Physical Geography
GEO 2200 Section 0087
Summer B 2011
INSTRUCTOR: Sanchayeeta Adhikari
LECUTRES:
Room: CLB C130
MTWRF, 3rd period (11.00 am – 12.15 pm)
OFFICE LOCATION:
Department of Geography
Turlington Hall 3126/3126B (3rd fl.)
Phone: (352) 392-3198 ext. 229
Email: sanchi15@ufl.edu
++ E-mail is the best way to contact me. Please allow me 24-48 hours to respond back
to you. Just remember, I won’t response to annoying questions such as “When is the
exam?”, “What will be covered for the next exam?”, and “Can you please e-mail the
power point notes?”
OFFICE HOURS:
MTWRF After class (12:15 pm – 1 pm), or by appointment.
++ If I’m not in my office, please look for me in TUR 3304.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is a study of some of the basic elements of the physical world in which climate,
meteorology, and landforms are examined in terms of their natural occurrences,
distribution and interrelationships. This class meets the General Education
requirements of a Physical Science.
TEXTBOOKS:
Textbook: not required. There are several interesting textbooks with lots of
information about Physical Geography. Particularly, Strahler and Strahler, Wiley
(Introducing Physical Geography) have agreed to publish an “abridged” version for
this particular course, which contains some of the illustrative material that we will
cover. However I have collected materials from other sources and incorporated them
into the lectures, and therefore the combined use of lecture notes and text book will
provide the greatest benefit in the course.
Coursepack: recommended. I have put together a course pack of relevant materials we
will review in during lectures (tables, diagrams, maps) which is available at
University Copy (buy the coursepack that has my last name, ADHIKARI). I strongly
recommend that you purchase this. You can survive without it, but you will have to
copy down all the materials during the lecture periods (diagrams, charts, maps), I
will be progressing at a speed which assumes that you have the course pack. This
package will also serve as your STUDY GUIDE. If I have taken the time to complete the
figures, diagrams, tables in this text then it is an indication that I want you to
understand it.
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EXAMINATIONS AND GRADES
All examinations will be held in the lecture room. All examinations are multiple
choice questions.
a) Two (2) tests each worth 15% of final grade.
TEST #1: Thursday May 19th (Material covered: May 10th – May 18th) ... closed book
TEST #2: Thursday June 9th (Material covered: June 1st – June 8th) ... closed book
b) Two (2) examinations each worth 35% of final grade:
MIDTERM EXAM: Friday May 27th (Material covered: May 10th – May 26th) ... open book
FINAL EXAM: Thursday June 16th (Material covered: June 1st – June 16th) ... open book.
GRADING SCHEME:
[A= 90 and above]
[A-=85-89.9]
[B+=80-84.9] [B=75-79.9] [B-=70-74.9]
[C+=65-69.9] [C=60-64.9] [C-=55-59.9]
[D+=50-54.9] [D=45-49.9] [D-=40-44.9]
[E<40]
All grades will be posted on the web site (www.clas.ufl.edu/users/sanchi15). It is
your responsibility to know how well you are doing in the class.
RULES:
 You are responsible to come to class. If you miss class without a proper excuse,
do not ask me for missed materials. If a known conflict preventing you from
coming to class, make arrangements with me ahead of time.
 No extra credit will be given. Therefore, it is important to begin the semester
with the knowledge that exams will constitute your entire grade.
 There will be NO makeup exams given. However, if an unavoidable event arises and
causes you to miss, or anticipate missing an exam please come and see me. Bring
any formal documentation that supports the absence. You must have some written
form validating your absence, for example a doctor’s receipt. At that time it
will be totally up to my discretion to decide if any credit can be gained for the
missed exam.
 Don’t be late for exams!! You will have only the normal class time for your
exams. Being late refers to when the first person walks out of the door during
the exam time.
 Cheating will not be tolerated according to the University rules.
 I have lots of e-mails to read per day so please e-mail me when necessary. I
won’t reply your e-mail if you asked annoying questions such as ‘What will be
included in the exam?’, ‘When is the exam?’
THE COMMERCIAL NOTES WARNING:
In the eventuality of a discussion over grading I will recognize my notes and any
text book as being an authoritative source. However, I will not recognize any
commercially reproduced course notes, as these have been drafted by undergraduate
students, and have in the past proved to be erroneous. This course will undoubtedly
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be targeted by a commercial note company because of the number of students enrolled.
It is your choice which, if any, notes you buy.
ACADEMIC HONESTY:
You are all bound by the student academic honor code.
“We, the members of the University of Florida community, pledge to hold ourselves and
our peers to the highest standards of honesty and integrity”.
"On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid in doing this
assignment".
Each student answers the same examination; however, the computer shuffles the order
of the questions and the order of the possible answers. In this way, each
examination is unique, at least in its order, but not its content. When grading the
answers, the computer scans for similarities in answers and notifies me of any
remarkable coincidences! The first time a student is caught cheating they will get
zero on the test. (In a multiple choice test you would probably score 20% simply by
guessing!). On the second offense the student will be reported to the appropriate
student body.
THREE THINGS THAT REALLY ANNOY ME:
1. Cell phones - turn them off! I will embarrass you if your cell phone rings.
2. Talking in class - if you don’t want to hear what I have to say, don’t show up,
and let those who do want to hear, hear more clearly.
3. Reading the newspaper in class - go and have a coffee, sit in a comfy chair and/or
enjoy the sunshine while you read.
I have no policy of mandatory attendance. When you enter the lecture room you are
doing so of your own volition, not because you are being forced to. When you make
that choice you are also agreeing to show respect to your fellow students by allowing
them to hear the lecture material without having to compete with cell phones and
background chit-chat.
WEB PAGE:
1) For class materials and grades, please visit www.clas.ufl.edu/users/sanchi15.
TENTATIVE COURSE OUTLINE:
PART I: GLOBAL CLIMATOLOGY
1. EARTH AND ENERGY
Physical Geography and Earth Systems
Flow of Energy and Global Climate
Transfer of Energy
Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR)
Radiation Laws
EMR Spectrum
2. INCOMING SOLAR RADIATION
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Insolation
Variations in Insolation
Revolution and Seasons
Rotation and Length of Days
Global Radiation Regimes
Daily Insolation at Top of Atmosphere
3. EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE
Composition
Atmospheric Pressure
Gas Laws
Thermal Structure
4. RADIATION BALANCE
Shortwave Radiation Balance
Energy Sinks
Latent Heat Flux
The Green House Effect
Longwave Radiation Balance
Global Radiation Balance
5. GLOBAL CIRCULATION AND PRESSURE
The Hadley Cells
Pressure Belts
The Coriolis Effect
Surface Global Winds
Cyclonic and Anticyclonic Cells
6. WIND AND OCEAN CIRCULATION
Continent and Ocean Contrasts
Local Winds (Land/Sea Breeze)
Wind Circulation
Ocean Current Circulation
Seasonal Shifts
PART II: GLOBAL LANDFORMS
7. INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH
Internal Forces
Origin of the World and Solar System
Internal Structure
The Asthenosphere
The Lithosphere
8. EARTH’S MATERIALS
Weathering and Erosion
The Rock Cycle
9.
PLATE TECTONICS
Plate Arrangement
Tectonic Processes
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Divergent Boundaries
Convergent Boundaries
Conservative Boundaries
Hot Spots
Active Tectonic Region in Western U.S.
Earthquakes
Plate Tectonic and Continental Drift
10.
HYDROLOGIC CYCLE
Global Stores
Global Fluxes
Residence Time
The Water Budget in Florida
Hillslope Hydrology
Urbanization and Hydrologic Cycle
11.
EROSION BY RUNNING WATERS
Running Waters and Landforms
Splash Erosion
Chemical Erosion
Clastic Erosion
12.
KARST LANDFORMS
Limestone Solution
Conditions for Karst Formation
Types of Karst Landforms
Autogenic and Allogenic Karst
The Floridian Aquifer
**I reserve the rights to make changes to the syllabus during the course of the
semester**
***DATES TO REMEMBER***
TEST #1: Thursday May 19th
MIDTERM: Friday May 27th
TEST #2: Thursday June 9th
FINAL: Thursday June 16th
NO CLASSES
 Memorial Day, Monday, May 30th
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