Sedimentary Geology

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Sedimentary Geology

• An Introduction To
• Sedimentology And Stratigraphy

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Sedimentary Geology

• Sedimentology
• Processes that erode, transport, and deposit
  sediments
• Surface environments of sediment accumulation
• Genesis of sedimentary strata
• Sedimentary Petrology
• Physical and mineralogical properties and origin
  of sediments and sedimentary rocks (SEDS)
• Stratigraphy
• Distribution, origin, and description of
  sedimentary strata in space and time

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Relevance of Sedimentary Geology

• 75 of the Earth's Surface materials consists
  of SEDS (sedimentary earth materials)
• SEDS contain the majority of Earth Resources
• Oil, Natural gas, fossils fuels
• minerals
• water
• building materials
• Subsurface fluid storage

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Earth History

• Largely based on the SED Record
• Climate/atmospheric dynamics through time
• Paleoceanography
• Plate tectonics and crustal dynamics
• History of Life

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Environmental/Natural Hazards

• An understanding of Earth Surface Processes and
  Materials is fundamental to
• Slope Stability Landslide and catastrophic slope
  failure
• Fluvial processes river basin flood hazards
• Coastal Change erosion/flooding hazards coastal
  land loss
• Ground water resources contamination/remediation

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Sedimentary Geology is Fun!

• We see SEDS and sedimentary environments all
  around us
• We observe and hear about exciting surface
  processes almost every day,
• We are all interested in the past and future
  evolution of the Earth, especially the Earths
  Surface Environments (cuz we are Geoscientists!)

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Social Relevance of Sedimentary Geology

• Chat with one or 2 other students and list five
  important issues of our time
• Lets see how sedimentary geology might address
  these issues

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History of Sedimentary Geology
Nick Steno 17th century Original horizontality/Superposition
Jimmy Hutton 18th century The geological cycle including surface erosion and deposition/Uniformitarianism
Billy Smith 17th/18th century Faunal Succession
d'Orbigney/Oppel 18th/19th century Stages, Zones, Biozones
Hank Sorby 19th century Sedimentary Petrology/Petrography
Lots o Folks 1960's - 70's Plate Tectonics
Al Scott, Bill Galloway (UT Austin) Harold Reading (Oxford Un) and many others 1970's - 80's Depositional Systems Analysis/ Facies Oriented Sedimentology
Exxon Research, Peter Vail 1970's - 80's Seismic/Sequence Stratigraphy
Jan VanHinte, and many others 1970s-80s Quantitative Basin Modeling 1980's - 90's
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Sedimentary Geology is a "synthesis course"

• It depends on other geology courses and other
  science disciplines
• Physics fluid dynamics, petrophysics, plate
  tectonics
• Chemistry weathering, chemical sediments,
  diagenesis, sedimentary petrology
• Biology paleoecology, sedimentary environments,
  the fossil record

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Sedimentary Geology provides the framework for
most other Geosciences disciplines

• Structural Analysis Studies requires an
  understanding of initial sedimentary and
  stratigraphic context prior to deformation, etc.
• Geochemical Studies require a stratigraphic and
  petrological context
• Hydrogeological Studies depend on an
  understanding of the hydrogeological matrix"
  both macro- and micro-scale
• Geophysical Studies built on a stratigraphic
  context and requires "ground truth" based on a
  reasonable sedimentologic and stratigraphic
  framework.

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Sedimentary Geology

• Provides methodology and a theoretical basis to
  understand
• Stratigraphic relationships
• relative age, geometry, physical/spatial
  relationship of strata
• Provenance
• sediment source, location, type, etc
• Depositional setting, sediment dispersal
  patterns, and transport mechanisms
• sedimentary processes
• Paleogeography
• physical geography during deposition
• Tectonic setting
• Plate tectonic setting during deposition
• Diagenesis
• modifications to sediment during burial and the
  conditions (temperature, timing, fluid flow
  regime) responsible for those changes

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Sedimentary Geology is the Study of

• Sedimentary Processes and Stratigraphic Products
• (Process - Response Models)
• Sedimentary Facies
• A sedimentary facies--gt descriptive aspect of a
  rock stratigraphic unit including
• lithology, sedimentary structures, geometry,
  fossils, etc
• Sedimentary-Depositional Environments
• Limited areas of the Earths surface where
  sediment accumulates, from mountain top to deep
  sea, with distinctive physical, chemical, and
  biological processes.
• Paleogeography
• Determined from the stratigraphic record of
  sedimentary facies and the time/space
  distribution of sedimentary-depositional
  environments

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Paleogeography and Earth History

• The time and space mosaic of sedimentary-depositio
  nal environments reflects the evolution of
• Tectonic,
• Climatic,
• Biologic, and
• Eustatic (sea level)
• Dynamics through time
• either on a relative (geological) or
• absolute (radiometric) time frame

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Learning Outcomes for GEOS 4350

1. Global Tectonics Students will recognize how
   Global Tectonics impacts the stratigraphic record
   and be able to draw conclusions about Global
   Tectonics from the detailed study of sedimentary
   strata.
2. Sedimentary Petrology and the Origin of
   SedimentsStudents will be able to describe
   (using conventional disciplinary terminology)
   sediments and sedimentary rocks in accordance
   with the principles of Sedimentary Petrology and
   will be able to make inferences regarding origin
   and geological history from the study of
   sediments and sedimentary rocks.
3. Sedimentary Facies Analysis Physical, Chemical,
   and Biological Processes of Sedimentation
   Students will be introduced to the physical,
   chemical, and biological processes typical of
   modern sedimentary depositional environments  and
   be able to identify the geological products of
   these processes in terms of the textures,
   structures, and mineral composition in
   sedimentary strata

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Learning Outcomes for GEOS 4350

• Sedimentary Depositional Environments Students
  will be able to interpret sedimentary textures,
  structures, mineralogy, and the geometric
  organization of stratigraphic successions in
  order to interpret ancient environments of
  sediment deposition
• Tectonics and Sedimentation, Sedimentary Basins,
  the Earth through Geological Time Students will
  be able to make inferences regarding the tectonic
  processes responsible for the formation and types
  of sedimentary basin fill and be able to
  interpret tectonic history from the sedimentary
  record. Students will understand that both cyclic
  and unidirectional global changes in the Earth's
  surface environment (e.g. biological and chemical
  evolution) are responsible for distinct
  variations in the stratigraphic record.
• The Stratigraphic Record Litho-, Bio-, Chrono-,
  Geochrono-, and Allo-StratigraphyStudents will
  be able to interpret and predict the complex
  material, time, and space relationships of
  sedimentary strata as reveled by lithologic,
  fossil, relative time, radiometric, and geometric
  features preserved in the sedimentary record.

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Using the Principles of Sedimentary Geology

• We can make useful interpretations and
  predictions about
• Relationships that are not available for
  observation (hidden from view)
• Spatial distribution, properties, and geometry of
  stratigraphic units and resources that are not
  exposed/have not been sampled
• Relationships that are not preserved in the
  geological record
• Geological terranes eroded or tectonically
  removed
• Earth processes that have not yet occurred
• Environmental hazards such as coastal change,
  flood hazards, landslides, etc

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Class Attendance and Engagement

• The emphasis in this class is on application,
  analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of our topic
  material (higher order thinking skills)
• active learning strategies (in the class room)
• move beyond passive participation in the learning
  experience (sitting and listening to me)
• aggressively think about what you are learning
• hard, time consuming work

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Class Attendance and Engagement

• Active learning strategy in the class room
  requires some prior knowledge and comprehension
  of topic material in preparation for class
  discussions
• Mastery of basic facts and vocabulary
• Book, Chapter questions, and Power Point
  Presentations
• Use class time efficiently and effectively for
  the development of higher level intellectual
  skills

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Class Attendance and Engagement

• Inquiry-based portion of class meetings
• a collaborative learning format
• Small groups (3-4) of students working together
  to process knowledge and reach conclusions to
  questions through thinking and discussion amongst
  the collaborative group
• In class group accountability

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Class Attendance and Engagement

• In-class group accountability.
• Each group member is accountable for the
  information/conclusions reached by the group in
  class.
• A group member will be selected by me to present
  group consensus conclusions in class.
• The evaluation of the group is dependant on the
  individuals presentation which will assess the
  effectiveness of group comprehension

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