GC/HWR/GEOS 572: Global Biogeochemical Cycles

Instructors: Paul Brooks and Steve Leavitt

TuTh 11-12:15, ILC 129

3 credits

 

This is an inquiry-based forum for students in global change-related fields to study major processes affecting global fluxes and transformation of chemical species among reservoirs at the Earth's surface, including measurement and modeling issues.  The role of biosystems and hydrology is central to many of the topics, particularly as related to modern and ancient global change in the Earth system.

This year’s class will be built around the research of leading UA global change faculty who will provide lectures in their area of their expertise, so students will be exposed to the amazing breadth of biogeochemical cycle-related research on campus.  So far, the following guest lecturers are scheduled: Nick Woolf (origin of life and astrobiology), Jon Chorover (plant-microbe interactions and rock weathering), Armin Sorooshian (aerosols/ clouds/ precipitation), Peter Troch (hydrological partitioning at the catchment scale), Connie Woodhouse (cycles of atmospheric moisture and associations with drought and streamflow), Steve Archer (landcover shifts), Xubin Zeng (modeling dynamic vegetation), Tom Swetnam (forest fires as biogeochemical agents), and Dave Breshears (die-off ecohydrology).

Reading and regular discussion of articles by students is required, and students will develop term projects in relevant areas of interest.