Graduate Course Description

EEOS 525

Environmental Science Content Institute

This course is designed to use environmental sciences as an integrating context for teachers of middle school science.  Field experiences in and activities drawn from the Neponset River Watershed will enhance the teaching of middle school earth science, life science, and physical science curricula.   A conceptual framework for environmental sciences will connect field experiences to Massachusetts state curriculum frameworks. 

3 Credits

EEOS 601

Introduction to Applied Statistics

This course provides graduate students in the sciences with an intensive introduction to applied statistics.  Topics include descriptive statistics, probability, non-parametric methods, estimation methods, hypothesis testing, correlation and linear regression, simulation, and robustness considerations. 

3 Credits

EEOS 605

Teaching in Environmental Science and Technology

This course is intended to explore the effective use of environmental science to teach science at all levels, while a practical focus on general science at the middle school level will guide activities and examples. While attention will be paid to how people learn, curriculum frameworks, and practical limitations in K-12 classrooms, the focus of this course will be environmental science content, including: Biogeochemical Cycles, Energy Flow and Transformation, Ecosystems, Biodiversity and Evolution, Spatial and Temporal Reference Frames, Earth System Science, Ways of Knowing and Human Interactions.

3 Credits

EEOS 611

Applied Statistics

This course is designed to prepare the student to design and analyze experiments and field studies using ANOVA and regression techniques.  Use of SPSS Statistical software.

3 Credits

EEOS 616

Environmental Policy and Administration

Study of how solutions to environmental problems are implemented.  Techniques of policy-making and administration in both public and private organizations are studied.  Government and industrial administrators are brought to campus to provide insight into real-world problems and solutions.

3 Credits

EEOS 621

Plankton Dynamics

The focus of the course will be on the dynamic processes and interactions among water column plankton (e.g. phytoplankton, zooplankton, bacteria and protists) with regard to nutrient and energy exchange.  The course will examine how changes in the water chemistry can affect biological processes and community composition and the impacts this has on marine resources and society.  There will be a small field component to this course where students are exposed to and allowed to see the different planktonic organisms as well as the basic methods for studying different water-column plankton.

3 Credits

EEOS 622

Introduction to Zooplankton Ecology

Zooplankton can be called the cows of the sea.  These animals range in size from 2micrometers to 0.1 mm and are the food supply for many commercially important fish, whales, and other large animals.  This course examines the different classes and functional groups of marine zooplankton, with an emphasis on copepods and tunicates.  Zooplankton morphology, physiology, ecology and geographical distribution will be discussed in detail and related to larger environmental issues, e.g. global warming, eutrophication.

3 Credits

EEOS 623

Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

This course teaches the concepts, principles, approaches, techniques, and technologies of GIS.  The specific topics include essential elements of a GIS, hardware requirements and system integration, technologies and techniques for acquiring spatial data, spatial data models, data structures, data formats, database models, spatial analysis and modeling, cartographic design, implementation of a GIS, and environmental and socioeconomic applications.  Hands-on exercises on ArcGIS are assigned each week.  A term project on the use of GIS in solving a specific environmental or socio-economic problem is required.

Includes Laboratory sessions.

3 Credits

EEOS 625

Principles and Applications of Remote Sensing

In this course, students learn the physical principles of remote sensing and become familiar with the capabilities and limitations of current and future remote-sensing systems.  They also learn the techniques commonly used for interpreting aerial photographs, satellite remote sensing data, and thermal and radial imagery, and gain practical lab experience in image interpretation.  They are exposed to a wide variety of applications in environmental mapping and monitoring, natural resource management, urban and regional planning, and global change research.

Includes Laboratory sessions.

4 Credits

EEOS 627

Environmental Modeling in Raster GIS

This course has two major components.  The first component focuses on GIS raster data models, their structure and function, and in particular their use in a modeling context.  The second component focuses on the use of modern structures design techniques for forming a basis for the current design and implementation of GIS applications.

3 Credits

EEOS 630

Biological Oceanographic Processes

The processes which govern the population dynamics of phytoplankton, zooplankton and benthos will be studied in the context of ecological simulation modeling.  Calculus recommended but not required.

3 Credits

EEOS 635

Environmental Toxicology

The course will impart basic principles of environmental toxicology, focusing on toxicological assessment, types and mechanisms of toxicological response, the properties and effects of specific groups of toxicants relaeased into the environment (e.g. PAH, PCB, pesticides, metals, dioxins/dibenzofurans), and an overview of current issues facing the rather broad field of environmental toxicology.  Toxicological responses will be discussed at all levels of biological organization, from the molecular/biochemical, cellular, and organismal up through the population, community and ecosystem levels.  Biochemical toxicology will be particularly emphasized with respect to toxicant absorption, internal partitioning/transport, metabolism/detoxification, sequestering, targeting, and elimination.

3 Credits

EEOS 640

The Chemistry of Natural Waters

A basic description of the chemistry of natural waters and especially marine waters designed to lay foundation for more advanced course work. Emphasis will be on the composition of natural waters and the identification of the important chemical, physical and biological processes controlling their composition. 

3 Credits

EEOS 650

Physical Oceanography

This course introduces the physical processes active in the ocean environment, including coastal and estuarine regions, and investigates the connection between those processes and observed physical characteristics of the ocean.

3 Credits

EEOS 655

Estuarine and Coastal Physical Processes

Topics include mathematical theories of tides, tidal currents, shallow water waves, mixing, stratification, estuarine circulation, baroclinic currents, frontal dynamics, and baroclinic instability.  This course will focus on basic concepts of physical processes in estuarine and coastal regions.  Students should have a solid working skill of algebra and a solid understanding of calculus.  A working knowledge of ordinary and partial differential equations is a plus but is not required.

3 Credits

EEOS 660

Estuarine Ecology and Management

This course crosses-over the traditional boundaries of the science disciplines to introduce graduate students and upper-level undergraduates to the physical and biogeochemical processes that govern the structure and functioning of estuarine ecosystems.  The first two-thirds of the course focuses on understanding the physical dynamics, biogeochemical processes and complex interactions that affect the input, dispersal, and fate of energy and materials (water, carbon, nutrients, particles and contaminants) in linked watershed and coastal marine ecosystems. This provides the foundation for the remaining third of the course, which focuses on understanding the impacts of human activities on estuarine ecosystems, and on evaluating ecosystem-based management strategies for environmental remediation and habitat restoration.  Additional topics maybe introduced in order to understand or highlight the interdisciplinary complexities associated with estuarine ecology and management.

3 Credits

EEOS 670

Environmental Economics

This course is designed for those students in the program who have a minimal background in economics.  It focuses on the use of economic analysis as a tool for helping to resolve environmental policy problems.  Discussion includes such topics as benefit-cost analysis, the taxation and regulation of polluters, and the analysis of current government policies directed at the regulation and reduction of air, water, and solid waste pollution.

3 Credits

EEOS 675

Marine Resource Economics

This course is designed for graduate students in environmental sciences with an interest in economics.  It explores the use of economic analysis in helping to solve natural resource problems of the coastal zone and ocean.  In particular, it focuses on such topics as fisheries management, resource scarcity, the concept of economic efficiency, measuring the benefits of natural resources, on-shore coastal development, and depletable, recyclable, and non-recyclable resources.

3 Credits

EEOS 680

Coastal and Ocean Law

An examination of the laws to preserve, develop, and manage coastal ocean resources and space.  Judicial decisions interpreting and applying these laws are a major focus, although attention is also given to the coastal and ocean policies embodied in them and the process by which these policies have been established.

3 Credits

EEOS 685

Legal Foundations for Ecosystem Management

This course examines current U.S. environmental and natural resource management laws from the perspectives of modern "ecosystem management".  Because these laws were enacted in the late 1960s and 1970s, they typically do not reflect the findings of ecological sciences with respect to the need to preserve critical ecological processes or the need to manage the natural environment at appropriate spatial and temporal scales.  Students participate in discussions of readings in the ecosystem management literature, select and critically review an environmental or natural management perspective, and present their findings to the seminar.

3  Credits

EEOS 691

Current Literature in Environmental Sciences

A series of one-credit seminar courses focusing on subfields of environmental science, designed to help students learn to keep up with recent developments though reading scientific journals.  The seminars also provide a forum for discussion of significant new findings in the field as well as discussion and critique of the students' own research.

1 Credit

EEOS 692

Seminar for WISP Fellows

This seminar is designed to preparare WISP (Watershed-Integrated Sciences Partnership between UMass Boston and three local school districts) Fellows for intensive summer workshops (Teacher Training and Environmental Science Content Institute), to initiate an exploration of science education practices, and to expose Fellows to middle school classroom teaching.  The seminar is intended to provide consistency and a passing on of experiental knowledge from one cohort of Fellows (outgoing) to the next (incoming).  The 1-credit seminar is required for participation of UMass Boston graduate students in the GK-12 program as Fellows.

1 Credit

EEOS 697

Special Topics in Environmental Sciences

This course provides an opportunity for presentation of particularly timely lecture/laboratory/fields material which does not fall under the purview of any other course.

1-4 Credits

EEOS 698

Projects in Environmental Sciences

A practicum resulting in a substantial written report on library, laboratory or field research which involves an original project.  Up to 6 credits form this course may be applied to the MS degree, over more than one semester.  This course is required for all master's level students taking the non-thesis option; it is not open to doctoral students.  Students may not take both EEOS 698 and EEOS 699.

1-6 Credits

EEOS 699

Thesis Research

Research conducted under faculty supervision leading to presentation of a master's thesis.  Up to 10 credits from this course may be applied to the MS degree over more than one semester.  This course is required for all master's level students taking the thesis option; it is not open to doctoral students.  Students may not take both EEOS 698 and EEOS 699.

1-10 Credits

EEOS 710

Environmental Biogeochemistry

This course integrates the biological, chemical, geological, and physical processes affecting reservoirs and cycling of inorganic and organic substances through the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere. Particular emphasis is given to contemporary research in the biogeochemistry of carbon, nitrogen, and organic compounds of natural and anthropogenic origin. A focus on “back-of-the-envelope” calculations at local to global scales allows students to gain a greater understanding of mass balance, time scales, and elemental cycling. 

3 Credits

EEOS 715

Isotope Geochemistry

This course explores the use of stable and radioactive isotopes in delineating biogeochemical and geochemical processes in the environment. Emphasis is given to recent advances in the field. Specific topics to be addressed include geochronology, use of isotopes as tracers, and analytical methods. A team project exercise combining field and laboratory work and presentation of results is required. 

3 Credits

EEOS 716

Scientific and Technical Information and the Policy Process

This course considers the role of scientific and technical information in the policy-making process.  Questions of the impact of information on policy evaluation, the role of scientists, and research agenda setting are discussed.

3 Credits

EEOS 718

Environmental Law and Policy: Federal Agencies, Courts and Congress

This course surveys three major areas of federal involvement in environmental law and policy.  The first is federal environmental and resource management programs and laws, such as the Clean Water, Ocean Dumping, Superfund, Resource Conservation and Recovery, Coastal Zone Management, and Fishery Conservation and Management Acts.  The second is the role of federal agencies and courts in implementing and overseeing federal laws; and the third is the legislative function of US Congress in debating, enacting and monitoring national policy.  Emphasis is placed on coastal and marine environmental problems and issues.

3 Credits

EEOS 720

Benthic Boundary Layer Process

An interdisciplinary view of the benthos in freshwater, estuarine, and marine ecosystems.  Special attention is paid to the interactions among physical, chemical and geological processes and benthic populations.  Calculus, EEOS 630, EEOS 640 recommended.

3 Credits

EEOS 726

Coastal Zone Management

This course introduces and evaluates the legal, political, and social factors that most directly affect the management of coastal area resources.  Both conceptual and case-oriented literature are reviewed, in order to familiarize the student with the evolution and practice of coastal zone management generally in the U.S., and particularly in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

3 Credits

EEOS 750

Organic Geochemistry

This course examines the production and cycling of organic matter at the Earth's surfaces.  Starting with the photosynthetic fixation of CO2 and the biosynthesis of a diverse array of molecules, the course traces the path of reduced carbon through the biogeosphere to incorporation in sedimentary deposits.  Specific topics to be addressed include photosynthesis, biosynthesis, chemical evolution, the organic carbon cycle, diagenesis and catagenesis: the formation of fossil fuels and the biogeochemistry of organic compounds of environmental concern.  Students are introduced to selected analytical methods used in organic geochemistry.

3 Credits

EEOS 760

Aquatic Toxicology

The course will provide advanced study in aquatic toxicology, focusing on current topics and issues including toxicological assessment, approaches to modeling toxicant absorption, water and sediment criteria, and the diverse mechanisms employed by aquatic organisms to deal with a variety of chemical toxicants. 

3 Credits

EEOS 780

Seminar in Environmental Chemistry

Special topics of contemporary interest and of mutual interest to the participants set the theme for this advanced seminar course.  Recent topics have included metal speciation and modeling techniques, tropospheric chemistry, particle aggregation processes, and the biogeochemistry of transparent exopolymer particles (TEP).  Those participating contribute presentations on various aspects of the chosen theme area for discussion.

3 Credits

EEOS 791

Seminar in Environmental Sciences

Presentations and discussions of current topics in environmental sciences by students and visiting lecturers.  Registration required each semester.

1 Credit

EEOS 796

Independent Study in Environmental Science

Independent laboratory and/or library studies under the direction of a faculty member.

1-3 Credits

EEOS 899

Dissertation Research

Research conducted under faculty supervision, which leads to the presentation of a doctoral dissertation.

1-6 Credits