Spring course takes students into California wilderness

The daunting gray walls and brownish desks of typical classrooms can get old fast. \nBut next semester, some students will be in classes surrounded by emerald green trees and crystal-like snow-topped mountain crests. They will hike through craters formed by volcanic eruption, ski down California's Mammoth Mountain and observe 5,000-year-old bristlecone pines with the U.S Forest Service.\nAll this is made possible through the Volcanoes of the Eastern Sierra Nevada: Geology and Natural Heritage of the Long Valley Caldera course. \nThe three-credit course is taught in two parts. First, students take an eight-week class in the spring semester that covers the course's general topics. They then go through a two-week field-oriented program in the Sierra Nevada Mountains located in Eastern California. The program, developed by the Collins Living-Learning Center and the Department of Geological Sciences, is intended to enrich and expand the minds of students.\n"The purpose is to expose beginning undergraduates to how the science of geology is practiced and the value of that science," said senior research scientist of the Geological Survey John Rupp. "It's to show both the generic dance of observation and interpretation."\nThe course is taught by Rupp and Michael Hamburger, professor of geological sciences. Carl Ziegler, director of Collins, is the sponsor and helped initiate the program four years ago.\n"I patterned the concept of 'Expeditions' courses after the kinds of semester break courses traditionally offered by small liberal arts colleges," Ziegler said.\nThis experiential course offers students a chance to learn hands-on a variety of glacial, volcanic and structural assemblages and landforms. The 14 to 18 students that take the course stay in a cabin-like dormitory that overlooks the White Mountains of California. Each day, students study a different location and topic.\n"The best part of the course was that every day was an adventure," said senior Ganesh Krishna, who took the course last semester. "One day we were studying geologic formations in nearly 115 degree desert heat, the next we were hiking in the snowy mountains studying volcanic deposits."\nWhile in the Sierra Nevada area, the students find time to enjoy its perks. They swim in natural hot springs, kayak on Mono Lake and shop at nearby stores.\n"The course also included a 'recreation day' where we could do whatever we wanted," Krishna said. "Several of us went skiing and snowboarding on Mammoth Mountain, which was awesome."\nThe class trips are not just informative, they are entertaining and adventurous.\n"We climb over the Tioga Pass into Yosemite Valley; we see extraordinary mountain spectrums and beautiful mountain roads," Hamburger said.\nRupp said the course is a way for students to excel as individuals and to build positive group dynamics. It also helps them to understand the ground rules of science.\n"I think they get a fundamental understanding of how science works and the value of that process," Rupp said.\nThe course is not limited to geology majors or Collins residents. The hands-on atmosphere is presented clearly for students with no previous knowledge of geological studies. \n"It's designed to attract an eclectic student body, including drama, business and music majors," Rupp said. \nAs part of their grade, group members must keep a journal in which they write down observations and interpretations of their daily excursions. At the end of the course, they write a 10 to 15 page research paper that covers a topic related to geological, biological, cultural, historical or political aspects of the study area.\nMay 22, students fly into the Las Vegas airport before departing to the Sierra Nevada area. The course fee is $560, which includes tuition, airfare and textbooks. The course fee, however, also covers room, board and local travel. \nThe class requires registration by authorization only.The application, along with more information, is on the course's Web site, www.indiana.edu/~sierra/. \n-- Contact staff writer Rebecca Rutherford at rrutherf@indiana.edu.