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MS201
FALL 2013
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Class Time and Location
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11:00 12:30 (.M.W.) - Building: 75 – Room: 102
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Instructor Name
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Dr. Khalid M. Zubier
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Course Office Hours and Location
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11:00 – 12:00 (U.T.R) – Building: 46 – Room: 213
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Instructor Contact Information
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Phone: 695-1067 (work) – email: kzubier@kau.edu.sa
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Course Syllabus
A. Overall Aims of the Course
This course aims to provide students with the general knowledge and understanding of:
- The morphology and nature of the sea floor, processes operative on, under and to the sea floor, sea floor spreading and plate tectonics and Ocean Provinces.
- The physical and chemical properties of sea water and the geochemical processes which maintain ocean chemistry.
- The general circulation of the atmosphere and the major climatic regions of the world and nature of surface wind driven and deep ocean circulation.
- The nature and origin of common disturbances of the sea surface, wind waves, tsunamis, tides and resulting Beach Processes.
- Biological diversity and biological processes in marine ecosystems, and how these biological processes interact with the physical and chemical environment.
B. Learning Outcomes
a. Knowledge and Understanding:
Upon successful completion of this course, students are expected be able to:
- Recognize the physical, chemical, geological and biological properties of the ocean.
- Identify the ocean environment, bathymetry, structure and formation.
- Describe the physical, chemical, geological and biological processes in the ocean.
- Recognize the effect of ocean physic on the biological, chemical and geological processes in the ocean.
- Indicate that the ocean sediments are mainly related to water characteristics of the ocean.
b. Intellectual Skills:
Upon successful completion of this course, students are expected be able to:
- Investigate how ocean physic, chemistry, biology and geology are closely related.
- Integrate and apply concepts and principles of one area in the ocean to another.
- Think and interpret logically and critically in a scientific manner.
C. Content
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Week
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Topic
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Chapter
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1
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General Introduction: Course Objectives, Intended Learning Outcomes, Course Content, Resources (Teaching, Learning and Studying), Assessment Method, Recommended Learning Habits, Office Hours, Contact Information
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-
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2
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Introduction to Planet Earth: Overview, Early Exploration of the world Oceans, Formation of Solar System and Earth, Layered Earth, Origin of Earth’s Oceans, Origin of Life in the Oceans
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1
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3
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Plate Tectonics and Sea-floor Spreading: Continental Drift, Evidences and objections, Evidences for Plate Tectonics and Sea-floor Spreading, Type of Plate Boundaries, Types of Spreading Centers, Application of Plate Tectonic Models to Inter-Plate Features, Paleoceanography.
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2
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4
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Marine Provinces: Measuring Bathymetry, Hypsographic Curve, Ocean Provinces: Continental Margins(Continental Shelf, Slope and Rise), Deep Ocean Basins(Abyssal Plaines, Volcanic Peaks, Ocean Trenches and Volcanic Arcs) ,Mid-Ocean Ridges(Rift Valley, Seamounts, Pillow Lavas, Hydrothermal Vents, Fracture Zones and Transform Faults)
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3
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5
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Revision & First Exam (On Chapters 1,2,3)
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-
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6
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Water and Seawater: Water Molecule, Hydrogen Bonding, Surface Tension, Solubility, Unusual Thermal and Density Properties, Salinity, Hydrological Cycle and Resident Time, Acidity, Alkalinity and Carbonate Buffering.
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5
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7
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Air-Sea Interaction: Physical Properties of the Atmosphere, Movements of the Atmosphere, Global Atmospheric Circulation, Global Wind Belts, Ocean Weather and Climate Patterns, Green House Effect and Global Warming, Ocean’s Role in Reducing CO2.
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6
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8
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Ocean Circulation: Ocean Currents and their Measurements, Ocean Gyres, Ekman Spiral and Transport, Geostrophic Flow, Western Intensification, Ocean Currents and Climate, Currents Convergence and Divergence, Coastal Upwelling and Downwelling, Atlantic Ocean Circulation, Pacific Ocean Circulation, Indian Ocean Circulation, Thermohaline Circulation.
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7
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9
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Revision & Second Exam (On Chapters 6,7,8)
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-
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10
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Wave: Origin of Waves, Internal Waves, Type of Waves, Wave Motion, Deep-water; Shallow-Water and Transitional-Water Waves, Wave Development, Wave Energy, Wave Energy Transformation and Attenuation, Tsunamis.
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8
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11
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Tides: Tide Generating Forces, Lunar Tides, Combined Lunar- Solar Tides, Tidal Patterns.
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9
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12
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Beaches and Shoreline Processes: Coastal Regions, Beach Profile, Sand Movement, Long-Shore and Ripp Currents, Erosional and Depositional Shorelines, Eustatic Changes in Sea Level, Global Warming and Changing Sea Level.
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10
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13
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Revision & Third Exam (On Chapters 8,9,10)
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-
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14
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Marine Life and Marine Environment: Classification of Marine Organisms, Plankton, Nekton, Benthos, Adaptations to Marine Life, Main Divisions of the Marine Environment.
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12
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15
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Biological Productivity and Energy Transfer: Primary Productivity, Factors Affecting Primary Productivity(Nutrints, Solar Radiation), Type of Photosynthetic Marine Organisms, Regional Primary Productivity, Energy Flow in Marine Ecosystems, Nutrient Flow in Marine Ecosystems (Biogeochemical Cycling), Feeding Strategies, Food Chain and Food Web, Marine Fisheries.
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13
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Final Exam
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-
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D. Teaching Resources
PowerPoints: Prof. Tony Barros (OCE 1001 / Chapters 1-10,12,13)
http://faculty.mdc.edu/jbarros/Downppt.htm
E. Learning Resources
- Book: Essentials of Oceanography, by Tom S. Garrison, (6th Edition), 2011, Brooks Cole.
- Ocean Portal: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History http://ocean.si.edu/
F. Studying Resources
Online Study Guide for Essentials of Oceanography: Prof. Al Trujillo
http://wps.prenhall.com/esm_trujillo_essofocean_9_oa/109/28007/7169874.cw/index.html
G. Assessment
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Assessment Task
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Week due
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Proportion
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1.
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In-Class activities
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Continuous
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10%
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2.
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Periodic Exams
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5th , 9th and 13th
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60 %
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3.
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Final Exam
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16th or 17th
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30%
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