Energy and Resources Group (ENE,RES)

This is an archived copy of the 2014-15 guide. To access the most recent version of the guide, please visit http://guide.berkeley.edu/.

Courses

ENE,RES 24 Freshman Seminar 1 Unit

The Freshman Seminar Program has been designed to provide new students with the opportunity to explore an intellectual topic with a faculty member in a small-seminar setting. Freshman Seminars are offered in all campus departments, and topics may vary from department to department and semester to semester.

ENE,RES 98 Directed Group Study for Lower Division Students 1 - 4 Units

Lectures and small group discussions focusing on topics of interest that vary from semester to semester.

ENE,RES 99 Supervised Independent Studies for Freshmen and Sophomores 1 - 4 Units

Supervised research on specific topics related to energy and resources.

ENE,RES C100 Energy and Society 4 Units

Energy sources, uses, and impacts: an introduction to the technology, politics, economics, and environmental effects of energy in contemporary society. Energy and well-being; energy in international perspective, origins, and character of energy crisis.

ENE,RES 101 Ecology and Society 3 Units

This course introduces students to the many ways in which our lives are intertwined with the ecosystems around us. Topics will include ecological limits to growth, climate change and other threats to biodiversity, the value of ecosystem goods and services, the ecology of disease, ecotoxicology, the evolution of cooperation in ecosystems, industrial ecology, and the epistemology of ecology. Offered alternate years.

ENE,RES 102 Quantitative Aspects of Global Environmental Problems 4 Units

Human disruption of biogeochemical and hydrological cycles; causes and consequences of climate change and acid deposition; transport and health impacts of pollutants; loss of species; radioactivity in the environment; epidemics.

ENE,RES 170 Environmental Classics 3 Units

Motivation: What is the history and evolution of environmental thinking and writing? How have certain "environmental classics" shaped the way in which we think about nature, society, and development? This course will use a selection of 20th-century books and papers that have had a major impact on academic and wider public thinking about the environment and development to probe these issues. The selection includes works and commentaries related to these works that have influenced environmental politics and policy in the U.S. as well as in the developing world. Through the classics and their critiques, reviews, and commentaries, the class will explore the evolution of thought on these transforming ideas.

ENE,RES 175 Water and Development 4 Units

This course introduces students to water policy in developing countries. It is a course motivated by the fact that over one billion people in developing countries have no access to safe drinking water, three billion do not have sanitation facilities, and many millions of small farmers do not have reliable water supplies to ensure a healthy crop. Readings and discussions will cover: the problems of water access and use in developing countries; the potential for technological, social, and economic solutions to these problems; the role of institutions in access to water and sanitation; and the pitfalls of the assumptions behind some of today's popular "solutions."

ENE,RES C180 Ecological Economics in Historical Context 3 Units

Economists through history have explored economic and environmental interactions, physical limits to growth, what constitutes the good life, and how economic justice can be assured. Yet economists continue to use measures and models that simplify these issues and promote bad outcomes. Ecological economics responds to this tension between the desire for simplicity and the multiple perspectives needed to understand complexity in order to move toward sustainable, fulfilling, just economies.

ENE,RES 190 Seminar in Energy, Environment, Development and Security Issues 3 Units

Critical, cross disciplinary analysis of specific issues or general problems of how people interact with environmental and resource systems. More than one section may be given each semester on different topics depending on faculty and student interest.

ENE,RES 198 Directed Group Studies for Advanced Undergraduates 1 - 4 Units

Group studies of selected topics.

ENE,RES 199 Supervised Independent Study and Research 1 - 4 Units

Individual conferences.

ENE,RES C200 Energy and Society 4 Units

Energy sources, uses, and impacts; an introduction to the technology, politics, economics, and environmental effects of energy in contemporary society. Energy and well-being; energy international perspective, origins, and character of energy crisis.

ENE,RES 201 Interdisciplinary Analysis in Energy and Resources 3 Units

Introduction to interdisciplinary analysis as it is practiced in the ERG. Most of the course consists of important perspectives on energy and resource issues, introduced through a particularly influential book or set of papers. The course also provides an introduction to the current research activities of the ERG faculty as well as practical knowledge and skills necessary to successfully complete graduate school in an interdisciplinary program.

ENE,RES C202 Modeling Ecological and Meteorological Phenomena 3 Units

Modeling methods in ecology and meteorology; stability analysis; effects of anthropogenic stress on natural systems. Offered alternate years.

ENE,RES C205 Quantitative Methods for Ecological and Environmental Modeling 3 Units

This course will review the background mathematical and statistical tools necessary for students interested in pursuing ecological and environmental modeling. Topics include linear algebra; difference equation, ordinary differential equation, and partial differential equation models; stochastic processes; parameter estimation; and a number of statistical techniques. This course will be recommended as a prerequisite for advanced modeling courses in Integrative Biology, Energy and Resources Group, and Environmental Science, Policy, and Management.

ENE,RES C221 Climate, Energy and Development 3 Units

Graduate seminar examining the role of energy science, technology, and policy in
international development. The course will look at how changes in the theory and practice
of energy systems and of international development have co-evolved over the past half-
century, and what opportunities exist going forward.

A focus will be on rural and decentralized energy use, and the issues of technology, culture,
and politics that are raised by both current trajectories, and potential alternative energy
choices. We will explore the frequently divergent ideas about energy and development that
have emerged from civil society, academia, multinational development agencies, and the
private and industrial sector.

ENE,RES C226 Photovoltaic Materials; Modern Technologies in the Context of a Growing Renewable Energy Market 3 Units

This technical course focuses on the fundamentals of photovoltaic energy conversion with respect to the physical principals of operation and design of efficient semiconductor solar cell devices. This course aims to equip students with the concepts and analytical skills necessary to assess the utility and viability of various modern photovoltaic technologies in the context of a growing global renewable energy market.

ENE,RES 254 Electric Power Systems 3 Units

Provides an understanding of concepts in the design and operation of electric power systems, including generation, transmission, and consumption. Covers basic electromechanical physics, reactive power, circuit and load analysis, reliability, planning, dispatch, organizational design, regulations, environment, end-use efficiency, and new technologies.

ENE,RES 270 Environmental Classics 3 Units

Motivation: What is the history and evolution of environmental thinking and writing? How have certain "environmental classics" shaped the way in which we think about nature, society, and development? This course will use a selection of 20th-century books and papers that have had a major impact on academic and wider public thinking about the environment and development to probe these issues. The selection includes works and commentaries related to these works that have influenced environmental politics and policy in the U.S. as well as in the developing world. Through the classics and their critiques, reviews, and commentaries, the class will explore the evolution of thought on these transforming ideas.

ENE,RES 273 Research Methods in Social Sciences 3 Units

This course aims to introduce graduate students to the rich diversity of research methods that social scientists have developed for the empirical aspects of their work. Its primary goal is to encourage critical thinking about the research process: how we "know," how we match research methods to research questions, how we design and conduct our information/data collection, what we assume explicitly and implicitly, and the ethical dilemmas raised by fieldwork-oriented studies.

ENE,RES 275 Water and Development 4 Units

This class is an interdisciplinary graduate seminar for students of water policy in developing countries. It is not a seminar on theories and practices of development through the "lens" of water. Rather, it is a seminar motivated by the fact that over 1 billion people in developing countries have no access to safe drinking water, 3 billion don't have sanitation facilities and many millions of small farmers do not have reliable water supplies to ensure a healthy crop. Readings and discussions will cover: the problems of water access and use in developing countries; the potential for technological, social, and economic solutions to these problems; the role of institutions in access to water and sanitation; and the pitfalls of and assumptions behind some of today's popular "solutions."

ENE,RES 280 Energy Economics 3 Units

Input-output and cost benefit analysis applied to energy; exhaustion theory and economics of energy supply; patterns of energy use; trade-offs in energy conservation; the effect of energy policy on supply and demand; projecting future energy and resource supply and use.

ENE,RES C283 Information and Communications Technology for Development 3 Units

This seminar reviews current literature and debates regarding Information and Communication Technologies and Development (ICTD). This is an interdisciplinary and practice-oriented field that draws on insights from economics, sociology, engineering, computer science, management, public health, etc.

ENE,RES 290 Seminar in Energy and Resources 1 - 4 Units

Graduate student presentations and faculty-student discussions of advanced topics in energy and resources. Specific topics vary according to faculty and student interest.

ENE,RES 291 Special Topics in Energy and Resources 1 - 3 Units

Study and critical analysis of advanced topics in energy and resources using interdisciplonary approaches. Specific topics vary according to faculty and student interest.

ENE,RES 292A Tools of the Trade 2 Units

Quantitative methods for energy and resource analysis. Topics include linear algebra, differential equations, statistical methods, chemical equilibrium theory, and thermodynamics.

ENE,RES 292B Master's Project Seminar 2 Units

Required of second-semester Energy and Resources Master's candidates. Topics include the adoption of a research project, research design, presentation of work, and statistical analyses. Introduction to research skills, including Human Subject Research Protocols, research ethics and methodologies. Critical reading and analysis of research papers; development and discussion of project ideas. Students begin to identify and solicit faculty readers for their projects. Students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives learned in the core curriculum.

ENE,RES 292C Master's Project Seminar 2 Units

Required for ERG Master's students in the semester previous to the one in which they plan to file their Project. Development of Master’s Project outline and research plan. Identification and solicitation of faculty readers. Evaluation and integration of critical feedback from readers and cohort on project. Topics include the adoption of a research project, research design, presentation of work, and statistical analyses. Students will apply the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives learned in the core curriculum. Course requirements include:
Attendance and active participation in the sharing and critique of the cohort’s final master’s projects (50%); draft project outline and final readers confirmed by end of term (50%).

ENE,RES 292D Master's Project Seminar 2 Units

Required of all ERG Master’s students in the semester during which they plan to file their Final Master's Project. This course is intended to assist students in completing their required Master’s Projects, and to provide constructive feedback to students on their Final Master's Project oral presentations. The goal is to improve the quality of the research for the ERG Master’s Projects and to learn and refine presentation skills for an academic/professional audience.

ENE,RES 295 Special Topics in Energy and Resources 1 Unit

Presentations of research in energy issues by faculty, students, and visiting lecturers. Master's degree students required to enroll for three semesters.

ENE,RES 296 Doctoral Seminar 2 Units

Lectures, reports, and discussions on current research in energy and resources. Particular emphasis on topics of research interest for current Ph.D. students in the Energy and Resources Group.

ENE,RES 298 Doctoral Seminar 2 Units

Lectures, reports, and discussions on current research in energy and resources. Sections are operated independently and under direction of different staff.

ENE,RES 298N Directed Group Study 1 - 3 Units

Informal group studies of special problems in energy and resources.

ENE,RES 299 Individual Research in Energy and Resources 1 - 12 Units

Investigation of problems in energy and resources from an interdisciplinary perspective.

ENE,RES 301 Graduate Student Instructor Practicum 3 Units

Course credit for experience gained in academic teaching through employment as a graduate student instructor.

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