SCIENCE OF EARTH SYSTEMS: AN INTER-COLLEGE PROGRAM
GENERAL INFORMATION
A new major, Science of Earth Systems (SES), is now available for students in the Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Arts and Sciences, and Engineering. The SES program of study emphasizes the rigorous and objective study of the Earth system as one of the outstanding intellectual challenges in modern science and as the necessary foundation for the future management of our home planet. Within this program, Cornell's strengths across a broad range of earth and environmental sciences have been coalesced to provide students with the tools to engage in what will be the primary challenge of the twenty-first century.
Students can enter the major in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and in the College of Arts and Sciences. In the College of Engineering, the SES program is one of two options in the Geological Sciences major.
The SES Curriculum
The SES curriculum emphasizes strong preparation in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology during the freshman and sophomore years. In addition, students take a two-credit SES Colloquium, which is designed to inform students about the field and to provide a sense of community for SES students and faculty from the several colleges. In the junior and senior years, students take a set of common SES core courses and an additional set of advanced disciplinary or interdisciplinary courses that build on the basic math and science sequences.
The SES program provides strong preparation for graduate school in any one of the Earth systems sciences and related engineering fields. The major can also serve as excellent preparation for an advanced degree in environmental law or policy, a teaching degree, or for employment in one of many environmentally oriented careers with the B.S. degree.
The requirements for the major are summarized as follows:
1. MATH 191, 192 (or MATH 111, 112)
2. Two calculus-based physics courses: (e.g., PHYS 207Ð208);
3. Two introductory chemistry courses: (e.g., CHEM 207Ð208);
4. Two biology courses: (e.g., BIO G 101/103-102/104 or BIO G 109Ð110);
5. Two additional courses in higher mathematics and/or basic sciences;
6. Colloquium in the Science of Earth Systems (SES 101 or 102);
7. Four core courses in the Science of Earth Systems (SES 301, 302, 321, and 402);
8. Two additional courses in basic math or sciences (for B.A.);
9. Four intermediate to advanced-level courses approved by the SES Curriculum Committee. These courses should build on the core sequence and include upper- level courses with prerequisites in the basic sciences and mathematics. The selection of these courses can be used to prepare for careers or graduate study in specific environmental science disciplines such as geology, hydrological sciences, biogeochemistry, ecology, oceanography, and atmospheric sciences. Effective combinations of these disciplines are also possible.
SES Course Descriptions
Note: Class meeting times are accurate at the time of publication. If changes are necessary, new information will be provided as soon as possible.
Advising
Students will be matched with an SES adviser according to the student's interests and the college in which the student is enrolled. The adviser will assist the student in selecting the four upper-level courses required by the SES Program. Several example curricula have been designed as guides for students in each of the colleges, to demonstrate how the college and SES Program requirements are met.
Entering the SES Program
Transfers into the program during the freshmen and sophomore years will be relatively straightforward for students who have already begun a calculus sequence and have taken courses in the basic sciences. Other interested students, either junior- or senior-level science and math students or those from other fields, should contact an SES adviser to explore the possibility of entering the SES program.
For more information on the SES program and classes, see the Web page (http://www.geo.cornell.edu/ses/SES_home.html) and contact:
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: K. H. Cook (Soil, Crop, and Atmospheric Sciences), R. W. Howarth (Ecology and Systematics), J. Parlange (Agricultural and Biological Engineering);
College of Arts and Sciences: T. Dawson (Biological Sciences), P. Gierasch (Astronomy), B. L. Isacks (Geological Sciences);
College of Engineering: W. Brutsaert (Civil and Environmental Engineering), B. L. Isacks (Geological Sciences), M. Kelley (Electrical Engineering), J. Parlange (Agricultural and Biological Engineering).
Weekly seminars, field trips, and hands-on learning experiences in current topics in the study of the earth system. Introduces the student to scientific issues relating to understanding our planet and managing the environment. (http://www.scas.cit.cornell.edu/ses/)
The purpose of this course is to develop a physical understanding of the climate system. Processes that determine climate and contribute to its change are discussed, including comparisons with the climates of other planets. Applications to problems of climate change and variability include the astronomical theory of ice ages, greenhouse warming, the ozone hole, African drought, and Amazonian deforestation.
The co-evolution of life and the earth system over three time scales: origin of the earth and life and earth's early history; plate tectonics, continental drift and climate changes during the past billion years; and mountain building, ice ages, and our own emergence during the past ten million years. Introduction to methods of interpreting the paleontological, geochemical, and tectonic information preserved in the rock record. (http://www.geo.cornell.edu/geology/classes/ses302.html)
The cycling of elements at the earth's surface through biologically governed processes and fluxes. Topics include weathering and acid-base chemistry, nutrient limitation and recycling in terrestrial and marine systems, anthropogenic pollution, iostopic tracers, and mathematical modeling of element fluxes.
The study of the earth and the environment requires an understanding of the physical processes within and at the surface of the earth. This course encourages the students to develop a broad working knowledge of mechanics and its application to the earth and environmental sciences, providing the background necessary to study the professional literature.
Write to
cuinfo-admin@cornell.edu
with your comments and suggestions.
