USC Schedule of Classes

Survey of the universe: planets, satellites, comets, stars, nebulae, galaxies. Practical component includes planetary observations and dark-sky field trip. Not available for major credit.

Survey of the prospects for life in our solar system and beyond, based on the evolution of life on Earth.

Chemistry for environmental studies, neuroscience and other life sciences: organic and inorganic structures, nomenclature, stoichiometry, solutions, gases, non-covalent interactions, equilibria, acid-base and redox reactions. Not for major credit in chemistry.

Fundamental principles and laws of chemistry; laboratory work emphasizes quantitative procedures. Prerequisite to all more advanced courses in chemistry. Lecture, 3 hours; laboratory and discussion, 4 hours. Quiz, 1 hour.

Fundamental principles and laws of chemistry emphasizing contemporary chemistry; laboratory work focuses on quantitative procedures. Open only to Chemistry majors. (Duplicates credit in CHEM 105a and CHEM 115a)

Equivalent to 105agL-bL, but taught at a higher level forexceptionally well-prepared students. Admission to course bydepartmental approval only. Lecture, 3 hours; lab and discussion,4 hours; quiz, 1 hour. Prereq: 1 year high school chemistry andmathematics through pre-calculus.

Geologic structure and evolution of planet earth. Principles ofplate tectonics, rocks and minerals, processes of mountainbuilding, continent and ocean formation, earthquakes, volcanism,development of landforms by running water and glaciers. Lecture, 3hours; laboratory, 2 hours. One all-day or two-day field triprequired.

Physical, chemical, and geological character of the oceans andocean basins. Origin of the oceans. Ocean processes and agents.Economic value of the oceans. Lecture, 3 hours; laboratory, 2 hours. One all-day field trip required.

Impact of civilization on planet earth, and impact of earth's natural evolution on society: earthquakes, volcanism, landslides, floods, global warming, acid rain, groundwater depletion and pollution; mineral and fossil fuel depletion, formation of the ozone hole. Lecture, 3 hours; laboratory, 2 hours. One all-day or overnight field trip.

Climate systems from the beginning of earth history to the present; tools and techniques used to reconstruct prehistoric climate records; effects of climate variations on development of life forms on earth.

Survey of natural geological/ environmental processes (systems) and variability active near the earth's surface in the region that houses most life (the biosphere).

Causes of earthquakes and nature of large faults; earthquake hazard and risk; world's great earthquakes; understanding the Richter scale. Lecture, 3 hours; laboratory, 2 hours; one fieldtrip required.

Study of human linguistic competence and technologies that simulate it. Grammar, parsing, text generation; semantics, pragmatics, sense disambiguation; phonetics, speech synthesis, speech recognition.

The fundamentals of physics presented with emphasis on the structure and beauty of physical laws. Practical component will relate these laws to commonly encountered events. Not available for major credit.

Fundamental laws and principles of physics emphasizing areasrelated to life sciences. Prerequisite for Biological Sciences,Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy. Lecture, 4 hrs.; Lab, 3 hrs.

Gateway to the majors and minors in Physics and Astronomy. Statics and dynamics of particles and rigid bodies, conservation principles, gravitation, simple harmonic oscillators, thermodynamics, heat engines, entropy.

Investigation of energy technologies, including development and implementation issues. Topics include the Industrial Revolution, electromagnetic induction, power transmission, combustion engines, fission and fusion. Not available for major credit.

An exploration of earth's water, ranging from water properties, chemistry, and pollution, to groundwater dynamics, watershed processes, and oceanic-atmospheric circulation. Implications for past and future societies. Lecture and laboratory.