FRS 002 — Sec. 020 — (2 unit) — CRN 73064 — W 1:10-3:00pm — 175A Phy/Geo
Long-term Impact of Hurricane Katrina

Instructor: Kenneth Verosub, Department of Geology, College of Letters & Science

Description: On occasion, natural disasters can serve as catalysts for immense social and political change. For example, it has been argued that the Lisbon Earthquake of 1755 started a sequence of events that culminated in the French Revolution and that the Armenian Earthquake of 1988 played a key role in the collapse of the Soviet Union. Will the flooding of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina change the way America views its government and itself, or will we go back to “business as usual” before the first anniversary of the event? In this seminar, we will begin by looking at some natural disasters that had a major influence on the course of human events. We will then look at the causes and response to the flooding of New Orleans and see what they reveal about American government and American society. Ultimately, we will try to determine whether twenty-five years from now, people will point to the flooding of New Orleans as one of the great turning points in American history. The primary goal for student learning will be to show how a major recent news story can be put into a broader social and historical context. A secondary goal will be for students to discover how people’s lives can be influenced significantly by natural events. Both of these goals will help first-year students to understand the importance of looking critically and analytically at the world around them.

Format: The class will be taught as an informal discussion. At times the instructor will lead the discussion; at other times, the students will lead or will make more formal presentations. The only prerequisite for the seminar is a desire to learn more about the topic; students are not expected to have extensive prior knowledge about natural disasters, politics or history. Students will be expected to do web-based research on key topics and to work in teams to analyze and synthesize their information. They will also be expected to make group presentations of their findings and conclusions. Grading: Half of the grade will be based on the extent and quality of participation in the class discussions. The other half of the grade will be based on the quality of oral group presentations.

About the Instructor: Ken Verosub is a professor in the Geology Department and the former director of the Davis Honors Challenge. He has been involved for more than thirty years with disaster preparedness and emergency planning. For many years, he taught a general interest course at UCD on earthquakes and volcanoes and currently teaches a course that explores the many ways that geology has affected the lives of people and the course of human history.