Undergraduate Course: Earth Modelling and Prediction (GESC08002)
Course Outline
| School | School of Geosciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Earth Modelling and Prediction (EMP) is a level 8, 20-credit course. EMP uses topical issues in Geosciences to understand and develop the essential mathematical skills required by modern geoscientists. The emphasis will be on data analysis and interpretation, including an appreciation of the importance of observation errors and the use of quantitative data in the prediction of future changes in the Earth system.
The course content will be taught through accessible applied problems (e.g., growth rate of ice sheets, balancing the carbon cycle), which are carefully designed to introduce key scientific notation and concepts that are used repeatedly through this course and more widely through the GeoSciences degree programmes.
Weekly tutorials (in groups of 5-6) will reinforce the key concepts taught in the course. The course will be examined by continuous assessment only. EMP's total contact teaching time is 35 hours (20 x 1 hour lectures; 10 x 1.5 hour tutorials). Students should also undertake self-directed study outside the contact teaching hours. The week 10 tutorial will be an open-book test that will cover the content of the whole course.
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| Course description |
Lecture Week Topic Lecturer Date
1 1 Introduction and Objectives Massimo Bollasina Mon 15 Sep
2 1 Basics Alex Thomas Tue 16 Sep
3 2 Algebra: Solving and simplifying equations Alex Thomas Mon 22 Sep
4 2 Algebra: Solving and simplifying equations Alex Thomas Tue 23 Sep
5 3 Algebra: Solving and simplifying equations Alex Thomas Mon 29 Sep
6 3 Algebra: Solving and simplifying equations Alex Thomas Tue 30 Sep
7 4 Algebra: Solving and simplifying equations Alex Thomas Mon 6 Oct
8 4 Logarithms and Exponentials Massimo Bollasina Tue 7 Oct
9 5 Logarithms and Exponentials Massimo Bollasina Mon 13 Oct
10 5 Statistics, Distributions, Errors, Uncertainties Massimo Bollasina Tue 14 Oct
11 6 Statistics, Distributions, Errors, Uncertainties Massimo Bollasina Mon 20 Oct
12 6 Statistics, Distributions, Errors, Uncertainties Massimo Bollasina Tue 21 Oct
13 7 Statistics, Distributions, Errors, Uncertainties Massimo Bollasina Mon 27 Oct
14 7 Trigonometry and Vectors Massimo Bollasina Tue 28 Oct
15 8 Trigonometry and Vectors Massimo Bollasina Mon 3 Nov
16 8 Trigonometry and Vectors Massimo Bollasina Tue 4 Nov
17 9 Calculus: Integration and Differentiation Alex Thomas Mon 10 Nov
18 9 Calculus: Integration and Differentiation Alex Thomas Tue 11 Nov
19 10 Calculus: Integration and Differentiation Alex Thomas Mon 17 Nov
20 10 Calculus: Integration and Differentiation Alex Thomas Tue 18 Nov
Tutorial topics are based on the maths lecture preceding it. In other words, the maths topic discussed at the Tuesday lecture will be covered on the following Thursday or Friday tutorial.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | None. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2014/15, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Formative Assessment Hours 3,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
193 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
65 %,
Practical Exam
35 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Assessment consists of the following compulsory components:
Attendance at all (10) weekly tutorials
Completion of each tutorial worksheet
Completion of the week 10 open-book test
During the 10 weeks of the course students are expected to attend:
20 lectures (20 x 1 hr)
10 tutorials (10 x 1.5 hr)
In addition, students are expected to undertake preparatory and independent reading, and preparation for their tutorials. These commitments amount to about 200 hours of study including 35 hours of teaching contact.
The teaching components of the course are outlined in more detail below. You are expected to arrive punctually for all lectures and tutorials and course-related commitments.
Any student who does not attend all tutorials or submit all components of class work will not be assessed for a course degree mark and, thus, fail the course.
The overall mark of the course is based on coursework (65% of the total mark) and a practical test (35% of the total mark). Tutorial sheets will be distributed in weeks 1, 3, 5, 7, and 8 and due in weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, and 9 respectively. Tutorial sheets due in weeks 2, 4, and 6 are each worth 15% of the course grade, and tutorials due in weeks 8 and 9 are each worth 10% of the course grade. You must attend all tutorials and submit the completed tutorial exercises to the Course Submission box by the due date (see below). There is an open-book test in week 10, scheduled at the normal time of weekly tutorials, which is worth 35% of the total course mark.
Each tutor will keep an attendance record for each session. If you don¿t attend a tutorial without good reason, your mark for that exercise will be restricted to 40%. It is your responsibility to inform your Tutor and the Course Secretary in advance and in writing if you have an exceptional reason for not attending a tutorial. No cases for retrospective non-attendance will be considered unless appropriate extenuating circumstances are proven.
The pass mark for this course is 40%. To pass the course, students are required to submit all tutorial sheets, to score at least 40% for the tutorials (on average), and to score at least 40% for the exam.
Assessment deadlines
You must submit the completed tutorial exercises to the Course Submission box, which you will find located on level3 of the Grant Building, Room 332, by 3:00 pm on the following dates:
Week 1 tutorial: submit week 2 on Friday 26th September
Week 3 tutorial: submit week 4 on Friday 10th October
Week 5 tutorial: submit week 6 on Friday 24th October
Week 7 tutorial: submit week 8 on Friday 7th November
Week 8 tutorial: submit week 9 on Friday 14th November
There is a penalty for late submission of coursework. The penalty will be a reduction of the mark by 5% of the maximum obtainable mark per calendar day (e.g. a mark of 65% would be reduced to 60% up to 24 hours later). This would apply for up to five days after which a mark of zero should be given.
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
The overarching outcomes will be an appreciation of quantitative methods that can be confidently applied to problems in geosciences. Through extensive worked problems the students will develop a broad knowledge and understanding of how to use a range of standard methods to process and obtain data as well as how to use and evaluate numerical and graphical data to achieve goals.
Students will therefore have a sound understanding of:
Scientific notation and nomenclature (e.g. significant figures)
How to manipulate equations
How to use calculators to evaluate equations (e.g. exponent versus exponential)
Guesstimation and knowing when to use it
Trigonometry
Logarithms
Scalars and vectors
Basic calculus
Basic probability and statistics (e.g. mean and variance)
Errors and uncertainty of measured or predicted values
Areas and volumes
How to approximate observed data using lines and curves
At the end of this course, students will be able to carry out routine lines of enquiry into professional level problems and critically evaluate evidence-based solutions.
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Reading List
Recommended textbooks
Foundation maths by Anthony Croft and Robert Davison, Pearson/Prentice Hall
Essential Maths for Geoscientists: An Introduction. by Paul I. Palmer,
Wiley Blackwell |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
EMP is a core course for incoming Geosciences students who don't have
sufficient maths qualifications, i.e. with a D grade or below at A-level
Maths, or a C grade or below at Higher Maths. Students with sufficient
qualifications can take the course but not for credit.
1 hour(s) 30 minutes per week for 10 week(s). 2 x 1 hour lectures each
Students must choose either Thursday or Friday tutorial and self-enroll online via Learn. Details on how to access and register will be given at the first lecture in Week 1. Please make sure that you are aware of all your other timetable commitments before signing up. If you cannot enrol online, please contact the Course Secretary in person or by email.
week, plus 1 x 1.5 hour tutorial. |
| Keywords | Earth Modelling and Prediction |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Massimo Bollasina
Tel: (0131 6)51 3464
Email: Massimo.Bollasina@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Nicola Muir
Tel: (0131 6)50 4842
Email: Nikki.Muir@ed.ac.uk |
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