91536 - STRATIGRAFIA INTEGRATA DI SUCCESSIONI QUATERNARIE

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to practically apply the acquired knowledge and skills in Integrated Stratigraphy for a critical analysis of outcropping and buried Quaternary successions. Specifically, students will be able to:

• plan and develop a multivariate approach aimed at the description and interpretation of Quaternary successions;
• reconstruct the sedimentary-palaeoenvironmental dynamics of both natural and human-modified depositional systems by means of stratigraphic correlations;
• identify and evaluate the main controlling factors influencing the depositional architecture and evolution of Quaternary successions for a sustainable exploitation and management of geological resources.

Course contents

The importance of Quaternary record; stratigraphic subdivision of the Quaternary period; dating methods; integrated stratigraphic approaches and proxies; isotope stratigraphy; climate variability and sea-level changes; Milankovitch and sub-Milankovitch cycles; high-frequency climate and sea-level changes during the present interglacial (proxy data and current state of knowledge); basic concepts on depositional environments, facies and sequence stratigraphy; depositional architecture of Quaternary successions and controlling factors (case studies from the Mediterranean area); the anthropogenic forcing on depositional systems; the concept of Anthropocene.

Readings/Bibliography

Lecture notes and selected scientific articles will be provided during the course.

Teaching methods

Lectures, field work.

Assessment methods

Practical exam (3-4 open questions including stratigraphic exercises) + short oral exam (1-2 questions). Time limit for the practical exam: 2 hours. The final score will be calculated considering a weight of 70% for the practical exam and 30% for the oral exam.

Teaching tools

LCD projector.

Office hours

See the website of Veronica Rossi