Courses of Study 2017-2018 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
Courses of Study 2017-2018 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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EAS 1230 - [Complexity in the Environment]

(crosslisted) ENGRI 1230  
(MQR-AS)      
Spring. Next offered 2018-2019 (offered alternate years). 3 credits. Letter grades only.

D. Hysell.

This course deals with phenomena in the Earth, oceans, and atmosphere which are at once obviously organized and still unpredictable. Examples include earthquakes and landslides, volcanism, river networks, forest fires, animal migration, and atmospheric turbulence. The processes at work are complex (dynamic, nonlinear, and unstable) and can defy analysis by the methods studied by undergraduate engineers (and even seasoned professionals). However, some simple physical and computational models can be applied to these problems which give deep insights into their organization and variability. Complexity in the environment will be explored through a series of illustrative lessons, examples, and computational demonstrations (in Python). The course will culminate in a project in which each student will design a solution method for a problem of personal interest.



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