Have a knowledge of the diversity of major invertebrate fossil groups through time and to understand basic palaeontological classification schemes, terminology and the use of fossils in stratigraphical and palaeoenvironmental interpretation. Demonstrate an understanding of the principles of stratigraphy, have a basic knowledge of isotopic dating and appreciate the concept of relative dating with reference to lithostratigraphy and biostratigraphy and have a basic understanding of aspects of the geological history of the British Isles. This section opens with a discussion of the nature and origin of sedimentary rocks, focusing initially on the weathering of primary sources and the description of the resultant sedimentary particles. Following this, clastic and carbonate rock types are discussed with emphasis on their formation and classification. Finally, the origin and geological significance of sedimentary structures are examined.
Surface processes .
This section considers the sedimentary facies and landforms associated with surface processes. The effects of climatic change on sedimentary environments and biota are also discussed. In this section, aspects of invertebrate palaeontology are considered. Preservational aspects, organisation, habitat, functional morphology and evolutionary development are discussed at varying levels, taking examples from trilobites, brachiopods, graptolites, corals, cephalopods and bivalves. Initially the principles of stratigraphy are examined, with the importance of uniformitarianism being stressed.