Geology 311 - Mineralogy and Optics
Welcome
to
Geology
311
-
Mineralogy
and
Optics!
We hope that you will enjoy the
course.
We have created this web page to help
you to get the most out of the course. We will
keep it updated so you should visit this page
on a regular basis!
Let's work together for
a fun and informative semester!
Topics:
General:
The syllabus is very detailed.
We have divided the information in different pages for a better organization.
Please, use the available links
to explore all the information. You can contact us if you need a
clarification
or any additional information:
Inci Evren Ertan: e-mail office phone
address web page
Andreas Luttge: e-mail office phone
address web page
We are
usually available during the semester, but always on Tuesdays between 9
- 10 a.m.
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Brief
Description and Main Goals:
In the first part of this course you
will learn about minerals and their identification. Minerals
are the
basic building blocks of geological
materials. Classification, occurrence, crystal structure, physical
proper-
ties, chemistry, economical importance
and use of the common minerals will be discussed. Weekly labo-
ratories will teach students how
to identify and describe a wide range of minerals.
The course is
divided into two parts. The first part of the course is taught
by Andreas Luttge and will
examine the different types of
minerals with a strong focus on the most important rockforming minerals.
Unlike many other courses we will
start with silicates.
The second part
of the course taught by Inci Ertan will. Understanding mineralogy,
identification of
minerals, their associations, stability
means understanding geological processes. Optical mineralogy
teaches the elementary concepts
of light, refraction of light, polarizing microscope as a tool to identify
the minerals. Although rock-forming
minerals (silicates) will be emphasized students will be able to identify
any unknown mineral at the end
of this section.
Among the requirements
of the course are (1) attendance of both lecture and lab, (2) keeping up
with
the reading, (3) participation
in class, and (4) class projects outside the lab. XX% of your final
grade in
this class will be based on the
above requirements.
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Textbooks
and References:
Textbooks:
Manual of Mineralogy, by
Cornelis Klein and Cornelius S. Hurlbut, Jr. (John Wiley & Sons, New
York,
revised 21st edition), and
Lab Manual, Minerals and Rocks,
by Cornelis Klein (John Wiley & Sons, New York).
Introduction to Optical Mineralogy,
by W.D. Nesse
Recommended Reference Books:
Introduction to the Rock Forming
Minerals, by Deer, Howie, and Zussman ( )
Atlas of Rock Forming Minerals
in Thin Sections, by MacKenzie and Guilford ( )
Optical Determination of Rock-forming
Minerals (Part I - Determinative Tables), by W.E. Troeger
Other Reference Books:
Mineralogy Concepts and Principles,
by Zoltai and Stout ( )
Crystallography and Crystal
Chemistry, by Bloss
Many other books can be helpful,
see collection kept in Geol 307 lab, but, please, do not remove these!
Additional readings and handouts
will be periodically assigned during the course.
The use of the text and any supplemental
reading is critical. We suggest doing the reading as follows:
before the first lecture of the
week, skim the reading, noting the main subjects of the chapter. Periodically,
read a section in more detail.
Later in the week, say Thursday or Friday, go back and reread the assign-
ment again in detail. Hopefully,
by then the reading will be easy and sound familiar, because we will have
discussed during the week.
Each week there
will be a short quiz during the mineralogy part of the class. The
quiz will cover the
reading for the week. They will
be short and not require extensive calculations. I will talk more
about the
format and timing of the quizzes
during the first week of class.
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Personal
Equipment Needed:
Students are required to bring a hand
lens (10x), pocket knife or steel nail, and a small pocket type magnet
(optional), and 4 x 6" index cards
to all labs.
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Expectations:
You can expect us to:
-
be interested, excited, and enthusiastic
about the course and the material
-
take a new and innovative approach
to teaching this course
-
try to convince you that the material
in this course is worth knowing
-
assume you are familiar with the chapter
before we discuss it in class
-
include material that is not in the
text and for which you will be responsible
-
challenge you to think about the material
and to evaluate situations
-
involve you in the material through
in-class and out-of-class exercises
-
provide you with usefull information
on-line
-
start and end class on time
We expect you to:
-
come to class regularly
-
be willing to become involved in the
course
-
be an active and receptive learner
-
read the chapter before class and consider
specific concepts and questions
-
complete on-line exercises and quizzes
-
collaborate with your neighbors to
exchange ideas and learn new concepts
-
hand in your own work on the in-class
exercises
-
be courteous to me and to your classmates
What you get out of the course, including
the grade you earn, will depend on what you put into the course.
Let's work together for a fun and
informative semester!
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A
breakdown of the grading of the course is:
Quizzes.............................................................5%
Lab and problem
sets..........................................%
Debate................................................................%
Participation,
etc. ................................................%
Labs:
Mineralogy (Andreas Luttge /
Mikala Beig):
Lab is scheduled for three hours
on XXXX afternoon. We will use some of these sessions for traditional
lab-type demonstrations and experiments.
Other lab sessions will be spent learning and using computer
based lessons. We will have
to split the class into smaller groups for some projects. I'll announce
this well
in advance.
Exercises assigned
in class and lab will have specific dates when they are due. Advance
permission from
me is required if you want to turn
an exercise in after the due date. I will try to turn exercises back
to you
the following week.
Optics (Inci Evren
Ertan / Saijin Huang):
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Homework:
Occasional problems will be assigned
to provide practice and insight into the types of questions you will
find on exams. These must
be turned in and will be graded on a +/- basis. Any questions you
have con-
cerning the homework problems should
be addressed during the first 5-10 minutes of class. The "+" grades
will be counted for extra credit.
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Student
Project:
A review of a selected (or assigned)
mineral, mineral group, or other suitable topic will be prepared in
professional written format (see
schedule).
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Teaching
Assistants:
We are fortunate to have Mikala Beig
and Saijin Huang as our T.A.'s for the course.
Mikala [mbeig@ruf.rice.edu] and
Saijin [
@ruf.rice.edu] will be available both during and outside
the lab for questions about any
of the lecture or laboratory material. They will also help students
on their
projects.
There are other
interesting projects that I have planned for the semester that I will spring
on you at the
appropriate times.
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Disability
Accommodations:
Any student with a disability needing
academic adjustments or accommodations is encouraged to speak
with us during the first two weeks
of class (after class or during office hours). All discussions will
remain
confidential. Students with
disabilities should also contact with the Disabled Student Services in
the Ley
Student Center [Jean Ashmore,
Director of Services for Disabled Students PHONE (713) 737-5841;
FAX (713) 285-5199; e-mail: adarice@rice.edu;
www.rice.edu/dss].
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Exams
There are three exams in this course
(Mineralogy and Optics); two during the semester and one during
finals week. Collectively
they make up XX% of your final grade in the course [breakdown of the grading].
The exams are scheduled for the
XXXXth and XXXXth week of the semester, and we will announce the
place, time, and format closer
to the date of the exams. The final exam may be cumulative - this
will be
announced well in advance.
All exams must be taken at the time and place that we have planned unless
you
make arrangements with us/me at
least two weeks in advance.
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Schedule:
Mineralogy
(Andreas Luttge)
Week
1
Introduction; Nucleation, Growth,
and Dissolution of Minerals
Week 2
Crystallography: External Form,
Internal Order and Symmetry
Week 3
Crystal Chemistry
Week 4
Minerals and Their Physical Properties
Week 5
Systematic Mineralogy: Silicates
Week 6
Systematic Mineralogy: Silicates,
Carbonates
Week 7
Systematic Mineralogy: Native Elements,
Sulfides, Oxides and Hydroxides,
Halides, Sulfates,
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Optics (Inci
Evren Ertan)
MINERAL OPTICS
Lecture Schedule
GEOLOGY 311 PART II Dr. Inci Evren Ertan
Fall 1999 (Geol 303J; evren@rice.edu)
Oct. 21 PART II: Introduction to Optical Mineralogy: Elementary concepts of light, nature of light, polarized light, wave motions
Oct. 26 Refraction of light, index of refraction, Snells Law, refractometry of isotropic materials
Oct. 28 Optical Indicatrix: Isotropic and Anisotropic media
Nov. 2 Birefringence, anisotropism and uniaxial indicatrix
Nov. 4 Interference of light: Optical examination of uniaxial crystals and interference figures
Nov.9 Biaxial crystals, biaxial indicatrix theory
Nov. 11 Optical examination of biaxial crystals : Biaxial interference figures, 2V and dispersion
Nov. 16 Optics Exam I (isotropic and anisotropic media, uniaxial theory)
Nov. 19 Other optical properties of crystals: color, pleochroism, extinction angles, elongation sign
Nov. 23 Thin section determinations of Rock-Forming Minerals: Quartz, Feldspars and Feldspatoids
Nov. 26 THANKSGIVING holidays :-)
Nov. 30 Olivine-, Pyroxene- and Amphibole-groups
Dec.2 Micas and accessory minerals, review and finish-up
Dec. 7 Optics Exam II (biaxial theory and rock-forming minerals)
MINERAL OPTICS
Laboratory Schedule
GEOLOGY 311 PART II Dr. Inci Evren Ertan
Fall 1999 (Geol 303J; evren@rice.edu)
Saijin Huang
(Geol 306E; shuang@rice.edu)
Oct. 21 Polarizing microscope, refractive indices measurement of isotropic knowns, Becke lines, dispersion
Oct. 28 Identification of isotropic unknowns; birefringence and priviledged directions, interference colors, fast and slow directions (quiz on microscope parts)
Nov. 4 Uniaxial interference figures, optic sign determination, identification of uniaxial unknowns
Nov. 11 Biaxial interference figures, optical sign, 2V measurements, absorption and pleochroism, extiction angle measurements
Nov.19 Thin section determination of unknowns; optical properties, orientation of minerals, textures of rock-forming minerals (quiz on optical orientation of crystals)
Nov. 26 THANKSGIVING holidays :-)
Dec.2 Determination of unknowns in thin section
Final Optical Mineral ID Exam (take home due on Dec.14)
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Textbooks and References:
C. Klein and C.S. Hurlbut: Manual of Mineralogy
C. Klein: Lab Manual, Minerals and Rocks
W.D. Nesse: Introduction to Optical Mineralogy
Deer, Howie, and Zussman: Introduction to the Rock Forming Minerals
MacKenzie and Guilford: Atlas of Rock Forming Minerals in Thin Section
W.E. Troeger: Optical Determination of Rock-forming Minerals (Part I - Determinative Tables)
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