Teaching
Penny Boston, Associate Professor of Cave and Karst Science

I teach the following courses.

ERTH 130: Spaceship Earth. Study of Earth as an immense system composed of a gigantic rocky mass, a planet-dominating ocean, an active atmosphere, and an abundance of life. Consideration of subsystems interacting across time and space. Discussion of possible mechanisms that may control this megasystem including controversial topics, e.g. co-evolution, homeostatic feedback mechanisms, and the Gaia Hypothesis.

ERTH 130L: Spaceship Earth Laboratory. Laboratory and field demonstrations of principles of global biogeochemical cycles and the interaction of life with its planetary home.

ERTH 201: Geobiology. Consideration of life and its impact on the Earth System over the course of Earth history including its preserved geochemical and fossil remains, study of the observable geological effects of life processes and in turn the impact of geological, hydrological, and atmospheric effects on the origins and subsequent evolution of life. Field trips.

ERTH 449/GEOL 549: Astrobiology. An in–depth and interdisciplinary study of astrobiology, including interactions between living and non-living systems at multiple scales: stellar, planetary, meso, and microscopic. Addresses fundamental questions regarding the origin of life, and the possible extent and distribution of life in the universe. Combines principles of astrophysics, geosciences, planetary science, chemistry, and biology. Innovative interactive exercises and projects working in interdisciplinary groups and individually.

ERTH 450/GEOL 550: Cave and Karst Systems. A system-based study of caves and karstic terrains over time including formation mechanisms (speleogenesis), hydrology, geochemistry, mineralogy, and geomicrobiology. Emphasis on caves as interactive microcosms cross-cutting many disciplines.

ERTH 450L/GEOL 550L: Cave and Karst Laboratory. Survey of techniques applicable to various aspects of speleology and karst studies. Project-based lab, developed for each student in consultation with instructor.