Geography (GEO)

Examines the geography of the emerging global village, especially the stress between the increasing globalization of human societies and natural habitats, and their idiosyncratic traits. Deeply rooted in today's changing world, the course surveys regions of the world and the contemporary issues facing them.

Earth Systems Science examines modern environmental problems through quantitative methods, analysis, and modeling grounded in basic and applied science and research. The goal of the course is to introduce students to the fundamental processes that dominate the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere, their characteristics and complex interactions, and their impact on human life and society.

Introduction to thinking about human activities from a geographic perspective. While considering the why of where, students will be exposed to the global dynamics of urbanization, industrialization, migration, economic development, international relations, geopolitics, and cultural geographies.

Examines the diverse economic systems that characterize a world economy in rapid transition. Highlights the complex processes of globalization and its impact on regions, cities, and countries. Examines the organization of economic activities and resources in the global economy.

Environmental science is the interdisciplinary study of the physical, chemical, and biological systems that sustain life on our planet. In this course we will explore current environmental challenges such as the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable production of energy, and the implications of human population growth. The processes of scientific inquiry and discovery will be emphasized through investigation of specific case studies and the critical evaluation of the underlying scientific evidence.

Weekly labs will cover interdisciplinary environmental topics such as: climate change, earthquakes, fracking, species extinctions, and water resources. Students will use the scientific method to critically evaluate environmental controversies, explore the role of ethics in science, and learn to distinguish science from pseudo-science.

Examines climate changes of the past, present and future. Considers the various causes of past and present climate change and how to predict future changes. Describes predicted environmental and social impacts of, and possible solutions to, future climate change.

This is an introductory course in international health. The course will focus on understanding the environmental, economic, and social factors that result in health disparities within and between places. The complex relationships between economic development, population structure, migration, and disease will be examined in detailed case studies. The effectiveness of health interventions and international health aid will be evaluated. Finally, the class will address the health impacts of global environmental change.

Provides the knowledge required to be an intelligent map user. It is also designed to prepare students for further studies in geography, cartography, and geospatial technologies. Topics include map making and coordinate systems, issues regarding map scale and projections, navigation and way finding using maps, techniques of thematic mapping, introductions to remote sensing and geographic information systems, emerging mapping technologies and applications, and using internet mapping services.

The one credit UB Seminar is focused on a big idea or challenging issue to engage students with questions of significance in a field of study and, ultimately, to connect their studies with issues of consequence in the wider world. Essential to the UB Curriculum, the Seminar helps transition to UB through an early connection to UB faculty and the undergraduate experience at a comprehensive, research university. This course is equivalent to any 198 offered in any subject. This course is a controlled enrollment (impacted) course. Students who have previously attempted the course and received a grade of F or R may not be able to repeat the course during the fall or spring semester.

The three credit UB Seminar is focused on a big idea or challenging issue to engage students with questions of significance in a field of study and, ultimately, to connect their studies with issues of consequence in the wider world. Essential to the UB Curriculum, the Seminar helps students with common learning outcomes focused on fundamental expectations for critical thinking, ethical reasoning, and oral communication, and learning at a university, all within topic focused subject matter. The Seminars provide students with an early connection to UB faculty and the undergraduate experience at a comprehensive, research university. This course is equivalent to any 199 offered in any subject. This course is a controlled enrollment (impacted) course. Students who have previously attempted the course and received a grade of F or R may not be able to repeat the course during the fall or spring semester.

Introduces probability as a measure of uncertainty. Addresses the use of such measures of uncertainty for describing data, and for making inferences about large populations from small samples. These descriptive and inferential aspects of statistics are illustrated using geographic examples from a wide variety of different fields.

Recent Advances in internet technology have stimulated rapid development of on-line imaging and mapping systems. This course provides a systematic introduction to these internet-based digital imaging and mapping systems in order to familiarize students with Internet-based tools and data and allow them to explore and understand the spatial distribution of natural and constructed phenomena. Through a combination of lectures and exercises, students will develop and practice the following on-line skills: using interface of on-line systems, digital map display in 2D and 3D, digital image display in 2D and 3D, flight simulation, multiple image and map management, measurements, navigation, spatial query, feature selection and buffering, and customized map making.

Examines the rapidly changing dynamics of the international business environment and its impact on corporate strategies and patterns of international trade, investment and development. Covers the political, legal, technological and cultural underpinnings of the global economy. Provides students with a solid foundation for conducting international business research and making sense of current events.

Involves a theoretical and empirical study of the spatial aspects of commodity flows among countries and regions; also examines conditions leading to trade, and to barriers to the movement of goods.

Introduces students to the interconnections among culture, social expectations, and international business. Covers cross-cultural communication and negotiation, cross-cultural management and alliance formation, and corporate social and environmental responsibility. The course is designed to challenge students to understand difference and to overcome stereotypes in thinking about the operation of business in different parts of the world.

Examines the physical and chemical processes that determine the climate and weather of the Earth¿s atmosphere, land surface, and oceans: radiative transfer, energy balance, the hydrologic cycle, atmospheric and oceanic energy transport. Investigates factors controlling climate change, both past and present. Discusses the relationship between climate, weather, and extreme events.

Examines the occurrence, use, management, and conservation of water and water resources in the U.S. and around the world. The course further discusses the environmental, economic, and social implications of floods, droughts, dams, water usage, and waste water, as well as current issues in water quality, water pollution, and water resource regulation.

Introduces land-forming processes at work on the Earth's surface, including water, wind, waves and ice. Emphasizes the roles of climate and human impact on earth surface processes, and it considers the hazardous consequences of these processes, such as flooding, landslides, and coastal erosion.

Studies plate tectonics, structure, volcanism, minerals, rocks, weathering, slope development, and fluvial and coastal geomorphology.

Introduces data collection techniques in Earth Systems Science. Students will actively participate in the collection and analysis of data using a wide range of field and laboratory equipment, with all activities linked to relevant environmental and geomorphic issues. Students will develop and enhance their skills in data collection, reduction, and analysis, analytical thinking, scientific writing, and the preparation of professional reports.

Introduces the concepts of soil science, composition and classification of soils, and the spatial distribution of major soil categories. Analyzes soil properties, soil/plant relationships, nutrients, land management practices, and ecological and engineering problems.

How do you want to help the environment? Do you want to work indoors, outside, or a mix of both? What skills do you have and what skills do you need? What is your dream environmental job? This course will build on the knowledge of environmental problems that you have developed in other courses, and on the skills that you have developed to address those problems, to focus on the jobs that are available for green and environmental professionals.

Explores forests in terms of their diverse structure, composition, and function. Examines factors that control growth of individual trees, development of forest stands, and dynamics of forest landscapes. Field trips and lab work develop the ability to recognize and reconstruct forest history, using a combination of forest structure and tree-ring analysis.

Provides an introduction to the knowledge areas of urban systems and structure, and a brief overview of fundamentals and general information that one needs to build upon in order to become a professional urban geographer. The course examines the formation and growth dynamics of cities, interprets the mechanism under which the urban space functions, and observes the industrial, residential, migratory, environmental, planning and transportation aspects of urban society.

Examines human activities central to the internal working of cities in the context of globalization, fragmentation, and difference. Students will consider theories about how society and space mutually condition each other in processes of social stratification and discrimination that foster class, race, gender, and other differences and cause their expression on the urban landscape.

Introduces fundamentals of computer cartography, which is the study and practice of making map representations of the Earth. Provides practical training in the techniques for the representation, manipulation and display of spatial data using computer software.

Critically considers a selected issues in geographical studies.

Critically considers selected issues in geographical studies.

Provides an introduction to techniques of multivariate analysis. Topics include ANOVA, simple regression, multiple regression, logistic regression, principal components analysis, and cluster analysis.

Studies human disease and health from an ecological prospective. Students gain an appreciation for the geographic variation in the rates of both infectious and chronic diseases. The effect of the environment will be examined in terms of population density, climate, socio-economic conditions, political situation, mobility, urbanization, pollution, cultural practices, and access to health care.

In this course, we will explore the integration of GIS and machine learning for addressing geographical problems. We will start from the fundamental techniques related to preparing GIS data for machine learning models, and then move to discussing machine learning concepts and how to use machine learning in the context of geography. This course has an emphasis on both theoretical concepts and hands-on skills, and we will use a high-level programming language (e.g., Python) to implement machine learning models. This course is dual listed with GEO 514.

Examines recent trends in population redistribution in the United States. Considers methods for producing population estimates and forecasts, and explores application of population analysis to the planning problems of government and business.

Studies evolution of the U.S. transportation system. Examines contemporary transportation problems; including provision of transportation, transport networks, transport flows, urban transportation, logistics, and information technologies. Also considers transport and urban forms.

Industry dynamics and regional change in a globalized world. In understanding the relationship between the firm and the region, the activities of other agents of regional development (e.g., universities, government, non-government sectors, labor markets) will also be taken into consideration.

Topics vary each semester.

The study of the spatial structure of urban and metropolitan areas. Among other topics, it includes: (1) a study of the changing form of urban areas over time; (2) the behavior of people that gives rise to particular urban form; (3) the ways in which the internal structure of cities affects behavior and welfare; and, (4) the various ways in which people perceive and interact with their environment.

Examines components of biodiversity: what it is, why we like it, where it is highest, and what threatens it. Focuses on the application of spatial solutions to biodiversity maintenance in wildlands, and to biodiversity management in working landscapes (especially logged but also farmed). Case studies and a field trip are employed to explore the usefulness of the methods.

Global environmental change has significant impacts on social and ecological systems around the world. Global Change Ecology is an emerging field that aims to understand the ecological implications of environmental change (especially anthropogenic climate change) and to assess risks under future global change. The course will include lectures, discussions of important scientific articles, hands-on exercises in conducting scientific research, and a group project to investigate novel scientific questions. In this course, students will review the basics of the earth system and climate change before investigating how organisms in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems respond to climate change. Finally, we will consider the impacts of future climate change and the implications in conservation policy and adaptation management.

Examines the scientific basis for stream restoration programs in the U.S. and worldwide through a consideration of interdisciplinary themes and practices. Participants will actively discuss river processes, aquatic ecology, restoration needs and goals, restoration approaches, ecological economics, and the uncertainty and sustainability of restoration designs. Students are exposed to a variety of stream restoration concepts through lectures, seminars, and independent projects.

Examines the origin, geometry, water flow, and sediment transport associated with streams and rivers, and how these processes and forms vary in time and space. Places particular emphasis on the analytic description of physical processes, the adjustment of rivers to natural and human-induced disturbances, the interactions between fluvial processes, water quality and aquatic habitat, and emerging areas of research.

Examines how regions, cities, and countries are engaged in economic, political, and institutional strategies in order to tackle problems related to poverty, underdevelopment, economic decline, and/or economic stagnation. Attention is given to the influences of local and global forces, actors, and policies on regional and national competition and development.

Introduces an integrated framework for natural resource management that addresses biophysical, social, and economic issues affecting natural resources such as water, soil, air, plant and animal communities and their use through agriculture, forestry, and fishery. The multidisciplinary approach equips the participants with the necessary tools and techniques to develop sound management policy and practice at the watershed scale from small watersheds to large basins. Outlines methods for problem definition and goal setting to elect appropriate and effective management strategies and procedures for monitoring and implementation.

The lectures and computer lab exercises introduce concepts, theories and applications of geospatial data, analysis and modeling in GIS and Remote Sensing. The techniques taught enable students in a studio setting with self-defined projects to not only enhance analyzing, assessing and modeling of geospatial and temporal physical and non-physical processes in landscapes, but also learn how to design, collect and manage GIS projects in general. The lectures, labs and projects include stakeholder interaction providing potential project datasets, real life challenges and feedback targeted for students in Geography, Data Science, Engineering, Planning, Geology, Environmental Science, Ecology, Economics and Health Sciences.

Emphasizes GIS applications for environmental modeling, which is loosely defined as any study that contains an environmental element. This is an intermediate level GIS course. GIS methodology design is the primary focus of the lectures and the following topics are discussed: basic GIS methods, using statistics to test and validate GIS methods, and integrating GIS with environmental models. Case studies are used to support the discussion of method design and help students select appropriate GIS methods for a project. The hands-on laboratory exercises focus on learning advanced GIS methods in order to help students implement a GIS project of their interest.

This course examines the origins and ongoing impacts of the `Logistical Revolution¿, including its roots within management and military sciences of the 1960s, the technologies and policies that made it possible, its reorganization of supply chains and world trade, its reconstruction of transnational and urban infrastructures, and its reshaping of labor relations.

Provides a general introduction to the principles and applications of geographic information systems (GIS). The lectures cover several fundamental aspects of GIS: (1) the basics of a GIS system, (2) GIS data and sources of data, (3) GIS analysis functions, and (4) GIS applications and related issues. The laboratory exercises are based on the leading GIS software, ArcGIS, and are designed to help students understand the lecture materials and gain hands-on experiences in GIS data acquisition, spatial database management, spatial analysis, and mapping. This course is dual-listed with GEO 506.

Surveys the basic types of geographic location problems encountered in the real world and examines basic techniques applied to solve those problems.

Introduces the principles and applications of remote sensing, and the basic techniques of digital image processing. The lectures introduce a number of fundamental topics of remote sensing: the interaction between energy and Earth surface, major sensor systems and images, basic techniques for image enhancement and image classification, classification accuracy assessment, and applications of remote sensing. The laboratory exercises are designed to help students understand and gain hands-on experiences in digital image process techniques introduced in the lectures.

Provides an overview of cartographic design and visualization within the context of GIS and multi-media web presentation to enhance the visualization skills expected of a modern geographer. The course will cover both theoretical and practical issues associated with visual representation, cartographic design process, exploratory data analysis, data uncertainty, quality and generalization, thematic mapping, web designing, online mapping and other multi-media applications. This course is dual-listed with GEO 551.

Emphasizes problems and methods for defining GIS user needs and the development cycle. Adapts methods and software engineering to the GIS planning process. Topics include product identification, data sources, system selection, and implementation scheduling.

This course will provide hands-on experience in the construction and simulation of dynamic models to represent human and environmental systems. The paradigm case of such systems is diffusion over space and time: diffusion of ideas by word of mouth, diffusion of diseases by contact between individuals, and diffusion of forest fires and invasive species across landscapes. A range of modeling paradigms will be covered, from continuous representations of system dynamics to discrete interactions of individual/agent-based models. Calculus and programming experience are helpful but not required. Exercises and readings will be provided from a variety of sources reflecting current challenges that practitioners face in the multi-disciplinary field of dynamic modeling.

For advanced students. Involves a work opportunity in a local governmental agency or firm. See the director of undergraduate studies for more information.

Students who have completed at least 96 credit hours and who have a minimum GPA of 3.5 in geography and overall are eligible to participate in the honors program. See the Director of Undergraduate Studies for more information.