ENV 485 - Winter 2005 Ned J Knight
Environmental Problem Solving Seminar Phone (leave message) - 503-883-2567
Taylor Hall, Room 101 e-mail: nknight@linfield.edu
Sat. Jan 8 and Sat. Feb 5 - 9am – 1 pm Note: Early Assignment!
ŌIt is not until the well runs dry that we know the worth of water.Ķ - Benjamin Franklin
Welcome! In this course we will focus on a variety of aspects of one large topic - Local Impacts of Population Growth. For example, in the 12 years IÕve been teaching here in McMinnville, its population has grown from 18,000 to over 28,000 - thatÕs 55%! And the Portland metropolitan area growth has been even more notorious, just based on sheer size. Plus an Oregonian article two years ago discussed 40% growth there expected in the next generation or so. What sort of environmental impacts will all this current and future growth have? And what would be some suggestions for dealing or coping with these impacts? Yes, thatÕs a HUGE scope, and many people are spending their entire careers addressing these issues! So, IÕd like you to narrow it down and focus on one specific impact. Some possibilities are:
1. Controlled growth (i.e. sprawl)
2. Maintaining an adequate water supply
3. Maintaining clean water quality
4. Realistic transportation options (to reduce environmental impacts)
5. Solid waste disposal methods and locations
6. Wastewater treatment
7. Energy (i.e. electricity) requirements
8. Maintaining open areas (i.e. greenspaces)
9. Mitigation issues (i.e. wetlands)
EARLY ASSIGNMENT!
1. Read this Syllabus thoroughly.
2. For a more global perspective, read the article ŌUrbanization: An Environmental Force to Be Reckoned WithĶ by Barbara Boyle Torrey. You can access this from the website of the Population Reference Bureau:
Go to www.prb.org
In the left column of Focus Areas, click on Environment
Scroll down and click on the article title.
Afterwards, feel free to explore other parts of this fascinating and informative website!
3. Which one of the above listed impacts (or do you have another idea?) seems most interesting to you? Then consider how it could apply to your geographic area (i.e. Salem, or?). What this is leading up to is an oral presentation and submission of a major paper on the last day of the course (exact schedule then TBA). For now though, due at the first class meeting (Saturday, January 8):
1. Your topic chosen, and for what geographic area
2. A short proposal on what you plan to do (a couple of short paragraphs is fine!)
Even legible handwriting would be acceptable for this, IÕll e-mail you back a response by that same evening, and itÕll be worth 10 points.
And while on the subject of e-mailing, with only two class meetings, that will be our primary means of communication throughout the course.
OBJECTIVES
After completing this course, you should be able to
PARTLY PERSONAL
If you detect a slight accent, youÕre right! No, IÕm not a native Oregonian - IĶve only been here since 1972. ThatÕs when I came out here from a suburb of New York City (30 miles east – still much too close!) to go to Oregon State University. I graduated from there in 1977 with two B.S. degrees (zoology and fisheries) and 2 years later with an M.S. degree (fisheries). Then it was down to the University of California at Davis for 4 more years and a Ph.D. (ecology) in 1985, where the summers were way too hot and I couldnÕt wait to get back up here!
Since 1986 IÕve been teaching introductory biology laboratories at Reed College, covering a range of subjects each year.
I started teaching at Linfield on the McMinnville campus in 1992. IÕve been teaching environmental science there, and from one class initially, it grew to three sections and over 150 students each year!
The DCE program advertised for an instructor at the Portland campus for the summer of 1994, and after filling that role, itÕs built up to five-six courses a year, one-two each term and two travel ones each summer. So far, IÕve taught Human Ecosystems, General Ecology, Environmental Issues and the Physical Sciences, Environmental Science Biological, Environmental Problem Solving Seminar, Global Issues (computer-mediated), Field Zoology, and Shoreline Ecology, at the Portland, Salem, Albany, and McMinnville campuses, plus the wonderful Oregon coast in the summer!
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Date WhatÕs Happening WhatÕs Due
Sat, Jan 8 Introduction Early Assignment
Urbanization - concepts
- trends
Sun, Jan 23 youÕre cruisingÉ Progress Report
(via e-mail)
Sat, Feb 5 Presentations Presentation Paper
Mon, Feb 7 you made it! Peer Review Critique
(via e-mail)
PRESENTATIONS
Scheduled for Saturday, February 5 will be submission of a paper on your research and an oral presentation of your findings and recommendations (precise order of presentations that day TBA). Along the way, an informal Progress Report is due by Sunday, January 23 by e-mail (what youÕve gotten done, and what you have left to do – a couple of paragraphs is fine, and worth 20 pts).
1. Your paper should be a minimum of ten (10) pages long, with at least six (6) references (or four in addition to the two interviews described below).
2. General format that should work for you: Background
Current Situation
Future Prospects
Recommendations
Note: The Recommendations section is very important, because that most closely aligns with
the title of the course!
3. Important! You should have at least two (2) personal interviews cited in your paper. These can be either in-person or telephone interviews, and should be from separate offices, companies, agencies, etc. The reason IÕm asking this is these people are experts in their respective fields and are often the best sources for up-to-date information!
4. As for your other sources, they can be anything from a DEQ newsletter to an EPA website to an Oregonian article to a scientific journal article. If youÕre using the Internet, some discretion is needed - choose reputable sources, that is, avoiding unsubstantiated opinion sites on the caliber of ŌKevinÕs Home Page.Ķ Also to be avoided are professorÕs lecture notes from across the country (recognizable by Ō.eduĶ somewhere in the website address) - use primary sources instead.
5. In your paper, cite your sources (author, year) where appropriate, and give the complete listings at the end in a Bibliography. Proper scientific formats are given in the Citations and References section at the end of this syllabus.
The entire presentation will be worth 130 points, divided into 30 pts for your oral presentation, and 100 pts for your paper.
PEER REVIEW CRITIQUE
IÕm a firm believer in providing feedback, and another worthwhile form of that is for you to comment on someone elseÕs efforts, and in return receive additional feedback from another student on your work. So, on the day of presentations (Saturday, February 5), while I think youÕll find all the presentations very interesting to see and hear (I know I will!), IÕd like you to take a few notes on one other personÕs presentation (TBA) and construct a one-two page constructive critique, focusing on the following:
1. What you liked about what you heard.
2. Any thoughts on what might be improved?
3. How much of what you heard would or could apply to your particular geographic area?
This will be due by Monday, February 7, while itÕs still fresh in your mind! Since thatÕs beyond our last class meeting, youÕll need to e-mail it to me, AND to the presenter (worth 20 pts).
OUTCOMES
The course will be worth a total of 180 pts, and overall evaluation of your effort will be derived from the following: proposal (10 pts), progress report (20 pts), oral presentation (30 pts), presentation paper (100 pts), and peer review critique (20 pts). At this time, I anticipate the typical 90%, 80%, and 70% cut-off levels for A, B, and C, but if everyoneÕs totals end up on the low side, I have no problem in lowering those percentages!
Last detail - To see how youÕve been doing, everything will be mailed back to you (including hardcopies of e-mailed items) as soon as reasonably possible.
SPECIAL NEEDS?
If you have any documented disabilities that may need accommodations, any medical information I should know of, or need special arrangements in the event of an evacuation, please see me at your earliest convenience. Thanks!
ACADEMIC HONESTY
ItÕs unfortunate that a section on this is needed at all, and this should be abundantly clear, but cheating and/or plagiarism in any portion of the course (including buying a research paper) will not be tolerated and will seriously jeopardize your grade. A very simple way to avoid this is to write your assignments and papers in your own words and cite your sources (see below) after specific details or examples.
CITATIONS AND REFERENCES - The Science Way
(adapted from the CBE Style Manual)
In-Text Citations
These could be direct citations:
Smith and Wesson (1991) lobbied against gun control.
or indirect citations:
There was an active lobby against gun control (Smith and Wesson, 1991).
General Rules:
1. Cite your source for specific details, examples, etc. and for any direct quotes (though direct quotes
are seldom used in scientific papers).
2. General format: (author, year)
a. No author? Use (Anonymous, year)
The Forest Dragons have been drawing small crowds to the Coliseum
(Anonymous, 1999).
b. If two (or more) articles by the same author in the same year, use a and b after the year in
the text and reference listing at the end, to keep them distinct
Last yearÕs movies are back again for the Oscars (Mahar, 2002b).
c. Internet source? Use (author, year the site was last updated), or if no author, use
(Anonymous,year updated)
Methyl chloroform levels have declined in the stratosphere (Anonymous, 2001).
Important Exception: If your Internet source is from a published format (newspaper,
magazine, etc.), cite the published source instead, using the year of publication.
d. Multiple authors? If two, cite both names; if more, use Ōand othersĶ after the first author
Mexico City has had the worst air pollution in the last decade (Talbot and others, 2000).
e. Personal interview (or communication). Format: (Person. year date. position, city. Personal
communication)
According to DW Anderson (1998 Oct 28. Architect, Knob Hill Designers, Beaverton, OR.
Personal communication), the 30-ft high sculpture was an appropriate entrance to the
Silicon Forest.
Note: These go in your text only, not in the reference listing at the end.
References (or Bibliography)
This should appear at the end of your paper, and should be a complete listing of every source cited
in your text (except any personal communication).
A. General Formats:
1. Journal or magazine articles: Author(s). Year. Title. Source. Volume:Pages.
Smith IM, Wesson UR. 1991. Gun control is not for everyone. Rifleman 54:32-36.
2. Books: Author(s). Year. Title. City published: Publisher.
Brown LR. 1997. Tough choices: facing the challenge of food scarcity. Washington,
D.C.: Worldwatch Institute.
3. Article within a book: Author(s). Year. Title. Pages in Book ed. Title. City published:Publisher
Wilson EO. 2003. What is nature worth? Pages 121-130 in Allen JL, ed. Annual
editions: environment 03/04. Guilford, CT: McGraw-Hill/Dushkin.
4. Newspaper articles: Author(s). Year date. Title. Newspaper; Section pages.
Eggers K, Jaynes D. 1998 Mar 29. Trailblazers have a decent season after all.
Oregonian; Section E1-E2.
5. Internet: Author(s). Year date last updated. Title. <Web site address> Date you accessed.
Papadopoulos G. 2001 Mar 15. Aquaculture in Greece expands rapidly.
< http://www.grfishaq.html > Accessed 2003 Aug 29.
Important Exception: Again, if itÕs a published source, use that information here
instead of the web address. That is, donÕt assume every reader has Internet access.
B. Multiple authors? List them all, in the same order they appear in the source.
Talbot GM, Svoboda PR, Payne SW, Enfield KS. 2000. Mexico City: air pollution
nightmare. Environmental Science and Toxicology 17:433-440.
C. No authors? Start with [Anonymous]
[Anonymous]. 1999 May 28. Forest Dragons vie for recognition in Portland.
Oregonian; Section E3.
D. Same author with two or more articles in the same year? Use a, b, c, etc. after the year, to
correspond with your in-text citations
Mahar T. 2002a Apr 1. Oscars yield few surprises. Oregonian; Section D1-D2.
Mahar T. 2002b Apr 4. Oscar winner movies see attendance rise. Oregonian; Section
D5.
E. LetÕs put it all together:
References
[Anonymous]. 1999 May 28. Forest Dragons vie for recognition in Portland.
Oregonian; Section E3.
Brown LR. 1997. Tough choices: facing the challenges of food scarcity. Washington,
D.C.: Worldwatch Institute.
Eggers K, Jaynes D. 1998 Mar 29. Trailblazers have a decent season after all.
Oregonian; Section E1-E2.
Mahar T. 2002a Apr 1. Oscars yield few surprises. Oregonian; Section D1-D2.
Mahar T. 2002b Apr 4. Oscar winner movies see attendance rise. Oregonian; Section
D5.
Papadopoulos G. 2001 Mar 15. Aquaculture in Greece expands rapidly.
< HTTP://www.grfishaq.html > Accessed 2003 Aug 29.
Smith IM, Wesson UR. 1991. Gun control is not for everyone. Rifleman 54:32-36.
Talbot GM, Svoboda PR, Payne SW, Enfield KS. 2000. Mexico City: air pollution
nightmare. Environmental Science and Toxicology 17:433-440.
Wilson EO. 2003. What is nature worth? Pages 121-130 in Allen JL, ed. Annual
editions: environment 03/04. Guilford, CT: McGraw-Hill/Dushkin.
Notice the listing is alphabetized, by the first authorÕs last name (or word).
F. Now that you have all the ŌDoÕsĶ, just a few brief ŌDonÕtsĶ:
1. DonÕt use footnotes in your text for sources.
2. DonÕt cite more than (author year) in your text (except personal communications).
3. DonÕt include complete references at the end for sources not cited in your text.
4. DonÕt cite sources in your text without giving the complete listing at the end (again, except
personal communications).
Note: The Italics used above are just for clarity - theyÕre not needed in your papers.