Course Descriptions
undergraduate/Graduate - 500 level courses
CAS GE 502 Advanced Topics in Remote Sensing
Prereq: CAS GE 302. Examines advanced concepts in radiative transfer and information extraction relevant to remote sensing. Emphasis on applications of digital image processing to remote sensing problems.
CAS GE 503 Micrometeorology:
Energy and Mass Transfer at the Earth's Surface
Prereq: CAS GE 310, MA 121, and PY 233 or graduate standing. Modern theories and techniques for measurement and analysis of physical processes occurring at the Earth's surface: radiation regimes; energy and mass exchange; agricultural and forest micrometeorology' remote sensing and modeling of land surface properties and processes.
CAS GE 504 Physical Climatology
Prereq: CAS GE 310 or consent of instructor. Physical factors and processes operating in the earth-atmosphere boundary zone. Solar radiation, expotranspiration, and water balance studies for various natural and cultural environments. Examples include bioclimates of vegetation, air-sea interaction, urban climate, physiologic climatic parameters, and climatic change.
CAS GE 505 Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
Prereq: CAS GE 365 and CAS MA 213. Provides a theoretical and practical introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Introduces the essentials in GIS, methods of data capture and sources of data, nature and characteristics of spatial data and objects, data structures, modeling surfaces, volumes and time, and data uncertainty. Emphasis is on applications. Laboratory exercises included.
CAS GE 507 Dynamical Oceanography
Prereq: CAS MA 124 or CAS MA 127 or CAS MA 129 and CAS ES 144, and CAS PY 212, or consent of instructor. Introduction to the physical ocean system. Physical properties of seawater; essential ocean dynamics; mixing and stirring in the ocean; simple waves; observed current systems and water masses; and coupled atmosphere-ocean variability. Also offered as CAS ES 507.
CAS GE 510 Physical Principles of the Environment
Prereq: (CASBI306 & CASGE304) or consent of instructor. Grad Prereq: (CASGE304 & CASBI306) or consent of instructor. Principles and concepts that underlie the physical and ecological forces that cause environmental change. Topics include soil erosion, acid rain, thermal pollution, greenhouse effect, stratospheric ozone depletion, and loss of biodiversity.
CAS GE 511 Ecological Economics
Prereq: CAS GE 304 or CAS EC 303 and CAS GE 275. Interrelationships among population, economic growth, environment, energy and natural resource supplies, particularly in developing countries. Focus on possibilities and limitations of technological solutions to pressures of population on resources and environment. Critical examination of selected large-scale economic environmental models.
CAS GE 512 Global Climate Change: Policy Modeling and Analysis
Prereq: CAS EC 303, CAS MA 121, and CAS CS 111. Introduction to the analysis of climate change policies and associated economic issues. Students learn to analyze policy through computational energy-environmental-economic simulations that reflect insights of theoretical economic analyses. Emphasis on developing familiarity with state-of-the-art modeling techniques.
CAS GE 514 Dynamic Land Surface Hydrology
Prereq: CAS MA 121, 123 or 127, and one course from CAS CH 101, 111, 131,161, or 171, or CAS PY 105, 211, 233, or 251. Land surface hydrology with emphasis on the unsaturated zone. Development and applications of physics governing transport of water, vapor and heat in soils and the near surface atmosphere. Effects of vegetation, topography and water table on runoff, evapotranspiration and recharge.
CAS GE 516 Multivariate Analysis for Geographers
Prereq: CAS MA 214 or equivalent, or consent of instructor. Applications of multivariate techniques to problems in spatial context, emphasizing interpretation. Review of regression and analysis of variance. Introduction to topics including canonical correlation, factor analysis, discriminant and clustering analyses.
CAS GE 517 Models for Hydrologic Analysis
Prereq: consent of instructor. Principles and practices of modeling hydrologic systems. Classes and goals of hydrologic models. Methods of model selection and construction. Use of models in surface and groundwater hydrology studies and decision making. Emphasis on conceptual and stochastic hydrologic models.
CAS GE 518 Natural Resource Scarcity and Economic Growth
Prereq: CAS GE 304 and EC 303 or consent of instructor. Perspectives on adequacy issues of natural resources. Comparison of different models of change in the quality and quantity of renewable and nonrenewable resources over time. Analysis of social and economic implications of resource depletion and degradation, and adequacy of technical change to overcome resource scarcity.
CAS GE 519 Energy, Society, and the Environment
Prereq: CAS GE 304 or equivalent. Overview of technical, historical, economic, social, and environmental aspects of energy systems, including fossil fuels, nuclear, solar, wind, biomass, and energy end use efficiency and conservation.
CAS ENG MN 500/GE 520 A1 Special Projects
This special projects class will assess energy use by Boston University, the potential to reduce use, and shrink its environmental footprint. Areas that will be addressed include:
-
-Determining what the different end-use categories energy sources are used being used for, on a building-by-building and by category (age, size, and use) basis.
-Analysis of efficiencies of energy use and supply compared to typical and best practices. Analysis of specific conservation measures and technology options for different energy end-uses for lighting, motors, air conditioning, heating, and other major end-use categories.
-Evaluation of alternative energy sources for specific applications (such as hot water and heat).
-Assessment by building category of potential impact of alternatives and options.
This course will address technical issues, economic and organizational issues associated with implementation, and the expected change in environmental impact. Students will contribute to the overall analysis, select a specific topic for detailed analysis, and present a detailed report. Students will be expected to find primary sources of information and provide specific data and analysis related to the issue.
CAS GE 520 B1 Topics in Energy and Environmental Policy
Prereq: consent of instructor. Topics vary from year to year and may include the policy aspects of environmental regulation, risk assessment and environmental decision making, international environmental policy, natural resource policy, and energy policy.
CAS GE 521 Environmental Law and Policy
Survey of the major features of environmental law and relevant procedural and constitutional issues. Comparison of practical realitites (political, economic, social, geographic, biological) with the ideal context for what should be. Projects include legal research and mock advocay.
CAS GE 525 Plant Physiological Ecology
Prereq: (CASBI303 OR CASBI306 OR CASBI305) and CAS CH101, CAS PY211, or equivalent. In-depth treatment of eco-physiological responses of plants and communities to environmental factors and climate change, as well as plant and community level impacts on the environment as manifested primarily in hydrologic, energy, and carbon cycles.
CAS GE 529 Modeling and Monitoring Terrestrial Ecosystems Processes
Prereq: CAS GE 302; CAS BI 306 or 303 (Or equivalents). Concepts and problems at the interface of ecosystem process modeling and satellite remote sensing; current methods and challenges in modeling terrestrial primary production at regional-to-global scales; capabilities, limitations, and prospects of satellite remote sensing as a tool for collecting biotic and abiotic data in ecosystem process studies.
CAS GE 530 Forest Ecology
Prereq: CAS BI 107 and CAS BI 303 or CAS BI 306, or consent of instructor. The major biotic and abiotic factors influencing forest ecosystem composition, structure and function. Role of solar radiation, hydrology, soils, succession, and management of forest ecosystems. Includes New England case study. Three hours lecture plus discussion. Also meets with CAS BI 530.
CAS GE 531 Political Geography of the International System
An examination of the national states and the international system, particularly in the areas of trade, cooperation, and the economic order, geopolitics and strategy, natural resources, and environmental problems.
CAS GE 536 European Environmental Policy
Prereq: Junior standing or consent of instructor. Focuses on key concepts, actors, and issues related to European integration, environmental policy making, and sustainable development. Also examines transatlantic environmental relations and the role of the European Union in global environmental governance. Also offered as CAS IR 536.
CAS GE 539 History of Geographic Thought
Prereq: Senior standing or consent of instructor. History of the field of geography from classical times. Major contributors to geographic theory and concepts.
CAS GE 541 Economic Geography of Transport
This course examines the role of transportation in national and regional economies. Topics include regulation, deregulation, and privatization of transport system; logistical innovations and intelligent transport; economic impact of infrastructure; analysis and policy of traffic congestion and pollution; public transport in cities; and transport in developing countries.
CAS GE 542 Models of Urban Transportation Systems
Prereq:CAS GE 365 or consent of instructor. Models for analyzing multi-modal transportation flows and congestion over urban road and transit networks. Applications are developed in a Geographical Information Systems environment. Models are extended to urban land use and air quality applications.
CAS GE 550 Modeling Environmental and Social Systems
Requires stamped approval. Prereq: CAS GE 304, CAS EC 414, or consent of instructor. Techniques of organizing energy, environmental, or social systems into mathematical computer models. Includes the theory underlying different modeling techniques, programming skills, and a hands-on research project in which students develop their own models.
CAS GE 594 Global Environmental Negotiation and Policy
Prereq: Consent of instructor. Key concepts, actors, concerns, and issues related to the process of negotiating global environmental policies. Overview of the international system and environmental problems; an international negotiation simulation; case studies of global agreements on ozone depletion, climate change, desertification, and biodiversity, among others. Meets with CAS IR 594.
CAS GE 597 Sustainable Development in Latin America
Prereq: CAS GE 100 or CAS IR 292 or CAS IR 590 and junior standing, or consent of instructor. Provides an empirically based understanding of the social and environmental aspects of economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) for purposes of analyzing the numerous trade and development policies that nations in LAC are currently considering. Also offered as CAS IR 597.
CAS GE 599 Science, Politics, and Climate Change
Applies a science and technology studies perspective to climate change science and policy. Examines the relationships between scientific and political systems at global, national, and local levels. Also offered as CAS IR 599.
