University of Georgia Department of Geology

GEOL 3030 - Elementary Oceanography

GEOL 3030 (previously GLY 303) is an introduction to . . .
  • the geography & geology of the ocean basins,
  • the how and why of ocean currents, waves, & tides,
  • life in the sea & marine ecology,
  • the oceans of the past (and perhaps the future),
  • and the impact of human activity on the marine environment.

    GEOL 3030 meets the University of Georgia's Environmental Literacy Requirement.
    There are no prerequisites, so this course is open to all students.

    The purpose of the course is to survey all the aspects of oceanography with the goal of seeing the interactions of ocean circulation, biology, geology, and chemistry in one linked system. The formal and official course description is:
    Basic aspects of oceanography: ocean basins and plate tectonics, shallow and deep ocean circulation, waves and tides, marine biology and ecology, marine sediments, chemistry of seawater, paleoceanography, and environmental oceanography.

    The textbook is the latest edition of Introductory Oceanography by Harold Thurman and Alan Trujillo (New York, Macmillan Publishing Co., ca. 550 p.).

    You can look at a pdf file of the syllabus for Spring 2006.

    There are no prerequisites, so this course is open to all students. Art majors, history majors, business majors, exercise science majors, and natural science majors have all taken this course and done well:

      
    YEAR  Enrollment    As      Bs      Cs      Ds      Fs            Ws & Is  % As & Bs GPA
    1990 9 2 5 1 1 0 0   77% -
    1991 22 6 6 2 2 0 6   75% -
    1992 19 3 9 3 3 0 1   67% -
    1993 34 6 15 8 4 1b 0   62% -
    1994 13 3 5 1 1 1b 2   73% -
    1995 25 4 15 2 0 1b 3   86% -
    1996 11 4 5 2 0 0 0   82% -
    1997 14 7 2 1 0 1b 3   82% -
    1998 17 5 6 2 1 1b 2   73% 2.87
    1999 26 9 9 6 1 1c 0   69% 2.92
    2000 61 14 20 15 3 4d 5   61% 2.69
    2001 61 13 22 18 1 1b 6   64% 2.82
    2002 61 12 23 18 4 3e 1   58% 2.60
    2003 60 9 31 8 4 0 8   77% 2.87
    2004 59 12 29 15 2 0 1   71% 2.88
    2005 57 13 33 4 3 2f 2   84% 2.95
    2006 61 15 25 11 2 0 8   75% 3.00
    2007 59 14 20 11 2 2g 10   69% 2.80
    2008 62 11 30 9 2 3h 7   75% 2.76h
    YEAR Enrollment   As    Bs    Cs    Ds    Fs  Ws & Is % As & Bs GPA

    • bThese Fs went to people who not only never came to class but also did not show up to take the final exam.
    cThis F went to someone who only came to class on the days of the midterm and final exams.
    d Of these 4 Fs, two went to people who didn't show up to take the final exam, and a third went to someone who almost never came to class except for exams.
    e Of these three Fs, two went to people who didn't show up to take the final exam.
    f Of these two Fs, one went to someone who did not take the second midterm and final exam, and the other went to someone who did none of the exercises and never scored above 45 on the exams.
    g These two Fs went to people who did not take the final exam, one of whom did not take the second exam and both of whom did not hand in most of the exercises.
    h These three Fs went to people who did not take the final exam (two of whom did not take the second exam and two of whom did not hand in any of the eight exercises). With only two Fs, the class GPA would be 2.81; with only one F, the class GPA would be 2.87; with no Fs, the class GPA would be 2.92.

     

     

        The Department of Marine Sciences offers a two-semester 4100/4200 sequence that is designed more for those who may want a degree in Marine Sciences or want to pursue Oceanography professionally. That sequence is more appropriate for students considering marine sciences as a career. GEOL 3030 is a less quantitative and more general one-semester survey intended for those wanting to learn about the oceans.

        GEOL 3030 will be offered in Spring Semester 2009 at on a MWF schedule in Room 200A GG. The instructor will be Professor Bruce Railsback , a past winner the Department of Geology's Teacher of the Year Award and five-time winner of the Department's Professor of the Year Award. If there is a TA, the TA's participation will be limited to grading of exercises and proctoring of exams. Maximum enrollment will be 60.

        For more information, you can reach Dr. Railsback at rlsbk@gly.uga.edu

    For links to some oceanographic web sites, see our GLY303/GEOL3030 basic page
    To Railsback's faculty page.
    To The UGA Geology Department main page.
    email to Bruce Railsback