Mathematics & Physical Sciences

Apply NOw
View Courses
Academics

College of the Atlantic

Physical science and mathematics are simultaneously useful and beautiful

They tell us how to build solar cells to make clean electricity and explain why the sun shines and the sky is blue. Students choose to pursue math and physical science classes at COA both to build a base for study in the natural and social sciences and also because they are interested in these areas in their own right. We offer a mix of classes: some cover standard sets of topics, while other courses are more interdisciplinary, exploring connections across the sciences and to other areas of study.

Geology and earth science

There are two introductory geology classes every year.  The Geology of MDI is a strongly field-based survey of the techniques and principles of geology.  Natural Resources is a topical introduction to geology and earth science. Intermediate and advanced geology courses include Climate and Weather, Critical Zone, and Rocks and Minerals. In all geology classes students learn observational analytical skills, applicable across the sciences. And all geology classes have a field component. Yes, even during the winter term.

Mathematics

We offer a range of classes in math and related areas.  A two-term sequence in single-variable calculus is taught every other year. Advanced math classes include Multivariable Calculus,  Differential Equations and Linear Algebra. Many math courses incorporate computer programming. Introductory statistics is a yearly offering; we offer an intermediate statistics class most years as well.

Apply now
Browse courses

Physics

We offer Physics I and II every other year.  Advanced classes, such as Thermodynamics, are offered once every few years. The interdisciplinary class Physics and Mathematics of Sustainable Energy happens each fall, giving students a background they can draw on to pursue advanced classes and projects in renewable energy.

Chemistry

COA has a yearly, two-term sequence in Introductory Chemistry. Organic Chemistry, also a two-term sequence, happens every other year. Other chemistry classes include the Chemistry and Biology of Food and Drink and Environmental Chemistry.

Reminder: Areas of study at COA aren’t majors or formal concentrations. All COA students design their own major in human ecology and are free to chart their own path. Your major is defined by you, not us.

Related Courses

Biostatistics

This course will provide students with a toolbox of techniques in statistical analysis, with a focus on the biological sciences. Students will learn how to choose and apply a variety of widely used statistical tests, how to design experiments and studies with statistical analysis in mind, and how to use a range of specialized statistical approaches for data types frequently encountered in the biological sciences. The methods we will cover include parametric and nonparametric tests; approaches designed for categorical, ordinal, and continuous data; biodiversity statistics and ordination methods; Bayesian vs. frequentist inference; and robust experimental design. The class will highlight the assumptions involved in statistical inference and the conditions that must be met in order to use statistical tests appropriately. In the lab, students will use the statistical programming language R to explore, display, and analyze data using the methods covered in class. By the end of the term, students should be able to choose appropriate analytical methods for a wide range of data types, design statistically valid experiments, and write code for basic statistical tests in R. Students will be evaluated based on daily homework assignments, weekly lab work, several take-home exams, and a final group presentation based on an original analysis of an archived data set chosen by the students. Note: each student should have a laptop for lab (PC preferred; limited support will be provided for Mac users). Contact the instructor if you do not have your own laptop.

Course Number
ES4048
Area of Study
Biomedical Studies and Molecular Biology, Field Ecology & Natural History, Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Intermediate/advanced
Instructor
Susan G. Letcher

Calculus I

The goal of this sequence of courses is to develop the essential ideas of single-variable calculus: the limit, the derivative, and the integral. Understanding concepts is emphasized over intricate mathematical maneuverings. The mathematics learned are applied to topics from the physical, natural, and social sciences. There is a weekly lab/discussion section. Evaluations are based on homework, participation in class and lab, and tests.

Course Number
ES1024
Area of Study
Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
David Feldman

Calculus II

This course is the continuation of Calculus I. It begins by considering further applications of the integral. We then move to approximations and series; we conclude the course with a brief treatment of differential equations. The mathematics learned are applied to topics from the physical, natural, and social sciences. There is a weekly lab/discussion section. Evaluations are based on homework, participation in class and lab, and tests.

Course Number
ES3012
Area of Study
Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Intermediate
Instructor
David Feldman

Chemistry and Biology of Food and Drink

Introductory chemistry and biology are explored in the context of food and drink: the biology of crops, culinary chemistry, and the biochemistry of brewing. Major chemistry topics include atomic structure, periodicity, bonding, acid base chemistry, kinetics, equilibrium, colloids, and solubility of gases in liquids. Major biology topics include photosynthesis, respiration, plant and yeast life histories, cellular reproduction, and metabolism. We will also explore agricultural chemistry from a systems perspective: examining strategies to for keeping pace with the demand for nitrogen and phosphorous in soils. This course is meant to offer important, fundamental chemistry and biology through the framework of food, a universal human experience. These fundamental topics in Chemistry and Biology will be explored from the ground up, so no prior experience is required. Meanwhile, the culinary and agricultural framework should offer enough new content for students with a background in natural sciences. Students will be evaluated based on participation in classroom and laboratory sessions, projects, and quizzes.

Course Number
ES1072
Area of Study
Farming & Food Systems, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Reuben Hudson

Chemistry I

This is the first half of a two-term sequence designed to help students describe and understand properties of materials. The course first explores how atomic and molecular structure relates to the physical properties of materials and their reactivity. The course explores the reasons, rates, and outcomes of chemical reactions. Course material is applied to better understand living systems, the natural environment, and industrial products. The course meets for three hours of lecture/discussion and for three hours of lab each week. Students are strongly urged to take both terms of this course. Evaluations are based on class participation, lab reports, and quizzes.

Course Number
ES1066
Area of Study
Biomedical Studies and Molecular Biology, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Vitalii Polubinskyi

Chemistry II

This is the second half of a two-term sequence designed to help students describe and understand properties of materials. This course begins with a survey of how the internal structure of atoms leads to the formation of different sorts of bonds between them. It then considers how weaker forces can arise between molecules and the sorts of physical phenomena that such forces explain. The class concludes by considering how to describe and explain the rates at which (and the extents to which) chemicals reactions occur and applies such descriptions and explanations to common types of reactions (acid/base and redox). Throughout the course, examples are drawn from living systems, the natural environment, and industrial products. The course meets for three hours of lecture/discussion and for three hours of lab each week. Chemistry 1 is a strongly recommended a prerequisite for this course. Evaluations are based on class participation, homework, midterm and final exams and a term project or paper.

Course Number
ES1030
Area of Study
Biomedical Studies and Molecular Biology, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Vitalii Polubinskyi

Climate and Weather

This class will explore general weather and climate patterns on global, regional, and local scales. We will discuss the major forcings driving global climate fluctuations – on both long (millions of years) and short (days) timescales, including natural and anthropogenic processes. We will also learn about basic meteorology and the processes producing some common spectacular optical weather phenomena (rainbows, coronas, cloud-types, etc). Students will complete a term project comprising a photo-documentary journal of the different weather phenomena they observe during the 10-week term. The field component of this course will be self-guided through the observation and documentation of weather phenomena. Who should take this course: No prior geology/science experience is needed – but expect to do a bit of basic math in this course! The course level is intermediate because it will not cover foundational principles of geology (or other sciences) but instead the course will be integrative and require students to practice both their quantitative and qualitative skills. Take this course if you are passionate or curious about climate change, but do not know much about the science of climate and weather!

Course Number
ES3044
Area of Study
Climate Change and Energy, Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Intermediate
Instructor
Sarah R. Hall

Geology of Mt. Desert Island

This course is designed to introduce students to geological concepts, tools of the trade, and to the geological history of Mount Desert Island. Throughout the course, students will learn skillsets (topographic and geologic map reading, orienteering, field observation, note taking, field measurements) and geologic principles (rock types, stratigraphy, plate tectonics, earth systems, geologic time, surface processes) both in the classroom and in the field. We will conduct multiple short field excursions on MDI and one extended weekend field trip to explore the regional geology. Students will submit a term project complete with their own field data, maps, photos, and analysis of the local and regional geology. Students will be evaluated on the term project, short quizzes, additional written assignments and lab reports. Offered every fall.

Course Number
ES1038
Area of Study
Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructors
Sarah R. Hall, Scott Braddock

Geology of National Parks

In this introductory geoscience course students will learn foundational principles and concepts such as plate tectonics, geologic time, climate and weather, rocks and minerals, and surface processes through an exploration of some of the National Parks of the United States. Through virtual field trips of various parks, students will visualize how regional climate and surface processes such as rivers, glaciers, and wind interact with the bedrock and surficial materials to produce some of the most iconic landscapes. While Acadia National Park offers a view of an ancient and eroded supervolcano, Yellowstone offers a glimpse of a dynamic landscape built on a modern supervolcano. While a few glaciers still cling to the high peaks of Glacier National Park, Yosemite hosts steep glacially carved valleys and polished domes reminiscent of a glaciated past. Class time will be used for lectures, discussions of readings, and laboratory exercises. During labs, students will get to know approximately 6 different parks in detail through interaction with geologic maps, rock samples, aerial imagery, and scientific reports. The students will be evaluated based on laboratory exercises and a final project through which students will explore one park of their choosing.

Course Number
ES1075
Area of Study
Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Scott Braddock

Glaciers and the Landscape

Glaciers are rapidly retreating around the planet and predicted to continue this trend in the coming centuries. The decline of the world’s ice sheets and mountain glaciers will impact sea level, infrastructure, and fresh-water resources for communities around the world. To put current changes into a long-term geologic context, students will learn the processes, landforms, and impact of glaciers on the Earth’s surface as the planet has cycled through ice ages. This course is designed to provide students with a solid understanding of the dynamic interactions between ice, climate, landscapes, and humans over varying spatial and temporal scales. In addition, we will cover the basics of glaciology and the physics that influence the structure, size, and movement of ice. Through class discussions and assigned problem sets, students will reinforce the content covered in lectures. In addition, this course will give students hands-on experience with tools and methods commonly used to study glaciers and ice sheets (such as: ground-penetrating radar, LiDAR, rock sampling for cosmogenic analysis). This course will have various field trips during class time on Mount Desert Island to explore how an ice sheet shaped the region’s landscape during the Last Glacial Maximum. Students will be evaluated on weekly problem sets and readings and a final project and presentation related to this history of glaciation in Maine.

Course Number
ES1088
Area of Study
Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Scott Braddock

Introduction to Chaos and Fractals

This course presents an elementary introduction to chaos and fractals. The main focus will be on using discrete dynamical systems to illustrate many of the key phenomena of chaotic dynamics: stable and unstable fixed and periodic points, deterministic chaos, bifurcations, and universality. A central result of this study will be the realization that very simple non-linear equations can exhibit extremely complex behavior. In particular, a simple deterministic system (i.e., physical system governed by simple, exact mathematical rules) can behave in a way that is unpredictable and random, (i.e., chaotic). This result suggests that there are potentially far-reaching limits on the ability of science to predict certain phenomena. Students in this class will also learn about fractals—self-similar geometric objects—including the Mandelbrot set and Julia sets. We will also read about and discuss the development of the field of chaos. In so doing, we will examine the nature of scientific communities, with a particular eye toward how changes in scientific outlooks occur. Throughout the course, students will be encouraged to explore the relations between chaos, fractals, and other areas of study such as literature, art, and cultural studies. Students who successfully complete this class should gain a quantitative and qualitative understanding of the basic ideas of chaos and fractals, a greater understanding of the cultural practice of science, and improved mathematical skills. Evaluation will be based on class and lab participation, weekly problem sets several short writing assignments and a final project.

Course Number
ES1026
Area of Study
Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
David Feldman

Introduction to Computer Science: Data

As our access to data and compute power have increased, more and more disciplines rely on computer science techniques to analyze, visualize, and process information. As such, coding skills and computational thinking are increasingly important for work in a wide variety of fields and disciplines. This course is an introduction to computer science, designed to teach students general computational skills and habits of mind that will be immediately useful and practical, and which will also prepare them for further study in computer science and related areas. Students who successfully complete this course will be able to: read a simple program and correctly describe the outcome, take a problem statement and convert it into code, and gain an understanding of how basic computer memory works and why this matters. Topics covered will include conditionals and loops, data types, functions, as well as higher-level concepts such as abstraction, version control, and debugging. The context for this class is data; students will learn how to import and generate data, manipulate and transform it, and visualize it.

This course is intended for students who have little to no computer experience and who are interested in learning the foundations of computer science through projects that require working with data. We will use examples in class and you will implement projects throughout the course where we both generate and use data coming from across the physical, natural, and social sciences. It will be helpful if you are interested in data, but no prior experience with any particular type of data is necessary.

The course is taught in Python. Students will be evaluated on weekly quizzes and weekly projects. This course, or the equivalent, is required for many further courses in computer science, machine learning, data science, robotics, and related areas.

Course Number
ES1093
Area of Study
Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Torrie Edwards

Introduction to Oceanography

Planet Earth is misnamed. Seawater covers approximately 70% of the planet’s surface, in one giant all-connected ocean. This ocean has a profound effect on the planet’s climate, chemistry, ecosystem, and energy resources. Billions of years ago life began there, in what now we regard as the last unexplored frontier of this planet. In this course we examine the various disciplines within oceanography, including aspects of geology and sedimentology, chemical, dynamic and biological oceanography. The course concludes with an introduction to marine ecosystems examined at various trophic levels, including phyto/zooplankton, fish and other macrofauna. Fieldwork (weather dependent) includes trips on RV Indigo, trips to intertidal and estuarine ecosystems, and possible visits to the college’s islands, Mount Desert Rock and Great Duck Island. Evaluation will be by lab, quizzes and a final paper.

Course Number
ES1022
Area of Study
Field Ecology & Natural History, Marine Science, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Introductory
Instructor
Sean K. Todd

Introduction to Statistics and Research Design

This course introduces the basics of statistical analysis that can be used in either a scientific or a social science frame of reference. While this course teaches you to perform both nonparametric and simple parametric analysis both by hand and computer, an emphasis will be placed on understanding the principles and assumptions of each test, rather than mathematical ability per se. We will also learn how to report statistical results in journal format, and there will be plenty of lab time to sharpen skills. Evaluation is based on lab participation, three quizzes, and a team project.

Course Number
ES2012
Area of Study
Biomedical Studies and Molecular Biology, Field Ecology & Natural History, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Intermediate/advanced
Instructor
Sean K. Todd

Language, Power, and Computation: Algorithmic Text Analysis

Computational text analysis (CTA) is an emerging field that uses computation to analyze texts. CTA draws on the fields of computer science, machine learning, computational linguistics, and literary theory. Using machine learning and statistics, computers can be used to explore how language is used in particular contexts, including how frequently different words are used, the sentiment of a word/text, as well as nuances in the ways words are associated with one another.

We will use CTA to engage in “Distant Reading”, a term coined by literary theorist Franco Moretti. Distant Reading stands in contrast to the more familiar “Close Reading”: a deep engagement with a particular text or a passage from a text. Distant Reading engages not with a particular text, but with a large corpus of texts: e.g., all novels published in English in the 20th century, all articles written in The New York Times and The Washington Post in the last decade, or the lyrics of all top-100 pop songs from the 1980s. Computational techniques applied to large collections of texts allow one to ask broad questions about structural and linguistic change over time and to look for patterns of language use that would not be evident from analysis of one or even several individual texts. Distant Reading, and computational text analysis more generally, is not intended to replace close reading, but to complement it.

We will use CTA to explore how power structures and systems—such as race, gender, and colonialism—manifest themselves in bodies of text. For example, CTA has been used to investigate Islamophobia, analyze race in US novels, explore settler colonialism in the Americas, and to investigate shifts in anti-Asian sentiments in the US brought on by the COVID crisis.

Students will who successfully complete this course will: 1) gain a conceptual understanding of various CTA techniques, including word frequency analysis, topic modeling, and sentiment analysis; 2) learn how to apply these techniques using pre-existing software and doing their own coding; 3) gain experience asking questions about power structures/systems—race, gender, colonialism—and how those structures manifest themselves in corpora of text; 4) learn how these questions of power can be explored using algorithmic methods; and 5) gain experience critiquing algorithmic methods through the lenses of race, gender, and colonialism.

Classes will be a mixture of lecture, group exercises, discussion, and live coding. Readings will include case studies and selections from literary theorists. Evaluation will be based on participation in discussion and in-class activities, several short coding/analysis exercises, several short reflection assignments, and a group project on a topic of the students’ choosing.

Course Number
HS3112
Area of Study
Literature & Writing, Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Course Level
Intermediate
Instructors
David Feldman, Palak Taneja

Faculty

David Feldman

David Feldman

Faculty, Physics and Mathematics
Dean, Academic Affairs
Phone: 207-801-5709
Email: dfeldman@coa.edu
Office: Second Floor, Turrets Annex

ABOUT

Before COA

From 1991-1993, Dave was a teacher of 9th and 10th grade physics and mathematics at The McCallie School in Chattanooga, TN. As a graduate student at UC Davis, Dave received several awards in recognition of both teaching and scholarship: The Dissertation Year Fellowship; The Chancellor’s Teaching Fellowship; and he was nominated for the Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Award.

His other interests include ultimate frisbee, hockey, cooking, travel, and gardening. He is married to Doreen Stabinsky; they have three excellent cats.

Personal Website

https://dpfeldman.github.io

Course Areas

physics, mathematics

COURSES

More Information about my Courses

At COA Dave has taught over twenty different courses in physics, mathematics, and computer science.

Together with several other colleagues, in 2016 Dave launched the Thoreau Environmental Leaders Initiative, a project that supports participatory learning in food systems, renewable energy, and climate change politics, and helps give students skills in community organizing and activism. The project has been supported by several grants from the Henry David Thoreau Foundation totaling $155,000.

EDUCATION

  • B.A, Physics, Carleton College, 1991
  • Ph.D., Physics, University of California, Davis, 1998

HONORS & AWARDS

2012
U.S. Fulbright Lecturer, Rwanda
Fulbright Scholars
1997-98
Dissertation Year Fellowship
University of California, Davis
1996
Chancellor’s Teaching Fellowship
University of California, Davis

INTERESTS

Dave’s research interests lie in the fields of statistical mechanics and nonlinear dynamics. In particular, his research has examined how one might measure “complexity” or pattern in a mathematical system, and how such complexity is related to disorder. Dave has authored research papers in journals including Physical Review E, Chaos, and Advances in Complex Systems. Two of his papers have been cited over 400 times. In his research, Dave uses both analytic and computational techniques.

Dave is also interested in the teaching and learning of chaos and dynamical systems.  He has authored two books on these topics: Chaos and Fractals: An Elementary Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2012), a textbook for non-math/science majors; and Chaos and Dynamical Systems (Princeton University Press, 2019), a contribution to the Primers in Complex Systems series. Dave has developed two MOOCs, one on Chaos and Dynamical Systems and one on Fractals and Scaling. These free, online classes are part of the Santa Fe Institute’s Complexity Explorer project and have been taken by thousands of students.

Dave has recently become interested in teaching about renewable energy and energy conservation. With Anna E. Demeo, then a lecturer at COA in engineering, he developed an introductory course on the physics and mathematics of sustainable energy. Anna and Dave received a $95,000 grant from the Maine Space Grant Consortium Research and Higher Education Program to support the development of the class. He is currently working on a textbook based on this class. Anna and Dave also received an $18,000 grant from the Environmental Education Program of the Environmental Protection Agency to develop and teach a workshop on sustainable energy for area elementary school teachers.

From 2004-2008, Dave gave a week-long series of lectures at the China Complex Systems Summer School (CSSS), co-sponsored by the Santa Fe Institute and the Institute of Theoretical Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing. His lectures provided students with a broad introduction to complex systems, including dynamical systems, information theory, and computation theory. From 2006-2008 he was co-director of the China CSSS. He was PI on a $116,000 grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation that partially supported the CSSS. Since 2017 he has served as director of the annual CSSS in Santa Fe.  From December 2018 to August 2019 he served as the Santa Fe Institute’s Interim Vice-President for Education.

ADVOCACY

Dave is on the steering committee of Indivisible Mount Desert Island. He spoke at the 2017 Climate Change March, the 2018 Waves of Love rally on the one-year anniversary of the events in Charlottesville, a rally in 2019 on the eve of President Trump’s impeachment, and an event in 2022 shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Dave is also a founding member of the MDI Racial Equity Working Group and the MDI Racial Equity Collective. He is a member of the Title IX team at College of the Atlantic and has completed an ATIXA level two Civil Rights Investigator training.

PUBLICATIONS

  • D.P. Feldman and J.P. Crutchfield, Discovering Noncritical Organization: Statistical Mechanical, Information Theoretic, and Computational Views of Patterns in One-Dimensional Spin Systems, Entropy, 24(9), 1282- 1354. 2022.
  • A.E. Demeo, D.P. Feldman, and M.L. Peterson. A Human Ecological Approach to Energy Literacy through Hands-on Projects: An Essential Component of Effectively Addressing Climate Change. Journal of Sustainability Education. Vol. 4, January 2013.
  • M.D. Robinson, D.P. Feldman, and S.R. McKay. Local Entropy and Structure in a Two-Dimensional Frustrated System. Chaos. 21(3). 037114. 2011.
  • D.P. Feldman, C.S. McTague, and J.P. Crutchfield. The Organization of Intrinsic
  • Computation: Complexity-Entropy Diagrams and the Diversity of Natural Information Processing. Chaos. 18:043106. 2008.
  • D.P. Feldman and J.P. Crutchfield, Synchronizing to Periodicity: The Transient Information and Synchronization Time of Periodic Sequences. Advances in Complex Systems. 7(3-4): 329-355, 2004.
  • D.P. Feldman and J.P. Crutchfield, Structural Information in Two-Dimensional Pat-
  • terns: Entropy Convergence and Excess Entropy. Physical Review E. 67:051104. 2003.
  • J.P. Crutchfield and D.P. Feldman. Regularities Unseen, Randomness Observed: The
  • Entropy Convergence Hierarchy. Chaos. 15: 25-54, 2003.
  • J.P. Crutchfield and D.P. Feldman, Synchronizing to the Environment: Information Theoretic Constraints on Agent Learning. Advances in Complex Systems. 4: 251-264,
  • 2001.
  • J P. Crutchfield, D.P. Feldman, and C. R. Shalizi. Comment I on “Simple Measure for Complexity.” Physical Review E. 62:2996-7, 2000.
  • D. P. Feldman and J.P. Crutchfield. Statistical Measures of Complexity: Why? Physics Letters A, 238:244-52, 1998
  • J.P. Crutchfield and D.P. Feldman, Statistical Complexity of Simple 1D Spin Systems. Physical Review E. 55:R1239-42, 1997.

Invited Book Reviews

  • D.P. Feldman. Review of Introduction to Modern Dynamics: Chaos, Networks, Space and Time. Physics Today, 68(12):56, 2015.
  • D.P. Feldman. Review of Complex and Adaptive Dynamical Systems. Physics Today, 62(7):58-9, 2009.
  • D.P. Feldman. Review of Monte Carlo Methods in Statistical Physics. Computing in Science & Engineering, 2:73-4, 2000.

Essays

  • D.P. Feldman. Field Theory. Bateau. 7.1. Fall 2018.

Presentations

  • A Crash Course on Fractals and Scaling. Complex Systems Summer School. Santa Fe, NM. June 13, 2019.
  • A Crash Course on Information Theory. Complex Systems Summer School. Santa Fe, NM. June 18, 2019.
  • A Crash Course on Fractals and Scaling. Complex Systems Summer School. Santa Fe, NM. June 13, 2018.
  • A Crash Course on Information Theory. Complex Systems Summer School. Santa Fe, NM. June 18, 2018.
  • Panel on Gerrymandering. A panel sponsored by the Maine League of Women Voters. Augusta, ME. February 15, 2018.
  • D.P. Feldman. Gerrymandering in the US: History, Law, Math, and Politics. Human Ecology Forum. College of the Atlantic. October 24, 2017.
  • Field Theory. A joint reading with Dan Mahoney. Human Ecology Forum. College of the Atlantic. Bar Harbor, ME. May 23, 2017.
  • Predictable Unpredictability: Strange Attractors and the Buterfly Effect. Eagle Hill Institute. Steuben, ME. August 8, 2013.
  • Local Complexity for Heterogeneous Spatial Systems. Information in Dynamical Systems and Complex Systems Workshop. Burlington, VT. July 18–19, 2013.
  • Complexity, Unpredictability, and Synchronization: Information Theoretic Measures of Structure and Randomness. IDyOM Workshop on Information and Neural Dynamics in the Perception of Musical Structure. Goldsmiths College, London, UK. March 17, 2013.
  • Strange Attractors and the The Butterfly Effect: The Mathematics of Chaos. Science
  • Café sponsored by the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory and McKay’s Public
  • House, Bar Harbor, ME. Feb. 6, 2013.
  • Chaos and Complex Systems: In the Classroom and Beyond. Smith Institute for
  • Applied Research, Invitational Symposium. Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte,
  • NC. Oct. 26, 2012.
sarah holding books with ball cap on, outside

Sarah R. Hall

Faculty, Earth Science
Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Chair in Earth Systems and GeoSciences
Phone: 207-801-5735
Email: shall@coa.edu
Office: Dorr Museum, 2nd Floor; Geoscience Research Space: CHE 200b

ABOUT

Before COA

Sarah joined the faculty of COA in the Fall of 2012 and teaches courses in the Earth Sciences. Before coming to COA Sarah was an Assistant Professor at McGill University in Montreal following her graduate work at the University of California, Santa Cruz and undergraduate degree at Hamilton College. She grew up in upstate NY and after college spent a few years in Atlanta, GA working as a Geologist at an environmental consulting firm and as an ECOWATCH AmeriCorps team member.

Course Areas

earth science, geology, geomorphology, weather, climate, water, landscape, climate change

Personal Website

https://coageoscience.earth/index.html

COURSES

More Information about my Courses

Sarah regularly offer courses on topics exploring landscape shaping processes, climate, geologic principles, interactions between human and Earth systems, as well as place-based studies of Mt Desert Island (MDI) and Maine.

Most of her courses have some field component where COA students may be learning field methods (e.g. mapping, water sampling, measuring the orientation of geologic features, or describing soils), while visiting parts of Acadia National Park, MDI, or Maine to understand the overall geologic history of the region. In some classes, students design and complete self-guided field work as in the Climate and Weather class where students produce a field guide to various meteorological phenomena. Occasionally, Sarah offers intensive field courses to regions with very different geology from Maine such as Eastern California and the Peruvian Andes.

Sarah regularly advises students on independent research projects. Some are related to her ongoing research and some are inspired by student interest. See some examples of student research here. Explore student created Story Maps of select National Parks here.

Opportunistically Sarah co-teaches courses with other faculty, such as The Anthropocene, Demons from the Depths, and Topics in Research: Geoscience and Geochemistry offering students an inter- multi- or transdisciplinary learning experience.

For the 2023-2024 academic year, geoscience courses are being taught by glacial geomorphologist, Scott Braddock while Sarah is pursuing an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship in Washington D.C. Sarah is currently positioned in the Landslide Hazards Program Office, Natural Hazards Mission Area of the U.S. Geological Survey.

EDUCATION

  • Ph.D. Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, 2009
  • B.A. Geology, Hamilton College, 2001

INTERESTS

Sarah is trained as a geomorphologist studying the processes shaping the surface of the earth. Her research interests are quite broad including mountain building, past glaciations, active faulting, watershed monitoring, and the erosion of landscapes. One of Sarah’s current research projects involves completing a chronology of past glaciations in a portion of the Peruvian Andes. Two local water quality projects are focused on watershed monitoring in and around Acadia National Park and a study concerning private well water characteristics. Through her teaching of field-based courses, Sarah has begun to explore ways to connect professional development opportunities directly to curricular content. With collaborators and COA students, she developed and implemented the Environmental-STEM field-based professional development program, a curriculum that is freely available online for use by other educators.

ADVOCACY

Member of the Executive Council of the Geological Society of Maine.

Cooperating curator of the Hudson Museum at the University of Maine.

Affiliated faculty researcher at the Climate Change Institute.

Steering committee member of the Coastal Maine Geopark.

PUBLICATIONS

Publications
Select publications are listed below. A star (*) indicates student co-author. For a full list, visit this website.

Benavente, C., Palomino, A., Wimpenny, S., García B., Rosell, L., Aguirre, E., Macharé, J., Rodriguez Padilla, A.M.*, and Hall, S.R., 2022. Paleoseismic Evidence of the 1715 C.E Earthquake on the Purgatorio Fault in Southern Peru: Implications for Seismic Hazard in Subduction Zones, Tectonophysics, doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2022.229355

Walker, B., Hall, S.R., and Schmidt, C. 2020. Environmental STEM (E-STEM) Field Course and Professional Development Modules, Reviewed Teaching Activity Collection of the Teach The Earth Program (some “Exemplary” modules), Science Education Resource Center (SERC), Teaching Resources website

Farrell, A., Buckman, K., Hall, S.R., Muñoz, I.*, Bieluch, K., Zoellich, B., and Disney, J., 2021. Adaptations to a secondary school-based citizen science project to engage students in monitoring well water for arsenic during the Covid-19 pandemic. Journal of STEM Outreach 4(2), doi: 10.15695/jstem/v4i2.05.

Saillard, M., Audin, L., Rousset, B., Avouac, J.-P., Chlieh, M., Hall S.R., Husson L., Farber, D.L., 2017. From the seismic cycle to long-term deformation: linking seismic coupling and Quaternary coastal geomorphology along the Andean Megathrust, Tectonics, 36(2), p. 241-256. doi: 10.1002/2016TC004156.

Michalak, M.K., Hall, S.R., Farber, D.L., Audin, L., and Hourigan, J.K., 2015. (U-Th)/He Thermochronology records late Miocene accelerated cooling in the north-central Peruvian Andes, Lithosphere, 8(2), p.103–115, doi: 10.1130/L485.1.

Margirier, A., Robert X., Audin, L., Gautheron, C., Bernet, M., Hall, S.R., and Simon-Labric, T., 2015. Slab flattening, magmatism, and surface uplift in the Cordillera Occidental (northern Peru), Geology, 43(11), p. 1031-1034, 10.1130/G37061.1.

Hall, S.R., Farber, D. L., Audin, L., Finkel, R.C., 2012. Recent contractile deformation in the forearc of southern Peru, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 337-338, 85-90, doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2012.04.007.

Hall, S.R., Farber, D.L., Ramage, J.M., Rodbell, D.T., Finkel, R.C., Smith, J.A., Mark, B.G.,Kassel, C., 2009. Geochronology of LLGM through Holocene glaciations from the tropical Cordillera Huayhuash, Peru, 2009. Quaternary Science Reviews, 28, 2991-3009, doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.08.004.

Saillard, M., Hall S.R., Audin, L., Hérail, G., Farber D.L., Finkel, R.C., Martinod, J., Bondoux, F., and Regard,V., 2008. Pleistocene marine terrace development and non-steady long-term uplift rates along the Andean margin of Chile (31°S). Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 277(1-2), 50-63, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2008.09.039.

Hall, S.R., Farber, D.L., Audin, L., Finkel, R.C., Meriaux, A-S., 2008. Geochronology of pediment surfaces in southern Peru: Implications for Quaternary deformation of the Andean forearc. Tectonophysics, 459,186-205, doi: 10.1016/j.tecto.2007.11.073.

Presentations
Abstracts (*student author) of select presentations featuring student research. A full list of presentation abstracts are available here and find out more about student presentations.

Capuano, B., Adams, M., Hall, S.R., Disney, J., 2022. Precipitation-mediated fluctuations in well water arsenic in Hancock County, ME, Maine Sustainability and Water Conference, Augusta, Maine, March 31, 2022.

Feher, A.*, Hall, S.R, Disney, J.E., and Jackson, B.P., 2022. Arsenic abundance in arugula and kale, Maine Sustainability and Water Conference, Augusta, Maine, March 31, 2022.

Slamova, L., Hall, S.R., Feher, A., Disney, J.E., and Jackson, B.P., 2022. Do the orchard soils of Mount Desert Island region harbor residuals of historical arsenical pesticide use? Maine Sustainability and Water Conference, Augusta, Maine, March 31, 2022. Won honorable mention for poster presentation.

Moran, L.*, Hall, S.R., Farrell, A., and Disney, J., 2022. Influence of different water treatment systems on arsenic concentrations in private well groundwater: A view from MDI, ME.

Muñoz, I.L., Cahueque, S., Farrell, A., Moroz, G., Hall, S.R., Buckman, K., and Disney, J. 2021. Pathways of arsenic ingestion in Maine: Data to Action, Geological Society of Maine Spring Meeting, virtual meeting poster presentation, April 9, 2021, published in GSM Newsletter July 2021

Moroz, G.*, Hall, S.R., Disney, J., Farrell, A., and Stanton, B., 2021. Spatial, temporal, and well-specific influences on well water quality, northern Mount Desert Island, Maine, Maine Sustainability and Water Conference, virtual meeting poster presentation, April 1, 2021; Won honorable mention for poster presentation.

Hall, S.R., Moroz, G.*, Farrell, A., Disney, J., and Stanton, B., 2021. Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Private Well Water Quality: A View from Mt. Desert Island, Maine, Maine Sustainability and Water Conference, virtual meeting talk, March 31, 2021.

Hall, S.R., Walker, B., Schmidt, C.M., and Paul, J.R., 2019. Use of a field and career preparation program as a tool for recruitment and retention in the Environmental STEM workforce: A report from the ESTEM Program for 2-year and 4-year college undergrads. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 51, No. 5, Presented at GSA Oct. 2019 by Walker, B.

Aragon Oreggo, M.F., Moroz, G., Gibson, S., Kumagai, A., Löwgren, S.*, Hall, S.R., Schmidt, C.M., Walker, B., and Paul, J.R., 2019. Matching skill to need: A multi-institution approval to field-based Environmental-STEM (ESTEM) studies and professional development skills, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328351. (Also presented at Acadia National Park Science Symposium, 2018)

Farrell, A., Poland, R., Hall, S.R., Disney, J., and Stanton, B., 2019. Monitoring well water for arsenic on Mt. Desert Island: Engaging high school and college students in interdisciplinary and societally relevant work, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328363.

Gallardo Garcia Freire, P.*, Henkel, B. and Hall, S.R., 2019. Past, present and future of the College of the Atlantic stream: A small coastal watershed assessment, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328441. (Also presented at ANPSS, 2018 and GSM, 2019)

Gibson, S., Lowgren, S., Hall, S. R., and Smith, S. M. C., 2019. Geomorphic map of Kebo Brook Watershed: Identifying characteristic channel geometry and channel head locations for a small post-glacial coastal New England watershed, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328398. (Also presented at Geological Society of Maine, 2019 – Best Student Poster Presentation)

Hall, S.R., McKenzie, J.M., Hall, B.L., Meriaux, A.-S., Fortin, M.-A.*, 2019. Glacial geochronology transecting a tropical mountain range, the Cordillera Blanca of northern Peru, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328472.

Henkel, B., Hall, S.R., Gallardo Garcia Freire, P., and Löwgren, S., 2019. Watershed monitoring in Acadia National Park: Preliminary results based on three years of data collected across multiple watersheds, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328382.

Van Vliet, N. and Hall, S.R., 2019. An anthropologist and a geologist go into a classroom and…, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, Vol 51, No. 1, 328331.

Rodriguez Padilla, A.M.*, Hall, S.R., Benavente Escobar, C., Venuti, G.L., Fernandez Baca, B.G, Roselle, L.N., and Audin, L., Evolution of a Paradoxical Landscape: New Constraints for Tectonic and Climatic Processes in the Forearc of Southern Peru, 2018. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, Washington, D.C., EP53A-06.

Venuti, G.L.*, Hall, S.R., and Nurse, A., The Paleoecology of Great Duck Island, Acadia National Park Science Symposium, College of the Atlantic (Nov, 2017); Geological Society of Maine Meeting, Unity College (April, 2018); Borns Symposium, Climate Change Institute (May 2018).

Taylor, V., Crowley, C., Lowgren S., Gallardo, Garcia, Freire, P., Hall, S.R., and Henkel. B., 2018. Insights into stream water quality: Bacteria sampling at the Cromwell-Kebo Watershed through summer storm events., Acadia National Park Science Symposium, College of the Atlantic, Oct. 20, 2018.

Gray, S.E. III*, Hall, S.R., Michalak, M.J., and Bailey, D.G., A new look at the geologic history of Great Duck Island and Mount Desert Rock through high resolution aerial imagery, geologic mapping, geochemistry, and geochronology, 2017. Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 49, No. 2, doi: 10.1130/abs/2017NE-291262.

Hall, S.R., Schmidt, C.E., and Walker, R., 2017. Challenges and opportunities in the development of a multiinstitution field-based professional development program for Environmental-STEM (ESTEM) undergraduates, Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 49, No. 2, doi: 10.1130/abs/2017NE-290986.

Minogue, W.*, Hall, S.R., Henkel, B., Stream discharge moitoring in seven watersheds on Mt. Desert Island, ME, Acadia National Park Science Syposium, Schoodic Educational & Research Center, September 2016.

Hall, S.R., Hodson, K.R., Michalak, M.J., Farber, D.L., Hourigan, J.K., 2016. Pliocene to present denudation in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru: Interactions of climate and tectonics in a tectonically active glaciated mountain range, Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 48, No. 2, paper no. 15-7

Prest, T., Strader, J., Galey, M.*, Hall, S.R., Assembling a teaching collection at COA: outcrop, hand-sample, and thin-section analysis of rocks from Mt. Desert Island and Mt. Desert Rock. Acadia National Park Science Symposium, Schoodic Educational & Research Center, 2014.

Davis, M.W.*, Hall, S.R., Farber, D.L., Audin, L., Finkel, R.C., 2007. Quaternary geologic history of the Rio Tambo, southern Peru: repeated mass-wasting events in Western Cordillera drainages, Eos Trans. AGU, 88(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract T31A-0283.
victoria headshot, in front of stone wall

Victoria Edwards

Faculty, Interdisciplinary Computing
Phone: 207-288-5015
Email: vedwards@coa.edu
Office: Turrets, 2nd Floor Annex

ABOUT

When Victoria is not working with robots, you can find her knitting, hiking by the ocean, or baking new sweet treats. 

Before COA

From 2020-2025 Victoria was a PhD student at the University of Pennsylvania working on coordinating multi robot teams to perform tasks in dynamic environments. As a graduate student Victoria was the co-recipient of the John A Goff prize for outstanding research in mechanical engineering, along with different teaching and service awards. Victoria was funded by the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship (NDSEG). Victoria has worked with a wide range of robots including ground vehicles, aerial vehicles, robot arms, and unmanned surface vehicles.

Course Areas

robotics, computer science

Personal Website

Victoria’s Home Page

EDUCATION

  • PhD, Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mathematics, University of Pennsylvania (2025)
  • MS, Robotics, University of Michigan Rackham Graduate School, Robotics Institute (2017)
  • BA, Computer Science and Mathematics, Colby College (2016)

INTERESTS

Victoria is an experimental roboticist working at the intersection of Robotics, Complex Systems Theory and Dynamical Systems Theory.  She has interests in the full range of multi robot systems, including robot teams with sophisticated capabilities and coordinated task strategies, as well as large scale collectives demonstrating emergent behavior. 

Her research objective is to combine environment models with models from Complex Systems theory to control robot teams monitoring dynamic environments. Throughout her dissertation, she made contributions to solving the multi robot task allocation problem for robot teams deployed in dynamic environments. Her results demonstrate the power of complex systems theory for analyzing robotic systems to enable increased scalability and flexibility for operating in uncertain and dynamic environments. Overall, two themes emerge in her research.

1) How do we design and coordinate multi robot systems to perform missions in uncertain and dynamic environments? and

2) How do we use robot teams to help understand natural phenomena, e.g., changing water temperatures.

Ready to build your own path?

Apply Now

Join a close-knit community built for curiosity, collaboration, and purpose.

begin the process
Close-up of a sheep's face.

connect with admissions

Talk with an admission counselor about your interests, questions, and goals.

start a conversation
Two sailboats on calm water

Plan a Visit

Attend a class, meet students, and experience learning rooted in place.

schedule a tour

Student voices

COA Might be Right for You if…

…you are ready to have your life and identity flipped on its head and dunked in the ocean repeatedly

Jonna Lynn Nielsen ’27

…you don’t know what you want to study because you have far too many interests to just focus in on one of them. 

Wilson Korneev ’28

…you want to be in a small community where people will remember your name.

Alya Kiiashko ’25

…you want to meet politically, emotionally, and academically engaged people.

Alder Ame ’27

Carolina headshot, scenic background

…you think being sent to the oceanside to improve your mental health actually sounds awesome (it totally is).

Carolina de Oliveira Castro ’26

…you are passionate about the natural world and want to study it and love spending time outside.

Conrad Kortemeier ’26

…you want to be surrounded and inspired by people who are excited about niche subjects, and by people who are still figuring out what they’re doing.

Marina Schnell ’25

…you have an open mind, enjoy small communities, and want a well-rounded (however unconventional) education experience. 

Seth Sears ’28

…you want freedom in your class structure.

Andie Piliouras ’26