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Geography 423/523: Advanced Biogeography
Dendrochronology (tree-ring analysis) is the study of
historical patterns of tree growth for the purposes of dating events,
reconstructing past climate, and various other objectives. |
Required Texts:
For everyone:
Speer, J.H. 2010. Fundamentals of Tree-Ring Research. The University of Arizona Press. Mainly for Geog 523: Dendroclimatology. Edited by Malcolm Hughes, Thomas Swetnam, and Henry Diaz. Available freely at: http://www.springerlink.com/content/ 978-1-4020-4010-8/contents/ |
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Course
Overview
Trees occurring in seasonal climates are one of the few groups of organisms that preserve an annual growth record within their tissues. The records contained in tree rings are an invaluable source of information of past events: climatic events (including patterns in rainfall, temperature, glacier movement, and river discharge), disturbances to forests, and ages of buildings, archeological dwellings, and furniture. Acquiring and using tree-ring data requires special knowledge and tools. Topics covered will include the basics of wood anatomy and the structure of trees, methods (field, laboratory, and statistical), and overview of some of the most interesting findings of tree-ring research, including understanding past climates and the dynamics of forests. A major portion of the course will be an individual research project, requiring significant out-of-class time. You will gain experience in with tree-ring analysis, but more importantly, you will design and execute all parts of a research project. Prerequisites: Geog 323, or permission of the instructor. For permission, contact me by email and list relevant course experience including courses in geography, math and biological sciences. Previous experience summarizing data and preparing data graphics will be an asset. Further information on the field of dendrochronology is available on the Ultimate Tree-Ring Web Pages. Grading will be based on:
Department
of Geography, University of Oregon
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