Concordia University
Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering
CIVI-231 Geology for Civil Engineers
Fall 2019
Instructor: Dr. Biao Li (EV06-166)
Email: bili@encs.concordia.ca TEL: 5148482424 X3956
Office Hours: Friday 10:00 am – 12:00 pm or by appointment
Lectures:
Monday 17:45-20:15 in H-937
Labs: LA, Monday,
20:30~21:30 in H 401
LB, Tuesday,
18:30~19:30 in H 609
LC, Wednesday, 19:30~20:30 in FG B055
LD, Wednesday, 17:45~18:45 in H 423
TAs:
LA, Sina Heidari, Sina.Heidari22@gmail.com
LB, Mohammadhossein Sojoudi, m.h.sojoodi@gmail.com
LC and LD, Sohail Akhtar, sohail.ghilzai@gmail.com
Required book: Tarbuck, Lutgens, Tsujita and Hicock, Earth: An Introduction to Physical
Geology, 4th Canadian Ed., 2015 (Available in the bookstore).
Course description:
Basic principles of physical and structural geology with emphasis on topics related to civil
engineering, study of minerals, rocks and soil types, load formation, and geological maps.
CEAB Graduate Attributes:
The attributes associated with this course are knowledge base for engineering, investigation,
individual and team works, and communication skills. These skills will be taught, practiced as
follows:
Knowledge-base for engineering: demonstrated competence in university level mathematics,
natural sciences, engineering fundamentals, and specialized engineering knowledge
appropriate to the program.

The material covered in this course will be useful in many subsequent civil engineering
courses.
Investigation: an ability to conduct investigations of complex problems by methods that include
appropriate experiments, analysis and interpretation of data, and synthesis of information in
order to reach valid conclusions.

The knowledge of physical geology will be used to investigate potential engineering
problems addressing different geological settings and geological formations.
Individual and team works: An ability to work effectively as a member and leader in teams,
preferably in a multi-disciplinary setting.

In the course project, students in their groups will collaborate to come up with a project
report and present their work to the audience.
Communication skills: An ability to communicate complex engineering concepts within the
profession and with society at large. Such ability includes reading, writing, speaking and
listening, and the ability to comprehend and write effective reports and design documentation,
and to give and effectively respond to clear instructions.

In the course project, your skills of gathering, analysing and communicating technical
information will be developed along with teamwork skills. The communication skills
attribute will be measured in the course project comprising 20% of the project’s grade.
Course Learning Outcomes (CLO):
Upon successful completion of CIVI-231, the students will be able to:
1
Demonstrate the understanding of the basic principles of physical and structural
geology.
2
Gather skills of using basic knowledge of rocks, soils and relevant geological
processes as civil engineers.
3
Demonstrate the ability of investigating potential engineering problems in different
geological settings.
4
Learn to communicate complex engineering concepts within the
profession and with society at large.
Course Outline:
Chapter Description
#weeks Attribute(s)
Indicator(s)
Level of
Knowledge
CLO
1
An introduction to
geology and plate
tectonics
1
•Knowledgebase for
engineering
•Knowledge
base of natural
science
Intermediate 1
2
Minerals
1
•Investigation
Intermediate 1
3
Igneous rocks
0.5
4
Volcanoes and
volcanic processes
0.5
•Background
and hypothesis
formulation
5
Weathering and
soil
0.5
Intermediate 1,2
6
Sedimentary rocks
1
Intermediate 1,2
7
Metamorphism
and metamorphic
rocks
0.5
Intermediate 1
8
Geologic time
0.5
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 1
9
Crustal
deformation
1
Intermediate 1,2,4
10
Earthquakes and
Earth’s interior
1
Intermediate 1,2,3,4
11
The ocean floor
0.5
13
Mountain building
and continental
frameworks
0.5
14
Mass wasting
0.5
15
Running water
0.5
16
Groundwater
1
20
Mineral and
energy resources
0.5
•Knowledgebase for
engineering
•Knowledge
base of natural
science
Intermediate 1
•Knowledgebase for
engineering
•Knowledge
base of natural
science
Intermediate 1
•Investigation
•Background
and hypothesis
formulation
•Knowledgebase for
engineering
•Knowledge
base of natural
science
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 1,2,3
Intermediate 1
Grading:
Lab quizzes
Weight
Related Attribute
15%
Knowledge-base for engineering
Remarks
Investigation
Course project
15%
Investigation
Individual and team works
Communication skills
Midterm Exam
30%
Knowledge-base for engineering
Investigation
Final Exam
40%
Knowledge-base for engineering
Deadline for report (10
pages) and Power Point
Presentation submission
is on Nov. 4, 2019
Oct. 7, 2019; Closedbook exam
Closed-book exam
Investigation
Notes:

There will be no supplemental midterm.
Lab related rules:


It is expected that you use the lab time to work on your course project; thus most of the labs
are set aside so that groups can work on their course project. Some of the lab time will be
taken for the lab quizzes to be held in. You must attend all your labs.
You have to attend the lab section that you are assigned to, no switching, no exceptions
unless with my permission.

If you miss a lab, you have to contact me as soon as possible and provide a credible reason.
Course project:
Power point presentation of the project report:
It is required that the groups present a power point presentation of their report respecting
the criteria of a technical presentation. (Presentation takes up half of the mark of course
project).
Criteria:









Respect a maximum time frame of 15-20 minutes per group (3 min per member in a group)
Demonstrate understanding of cognitive and conceptual differences between oral and
written presentation
Create appropriate scope for treatment of topic in oral presentation
Adapt written text to oral presentation
Identify audience needs, interests and level of knowledge
Plan, design and effectively utilize visual materials
Utilize effective presentation techniques
Identify strategies to overcome linguistic difference
Adapt presentation to heterogeneous audience
Date of presentation:
All groups must be completely prepared to submit their final report and present their final
presentation. The presentations will tentatively start as of November 6th and the groups will be
called randomly.
Late submission:
Any late submission is penalized at a rate of 10%/day up to 100%.
Lab Quizzes
Criteria:





There will be three (3) lab quizzes throughout the term.
Each lab quiz will contain 25 multiple choices, pictures, fill out and writing questions
Each quiz weights 1/3.
All three lab quizzes will make 15% of the final mark.
Lab quizzes will be held in the tutorial classes, and questions are different for students
attending different labs.
Schedule of lab quizzes:
LA
LB
LC
LD
Quiz 1
Sept. 23
Sept. 24
Sept. 25
Sept. 25
Quiz 2
Oct.28
Oct.29
Oct.30
Oct.30
Quiz 3
Nov.18
Nov.19
Nov.20
Nov.20