OCNPS 195: FIRST-YEAR EXPERIENCE – GEOLOGY OF GREECE

Dr. Terri Mathews

Office: OCNPS 135

Office Telephone: (757) 683-5201

E-Mail: tmmathew@odu.edu

Website: http://ww2.odu.edu/~tmmathew/geolgreece/index.shtml

Objective: The geology of Greece is quite complicated due to its tectonic setting.   The resultant landscape is rugged with many mountains, a rugged coastline, frequent earthquakes and active volcanism.  Ancient Greeks lived close to the land and it greatly influenced their culture, art and politics.  The objective of this course is to understand the development of a landscape and the geologic processes that continually shape the Earth’s surface.  Additionally, through the study of Ancient Greek Art and Architecture, this course will provide insight on how the geology, and hence the landscapes and its resources, influenced the culture, art and politics of Ancient Greece.    

Instruction will be primarily via on-site visits, but supported by classroom lectures and lab work before our international journey.

Requirements: four pre-departure reflections (30% of grade), daily journal entries (30% of grade); a final project (30% of grade); and attendance and class participation (10% of grade).

Grading Scale: A= 93-100; A-=90-92; B+=87-89; B=83-86; B-=80-82; C+=77-79; C=73-76; C-=70-72; F=0-69.

Pre-Departure reflections: Due July 25  by e-mail

The geology of Greece is quite complicated due to its tectonic setting.  The Peloponnese and Southern Greece sit on a microplate (Aegean Plate) adjacent to an active subduction zone bordered along the Gulf of Corinth by a divergent boundary.  Northern Greece sits on the Eurasian Plate.  The Greek Islands represent an island arc adjacent to the subducting African Plate.  The resultant landscape is rugged with many mountains that result from the convergence of the African Plate.   There is active volcanism due to the subduction zone and frequent earthquakes. The coastline is emergent.

Ancient Greeks lived close to the land and it greatly influenced their culture, art and politics.  Throughout our visit to Greece we will see landscapes very different to those encountered on the East Coast of the United States.  We will discuss and you will be asked to reflect upon the influence of the geology, and hence the landscapes and resources, on the culture, art and politics of Ancient Greece. 

Before we reflect upon Greece however, your assignment is to review the OEAS 195 website and reflect upon geological influences you have encountered. Using the categories 1) Rocks and Minerals; 2) Earthquakes; 3) Volcanoes and 4) Coastlines describe how you have interacted with or been influenced by geology.  You will write 4 reflections (one per category).

Example:  I assigned this to my Earth Science class.  One young man had been living near San Francisco during the Loma Prieta earthquake and discussed how the earthquake caused structural damage to the Bay Bridge and local freeways and how this disrupted his commute to work.  Another student had recently read a fictional book about Pompeii and related what she read to the geology of volcanoes and the description of eruptions.

You may never have encountered geology quite like an earthquake or volcano but have you visited the beach?  Relate that to what you read in the section on coastlines.  Did you visit a volcanic mountain?  see a movie? News report? Or read about a volcanic eruption? Relate that to the information you reviewed about volcanoes.

The OEAS 195 website address is:

 http://ww2.odu.edu/~tmmathew/geolgreece/index.shtml

Journal Assignments

Each day, in addition to a reflective entry on the most memorable and/or compelling work(s) of art you have encountered, write a reflection on the landscape.  Pick one aspect of the landscape (it could be a mountain, a gorge, a coastal feature or an individual rock) and discuss either its impact on Greek art and culture or in the context of geology as a science.   Journals may be handwritten (and subsequently scanned) or assembled electronically, and they are due to me via e-mail by August 17th.

Post-Return Final Project: “Monarch to Monarch”

You are the monarch of a mysterious land to the west of Greece known as the “Old Dominion.” Following a successful visit to Greece, during which you and your retinue were educated, entertained, and feted, you have decided to bestow a great monument on one of your hosts: the monarch of Athens, the monarch of Corinth, the monarch of Mycenae, the monarch of Epidaurus, or the monarch of Delphi.

In composing this final project, keep the following questions in mind:

What will be the natural setting of my monument (hillside, mountaintop, seaside cliff, riverbank, level plain, etc.)?

What form will my monument take and how will it function (temple, shrine, theater, statue, etc.)?

To which god or goddess will my monument be dedicated? How will it be decorated?

In what style will it be executed?

Why will this monument be a lasting symbol of the new friendship forged between the people of the Old Dominion and the people of Greece?

The text of your final project should be in the range of 300-500 words. You should include 8-10 pictures that you have taken of natural and man-made features in Greece in order to provide us with an idea of how your monument might appear and in what context it might be built. Please submit it to me as a PowerPoint document by August 17th.  The PowerPoint files will be posted in a virtual gallery that you all may enjoy as a souvenir of our trip.