Global Change 1: Physical Processes Environ 110, Biol 110, Geosci 171, AOSS 171, ENSCEN 171 www.globalchange.umich.edu/globalchange1 1 Global Change 1: Introductions Professors David Allan School of Natural Resources and Environment; [email protected] George Kling Department of Biology; [email protected] Ben van der Pluijm
Department of Geological Sciences, Program in the Environment. Course Coordinator and Program Director for Academic Minor in Global Change; [email protected] GSI team Sarah Barbrow, Biology Mathew Densmore, Geology Peter Esselman, SNRE Menan Jangu, Anthropology/SNRE Support Haley Cureton; [email protected] Email: [email protected] 2
Interdisciplinary, Team-taught Natural and Social Science Curriculum To become better equipped to contribute to the important debates concerning global environmental change, resource management and societal adaptation strategies. 3 GC1 - Course Objectives Understand Earth as an integrated system: Change and evolution (stars,
solar systems, atmosphere, soils and life evolve from precursors) Underlying physical and natural processes and how they are integrated Variability and uncertainty (climate has always varied, prediction is difficult in complex systems) Human alteration of Earth's physical and biological systems (rates) 4
Course Management: U-Ms Ctools https://ctools.umich.edu/ 5 Lectures 6 Lectures, ctd. 7
Lecture Notes and PowerPoint files Supporting notes on-line (but they do not replace lectures) PowerPoint slides through Ctools and LectureTools (updated prior to lectures) Your own class notes. Be here, so you learn more and wont be surprised 8
Information Environment (LectureTools) Bring your wirelessenabled laptop to class for lecture notes, web access and real-time searches (and IM, Facebook, YouTube, ....) Details on Friday . 9 Labs: Discussions and Analysis
10 Discussions: Critical Reading & Discourse Before class, read article(s) from to prepare for (lively) classroom discussions and activities. In class, discuss questions and complete activities related to the articles to explore our role in global change. 11
System Dynamics Modeling (Stella) Population Example: BIRTHS=BIRTH RATE*POPULATION Stocks are variables of interest Flows change stocks. Flows go into or out of stocks Converters change relationships between stocks and flows Connectors allow information to be passed between
variables 12 Systems Dynamic Modeling, ctd. Explore the System Define the problem and goal of the Model
Build, test and Modify the Model Explore and analyze the System Example: the N cycle 13 Next Weeks Lab Reading
Before coming to lab, read: The Challenges We Face A History of our Future 2003 State of the World p. 3-13 Questions for Discussion Question I.c.1 Summarize the five threats presented in the Challenges We Face article. What kinds of steps are being taken to remedy each of these threats? Are we doing enough? Question I.c.2 Do we face other threats, not addressed in
the article? What actions are needed to manage these challenges? Question I.c.3 What is the difference between a generalist and a specialist species? How might generalist species like us, affect specialists? Should humans be concerned with altering the environment where specialists reside? Question I.c.4 The article states that, "we have a paralysis of hope." What does this mean? How can we overcome this? 14 Group Term Project The term project is a group research activity that will be
presented in the form of a (PowerPoint) class presentation and posted as a website. Students organize into teams of 3 to develop an implementation plan for a project related to the course material. Suggestions for project topics and sample projects are offered, but the choice will be left to each team with guidance from your lab instructor. The posted PPT website is due by the teams presentation in the final lab week. 15
Grades The class uses a point system for determining final grades: Midterms (2): 100 points each Final: 150 points Lab/Discussion: 13 points each (hand-in by next lab) Lecture Homework: 5 points each (hand-in by next lab) In-class Activities: TBD Term Project: 100 points total Surveys/Assessments: 10 points each (excluding UM's E&E) Optional, non-graded self-tests for lectures are offered as a link on the CTools site.
The total points are normalized on a scale from 0-100, using a straight scale for letter grades. The grades are: 0-59 = E 60-62, 63-65, 66-69 = D-, D, D+ 70-72, 73-75, 76-79 = C-, C, C+ 80-82, 83-85, 86-89 = B-, B, B+ 90-92, 93-95, 96 and up = A-, A, A+ 16 Meet the Professors David Allan School of Natural Resources
Environment George Kling Department of Ecology Biology and the and Evolutionary Ben van der Pluijm Department of Geological Sciences Program in the Environment and
17 David Allan, SNRE Lifes origins Lifes interactions Life under threat of extinction George Kling Teaching:
Dept. of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology 1041 Natural Sciences Bldg Office hours, F 3-4 Global Change (Bio 110) Ecosystem Ecology (EEB 476) Limnology (study of lakes; EEB 483) Research: Aquatic Ecosystems Impacts of Climate Change Biogeochemistry - Arctic, Africa, Michigan
Climate Change This is your future Source: IPCC TAR 2001 My Themes Global change on our planet can only be understood by combining abiotic and biotic components must look at the whole Ecosystem A combination of facts and scientific concepts can help us understand even the most complicated problems Science is NOT hard, and everyone can and
MUST learn enough to make rational decisions about our worlds future Possible Projects The missing sink Where did all the CO2 go? Microbes rule, Humans drool Does the rainforest really matter? The day the Earth turned brown and blue The limits to food production
Whos doing who? Climate skeptics and the use and misuse of Science facts Who needs more ice? Melting the Earths glaciers (a.k.a. Water World 2050, starring B. van der Pluijm as K. Costner) WWF Climate 2007 rage in the cage
People vs. Nature Abrupt climate change can El Ninos run wild? Whatcha gonna do when the rain dont come Shifts in the Global water cycle Ben van der Pluijm Professor of Geological Sciences Professor of the Environment (Director Global Change Program) www.globalchange.umich.edu/Ben
[email protected] or [email protected] Research: Structural Geology field areas: the northern Appalachians, the USA continental interior, North and South Americas Grenville, northern Spains Cantabria, East African Rift, US-Canadian Rockies, San Andreas (CA) and Alpine (NZ) faults. topical areas: brittle and ductile faults, deep-crustal architecture, fault gouge and pseudotachylyte, intraplate stresses, oroclines, clay microstructures and textures, magnetic anisotropy, X-ray goniometry, paleomagnetism, geochronology, physical oceanography Teaching Interdisciplinary undergraduate teaching (Global Change), Environmental Geology, concentrator and graduate level specialty classes, IT-supported classroom education (GeoPocket), IT-supported field-based education (GeoPad).
23 Meet the 4 GSIs (Sections 2-9) 24 Global Change Curriculum and Minor http://www.globalchange.umich.edu/ 25 26
Wrapping up Global Change encompasses all the ways that our planet has been changing since its formation ~4.5 billion years ago to today, and looking toward the future. Humans are affecting Earth and its life support systems at an unprecedented rate, which poses new challenges to humankind and our planet. Decisions and good policy require good science. . that is why you are in Global Change ! 27
