Instructor: Connie Woodhouse
Office: Harvill 412
Email: conniew1@email.arizona.edu
Office hours: by appointment
Weekly class schedule: Tentative: MW 2:00-3:15
Location: Harv 435D
Course web site: http://www.u.arizona.edu/~conniew1/geog532/Geog532home.html
Course blog: http://blog.ltc.arizona.edu/geog532-081/
Catalog description
This course
explores the connections between climate and water resources from the
perspective of the past, the present, and the future to foster an
appreciation of the finite nature of water in the western US and other
regions in the face of a changing climate.
Course Overview
The goal of this
course is to foster an understanding and appreciation of the finite
nature of water in the western US and other regions, and an awareness
of the impacts of climate change on water resources in the future. We
will explore the connections between climate and fresh water resources,
from the perspective of the past (with paleoclimatic data), the present
(using instrumental and gage data), and the future (with projections
and scenarios of future climate and climate change impacts). The
course will start with an overview of the regional climatology and its
relationship to streamflow characteristics and variability in major
river basins, with a focus on the western US. We will then assess
the range of paleoclimatic records that document hydroclimatology over
the past hundreds to thousands of years, and examine the links between
multidecadal and millennial-scale hydroclimatic variability and proxy
records of ocean conditions. The final part of the class will
examine various projections for regional precipitation, snowpack, and
runoff in the future, and the impacts of climate change on human
activities and natural systems.
The class will
include lectures, guest speakers, class discussions of relevant papers, student presentations, and a final term paper.
Several readings, or occasionally, short presentations, will be assigned for most classes. Students will take
turns presenting paper summaries and leading class discussions. There is no text book for
the class. Readings from a variety of sources will be posted on
the class web site.
Assignments and Term Paper
Reading Assignments: Weekly assignments will consist of several papers
on a specified topic. For each class meeting, students should 1) read all of the assigned
material, 2) write a blog entry on the papers (more details below), 3) read the
blog entries of the other students in the class, and 4) be prepared to discuss
the papers and blogs in class.
Blog Assignments: Each student will write blog entries on
the assigned reading. If
the student is assigned to lead a discussion, the entry should briefly
summarize the paper. If not leading the discussion, the blog
entry should include 1) impressions or thoughts regarding the assigned
readings, and 2) questions to be addressed in the class
discussion. Blog entries should
be posted no later than midnight before the class to allow others to read the entries.
In-Class Summaries and Discussions: Students
will take turns summarizing and leading discussions on each classes'
papers. Students leading discussions can incorporate the blog entries of the
other students to pose questions for discussion.
Short Presentations: For
some classes, instead of readings, we will be utilizing other sources
of information and presenting results of these investigations in class.
These include 1) basin overviews, 2) paleorecords for a basin of
interest, 3) a exercise using the online Colorado River Open Source
Simulator, and 4) report on a world water news article. In each
of these, students will summarize results for the class blog, and make
short (10-12 minute) Powerpoint presentations in class (no Powerpoint
required for new article).
Term Papers: Students are required to submit a term paper on a
topic pertinent to the class. It can address any aspect of climate and water in the western U.S. Topics are due March 24. The paper should be fully referenced and 10-15 pages in length,
double spaced. Students will present their term papers in class during the last
weeks of the semester. Final papers are due
on last class meeting.
Grades &
Policies
Participation:
Full participation during class, as well as completion
of assignments and readings are required.
Thoughtful contributions to class discussions and weekly assignments will result in a high grade.
Grades: Grades
will be based on class participation (33%), discussions led and short
presentations (33%), the final term paper and presentation (33%).
Policies: Work
submitted late may be subject to
penalties. Absence/attendance,
withdrawal, honesty
and other policies as stated in the UA General Catalog.
Class
Outline
See the Schedule, Readings, and Assignments link above. Specific details, weekly announcements,
further updates beyond those in the weekly schedule link above will be distributed in
class or via email.