Join our group:

We welcome inquiries from UCI undergraduates, prospective PhD students, and post-doctoral researchers interested in conducting research in geochemistry and paleoclimatology.  Please contact Kathleen Johnson for more information.

Take a class:

The following courses are currently taught by Professor Johnson :

EarthSS 7:  Physical Geology (Next offered Spring 2022)

This course offers an introduction to Earth materials and processes. Topics we will cover include formation of the Earth and its layered structure, Earth materials (minerals, rocks, soils, sediment), plate tectonics, volcanoes, earthquakes, earth surface processes (weathering and erosion, rivers and streams, groundwater, glaciers, wind), geologic time, and Earth history. Concurrent enrollment in ESS7 laboratory section is required.

EarthSS 140:  Advanced Geology (Next offered Fall 2021)

This course will provide students with an introduction to the geological processes which have formed and continue to shape the Earth, with a particular focus on how the geosphere interacts with the atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere on a variety of timescales as part of the Earth System. The topics covered will include geological time and history of the Earth, minerals and the rock cycle, plate tectonics and associated geological hazards, Earth resources, and Earth surface processes.     This course includes a required laboratory section and a field trip to Joshua Tree National Park.

EarthSS 256: Paleoclimatology and Paleoceanography (Next offered Spring 2023). 

Aims to provide a fundamental understanding of past changes in the Earth’s climate system and their implications for the future, including:

1. How key chemical, physical, and biologic changes preserved in natural archives (e.g. d¹⁸O in ice cores) are used to infer past climate changes.  Students will learn about the tools, techniques, major assumptions, and uncertainties involved in key paleoclimate reconstruction methods.
2. Mechanisms of natural climate variability on a wide range of timescales.
3. Key climatic events documented in the geologic record, with an emphasis on events since the onset of Northern Hemisphere glaciation.

EarthSS 280A:  Diversity in STEM  (next offered Fall 2021). 

This graduate seminar course examines how diverse, intersectional identities including, but not limited to, gender, race, disability, sexuality, national origin, socioeconomic status, religion, and ethnicity shape the STEM experience, with a particular focus on the geosciences, when possible. We will familiarize ourselves with the current state of diversity in STEM, through critical reading of primary scholarly research on topics such as implicit bias, stereotype threat, effects of diversity on excellence, as well as through exploration of available data on STEM diversity.  We will discuss evidence-based approaches to increase diversity within STEM fields, including inclusive pedagogy, community-building, and mentoring.