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Welcome
to Introduction to Oceanography, GS-4s
Note: The
table of contents on the left contains links to critical course information.
Getting started in
Oceanography:
<Click here>
 Oceanography
is a fantastically interesting subject! We see it every day at UCSB
and experience it through our beach walks, kayaking, surfing, fishing,
and other activities. The ocean and life that lives in it affects our
weather, removes CO2 from the atmosphere, provides most of the oxygen
we breathe, affects the climate, and connects us with the rest of the
world. It is truly a unique resource of the planet that we live on.
To study the ocean and how it affects us is an opportunity, and a privilege
for which we can be grateful.
This course emphasizes the use of real earth data to investigate oceanography
related phenomena. The application of scientific findings to global
environmental issues is also emphasized.You will study global and regional
phenomena that are now, and will increasingly affect the quality of
life on this planet, in your lifetime. Politicians and special interests
will try to gain your support for particular policy approaches. Talk
show hosts will rant. Academics will be appalled. You will need the
intellectual tools to make up your own mind, and the global environment
will be at stake. This class is intended to help prepare you for this
inevitable situation.
In this course, you will enter homework and writing activities online
from the Oceanography lab computers and from your own computer at home.
You will use the web and class-provided CDROM to investigate earth data
and post your results. Your course grade will be available to you at
all times.
At the end
of the course, you should be able to:
- Analyze global environmental issues from the point of view of a
particular country
- Know basic facts and processes about:
- formation of hte ocean basins, major features, and the role
of plate tectonics
- atmospheric circulation
- ocean surface and deep ocean circulation
- how the ocean and climate interact, and the major ocean/climate
phenomena
- distribution of se life and processes and environmental factors
that influence it
- understand issues related to fishing and fisheries management
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