Times & Locations

Lectures will be held MWF 11-11:50 and labs will be Tuesdays 10-11:50.

People

Texts

• Metamorphic Phase Equilibria and P-T-t Paths, Frank Spear. This will be supplemented by handouts and web readings.

Online resources

This document is available online, as are many others revelant to the course (listed below, in part). You can get to the course's home page by a number of routes, the easiest of which is probably http://www.davehirsch.com. The page is also linked from the "Courses Online" section of the Geology Department's site (http://geology.wwu.edu).

• The tentative schedule of labs and lectures is available.
• The web contains superb resources for this course and for general earth science. Check out these links and others.
• I have posted a couple of anonymous comments forms. In this way you can give me feedback on my teaching. If you don't want to fill out the whole survey, you can just skip to the end of the form and write a comment in the space provided.
• You can check your course scores online, interactively!

Lab

Some of our labs will be examining metamorphic rocks and minerals (primarily in thin section), but many will focus on computer programs, which are an important tool of the modern petrologist. You should be comfortable working on both Macintosh and Windows, and have a good understanding of Excel. Here is a basic tutorial describing how Excel works.

• Many labs will require use of the petrographic microscopes. There are eight microscopes stored in room 223, and they require a key for access. These keys may be borrowed from Vicki in ES 240.
• You will need a hand lens for some labs including the first one. (10x or 12x magnification is best, 18x or 20x is too much). These (10x) can be obtained cheaply at the WWU Bookstore (the black ones are best). Also, there are numerous Geological Supply catalogs that carry excellent hand lenses - ask me.
• Although we don't anticipate any trouble, WWU recommends that all students in labs obtain cheap ($1) lab insurance.

Graded Assignments

See Homeworks.

Field Trip

We will spend a weekend examining metamorphic rocks across the Cascade range. We will leave early on Saturday, October 13, and return the afternoon of Sunday, October 14. More information will be forthcoming.

Course Objectives

1. Review basics of metamorphic petrology (classification, protoliths, environments, facies, zones, minerals).
2. Review identification and description of metamorphic rocks and minerals in hand specimen and thin section.
3. Learn details of pelite, mafic, and calc-silicate metamorphism.
4. Learn chemographics and phase equilibria.
5. Understand methods of geothermobarometry, along with sufficient thermodynamics to do so.
6. Learn to read the metamorphism literature.
7. Learn to use a thermodynamics program.

425 / 525 differences

525 students will be expected to complete larger projects and review a number of literature papers.

Expected Outcomes & Assessment

• Detailed learning objectives are listed by topic on the objectives page.
• Your achievement of these objectives will be assessed by the following:
• Labs
• Homeworks / Projects
• Exams: Quizzes, Midterm, Lab Practical

Grades

• 35% of the grade will be based on in-class evaluations.

This portion of the grade is calculated from the results of one lecture midterm exam (closed book) and one lab midterm exam, each worth 150 points, and also of a number of very short quizzes in lecture and labs (collectively worth 50 points). The midterm dates are listed on the schedule; attendance at the midterm exams is required. In general, a missed exam will be cause for a grade of 0, unless an acceptable medical excuse is is presented, or a leave of absence from the Office of Student Life. In general, make-up exams will not be given. The short quizzes mentioned above may not be announced in advance, and they cannot be made up if missed (although the lowest one or two might be dropped).
The exam grades will be curved if necessary, by multiplying all grades by a value necessary to raise the mean grade to 72%. If the mean grade is greater then 72%, then the grade for that exam will not be curved.

• 35% of the grade will be based on the homeworks and projects.

This portion of the grade is calculated from the results of the various homeworks and projects, each weighted according to the points listed on the assignment.

• 30% of the grade will be based on laboratory work.

Based on the above distribution, the maximum number of points possible will be (1000). Letter grades will be assigned by reference to the scale below. Although the cutoffs for each letter grade will not be assigned until the end of the course, they will be no harsher than the list below. For example: If your curved score is 86.5%, then the lowest grade you could get is a B, but you could get any higher grade as well).

Prerequisites

• Grade of C- or better in Geo 406 and 407

Other Important Notes

• Group work
  • There will be a number of occassions for group work, and group activities. Furthermore, I encourage you to form study groups, discuss questions about the material, and quiz each other on lab and lecture topics. There may even be some group assignments, where a group grade is assigned for work completed. However, you must do your own work on exams and on most assignments. If it is ever unclear what collaboration is acceptable on an assignment, ask your professor!
  • Anyone caught cheating on an exam or turning in work that is not his or her own will be dealt with in accordance with the General Catalog's Appendix D - Academic Dishonesty Policy and Procedure. If you're not familiar with this section, you may want to review it.
• Special exam conditions
  • If you have a condition verified by the Office of Student Life that requires non-standard exam conditions, you must notify me at least one week before the exam in question. I would prefer notification as soon as possible, preferably within the first two weeks of class.