Earth Science - Miami University - Oxford

Earth Science from Miami University - Oxford is a Campus Bachelor Geology degree that prepares you for a Science career. What is Earth Science? Earth science is an all-encompassing term for the sciences related to the plant Earth. Earth science includes the study of the solid earth (the lithosphere), the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, including the oceans, and the biosphere. Thus, the discipline includes subjects as diverse as the origin of rocks and minerals, the migration of pollutants in groundwater, and the evolution of life as recorded in fossils. Typically, earth scientists use tools from geology , physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics to build a quantitative understanding of how Earth sytems work. Earth scientists work in a variety of areas. With concerns about conservation of natural resources, environmental pollution, and global climate change in today's society, many earth scientists are involved in finding solutions to problems of waste disposal, urban development, providing clean energy, promoting sustainability, and coping with hazards such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding, and erosion. Others study the human influence upon the earth and provide the basic information needed to solve problems and establish rational policies for resource management, environmental protection, and public health safety and welfare. What are the features of Miami's program? Integration of teaching and research The faculty in the Department of Geology is an extremely active group of earth scientists and educators. Our faculty teach courses at all levels of the curriculum, which means that students interact with active scholars in virtually all geology courses. All faculty members and graduate students are working on research projects, many of which regularly involve undergraduate students. These independent study research opportunities are often the most rewarding aspects of an undergraduate's career because they provide hands-on experience applying principles and concepts learned in coursework to outstanding questions in the earth and geological sciences. The National Science Foundation's Research Experience for Undergraduates Program, the Miami University Summer Scholars Program, the Office for the Advancement of Research and Scholarship, and the Department of Geology all provide funding that allows undergraduates to undertake independent research during the summer and school year. Many students publish their work in leading journals and participate in conference presentations. Field-based learning opportunities The Department of Geology sponsors several three- to five-week domestic and international field courses run annually during the summer. Shorter field courses (7 to 10 days) are often taught over the winter and spring break periods, affording undergraduate and graduate students ample opportunity to participate. Many of the upper-level earth science and geology courses contain field components that take advantage of key aspects of the local and regional geology via multi-hour to multi-day field projects. The Earth Science major could also lead to the summer field geology course offered annually at the department's field station in the Wind River Mountains of Wyoming, next to one of the nation's most unspoiled and rugged wilderness areas. Top-notch facilities The Department of Geology houses modern research and teaching laboratories and field equipment for the investigation of a variety of earth materials and processes. These facilities support material preparation and state-of-the-art instrumental analysis focusing in the areas of isotope and elemental geochemistry, mineral surface geochemistry, crystallography, geomicrobiology, hydrogeology, environmental geochemistry, and geophysics. This instrumentation is further supported by a modern departmental computer laboratory and numerous specialized high-end computer facilities. View more details on Miami University - Oxford, OH . Ask your questions and apply online for this program or find other related Geology courses.