The goal of this course is to introduce the student to the basic physical properties which control the weather. The student should develop an appreciation for the complex structure of the atmosphere and for the difficulty in predicting the weather.
The course will material from chapters 1-16 (excluding chapters 4, 10 and 11). Not all sections of every chapter will be covered in lecture. The goal is to cover up through chapter 9 by mid semester, so the rest of the class can be spend on weather phenomena.
The lectures will general follow the text but some additional and/or alternative material will be presented. The student is responsible for both the material in the text and in the lectures. A tentative schedule of the material covered is presented on the back side of this syllabus. The University's honesty policy applies in this class.
Exams and Quizzes:
Each exam will be comprised of 40 multiple-choice questions which account for 80% of the exam. The other 20% of the exam will come from short answer questions. The dates of the four exams are given on the back of this syllabus. In addition, four quizzes and four assignments will be given. Each quiz and assignment will be worth 20 pts. Only the 5 BEST combined grades (quiz and assignments) will be included the final grade. Quizzes will always be announced in class and will be taken during the last 15 minutes of the class period. Makeup exams will only be given in extreme circumstances and arrangements must be made before the exam. Makeup exams will be not be multiple choice but a combination of true/false, fill in the blank, and short essay.
The final is on Monday December 17 (12:00 - 1:50) and is NOT comprehensive. This will be the only time the final will be given.
Grading Scale:
There are 500 possible points and each exam is curved. Therefore no curving of the final grade is needed.
| Total Score | Grade |
| 500 - 450 | A |
| 449 - 400 | B |
| 399 - 350 | C |
| 349 - 300 | D |
| 299 - 0 | F |