Table 1 Syllabus: global climate change SAS 25 (face-to-face) and 25v (online).
4 Credit Units, No Prerequisites; General Education Credits for Science & Engineering, Social Sciences, Domestic Diversity, Writing, Oral Presentations, Quantitative Skills, Scientific Literacy, Visual Literacy, and World Cultures | |||||
Activity | Hours per week | ||||
Readings | 2.5 | ||||
Lectures: Live and Mini | 3.0 | ||||
Discussion | 1.0 | ||||
Quiz | 1.5 | ||||
Exercise or Essay | 4.0 | ||||
Total | 12.0 | ||||
Textbook: Climate Change: Causes, Consequences, and Solutions. Free online at https://indd.adobe.com/view/7eafc24d-9151-4493-85d2-cb3f2e5a2a51. Please read the simple directions on navigating through this textbook at How to Dance. | |||||
SAS 25v also requires: A headset (any combination of headphones and microphone), a webcam, high speed, reliable connection to the internet (DSL, cable, on-campus, etc.) | |||||
Week | Topic | Video | Reading | Assignments | |
1 | Intro to climate research | Lecture 1–3 | Chapt. 1 | Exercise 1 | |
2 | History of Earth’s climate | Lecture 4–7 | Chapt. 2 | Essay 1 | |
3 | Causes of climate | Lecture 8–11 | Chapt. 3 | Exercise 2 | |
4 | Climate models | Lecture 12–17 | Chapt. 4 | Essay 2 | |
5 | Climate & biosphere | Lecture 18–22 | Chapt. 5 & 6 | Exercise 3 Midterm | |
6 | Transportation | Lecture 23–27 | Chapt. 7 | Essay 3 | |
7 | Electricity & other sectors | Lecture 28–36 | Chapt. 8 & 9 | Exercise 4 | |
8 | Climate change economics | Lecture 37–42 | Chapt. 10 | Essay 4 | |
9 | Environmental law | Lecture 43–46 | Chapt. 11 | Exercise 5 | |
10 | Culture & climate change | Lecture 47–48 | Chapt. 12 | Essay 5, Final | |
Exercise Assignments: These should prepare you for writing the essay assignments. You will have one learning exercise due every other week and we will review your answers during discussion sections. These are typically 2 to 3 pages in length. | |||||
Week | Topic | ||||
1 | Climate Trends: Examine temperature graphs for climate change trends in Davis, CA | ||||
3 | How to Read a Scientific Article: Critically read and summarize a scientific article on a GCM | ||||
5 | Climate Change and Species: Discover how polar bears are affected by climate change | ||||
7 | Carbon Footprint: Calculate your contributions to GHG emissions | ||||
9 | Countries and Climate Change: Discover how the culture of the USA influences climate change actions | ||||
Essay Assignments: The essays are typically 2 to 3 pages in length. | |||||
Week | Topic | ||||
2 | Climate Trends in Your Hometown: Create temperature graphs for your hometown using ground station and satellite sources. Discuss temperature trends and running averages | ||||
4 | Global Climate Model: Use the library to research a GCM and discuss that GCM including history, how it works, and why it is important | ||||
6 | Climate Change and Species: Choose a species and discuss how that species will respond to climate change | ||||
8 | Carbon Footprint: Reduce your GHG emissions by 50% for one day and discuss the experience including costs vs. benefits of doing so | ||||
10 | Countries and Climate Change: Choose a country and discuss how its culture influences climate change actions | ||||
Grading: | |||||
5 | Exercises (each 3% of the grade for a total of 15%) | ||||
5 | Essays (each 8% of the grade for a total of 40%); deduct 5% of the grade per day for late assignments | ||||
10 | Online Quizzes: one per week (each 1% of the grade for a total of 10%) | ||||
1 | Midterm: 25 Multiple choice questions and an essay about the greenhouse effect (10%) | ||||
1 | Final: 50 Multiple choice questions and an essay about what we should do, if anything, to address climate change (15%) | ||||
10 | Discussion section presentations and participation (each 1% of the grade for a total of 10%) | ||||
