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Physics

PHYS 324: Geophysical Field Research Introductory Seminar

Prerequisites: Instructor Approval

Credit Hours: (1)

This course will include readings, activities, and experimental and equipment design components to prepare students for the PHYS 325 – Geophysical Field Research class (to be offered the subsequent semester). Students and faculty will create a plan of study for the fieldwork of the PHYS 325 class. Students will learn about professional equipment and software that may be used in the field, and be required to design and make their own sensors to be deployed in PHYS 325.

Detailed Description of Course Content

Study of field site environment and (as appropriate) local customs.
Determination of field site’s scientific questions to be addressed by the fieldwork.
Study of existing professional geophysical equipment and software appropriate for the field site.
Students will choose a question/phenomenon to be studied during the trip that will require custom sensors.
Students will submit a proposal for their own sensor project including a full parts list, costs, and a build timeline.
Students will begin making their sensors which will be completed and deployed in the subsequent PHYS 325 class.

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

Course delivery may include weekly meetings with instruction on existing equipment and software, discussions of the research problems to be addressed, regular assignments involving equipment design and build planning, research proposal writing, and preliminary construction of the proposed custom sensors.

Goals and Objectives of the Course

After the completion of this course students will be able to:

Develop an appropriate research proposal for a field site.
Design custom sensors to study a field research question/phenomenon.
Learn to work on a team that will answer a scientific question.

Assessment Measures

Assessment measures may include evaluations of the following: research question chosen, written and oral presentations of student sensor designs, level and quality of participation in small groups working on each particular question, and quality of the preliminary builds of the sensors.

Other Course Information

Review and Approval

September, 2018