Astronomy 1040
Introductory Astronomy
Fall 2017
Monday, Wednesday, & Friday 12:00-12:50 LSci 185
Instructor: Alec Habig
Office: MWAH 358
Office Hours: 9-10 & 13-14M, 11-12T, 13-14W, 12-13Th, 10:00-11:00F (or by appointment)
Telephone: 726-7214
email: ahabig@umn.edu
http://neutrino.d.umn.edu/ast1040
Prerequisites: None.
Text: Bennett, Donahue, Schneider, & Voit
The Essential Cosmic Perspective (8th ed.)
w/ “Mastering Astronomy” website
Other required course materials: The standard “clicker” used in many UMD classes
Note that the bookstore's entry for this course is the ebook version plus the Mastering subscription, in an effort to make things cheaper for you. If you like paper books, that version is also available.
Additional readings or assignments from other texts or the web might be assigned over the course of the semester, but arrangements will be made so you do not have to buy more books. This stuff is already expensive enough.
Learning Outcomes:
Students identify concepts and principles that comprise the foundational knowledge of the discipline.
Liberal Education Goals and Objectives: This course fulfills a Natural Science knowledge domain science course without lab. Courses in these categories focus on the observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theory of natural phenomena. We will explore the scientific method through the study of astronomy. Since time immemorial humans have looked up into the sky and wondered what lies up there. The inability to come up with logical, rational, scientific explanations paved the way to a myriad myths, legends, stories and superstitious beliefs that have been trickled down to our times. In this class we will unveil the mysteries of our Universe and rid ourselves of misconceptions.
Course Description:
This course presents an introduction to the field of Astronomy. There is an emphasis on how the scientific method is employed to find out how things are working in places which are so very far away and long ago.
The topics to be covered include the following:
How the night sky looks and acts - constellations and the apparent motions of the stars and planets.
The explanations which earlier cultures had for what they saw in the sky, and how that evolved into modern astronomy.
How the sun works, and how this affects us on Earth.
The “life” cycle and properties of stars other than our sun, how things turn out differently for stars of different mass, and the consequences of this stellar evolution, such as supernovae and the production of heavy elements, white dwarves, neutron stars, and black holes.
Galaxies and other large-scale groups of stars, and what they tell us about the history of the universe.
The expansion of the universe, the Big Bang, and Cosmology. Where is the universe coming from and where does it appear to be headed?
Grading: Course grades will be determined based on the following five areas, with their respective weights:
Homework 10%
Class Participation 5%
Tests 55%
Final exam 30%
Planetarium assignment: Must do this ungraded thing
(all categories address the student learning outcome)
Students must attend one session at the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium, preferably one associated with this astronomy class (dates and times TBA). In event of scheduling problems, a regularly scheduled planetarium show plus a report will suffice (check with the instructor first).
Letter grades will be assigned based upon the weighted average on a non-competitive curve. In order to keep the students informed as to their progress, a letter grade will be assigned after the mid-term exam or guesstimated upon request. The class grades will be kept on UMD's eGradebook online system.
Homework: Online homework will be assigned in conjunction with the reading assignments, due at the start of class. Late work will not be accepted. Reading and thinking about something, talking about it in class, then doing the relevant written homework parts really cements the stuff in your head, allowing you to do well on the tests. More in-depth homework will be assigned roughly once per week, with a goal of getting you practice in thinking about things in the style of the tests. If you keep on top the homework (and actually think through the questions rather than just trying to google things) you'll do well on the tests.
Tests: There will be three tests given during the normal class period. The final exam is 12:00-13:55 on Friday, Dec. 15th. Note: the final exam will not be available earlier! Make-up tests will be available only for documented medical or family reasons or mandatory university-sponsored events necessitating absence from class.
Class Participation: While it is hard to have class participation in the traditional sense in a large lecture, the act of engaging your brains periodically rather than simply taking notes has been shown to improve learning. Thus, this class will make use of the “clicker” system to give you the means to actively answer questions in class, and a class participation grade will be assigned to encourage you to do so. If you do not already have a clicker from previous classes, the bookstore carries them. Please register your clicker following the instructions on the class website. Points for missed questions can not be made up, but the lowest scores will be dropped when calculating your grade to cover unforeseen circumstances.
Note on disabilities: Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might affect their ability to perform in this class are encouraged to inform the instructor at the start of the semester. Adaptation of methods, materials, or testing may be made as possible to provide for equitable participation.
Standard UMD academic policies: are in force and described online at http://www.d.umn.edu/academic-affairs/academic-policies/classroom-policies/recommended-syllabi-policy-statements
|
Date |
Topics |
|
Week 1 (8/28-9/1) |
Ch.1 A Modern View of the Universe Ch.2 Discovering the Universe for Yourself |
|
Week 2 (9/4-9/8) |
No Class for Labor Day 9/4 Ch.3 The Science of Astronomy |
|
Week 3 (9/11-9/15) |
Ch.4 Making Sense of the Universe: Understanding Motion, Energy, and Gravity |
|
Week 4 (9/18-9/22) |
Ch.5 Light: The Cosmic Messenger *Test #1 (9/22nd-ish) |
|
Week 5 (9/25-9/29) |
Ch.6 Formation of the Solar System Ch.7 Earth and the Terrestrial Worlds |
|
Week 6 (10/2-10/6) |
Ch.8 Jovian Planet Systems |
|
Week 7 (10/9-10/13) |
Ch.9 Asteroids, Comets, and Dwarf Planets: Their Nature, Orbits, and Impacts Ch.10 Other Planetary Systems: The New Science of Distant Worlds |
|
Week 8 (10/16-10/20) |
*Test #2 (10/16th-ish) Ch.11 Our Star |
|
Week 9 (10/23-10/27) |
Ch.12 Surveying the Stars No Class for Fall Break 10/27 |
|
Week 10 (10/30-11/3) |
Ch.13 Star Stuff |
|
Week 11 (11/6-11/10) |
Ch.14 The Bizzarre Stellar Graveyard *Test #3 (11/10th-ish) |
|
Week 12 (11/13-11/17) |
Ch.15 Our Galaxy |
|
Week 13 (11/20-11/24) |
Ch.16 A Universe of Galaxies No Class for Thanksgiving 11/24 |
|
Week 14 (11/27-12/1) |
Ch.17 The Birth of the Universe |
|
Week 15 (12/4-12/8) |
Ch.18 Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Universe Ch.19 Life in the Universe |
|
Week 16 |
*Final exam: Friday, 12/15, 12:00 - 13:55 |
Course outline subject to change to meet the needs of the class, especially the test dates might wiggle around to better match what's been covered or not