First Year Seminar: Geology and Human Health

3 units

This course explores the connections between human health and geological processes. Key concepts in geology are introduced as well as the pathways through which natural systems affect human health. A series of case studies will be presented, each describing a specific health hazard and its geological origin. The first set of studies will focus on human health effects associated with windborne exposure to harmful materials, including volcanic emissions, asbestos, dust and aerosols, and the products of coal combustion. The course will then use the topic of mercury, which is emitted into the atmosphere and then accumulates in aquatic systems, to transition to water and soil borne pathways of exposure. This will be followed by case studies exploring water availability and quality, arsenic in groundwater, with a special emphasis on widespread arsenic poisoning in South and Southeast Asia, lead in mining areas and urban soils, and radon and radioactive materials. Students will conduct team risk assessment projects as well as an individual project.