evr 1001 section u04 introduction to environmental...
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EVR 1001 Section U04
Introduction to Environmental Science
Fall 2012
Classroom: Deuxieme Maison 190 Time: MW 7.50pm – 9.05 pm Instructor: Teddy L’Houtellier Visiting Lecturer, Department of Environmental Studies Tel: 786-394-0911 Email: [email protected] > all communications will be through your “@fiu.edu” email, so please, check it regularly. Check also your student portal on BlackBoard (fiu.blackboard.com) since most of the assignments and lectures will be posted there.
Course Description This physical science course introduces students to the study of climate, atmospheric composition, nutrient cycling, air and water pollution and water resources. Through discussions of these topics, students will better understand the complex issues surrounding the human ecological footprint, global climate change, degradation of water resources, reliance on fossil fuels for energy and industrial scale agricultural practices. Learning Objectives: Learning objectives for this course are based on a definition of scientifically literacy in Environmental Science. This definition of scientific literacy is based on the National Science Education Standards (1996). After completing this course, students should: - Understand the principles of environmental science and their impact on everyday life
- Understand and reflect critically on information included in and omitted from reports concerning environmental science
- Take part confidently in discussions with others about issues involving environmental science
- Make informed personal decisions about things that involve environmental science
Required Texts G.Tyler Miller Jr. / Scott E.Spoolman. 2011. Environmental Science – 14th Ed. Cengage. ISBN-10: 1111988935 ISBN-13: 9781111988937 Current Environmental News at: http://www.msnbc.com/news/environment
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The Environmental News Network: http://www.enn.com/
FIU Office of Sustainability/GoGreen Team: http://gogreen.fiu.edu/index.html Responsibilities It is my responsibility to come to class prepared, clearly state guidelines, and to make your classroom experience an enjoyable and interesting one. I will present lectures, facilitate classroom discussion, grade assignments in a timely manner and above all else, always listen. If you have any problems, please see me after class. It is your responsibility to: 1. Come to class on time. 2. Do the reading assignment (we will have quizzes). 3. Participate in class when you have questions or comments. 4. TURN OFF ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES―no cell phones, no blackberries, etc. No laptops either unless you explain why you need to use them for the class. 5. Act polite in class towards one another—listen when someone else is talking; comment but never criticize; do not have conversations with others during class; let me know before class starts if you have to leave early that particular day. Assignments & Evaluation
Quizzes 5%
Student Presentation 15%
Participation 10% (Debates/Films and Guest speakers events’ questionnaires) Exam 1 20% Exam 2 20% Exam 3 30%
Final Grades
A=92 or greater, A-=90 to 91, B+=88 to 89, B=82 to 87, B-=80 to 81, C+=78 to 79, C=72 to 77, C-=70 to 71, D+=68 to 69, D=62 to 67, F=Less than 62
All grades are rounded up, so 79.5 counts as a B-, etc.
Quizzes/ Student presentation / Participation - You will have 3 unannounced quizzes, Quizzes will consist of a series of multiple choice questions based on the previous lecture, and it will always be given at the beginning of the class, so it is best to be on time. - Student presentations (power point) will be at the end of the course (See guidelines below).
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- Participation: There are various in class activities, debates, guest speakers, films or videos shown during the class. Films/Guest speakers’ questionnaires are always due just after, or the next class after the film/presentation is shown. Reading of case studies specified in the course schedule will be discussed and one student at random will have to start the debate with a brief summary of the article There will be no make-ups for quizzes, assignments or films/guest speakers’ questionnaires, so it is best to be in class, and to arrive on time. Extra Credit You will need to spend a minimum of 3 hours volunteering for an environmental organization (see list below). You will write a 1/2 page paper about your experience in the organization, explaining what you learned working there. List of Environmental Organizations in Miami: - Go Green team at FIU: http://gogreen.fiu.edu/index.html contact Alexandra Dutton at [email protected] or 305-348-1820 - Citizens for a Better South Florida (http://www.abettersouthflorida.org/ ) Contact Gloria Antia at [email protected] or 305-648-0000 - Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden (http://www.fairchildgarden.org/ ), Contact Kiki Mutis at [email protected] or 305-669-4085 - Natural Preserve at FIU (for volunteering activities, contact Ryan Vogel at [email protected] or check either your BBoard or Moodle portal for schedule) -Urban Paradise Guild: www.urban-paradise.org contact Sam Van Leer at [email protected] or 305-758-5119 - Tropical Audubon Society (http://tropicalaudubon.org/volunteer.html ) Contact: [email protected] or 305-667-7337 -Urban GreenWorks ( http://urbangreenworks.org/ ). Contact James Jiler at [email protected] or 786-447-8084 - Earth Learning (http://earth-learning.org/ ) Contact Mario Yanez at [email protected] or (305) 323-8858 Exams There are three exams for this course. The last exam will be given at the scheduled exam time during final exam week and will be semi-comprehensive. This means that questions from the first two exams may appear on the final exam. Exams will be entirely made up of multiple choice, fill the blank and a few true-false questions. No make-ups will be allowed for exams without a written excuse from a doctor, parent, or legal guardian. Academic Honesty Please be aware that FIU and Department of Environmental Studies academic honesty policies will be upheld. Plagiarism in any form will not be tolerated and is considered cheating. This includes copying text directly from websites, previously written papers, and other sources without acknowledging the original source or author. Cheating on exams also has serious consequences, up to and including expulsion. Plagiarized film
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reviews are easy to detect and find and last semester several people flunked the course for using them.
EVR 1001 Introduction to Environmental Science Course Schedule LEC/ DATE Topic/Reading
1 Aug 20
Introduction – Chapter 1 Reading: p 5 case study in Miller
2 Aug 22 3 (Last Day Drop) Aug 27
Science, Matter and Energy – Chapter 2 Reading: p 25 case study in Miller
4 Aug 29 5 Sept 3
LABOR DAY
6 Sept 5
Ecosystems and Nutrient Cycles – Chapter 3
7 Sept 10
Biodiversity –Chapter 4 and 5 Reading: given on Sept 5 lecture
8 Sept 12 9 Sept 17
Human population and Urbanization – Chapter 6 Reading: p 94 case study in Miller
10 Sept 19 11 Sept 24
Gogreen Team FIU Presentation or guest speaker
12 Sept 26
Exam 1 (from Lecture 1 to 10)
13 Oct 1
Climate and sustaining biodiversity: The Species & the Ecosystem approaches - Chapters 7, 8 & 9 Reading: p 151 & 174 case studies in Miller
14 Oct 3
15 Oct 8
Food, Soil and Pest Management – Chapter 10 Reading: p 204 case study in Miller
16 Oct 10 17 Oct 15
Water Resources and Water Pollution – Chapter 11 Reading: p 237 case study in Miller
18 Oct 17 19 Oct 22
Geology and Nonrenewable Minerals – Chapter 12 Reading: p 275 case study in Miller
20 Oct 24 21 Exam 2 (from Lecture 13 to 20)
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Oct 29 22 Oct 31
Energy – Chapter 13 Reading: p 299 case study in Miller
23 Nov 5
Air Pollution, Climate Change and Ozone Depletion – Chapter 15 Reading: p 376 case study in Miller
24 Nov 7 25 Nov 12
VETERANS’ DAY
26 Nov 14
Solid and Hazardous Waste – Chapter 16 Reading: p 411 case study in Miller
27 Nov 19
Environmental Economics, Politics and Worldviews – Chapter 17 Reading: p 434 case study in Miller
28 Nov 21 29 Nov 26
Students Presentation part 1 (check your dates on excel doc in BBoard)
30 Nov 28
Students Presentation part 2
31 Dec 3
Final Exam (Lecture 22 to 28) same classroom from 7.15pm to 9.15pm
Student presentation Guidelines: You will have to make a Power Point presentation on a specific topic given at the beginning of the course. Requirements:
- You‘ve been attributed a topic that you will find in an Excel Doc “PPT Topics and
dates” placed on BBoard
- Presentation cannot last more than 10 minutes ( 10-12 slides ). Tips: no
embedded videos, insert good illustrations (graphs, fig., and pictures), pick the
right choice of format (yellow text on a picture in the background= wrong
format)
- Make sure you bring the Power Point on a USB key the day of your presentation.
- You will need to end your last slide with a reference to the sources that you used
( don’t talk about it but include an extra slide just to acknowledge your sources):
Use 3 official newspaper articles, 2 academic papers (Fiu library or google scholar
research ) and 2 official websites.
- If you have any questions or doubts, contact me at [email protected]