Laboratory of Tree-Ring ResearchTeaching |
A full curriculum of course work in dendrochronology as well as in related topics is offered by faculty of the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research. Below are descriptions of all dendrochronology courses, some of which have links to updated information with current syllibi etc.
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Probable Courses of Spring 2001 |
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Course Number and Name (click on name for current information |
Days |
Time |
Room |
Professor |
| NATS 101: Intro. to Global Change LEC 40 |
TTh | 11:00-12:15 | Bio. W. 219 | Leavitt Salzer |
| NATS 101: Intro. to Global Change LEC 41 |
MWF | 12:00-12:50 | Sp. Sc. 308 | Leavitt Salzer |
| NATS 101: Intro. to Global Change LEC 42H: Same as LEC 41 plus extra Honors activities |
MWF | 12:00-12:50 | Sp. Sc. 308 | Leavitt Salzer |
| GEOG 431/531 Global and Regional Climatology |
TTh | 12:30 - 1:45 | Harvill 401 (SAL) | Hirschboeck |
| GEOS/ANTH/WSM 497C/597C: Dendrochronology Workshop |
Organization Meeting: TBA |
TBA | W. Stad. 104G | Sheppard |
| GEOS595E: Dendrochronology
Colloquium: Journal Club |
Organizational Meeting: TBA |
TBA | W. Stad. 104G | TBA |
| GEOS595E: Dendrochronology
Colloquium: Archaeological Dendrochronology |
Organizational Meeting: TBA |
TBA | W. Stad. 104G | Towner |
| GEOS595E: Dendrochronology
Colloquium: Bristelcone Pine |
Organizational Meeting: TBA |
TBA | W. Stad. 104G | Salzer |
| GEOS 595E: Dendrochronology
Colloquium: Dendrochemistry |
Organizational Meeting: TBA |
TBA | W. Stad. 104G | Sheppard |
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Core Courses in Dendrochronology
- GEOS/ANTH/WSM 464/564 Introduction to
Dendrochronology (4 units, Fall): Survey of
dendrochronological theory and methods. Applications to
archaeoloical, geological, and biological dating problems and
paleoenvironmental reconstruction. Emphasis on dating methods,
developing tree-ring chronologies, and evaluating tree-ring
dates from various contexts. Field trips. Click here for current semester information on
Introduction to Dendrochronology.
- GEOS/ANTH/WSM 497C/597C Dendrochronology
Workshop (2 units, Spring): This course is taught in a
workshop environment to give students experience in the use of
the computer and the basic software necessary to convert
tree-ring samples into usable chronologies. The class will be
assigned samples from a tree-ring site that has been
crossdated. The class will measure and then process the
ring-width series into a stationary, mean value function,
usable to interpret past environmental variation. The final
chronology will be submitted to the ITRDB in the names of the
students in the class.
-
GEOS/WSM 595E Topics in Dendrochronology
(variable units): Topics are offered irregularly; students
should express desires for particular topics to their major
professor and/or the LTRR Director. Topics offered recently
include:
- Cell-Size and Microdensitometric Analyses: An
introduction, by means of demonstrations and guided
readings, to the background, measurement and use of
cell-size variables and microdensity in
dendrochronology.
- Fire Climatology: A statistical investigation of
the relations between regional climate and fire occurrence
over the past several centuries. We will use tree-ring
reconstructions of climate and fire history from the
Southwestern United States and the Sierra Nevada of
California. Objectives are to (1) learn methods of
statistical analysis of tree-ring and document-based
records of fire occurrence and climate, (2) learn about
sources of tree-ring climate and fire history data and
their unique characteristics, and (3) investigate possible
relations between seasonal to decadal patterns of fire
occurrence and climatic variability.
- Isotope Dendroecology: One of the emergent tools
in ecological research is the application of stable
isotopes to gain better insight into plant activity related
to resource uptake and allocation of energy and matter.
When isotopes are used with plant growth rings, there is
the potential to elucidate current plant activity as well
as to develop a proxy chronology of plant activity and
environmental interactions. The class will begin with
fundamental concepts related to isotope chemistry and
fractionation, and continue with classic and current
readings on applications of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen
stable isotopes in tree rings to ecological studies.
- Dendroenvironmental Analysis of Inorganic
Elements: Review of dendrochemistry (non-isotope)
techniques, issues, and applications in environmental
science. Lab activity involving tree-ring samples measured
for nitrogen and/or sulfur content will serve as hands-on
experience.
- Time Series Analysis for Dendrochronology and Other
Environmental and Earth Sciences: Application of time
series statistical techniques to tree-ring data and other
geophysical series. Module I includes basic exploratory
analysis (with emphasis on graphical methods),
determination of appropriate probability distribution
functions, computation and interpretation of descriptive
statistics, the sample autocorrelation function, and sample
spectrum. Module II addresses basic modeling techniques for
univariate and multivariate time series, including ARIMA
modeling and multiple linear regression in a time series
context. Module III focuses on spatial analysis of multiple
time series, including principal components analysis and
methods of climate reconstruction using spatial networks of
tree-ring data. Click here
for current semester information on this module.
- Archaeological Dendrochronology: Learn methods,
techniques, and theories of archaeological
dendrochronological in an intensive seminar and
field-oriented format. Begin with an in-depth discussion of
dendroarchaeological dating theory from a variety of
perspectives. Then evaluate the data and interpretations
from a number of sites and areas across the Southwest,
including issues such as site chronologies, construction
sequences, seasonality, and wood use behavior. A spring
break Field Trip to the Four Corners area required to
collect samples from architectural and non architectural
contexts. Prepare and date the samples collected, and
present the results as an LTRR Brown Bag lecture. Examine
issues such as climatic variability, climate change,
migration, and abandonment of sites and regions.
- Dendrochronology Colloquim (Journal Club): Read
and critically evaluate scientific journal articles. Click here for
current semester information about Journal Club.
- Cell-Size and Microdensitometric Analyses: An
introduction, by means of demonstrations and guided
readings, to the background, measurement and use of
cell-size variables and microdensity in
dendrochronology.
- BIOC 595F; BIOC 597C The Biology of Tree
Rings (for H.S. Science Teachers): Distinct annual growth
layers (tree rings) are formed in the wood of many tree species
in the temperate and cooler parts of the world. The scientific
use of these layers (dendrochronology) was pioneered at The
University of Arizona in the early 1900s and has now extended
into many scientific fields, including ecology and tree
physiology as well as climatology, hydrology, archeology and
geophysics. Explore the biological bases of tree-ring
formation, and discuss applications of dendrochronology to such
topical issues as disturbance ecology (e.g. the role of fire
and insect outbreaks in forests), landscape ecology (if the
climate changes, how do forests respond?) and global ecology
(exploring imbalances in the global carbon cycle using carbon
isotopes in tree rings). Informal lectures and discussions
combined with laboratory sessions introduce the basic concepts
of dendrochronology. The use of a small kit of class materials
will also be discussed during the laboratory sessions.
Other Courses Taught by LTRR Faculty
- NATS 101 The Earth and Its Environments --
Introduction to Global Change (3 units, Fall and Spring):
An Overview of the key concepts in physical and chemical
processes, including Newton's laws governing force and motion,
the laws of thermodynamics governing energy and entropy, the
role of electromagnetism in nature, and the atomic structure of
matter. The course will explore these concepts in an
inter-disciplinary context, drawing from areas such as
environmental sciences, atmospheric sciences,
engineering/technological sciences, and others.
- UNVR 195A Freshman Colloquium: Why the Past
Matters: It is no accident that insurance companies use
past records when figuring out how much to charge for insuring
a particular risk, as do civil engineers when deciding how
secure a house site is from flood or landslide. What has
happened can happen. We will take several journeys into the
past that will teach important practical lessons about our
natural environment, and how people interact with it. In some
cases we will meet the scientists or other scholars doing this
work and have the opportunity to talk with them about the
social usefulness of their work, as well as their other reasons
for doing it.
- GEOS 220 Natural History of the Southwest (3
units, Fall): Environmental and cultural history of the
Southwest emphasizing discovery of the past using historical
science techniques of tree-ring and packrat midden analyses and
repeat photography. Field trip. Click here for current semester
information on Natural History of the
Southwest
- GEOG 431/531 Global and Regional Climatology
(3 units, Spring): Description and analysis of the atmospheric
circulation process that produces differences in climates
throughout the world. Emphasis on the earth's problem climates
and climatically sensitive zones most susceptible to floods,
droughts, and other environmental stresses due to global
change.
- ANTH 447/547 Anasazi Archaeology: Detailed
review of the archaeology of the Colorado Plateau emphasizing
its agriculturally based occupants, the Anasazi, and their
descendants, the Pueblo Indians.
- GEOS/ECOL/RNR/GEOG/HWR 478/578 Global Change
(3 units, Spring): Analysis of the entire Earth system through
an examination of how its component parts and their
interactions have changed in the past and may be expected to
change in the future.
- GC/GEOS/HWR 572 Global Biogeochemical Cycles
(3 units, Fall): Study of processes affecting global chemical
fluxes. Particular attention to current global concerns, i.e.,
ozone hole, carbon cycle, climate warming, atmospheric
oxidation, hydrologic cycle.
- ANTH 636 Foundations of Archaeological
Interpretation (3 units): Survey of the history of
archaeological interpretation. Central concepts in
archaeological method and theory are presented.
- ANTH 637 Archaeological Methodology (3
units): Survey of the fundamental principles, methods, and
techniques of archaeological analysis and inference from a
multidisciplinary perspective.
- ANTH 696A Dating in Archaeology: Presents the
problems and procedures in the archaeological application of
techniques for dating prehistoric events. Independent and
intrinsic techniques are defined. Independent techniques
include dendrochronology, radiocarbon, archaeomagnetism,
hydration, and stratification. Intrinsic techniques include
ceramic crossdating, architectural stratification, abandonment
measures, and seriation methods. The analytical implications of
varying degrees of temporal resolution are discussed using
actual cases.
- RAM/GEOS 696B Use of stable isotopes in ecological research (1 unit): A growing number of ecologists are relying on the use of stable isotopes to investigate complex processes that transcend spatial and temporal scales. Graduate students enrolling in this course will hear first-hand from a number of U of A and visiting researchers how this technology is being applied to questions in paleo, terrestrial, marine, and global change ecology. Foster interdisciplinary collaborations among researchers and students confronted with similar technological and conceptual problems.
Independent Study With LTRR Faculty
As with other departments, LTRR faculty serve as advisors on independent study projects for either undergraduate or graduate students. Check with particular faculty to register and to arrange a suitable project.
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The University of
Arizona
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, The University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona 85721 USA
Main Office: (520) 621-1608, Fax: (520) 621-8229
Comments to Paul Sheppard: sheppard@ltrr.arizona.edu
Copyright © 2000, Laboratory of Tree-Ring
Research, The University of Arizona
Revised -- December, 2000
URL: http://www.ltrr.arizona.edu/teaching.html