GENERAL
When: August 21 - Dec 6, 2007; Tues., Thurs., 9:35 - 10:55 am
Where: ES&T L1175
Office Hours: After class, from 11:00 am - 12:00 pm, or by appointment.
Course Objectives:
This course consists of a series of graduate-level lectures, discussion and presentations
of the current status of geophysical and mechanical understanding of processes that control earthquakes.
Required Text:
- Scholz, C.H., The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting, 2nd Ed., Cambridge Univ. Press, 471 pp., 2002.
- Stein, S.A.,& M. Wysession, An Introduction to Seismology, Earthquakes, and Earth Structure, Blackwell Publishing, 498 pp., 2003.
Additional material will be either handed out in class or made available on the course website.
Course Outline:
This is an approximate outline of topics and timing and is subject to change throughout the semester.
| Classes | Date | Topic |
|---|
| | | Lectures | |
| 1-2 | Aug 21 - 23 | Brittle Fracture of Rocks |
| 3-4 | Aug 28 - 30 | Rock Friction |
| 5-7 | Sept 4 - 11 | Mechanics and Quantification of Faulting |
| 8-11 | Sept 13 - 25 | Mechanics and Quantification of Earthquakes |
| 12-14 | Sept 27 - Oct 4 | The Seismic Cycle |
| 15-17 | Oct 11 - 18 | Seismotectonics (No Class Oct 9: Fall Break) |
| 18 | Oct 23 | Exam |
| | | Discussion of Emergent Research | |
| 19 | Oct 25 | Wrap-up Lectures / Intro. Modern Topics |
| 20-21 | Oct 30 - Nov 1 | Earthquake Interactions |
| 22-23 | Nov 6 - 8 | Fault Zone Evolution |
| 24-25 | Nov 13 - 15 | Continuum of Fault Rupture Speeds |
| 26 | Nov 20 | Earthquake Scaling (No Class Nov 22: Thanksgiving) |
| 27-28 | Nov 27 - 30 | Earthquake Prediction |
| 29-30 | Dec 4 - 6 | Project Presentations |
Class Communications:
You will occasionally receive class information
via email to your prism account. Because this information may not be communicated
in class, you should be sure to read messages identified as [EQ Physics].
In emailing us for class, please add [EQ Physics] to the subject line and
identify yourself by name in the message since not all prism accounts clearly
identify the email's author.
EVALUATION:
Your course grade will be based on three criteria: exams (35%), discussion (40%), and project (25%).
Exam:
There will be one one exam covering all material presented during the lecture portion of the course. If you are having
difficulties understanding topics, please discuss this with us outside of class, when it arises. Do not expect
to do well by cramming just before the exam.
Discussion:
Approximately half of this class will be comprised of detailed discussion of five topics of modern research
in the field of earthquake physics (listed in the course outline). Before each discussion, you will be expected
to read the assigned papers and submit (electronically) a 2 page summary of the topic. After discussion is completed
on that topic, you will submit a new 4 page synthesis of your understanding of the current state-of-the-art of that topic.
Discussion comprises 40% of your total course grade and is based on pre-discussion topic summaries (15%),
post-discussion syntheses (15%),
and in-class participation (10%).
Project:
For your class project, you will review and present on a topic of your choosing in Earthquake Physics using
relevant research and review articles from peer-reviewed scientific
literature (journals like
Science, Nature, Journal of Geophysical Research, and Earth and Planetary Science Letters).
In order to receive full credit for the project you must read and synthesize no less than 5 papers
on the subject. You will have the opportunity to receive 20\% extra credit on the project if you
1) outline a new approach to addressing an unresolved problem;
2) uniquely solve a problem;
3) perform significant unique numerical calculations to determine parameter sensitivities and/or feasibility of measurement;
or
4) perform an appropriate unique physical analog or unique computational experiment to test hypothesis.
Your final project will be written up in journal form suitable for Geophysical Research
Letters (GRL), and will be presented in a 15 minute AGU-style talk (12 minute presentation with
3 minutes of questions).
For guidelines on document preparations for GRL submissions go to
http://www.agu.org/pubs/au_contrib_rev.html.
Your project comprises 25% of your total course grade and is based on the quality of the paper (10%),
presentation (10%),
and in-class participation (5%).
ACADEMIC HONESTY:
General: It is expected that all students are aware of their individual
responsibilities under the Georgia Tech Academic Honor Code, which will be
strictly adhered to in this class.
Topics Papers and Project:
Pre-discussion summaries, post-discussion syntheses, and Project papers,
are expected to be the original
work of the individual student. Hence, any papers that appear overly similar will be investigated and
appropriate actions will be taken, if necessary. Likewise, Plagiarism is strictly forbidden.
Plagiarism
is the act of appropriating the literary composition
of another, or parts of passages of his or her writings,
or language or ideas of the same, and passing them off as
the product of one's own mind. It involves the deliberate
use of any outside source without proper acknowledgment
(as defined by the
Georgia Tech Academic Honor Code).
Exam: All information required for exams will be supplied. Reference
to texts or other documents during exams is strictly forbidden. The use of
electronic devices (e.g. cellular phones, computers etc.) other than
non-programmable calculators during exams and quizzes is not allowed.
The complete text of the Academic Honor Code may be found at http://www.deanofstudents.gatech.edu/integrity/policies/honor_code.html.
|
Geophysics Home | Updated:
Wed Aug 22 16:00:57 EDT 2007
|
gatech.edu