| Unit name | Hydrosphere 3 |
|---|---|
| Unit code | GEOG35220 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Professor. Bates |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
All units in year 2 for Syllabus B |
| Co-requisites |
All units in year 3 for Syllabus B |
| School/department | School of Geographical Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
This unit consists of 2 separate but complementary elements relating to hydrological Sciences. These are:
Element 1 : Hydrology and Land Surface Processes (Dr Katerina Michaelides and Dr Jim Freer)
This element looks at the link between hydrological processes and environmental change via geomorphic and biogeochemical processes. In particular, we will be concerned with these processes in different environments (drylands, temperate humid, agricultural) and we will be looking at how processes and outcomes differ in these settings. Modelling and data availability within these environments will also be discussed. An overarching aim of this element is to link hydrology to land-surface processes, including erosion and biogeochemical fluxes, and discuss these processes in relation to other parts of the syllabus (i.e. environmental change).
Element 2 : Model calibration, validation and uncertainty analysis (Prof. Paul Bates)
This element reviews recent philosophical debates surrounding the use of models as a basic tool with which to conduct science, the limitations to model validation caused by typical calibration procedures and the basis of debates over model uncertainty and the value of data.
On completion of this Unit students should be able to:
The following transferable skills are developed in this Unit:
Lectures, seminars, computing practical and a poster symposium.
Element 1: (KM/JEF)
1 x Group research poster (10% of unit mark) with a 1 x 1000 word individual executive summary (15% of unit mark) linked to the poster (contribution to the overall unit mark of 25%). An unseen examination is 50% of the unit. The group poster is done in the form of a powerpoint poster and printed out by the University Print Services in the same style as research conference posters. This teaches the students about succinct and visual presentation of the most important information and about collaborative team work. This is an invaluable transferable skill and forces the student’s understanding of a particular topic to be distilled to the most important components. Also, this will be the first time students have the opportunity to produce research posters in the same way that is done by researchers for conferences. The individual essay will be tightly linked to the poster and is needed in order to distinguish individual performance and not produce a mark that is solely dependent on group work. There is a small cost associated with printing the posters (this year there were 9 posters coming to a total of £90). However, we would like to request that these costs are covered by the School because this is proving to be a challenging and interesting activity for the students.
Element 2: (DM)
1 x 2 hour computer practical using Matlab software. The students will receive an introductory class about a remote sensing-based methodology to estimate global hydrological variables. They will be able to run a simplified version of the methodology and familiarize with the use of Matlab. A 2 pages summary report (including the interpretation of the results and the answer to a set of questions) will count for 25% of the final grade.
Reading is mainly based on journal articles and specific reading lists will be given with each lecture.
