Courses
All of my courses are original and, at their core, involve teaching students the fundamentals of how science works by requiring students to use the scientific method to solve real problems. As such, I have relied heavily on societally-relevant topics in my course development.
GY101: Catastrophic Geology, The geology of natural hazards including flooding, earthquakes and volcanoes with a focus on the impact of these events on society and preparedness of communities.
GY140: Physical Geology, Introduction to geologic principles using Colorado and other western states as a context.
NS160: Mathematics and Geology of the Great American Desert, Freshman-only course centered on solving geologic problems with mathematics. Emphasis on geology relevant to society, especially the western U.S. Central topics are volcanology and water resources (both river and groundwater).
GY212: Investigating Earth as a Physical System, A sophomore-level course in geologic methods using data bearing on Rocky Mountain history and evolution.
GY240: Tectonics, Fundamentals of tectonics and its origins as a scientific revolution in geology. Features local examples from the western U.S. and Colorado region.
GY308: Introductory Geophysics, Geophysical methods and their application to real geological problems.
GY370: Seismology, Theory of seismological techniques and waveform interpretation and analysis. Application of techniques to modern tectonic and applied problems.
GY445: Regional Geology, In-depth investigation of the geology of a region from a wide range of disciplinary perspectives.
- Geology of the Baja, California Region, Spring 2008
- Argentinean Andes and Sierras Pampeanas, Spring 2010
- The Cascadia Margin, Washington, Fall 2012
- California, From Subduction to Transform, Fall 2014
