EAES104 Natural Disasters Online Welcome to Natural Disasters Frequently the news informs the public of natural disasters such as earthquakes volcanic eruptions floods landslides and hurricanes to name and few as being catastrophic destructive elements of nature Unfortunately most people do not understand the geologic and atmospheric phenomena associated with these events By the end of this course you will have a primary foundation of the scientific mechanisms which result in these natural disasters and awareness of the precautionary measures scientists and engineers take to avoid the resultant destruction and the long term ramifications of natural disaster events The list below highlights the broad learning objectives for this course Understand how geologic atmospheric processes cause natural disasters Understand the hazards associated with natural disasters and how these hazards impact people and property Understand the methods by which people attempt to mitigate the hazards associated with natural disasters through regulation and engineering in an attempt to prevent or minimize their impact Be able to apply the scientific concepts gained to past and current natural disaster events Most of the information on natural disasters covered in the course can be broken up into four fundamental concepts These four concepts are designed to provide a framework of understanding that the learner can use throughout life to make informed choices about one s interaction with and effect upon geologic atmospheric processes 1 Hazards are generally predictable from scientific evaluation Most hazardous events and processes can be monitored mapped and their future activity predicted based upon the frequency of past events patterns in their occurrence and types of precursor events 2 Linkages exist between different natural hazards as well as between hazards and the physical environment For example earthquakes resulting from plate tectonic forces can produce landslides and tsunami Hurricanes can cause flooding and coastal erosion 3 Hazardous events that previously produced disasters are now producing catastrophes The magnitude or size of a hazardous event as well as its frequency may be influenced by human activity As a result of increasing human populations and poor land use practices events that used to cause disasters are now often causing catastrophes 4 The potential adverse consequences and effects of natural hazards can be minimized by using an integrated approach that includes scientific understanding land use planning and regulation engineering and proactive disaster preparedness These concepts are revisited throughout the course By tying the content to these four principles you will gain a framework of understanding that will extend far beyond the confines of this course and into everyday life EAES104 Natural Disasters Online Professor Christine D Valenti M S M S Email valentic mail montclair edu Cell Phone 201 873 6127 Office Location Virtual Office Office Hours By Request Blackboard IM Through Blackboard IM you can IM me any time I am available online Wimba Pronto Blackboard IM formerly Wimba Pronto is an academic based instant messaging platform integrated with Blackboard Students and teachers will automatically be connected with each other once they have installed Blackboard IM and have created accounts Blackboard IM will allow you to communicate with your instructor and classmates whenever they are online Natural Hazards and Disasters 3rd Edition Donald Hyndman David Hyndman ISBN 10 0538737522 ISBN 13 9780538737524 Publisher Brooks Cole CengageBrain com offers printed textbooks for purchase and rental eBooks and individual eChapters Go to http www cengagebrain com shop isbn 9780538737524 for details Working on Your Computer In order to work at home you MUST meet the following criteria You must be familiar with BLACKBOARD software so view the Student Orientation Video and Blackboard Documentation for Students accessible from the Office of Information Technology website at http oit montclair edu bb9 Through BLACKBOARD you will be responsible for downloading and uploading documents performing assessments submitting assignments participating in discussions creating wikis and checking announcements regularly You must have FAST internet service You must use a supported operating systems and browser for use with Blackboard Learn Release 9 For a list of the supported operating systems and browsers go to http kb blackboard com pages viewpage action pageId 38830689 Your computer should have software capable of displaying Microsoft Word Documents and Adobe PDF files Download the most recent version of JAVA Download Flash Quicktime and Windows Media Player Students with general technology questions can reach out to the Montclair State University Office of Information Technology Helpdesk Phone Support 973 655 7971 Email Support helpdesk mail montclair edu It is NOT the responsibility of the instructor to teach online students HOW to use software the internet computer hardware email etc nor is it the responsibility of the instructor to troubleshoot technical problems Online students MUST be familiar with computers and the necessary software to complete this course Students having technological issues should IMMEDIATELY contact the Office of Information Technology to seek help NO LENIENCY is given for any technological issues resulting from students working on non MSU computers or for students that do not demonstrate they tried to rectify technological problems immediately with OIT This link will take you to Information Technology s Documentation menu which includes many resources including Blackboard tutorials http oit montclair edu documentation Tech Support Students with general technology questions can reach out to the Montclair State University Help Desk Phone Support 973 655 7971 Email Support helpdesk mail montclair edu This link will take you to Information Technology s Documentation menu which includes many resources including Blackboard tutorials http oit montclair edu documentation Communicating With Your Instructor Regular communication is a very important part of this course You are expected to maintain regular communication with the instructor and other students via Blackboard through the discussion boards and MSU webmail I will generally check the discussion boards and MSU webmail twice daily Monday through Friday in the AM and PM and will typically respond within 24 hours In the event
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