Weather, Climate and Ecosystems
Shoreline Community College (Two Year College)
Summary
Geography 206 is an introductory course to physical geography. This course is the second of a two-course series (the other is Geography 205 - Cartography, Landforms and Landform Analysis) for Physical Geography at Shoreline Community College). Physical geography is the study of the earth's surface and the various physical systems that interact with and shape its surface. In this course, particular attention will be given to the earth's atmospheric and ecological systems, including fundamental processes, their distribution as well as their measurement and representation. These topics will be presented within the context of a global, North American and local (Pacific Northwest and the Puget Sound) perspective. In addition to the emphasis placed on map interpretation, some emphasis will also be placed on graphic and statistical data interpretation.
Course Type: Intro Level:Physical Geography
Course Size:
Course Context:
Course Goals:
1) Students should be able to use the tools and working terminology of physical geographers.
2) Students should be able to understand and interpret commonly used cartographic and graphic representations of weather, climate and ecological phenomena.
3) Students should be able to use demonstrate an understanding earth's atmospheric and environmental systems and how they are distributed on the earth's surface.
4) Students should be able to appreciate the interrelationships between humans, the atmosphere and ecosystems.
Skills
1) Students should be able to interpret atmospheric conditions and processes from cartographic, graphic and statistical sources.
2) Students should be able to analyze and describe scale, direction and distance relationships quantitatively and qualitatively.
3) Students should be able to establish pressure, temperature and precipitation estimates based on interpretation and calculation of information from cartographic, graphic and statistical sources.
4) Students should be able to use equations and classification algorithms to represent atmospheric and ecological patterns and processes.
5) Students should be able to to organize and
analyze information using equations, tables or graphs.
6) Students should be able to select and describe appropriate models and determine quantitative relationships among ecosystem components.
7) Students gain experience solving problems in groups.
Assessment:
Syllabus:
Teaching Materials:
References and Notes:
Geography 206 Course Reader.