jjerz@depauw.edu

Private four-year institution, primarily undergraduate

less than 15

This is an upper-division required geochemistry course with prerequisites of introductory geology, and introductory chemistry.

Students should be able to apply chemical concepts to predict the outcome of geologic porcesses.

Students should be able to use geochemical data to solve applied, real world problems.

Students should be able to gather and interpret their own data using the appropriate geochemical instrumentation.

This course will teach geochemical principles through the lens of acid mine drainage. By learning how to investigate this real environmental problem, students will learn both the important content of geochemistry and how to apply this information. The primary activities in this course are 1) labs in which students learn how to collect samples and analyze raw data 2) case studies in which students will read the literature and work with real data.

-improve aquantative/math skills
-improve writing skills
-be able to access and critically evaluate geochemical literature

A significant amount of class work will revolve around problem sets from case studies, so students will have ample opportunity to practice geochemical calculations. They will also write reports explaining their interpretations from case studies and labs.