GEOL 2550 - Historical Geology

• Be generally familiar with the paleogeographic positions of past major landmasses and know when supercontinents have existed.
• Develop laboratory skills in which they master basic aspects of stratigraphic correlation and fossil recognition as well as interpretation of some stable isotope curves.
• Have a rudimentary understanding of how the Earth System functions, and how interactions among the atmosphere, oceans, biosphere, and land have changed through time.
• Have an understanding of Earth’s history and the geological laws and other concepts used to construct that history.
• Know the geologic time scale and understand the stratigraphic, paleontologic, and radiometric age dating concepts that were employed in its development and continue to be used in refining the time scale.
• Know when the major (Big Five) extinctions occurred, and be familiar with the leading proposed causes for those events.
• Know when the major episodes of mountain building have occurred in North America and, to a limited extent, other parts of the globe.
• Know when the major ice ages have occurred on Earth and what the leading ideas are for instigating and ending those Icehouse climates.
• Understand when and how Earth’s atmosphere became oxygenated and how oxygen levels have fluctuated.