An introduction to geology: Online Course from OpenLearn

In this free course, An introduction to geology, you will explore basic geological processes, focusing on how, where and why different rocks and natural resources form across the Earth.

Syllabus

- Week1Week 1: Building stone
- Introduction to Week 1
- 1.1 What is a rock?
- 1.1.1 Igneous rocks
- 1.1.2 Sedimentary rocks
- 1.1.3 Metamorphic rocks
- 1.2 Watch out for concrete
- 1.3 Rock textures
- 1.4 Identifying rock textures
- 1.5 Identifying rocks: going into the ‘field’
- 1.6 The rock cycle and plate tectonics
- 1.7 So, how old is the Earth?
- 1.8 And how do we know that?
- 1.8.1 Relative dating
- 1.8.2 Absolute dating
- 1.9 What is plate tectonics? Continental drift and sea floor spreading - part 1
- 1.10 What is plate tectonics? Continental drift and sea floor spreading - part 2
- 1.11 Plate tectonics – part 1
- 1.12 Plate tectonics – part 2
- 1.13 Week 1 quiz
- 1.14 Summary of Week 1
- Further reading
- Acknowledgements
- Week2Week 2: Metals, metals everywhere
- Introduction to Week 2
- 2.1 Opening up a smartphone
- 2.2 Where do the metals come from?
- 2.3 Pegmatite
- 2.4 Bauxite – amazing things that a lot of rain can do
- 2.5 From soil to soda cans
- 2.6 Soda cans from bauxite
- 2.7 Another source of Al
- 2.8 Sand, sandstone and quartzite
- 2.9 The geological sorting hat
- 2.10 From sands into sandstone and quartzite
- 2.11 Copper
- 2.12 Porphyry ore deposits
- 2.13 Bursting balloons of copper mineralisation
- 2.14 Porphyry copper ring of fire
- 2.15 Under ancient seas
- 2.16 What type of rock is oceanic crust?
- 2.17 Hydrothermal vents
- 2.18 Black smokers
- 2.19 How much ore for a metre of Cu cable?
- 2.20 Zones at Parys Mountain
- 2.21 Ancient people and metals
- 2.22 From ancient peoples to modern mines
- 2.23 Mineral maps
- 2.24 Week 2 quiz
- 2.25 Summary of Week 2
- Further reading
- Acknowledgements
- Week3Week 3: Ubiquitous petroleum
- Introduction to Week 3
- 3.1 Oil comes from the ground
- 3.2 Plastics and transport fuel
- 3.3 Fertilisers
- 3.4 What is oil?
- 3.5 Where does it come from?
- 3.6 Why doesn’t it just rot?
- 3.7 It’s a trap!
- 3.8 If it’s buried, how do we find it?
- 3.9 Seismic exploration – part 1
- 3.10 Seismic exploration – part 2
- 3.11 Biostratigraphy
- 3.12 Economics of oil production
- 3.13 More economics of oil
- 3.14 Week 3 quiz
- 3.15 Summary of Week 3
- Further reading
- Acknowledgements
- Week4Week 4: Breaking and fixing our planet
- Introduction to Week 4
- 4.1 Breaking and fixing our planet
- 4.2 Geological (extraction) in your pocket
- 4.3 Ice ages build the modern world
- 4.4 Aggregate extraction
- 4.5 Impact of dredging
- 4.6 Rare earth elements
- 4.7 Extraction and processing
- 4.8 Geoengineering: crazy ideas or will they save the planet?
- 4.9 The atmospheric bath tub
- 4.10 Interviews on Leverhulme centre for climate change remediation
- 4.11 What’s wrong with Dave Beerling’s big idea?
- 4.12 Small bugs solve a lot of problems
- 4.13 Toxic waters escape, but toxic conditions remain
- 4.14 Geology to the rescue!
- 4.15 Bioremediation – what survives, thrives
- 4.16 Week 4 quiz
- Final conclusion and goodbye
- References
- Further reading
- Acknowledgements

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