Physical and Regional Climatology

 

Syllabus for ATMO 324 (Fall 2010)

 

Instructor:

R. Saravanan

O&M Room 1012A, Tel: 845-0175

E-mail: r.saravanan@tamu.edu

Office Hours: Mon/Tue: 1:00-2:00

 

Lab Teaching Assistant:  Misti Levy

Lecture hours: MW 3:00-3:50 (both sections), O&M Room 103

Lab hours:       Tue  2:20-3:50 (sec 501), Thu 12:45-2:15 (sec 502), O&M Room 1107

Course Website: http://csrp.tamu.edu/atmo324

 

Requirements:

Textbook: Dennis L. Hartmann: Global Physical Climatology (ISBN: 0-12-328530-5)

Clicker: eInstruction CPS RF remote transmitter (available at University Bookstore)

 

Prerequisites: ATMO 201 and 203, MATH 172

 

Course Description: This course provides a basic background in climatology. Lectures will cover material on the global energy balance, the water cycle, general circulation of the atmosphere, past climates, and natural and human-induced climate change. Lab portion will provide an introduction to climate data analysis using a spreadsheet program.

 

Learning Outcome: At the end of the course, it is expected that the students will have acquired the following:

·      Broad knowledge of the different components of the climate system and the important processes within these components.

·      Quantitative understanding of the natural balances that maintain the climate system in equilibrium.

·      Awareness of the natural and human-induced variations in climate, and the differences between the two.

·      Ability to quantitatively analyze climate data using a computer spreadsheet.

 

 

 

Lab: The lab portion of the course will provide an interactive introduction to climatology using computers. Students will use a web browser and spreadsheet software to analyze climate data and create simple tables and plots. Computers in Room 1107 have this software pre-installed. Brief introductory lectures on the use of Excel for data analysis will be presented during lab hours, followed by hands-on exercises using the computers.

 

 

Class Schedule: (Text book chapters to be covered, reports due, and in-class exams)

  1. Introduction to the Climate System (2 lectures)
  2. The Global Energy Balance (3 lectures)
  3. Atmospheric Radiative Transfer and Climate (except sec. 3.5-3.7) (4 lectures)
  4. The Energy Balance of the Surface (3 lectures)

Lab Project Progress Report: Oct 5/7

Review Lecture (Oct 11)

EXAM-1: Oct 13 (Wednesday)

  1. The Hydrologic Cycle (2 lectures)
  2. Atmospheric General Circulation and Climate (3 lectures)
  1. History and Evolution of Earth’s Climate (2 lectures)
  1. Natural Climate Change (2 lectures)

Lab Project Final Report: Nov 16/18

  1. Anthropogenic Climate Change (2 lectures)

Review Lecture (Nov 29)

EXAM-2: Dec 1 (Wednesday)

 

Exams: There will be two (50 minute) in-class exams, on the dates noted in the class schedule above. (There is no final exam.) Anyone who misses an exam without an acceptable excuse (see the Texas A&M University Student Rules) will receive a score of zero. All other absences must be arranged before the exam.

 

Group Lab Project: Students will work in groups of 3 or 4 on a lab project on an assigned topic. The topic will be selected at the beginning of the semester, and students are expected to work on it during the semester, using a portion of their lab hours. An interim oral and written progress report (1 page long) is due in the middle of the semester and a final oral presentation (10 minutes) and written report (10-15 pages long) is due at the end of the semester, for the whole group. Each group member will also submit a separate brief written report, no more than a page in length, describing how the project work was divided up amongst the group members and then summarizing his/her own contribution to the project.

 

Homework: Problem sets will be assigned roughly every other week, and there will be a penalty for turning it in late. You are expected to solve the problems on your own. You may discuss general concepts with your classmates, but the details of the final solution must be worked out independently. Plagiarism will not be tolerated (see policy statement below).

 

Clickers: This class will use clickers (also called CPS-RF units) to promote interactive learning, allowing students to provide instant feedback to the instructor. During lectures, you will use your clicker to answer questions posed by the instructor and provide feedback. You receive 3 points for a correct answer and 1 point for an incorrect answer. (After purchasing the clicker, you need to enroll the clicker in the class, following the instructions on the class page on Vista.)

 

Grading Policy: Two in-class exams (25% each), homework (20%), lab exercises (15%), lab project (10%), and clicker points (5%). Final grades will be calculated using a curve. Grades will be posted on Vista (http://elearning.tamu.edu)

 

 

 

ADA Policy Statement: The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination statute that provides comprehensive civil rights protection for persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact Disability Services, Cain Hall, Room B118 (Phone: 845-1637, http://disability.tamu.edu)

                                                                                                                                               

Honor code: An Aggie does not lie, cheat, or steal or tolerate those who do. (Please review the Honor Code procedures and policies at the website http://www.tamu.edu/aggiehonor)

 

Plagiarism Policy Statement: As commonly defined, plagiarism consists of passing off as one's own the ideas, words, writings, etc., which belong to another. In accordance with this definition, you are committing plagiarism if you copy the work of another person and turn it in as your own, even if you should have the permission of that person. Plagiarism is one of the worst academic sins, for the plagiarist destroys the trust among colleagues without which research cannot be safely communicated.  Please refer to the student rules website for questions regarding academic misconduct http://student-rules.tamu.edu.

 

The materials used in this course are copyrighted. These materials include but are not limited to syllabi, quizzes, exams, lab problems, in-class materials, review sheets, and additional problem sets. Because these materials are copyrighted, you do not have the right to copy the handouts, unless permission is expressly granted.