GEOPHYSICS (08/430/0012)
COURSE OUTLINE
Aim
The aim of the course is to
introduce the concepts, methods and results of Solid Earth Geophysics. The
course examines the application and limitations of geophysical methods and
reviews their contribution to our knowledge of the interior of the Earth and to
the theory of Plate Tectonics.
Prerequisites:
(i) Introduction to Geology
(08/430/0001)
(ii) Experience in using a
calculator, drawing graphs and basic algebra.
Course Unit Examination:
(i) One 3-hour examination
paper (80% of the final marks)
(ii) Four course assignments
(20% of the final marks)
The course assignments
comprise exercises and essays. Four will be set ( 1, 2,
3, and 4),
to be handed in by May 1st. In the case of exercises, you will be
provided with a model answer but you should keep a copy of your own answer, as
the work you submit will be kept and will be made available to the external
examiners at the end of the year.
Penalties for handing in
assignments late are as follows:
Within 1 week late - deduct
10% from the mark awarded; e.g. a mark of 65% would be reduced to 55%.
Within 2 weeks late - deduct
20% from the mark awarded; e.g. a mark of 65% would be reduced to 45%.
No mark can be given for work
handed in after 2 weeks: outline answers are handed out 2 weeks after the
assignment was set. The pass mark is 35%.
Work should be handed in to
Prof G D Price, School of Earth Sciences UCL & Birkbeck, Room 3, South Wing
UCL,
Examination papers from the
past years can be found here.
Practicals:
These are an important part of
the course. It is most important that you try them. It is said that "you
learn by doing" and this is especially true of subjects like geophysics.
Outline answers are provided on the CD, and should only be looked at after you
have tried the exercises!!
COURSE CONTENT
Topics
2. The
shape of the Earth, the Earth's gravity field, the geoid, isostasy.
3. Seismic waves and Earth
oscillations.
4. The interior of the Earth from seismic waves.
5. Earthquakes
and the seismicity of the Earth.
6. Thermal
structure of the Earth & convection
7. The
forces acting on plates and plate kinematics
A half course unit cannot
cover every topic in Solid Earth Geophysics. This course omits details on for
example reflection seismology. This materials is included as an appendix and extra practical (1) and (2),
and is non-examinable
TEXTBOOKS
These course notes are not a
substitute for a textbook. It is important that you supplement them by reading
a textbook. Evidence of reading outside the course notes is one of the criteria
expected of a first class answer in the examination. Suggested background
reading from Fowler or Lowrie is given with each lecture. If you are using
another textbook, you should be able to find in it correspondingly appropriate
material. The lectures also give you specific references on occasion and there
are useful general references below.
Fowler, C.M.R., 1990. The
Solid Earth - An Introduction to Global Geophysics.
Well
organised and illustrated cover of the subject, but at a higher mathematical
level than the course.
Lowrie, W., 1997. Fundamentals
of Geophysics.
Well
organised and illustrated also, but still with more mathematics than the
course.
Musset, A.E. & Khan, M.A.,
2002. Looking into the Earth - An Introduction to Geological Geophysics.
CambridgeUniversity Press.
Aims
to cover both global (Solid Earth) and exploration geophysics; worth
considering if you intend to study both.
Brown, G.C. & Mussett,
A.E., 1991. The Inaccessible Earth. Unwin Hyman.
A
good book for the course, but now out of print: worth buying second hand if you
can find one.
Open University S237 Course
Team, 1981. Block 2: Earth Structure, Block 4: Earth Dynamics. Open University
Educational Enterprises.
At
one time the textbook for the course, but also out of print.
OTHER REFERENCES
Bolt, B.A., 1982. Inside the
Earth. Freeman.
Seismology
for the layman.
Lillie, R.J., 1999. Whole
Earth Geophysics. Prentice Hall.
Systematic
cover of the subject, with lots of `schematic' diagrams. I have seen only a
hardback version.
Open University Course Team,
1990. Lithosphere Geophysics in
Illustrations
and examples relating geophysical results to the geology of the
Kearey, P. & Vine, F.J.,
1990. Global Tectonics. Blackwell.
The
textbook for the Department's course in Global Tectonics; chapters 2 and 3
cover areas of geophysics important in the context of plate tectonics.
Scientific American, 1983. The
Dynamic Earth. Also 1980. Earthquakes and Volcanoes. Freeman.
Collections
of articles, excellently illustrated.