineral Science. 23rd ed. John Wiley and Sons; accompanying CD-ROM also required. (Detailed text; reads well, although it is intense) Teaching Assistants: graduate students Alison Beehr ( [email protected] ) in officeroom 250 (tel. 935-4922) and Zhen Li ( [email protected] ) in office room 235 (tel.935-6629). Zhen’s office hrs: Tu 12:30-2:00pm, Th 2:00-3:30pm. Alison’s office hrs: M 11-12, W 1-2pm, F 9-10am.Course Web site: http://epsc.wustl.edu/classwork/classwork_352/Dates to remember:Monday, Sept. 7: No lecture or lab; Labor Day holiday. Friday, September 11: Homework #1 due.Friday, September 18: Homework #2 due.Wednesday, September 30: Homework #3 due.Wednesday, October 7: first in-class exam.Friday, October 16: Fall Break; no class.Monday-Wednesday, October 26-28: Special lectures and labs.Friday, October 30: Homework #4 due. Wednesday, November 4: second in-class exam. Continued...EPSc 352 Earth Materials: General Information2Monday, November 9: first draft of your term paper due.Monday OR Tuesday (TBA), November 23 or 24: All-day field trip. More details later. Wed. and Fri., November 25 and 27: Thanksgiving Break; no classes. Wednesday, Dec. 2: Homework #5 due. Monday, December 7: Last day of classesFriday, December 11: Final version of term paper due at NOON.Tuesday, December 15: Final Exam at 10:30am - 12:30pm, in our classroom.Requirements of the course:Class attendance is required (attendance will be taken).Other requirements: reading of assigned materials; 2 in-class exams, final exam; severalwritten homework assignments; participation in weekly labs, written materials checked & gradedby T.A./professor; a field trip; one term paper with about 15 double-spaced pages of text (+bibliography, figures, tables). Students are expected to respond to questions asked by the professor in class. Occasional pop quizzes will be given to alert students to the kinds of specific materials that theyneed to know and understand.** [**see next page]Class and lab assignments must be handed in on the date due in order to receive fullcredit; penalty for lateness is 5% per day; materials that are more than 3 days latewill not be accepted for a grade.Professor’s Office hours:I usually keep my office door open (EPSc bldg., rm. 233) for questions as students seefit. I post notes on the door to tell people where they can find me. I definitely encouragestudents to come and talk to me about: questions relating to the class material, perceiveddifficulties in the course, suggestions for changes in the course, mineralogic topics of interest tothem, etc. Tel. 935-5434; e-mail: [email protected] 352 Earth Materials: General Information3Grading in the CourseMy intention is to weight the "activities" of the course as follows**:20% for homework (the mineral quiz/quizzes in lab count as one homework each)20% for in-class exams (2 of these)25% for labs (after dropping each student's lowest lab grade)15% for the term paper20% for the final exam**I think that class participation is important. Therefore, I use it as a “positive increment” factor. A student’s grade can be elevated by as much as one grade increment (e.g., from B+ to A-) byconsistent participation in class discussions and questions, handing in voluntary assignments(announced in class), and by doing well on pop quizzes (the latter two of which will be awarded“positive points”). For your information, in past years, I have had as many as 3 out of 20students raise their grades one notch by availing themselves of these opportunities.EPSc 352 Earth Materials: General Information4Some Suggestions for Topics for the Term Paper on Earth MaterialsFirst written draft due Nov. 9th; final version due Dec. 11th at noon. The following are justsuggestions; you are welcome to choose other topics. Please discuss your topic–even from thislist-- with me before beginning any major research.Topics in “Classical” Mineralogy and Inorganic Solids[For a good overview of some interesting mineralogical topics, accompanied by short articles on thosetopics, see: Frye, K., editor. 1981. The Encyclopedia of Mineralogy. Volume IVB of the Encyclopedia ofEarth Sciences. Stroudsburg, PA: Hutchinson Ross Publ. Co.; in EPSc library, QE355.R6.]--Mineral fluorescence--Some selected aspect(s) of the cause of color in minerals, especially if you have a goodphysics background (conduction-band theory)--Detailed discussion of the smelting process of some type of ore, e.g., iron oxides or coppersulfides--Mineralogy and formation of opal, graphite, or other mineral--Formation of "salt" (evaporite) deposits, bauxite (Al) deposits, or analogous deposits--Natural and synthetic forms of silica--Some aspect of crystallization of solids from melt or aqueous fluid--Formation of soil--A chemical/structural analysis technique for minerals or rocks, e.g., X-ray fluorescence,transmission electron microscopy, electron microprobe analysis, infrared spectroscopy, Ramanspectroscopy--Formation of dolomite--Some aspect of deformation or recrystallization in metamorphic rocks--Metamictization (radiation damage) in a