Undergraduate Course: Eroding Landscapes: Mountains, Hills and Rivers (GEGR10094)
Course Outline
| School | School of Geosciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Hills and mountains are continuously being denuded and dissected by erosional processes. In non-glaciated landscapes sediment is produced on hillslopes, delivered to channels, and eventually transported to basins. In this course, students will be introduced to the processes that sculpt these upland regions. The processes and their feedbacks will be analysed at different scales, from particles to mountain ranges and from single transport events (e.g. landslide, flood) to geological time scales. Theoretical, experimental (analogical and numerical) and field studies constitute the basis of this course. Lectures, practicals including numerical modelling exercises and field work will allow students to understand and quantify hillslope and fluvial processes and to gain knowledge on the interactions between these processes and on their relative importance in driving landscape evolution. The course inclludes a one-day field trip on Sunday of week 5. |
| Course description |
Syllabus:
Wk 1: Introduction to course, morphology and dynamics of mountain rivers
Wk 2: Sediment and bedrock erosion
Wk 3: Numerical models of landscape evolution
Wk 4: Quantifying erosion in mountainous landscapes
Wk 5: Weathering, sediment production and soils- FIELD TRIP ON SUNDAY
Wk 6: Sediment and water transport on hillslopes
Wk 7: Slope stability and debris flow
Wk 8: Sediment transport on soil mantled hillslopes
Wk 9: Tectonic geomorphology- large scale interactions between tectonics and erosion
Wk 10: Tectonic geomorphology- measuring landscape processes and transience
Note: with a view to constantly improve content and structure, the order of the lectures/practicals may be altered.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
It is RECOMMENDED that students have passed
Geomorphology (GEGR08002)
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2016/17, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 35 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
172 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
60 %,
Coursework
40 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Class assessment: practicals and computer exercises.
Degree assessment: essays/projects (40%) and examination (60%).
The essay is a research essay: students will define a research question based on the landscape studied in the field and through analysis of topographic data in the lab. They will then produce a short (2000 word) research paper describing the research question, study area, observations and data, and a discussion of the observations and data to address the research question. Data typically consists of a mix of field data, data from topographic analysis (using ArcGIS) and/or numerical modelling results.
The exam consists of one essay question and between five and ten short questions referring to different topics covered by the course. |
| Feedback |
Students will have the opportunity to receive feedback in the following instances:
- Personal 1-to-1 feedback during the practicals, a students progress on the exercises (once a week).
- written feedback on the work students hand in at the end of each practical. Hand-in is not compulsory but strongly encouraged.
-personal feedback on essay topics: students will pick their own essay topic (research paper style) and are encouraged to run their idea by the lecturer before committing to it.
- personal 1-to-1 feedback during the field trip (day trip) as they practice different techniques to collect data |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours & Minutes |
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| Main Exam Diet S1 (December) | | 2:00 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- a detailed understanding of the physical processes involved in fluvial and hill slope erosion
- a critical understanding of how local erosional processes act and interact to sculpt landscapes at catchment, mountain range and continental scales
- an ability to quantify both fluvial and hill slope processes in terms of mass conservation, and use this ability to make predictions about future behaviour of landscapes
- a knowledge of the tools that modern geomorphologist use to analyse these processes (e.g., topographic analysis, numerical modelling) and how understanding in this field is developed
- further developed their ability to critically review and consolidate knowledge and thinking in a discipline
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Reading List
Anderson R.S. and Anderson S.P. (2010), Geomorphology: the mechanics and chemistry of landscapes, Cambridge Univ. Press, ISBN 0-521-51978-6. (if there's one book that you want to buy, it's this one!)
Burbank D.W. and Anderson R.S. (2001), Tectonic Geomorphology, Blackwell, ISBN 0-632-04386-5.
Carson M.A. and Kirkby M.J. (1972). Hillslope form and process, Cambridge Univ. Press, ISBN 0-521-08234-X.
Knighton D. (1998), Fluvial Forms and Processes: A New Perspective, Hodder Arnold, ISBN 0-340-66313-8.
Tinkler K.J. and Wohl E.E. (1998), Rivers over rock, AGU Geophysical monograph 107, ISBN 0-87590-090-0.
Willett S.D., Hovius N., Brandon M.T. and Fisher D.M. (2006), Tectonics, Climate and Landscape Evolution, GSA special paper 398, ISBN 0-8137-2398-1.
Particularly useful Journals include Journal of Geophysical Research, Geology, Nature, Nature Geoscience, Science, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, Geomorphology, Water Resources Research and Geophysical Research Letters
Knighton D. (1998), Fluvial Forms and Processes: A New Perspective, Hodder Arnold, ISBN 0-340-66313-8.
Tinkler K.J. and Wohl E.E. (1998), Rivers over rock, AGU Geophysical monograph 107, ISBN 0-87590-090-0.
Willett S.D., Hovius N., Brandon M.T. and Fisher D.M. (2006), Tectonics, Climate and Landscape Evolution, GSA special paper 398, ISBN 0-8137-2398-1.
Particularly useful Journals include Journal of Geophysical Research, Geology, Nature, Nature Geoscience, Science, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, Geomorphology, Water Resources Research and Geophysical Research Letters
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
The course includes a one day fieldtrip. |
| Keywords | Erosion,hillslopes,rivers,sediment,physical and chemical processes |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Mikael Attal
Tel: (0131 6)50 8533
Email: mikael.attal@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Kirsty Allan
Tel: (0131 6)50 9847
Email: Kirsty.Allan@ed.ac.uk |
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