Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of the module students will:
(a) be familiar with the structure of the Earth, including an understanding of the concepts of plate tectonics and its role as a control on the occurrence of various natural phenomena.
(b) have an understanding of the geological evolution of Planet Earth through time
(c) appreciate that the Earth can be considered as a system that functions via a series of interconnected physical chemical and biological global-scale processes.
(d) have a broad understanding of the geological history of Ireland
(e) understand how the sedimentary rock record including its fossil content is formed, and how the relative age and absolute age of such successions is established.
(f) appreciate how the geological record is an archive that documents environmental change over time at different spatial and temporal scales
(g) have acquired practical skills linked to the interpretation of geographical and geological maps
(h) have increased awareness that the Earth is currently undergoing environmental change that is global in scale and occurring at an unprecedented rate
Indicative Module Content:
The first part considers the origin of the solid Earth, its atmosphere and oceans and how these have evolved over the past 4,600 million years. It examines in detail the concept of plate tectonics and explains how this relates to the global distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes, and impacts on other important processes that shape the Earth, including oceanic circulation, and climatic patterns.
The second part examines how surface processes and burial generate the sedimentary rocks that record Earth’s history. This geological record is an archive of environmental change over time. Particular emphasis is placed on detailing the broad scale geological evolution of Ireland via analysis of sedimentary rocks of different age.
The final part reviews the history of life on Earth as recorded in the fossil record, and emphasises the coupled evolution of the geosphere and biosphere. Selected key events in the evolution of life through time are discussed, including the origin and early evolution of life, evolution of animals and plants, and global scale environmnetal catastrophes through time. Particular emphasis is placed on the role mass extinction events have played, and whether the global scale biotic changes the Earth is currently experiencing warrants the descriptor ‘the sixth mass extinction event’.