Lesson 3 overview

This week we encounter our first common geoscience equation, the diffusion equation, and the lesson for this week differs slightly from the previous lessons. We will start with a short lecture about the diffusion equation in general and its applications for geomorphology. There are also some web materials about how to solve the diffusion equation. The diffusion equation web lesson may be of interest for the exercise this week. As usual we will finish with the exercise for this week.

  1. Natural diffusion lecture slides
  2. Notes on solving the diffusion equation (optional)
  3. Exercise 3

Learning objectives

After completing this week’s lesson you should be able to:

  • Explain the general concept of the diffusion equation and its physical meaning
  • Give examples of geological processes that can be modelled using the diffusion equation and why