MSc Thesis
Structural Geology
Study of the relationship between strain and fabric elements in tectonites. Textures. Multiple strain histories and textures. Relationships between strain and geotectonics.
Tectonics
Structural evolution of different types of "orogenic" belts. Emphasis will be on Canadian examples where possible. Limitations that structural evolution places on the acceptability of proposed tectonic models. Global systems of orogenic belts through time.
Paleoclimatology
Phanerozoic climates, with special emphasis on the Quaternary. Techniques of climate reconstruction: fossil assemblages, stable isotope analysis, dendrochronology, sedimentary evidence. Causes of climatic change. Implications for predicting future climates.
Quaternary Palynology
Concepts and techniques in palynological investigations of marine and terrestrial Quaternary deposits; the Pleistocene and Holocene climatic changes; applied atmospheric palynology, dispersal of palynomorphs.
Environmental Geochemistry
Principles of availability, mobility and accumulation of metals in the lithosphere and hydrosphere. Cycling of metals in soils and soil chemistry. Chemical weathering and stability regimes of minerals in aqueous systems. Anthropogenic influence on inorganic contaminants in sediments, soils and water. Quality control and assurance of sampling procedures.
Quaternary Geochronology
Geochronological methods and techniques applicable to correlation and dating of Quaternary deposits and events (radiocarbon dating, varved sediments, the fossil record, paleomagnetism, tephrochronology, dendrochronology, paleotemperatures). Quaternary chronology in Canada and correlation with other parts of the world.
Glaciology
Study of the physics of glaciers. Mass balance and glacier budget. Mechanics of glacier movement. Conditions of the ice/glacier bed interface. Dynamics of large ice masses. Glacier surges. Response of glaciers to changes in mass balance. Glaciers and climate. Glacier dynamics and glacial landforms.
Advanced Paleoecology
Correlation between modern ecosystems and those in the fossil record; reconstruction of past environments and the time-sequence of such environments. Applied paleoecology; delineation of past sedimentary basins using biofacies and lithofacies; evolutionary development of ecosystems; paleoecosystem analysis and models.
Evolutionary Paleobiology
Paleoecology of the marine biosphere. Taphonomy and information loss in fossil record. Changes in composition of marine communities over the Phanerozoic. Regulation of taxonomic diversity through geologic time. Mass extinctions. Punctuated equilibria. Heterochrony and evolution.
Sedimentary Environments
Study of modern depositional environments with emphasis on processes and the resulting facies organization. Development of facies models and their application to selected ancient examples.
Volcanology
A detailed survey of volcano morphology, distribution of Quaternary volcanic belts, experimental volcanic petrology and volcanic geochemistry. The current ideas on the interrelations between volcanics and plate tectonics are summarized and the volcanic processes of the present are compared to those of the geological past, including ancient continental shield volcanic rocks.
Carbonate Diagenesis
Descriptive and chemical diagenesis of carbonates. Geochemistry of inorganic and organic carbonate grains. Low temperature thermodynamics of elemental and isotopic redistribution. Application of biogeochemistry and chemostratigraphy to global events and evolutionary processes. Descriptive and chemical diagenesis of carbonates.
Quantitative Methods in Geology
Elements of data analysis and programming. Applications of statistical methods to geological data. Stochastic models in geology.
Prerequisite: an undergraduate course in statistics.
Fluvial Geomorphology
Principles of flow dynamics. Origin and measurement of turbulent and laminar flows; bed roughness; shear stress and velocity. Flow competence; drag and lift forces, initiation of motion, suspension and bedload. Flow capacity, deterministic and probability models of sediment transport. Field studies of steep gravel and bedrock channels.
Limnogeology
Formation of lake basins; physical and chemical characteristics of lake sediments and the water column; geological factors in the development of lakes; eutrophication; the fossil record in lake deposits; lakes as a resource (water consumption, recreation, conservation).
Quaternary Geology
Modern concepts of glaciers and glaciation as landscape forming factors; techniques and methods for study and mapping of Quaternary deposits and physiographic features; the influence of glaciation as a factor in Canadian land use.
Selected Topics in Quaternary Science
An investigation of a specific area or group of related topics in Quaternary science. This course will be designed for individual students and approved by the graduate studies advisory committee.
Selected Topics in Crustal Studies
An investigation of a specific area or group of related topics in Crustal studies. This course will be designed for individual students and approved by the graduate studies advisory committee.
Selected Topics in Contemporary Geology
An investigation of a specific area or group of related topics in contemporary geology. This special research course will be designed for individual students by the graduate studies advisory committee and approved by the department.