| Unit name | Environmental Geoscience Research Project |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EASC30040 |
| Credit points | 30 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Whitaker |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
EASC20043 Geochemistry 1 EASC20038 Analytical Geochemistry |
| Co-requisites |
N/A |
| School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
In this unit students undertake and experience the process of conducting an independent research investigation integrating field, laboratory and computational methods.
The unit commences with a training element which involves 5 days of non-residential group fieldwork and 5 days of independent work including data analysis and preparation of a scientific poster. This introduces students to developing hypotheses, designing sampling and analysis strategies, collecting and analysing samples in the field, data interpretation and poster presentation.
The subsequent field component of the research project involves 7 days residential fieldwork, during which students work in groups to collect samples and undertake field analysis, followed by 15 days in the laboratory in Bristol undertaking further analysis and starting modelling work. Although some aspects of the research project work will be conducted as a team (data gathering during fieldwork and laboratory analysis), each student completes their own literature review, synthesis of data, computational work, numerical experiments, and presents their findings as a scientific report individually.
In preparation for research fieldwork students will prepare a draft risk assessment. Comparison with the formal risk assessment will then provide insight into what should be considered when preparing a risk assessment.
The training and research elements both take place after the Year 2 Summer assessments.
On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:
Independent work with supervised components in the field and laboratory. Students who either begin or continue their studies in an online mode may be required to complete laboratory or fieldwork, or alternative activities, in person, either during the academic year 2020/21 or subsequently, in order to meet the intended learning outcomes for the unit, prepare them for subsequent units or to satisfy accreditation requirements.
100% Coursework
Coursework comprises:
20% - Individual poster presentation after the pre-project field trip
70% - Written report (maximum 20 pages plus references, figures, tables and appendices) based on presentation and analysis of data collected on the main field trip.
10% - Individual question and answer session after submission and marking of the report, to include reference to the field notebook.
In the event of the unit not being passed students will be set additional work which must be completed over the Summer of the third year and submitted at the start of the resit/supplementary exam period.
Essential for fieldwork
- online geological map of the Bristol area via Edina Digimap; - online geological map of the independent project study area.Recommended reading will include a range of scientific journal articles relevant to the main field investigations, with PDFs of core articles made available on Blackboard, supplemented by a range of articles identified during independent research by the student.
