COURSE CREDIT :

Problem Sets (4 x 5 = 20%): There will be four (4) problem sets - as homework - worth a total of 20% credit toward your final course grade. You are encouraged to use all resources available to you to solve these problems, including books, journals, fellow students (discussion only - no plagiarism, please!) and your instructor.

Examinations (2 x 25 = 50%): There will be two (2) closed-book examinations based on the factual material and general concepts from the course lectures and reading materials. Each exam is worth 25% credit. If an exam is missed without prior excuse of a doctor's note, a grade of zero (0) will be recorded.

Research Project (30%): The remainder, 30%, will be obtained from a research project. Students are required to present their research as a lecture of 15 minutes maximum duration (12 minutes +3 minutes for questions) and to be prepared to answer questions from the class and be graded by the class. The objective is to inform an audience of knowledgeable scientists and engineers whose specialty lies outside the area of your research, i.e., your fellow students. Your grade for the research project and presentation will be assessed (out of the possible 30%) as follows:

Instructor assessment (written paper): 10%
Student assessment (oral presentation): 20%

All students must attend mandatory class meetings.

RESEARCH PROJECT SEMINAR

A brief written report must be submitted to the course instructor two weeks prior to your lecture. This should include all salient points of the lecture and copies of all the figures to be shown. A detailed outline is adequate. A good 20-minute (inclusive of question period) seminar should have no more than ten figures unless they are very simple. All major contentions of the research should be referenced in the style of the American Geophysical Union - see a copy of J. Geophys. Res. I will grade the written report and it will count for 10 out of the 30% credit for this section. Seminars will be given in the order of the last three digits of your student number (SSN).

The seminar will be graded by the instructor and the rest of the class, as detailed above. Attendance is mandatory during this phase of the class.

Factors influencing the grade include:

1. Approach to the problem

2. Originality

3. Clarity (not showmanship)

4. Completeness of research

5. Discrimination of opinion from fact

6. Capable responses to questions (student evaluations only)

Factors not influencing the grade include:

1. Length of written report

2. Artwork

3. Number of references, unless you forget some important ones

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SUGGESTED TOPICS - Research Project Seminar:
Here are some suggested topics (in no particular order) here to get you started with your literature research, but you are encouraged to seek out a problem of special interest to you. Do not be afraid to choose an interdisciplinary, offbeat, or controversial topic, but subject your paper to your best scientific scrutiny and be prepared to defend your contentions to me, and to the class.

History of atmospheric chemistry

Atmospheric chemistry of other planets

Evolution of the Earth's atmosphere

Auroras

Atmospheric radioactivity

Biosphere-atmosphere interactions

Radiative transfer

Combustion chemistry

Biogenic hydrocarbons and ozone formation

Air Pollution and climate

Lightning as a natural source of NOx

Industrial air pollution abatement technology

Coupling atmospheric transport and chemistry

Human health effects of atmospheric pollution

Cloud chemistry

Heterogeneous chemistry

Chemistry and climate

Please e-mail me your seminar subject and tentative title (you can change the title up to the day of your presentation, but must seek approval from me before you change your seminar subject) as soon as possible.

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CLASS STUDENT ROSTER

Last updated January 23, 2018.