Prof. Jay M. Pasachoff Spring
2014
ASTRONOMY 102 The Solar
System: Our Planetary Home
http://www.williams.edu/Astronomy/Course-Pages/102/syllabus.html
Lectures: Tuesdays
and Thursdays, 9:55-11:10 in Thompson Physical Lab 203
Text: The Cosmos: Astronomy in the New Millennium,
4th edition (2014), by
Jay
M. Pasachoff and Alex Filippenko
(Cambridge University Press),
See http://thecosmos4.com
(misconceptions/podcasts/critical-thinking/updates), glow.williams.edu
Chapter-by-chapter podcast summaries are available
through iTunes.
Instructor: Professor
Jay M. Pasachoff, Thompson Physics and Astronomy Lab
115, x2105
jay.m.pasachoff@williams.edu;
office hours by appointment.
Observatory Supervisor and Laboratory Instructor: Dr. Steven P. Souza, Thompson Physical Lab 117,
x3210, ssouza@williams.edu; Office hours: Wed. 10-11 AM, and by
appointment.
Teaching Assistants: Observatory Control Room, 4th floor TPL, x2165, in
observing hours.
Observing Program:
Students will observe with the Hopkins Observatory's 24-inch telescope,
and with other telescopes and equipment.
Details and requirements will be described in a separate handout, given
at observing orientation sessions held in the Observatory on Feb 10, 11,
&12.
Organization: Most lectures will start with current
events in astronomy, often linked with the course topics; you are responsible
for this material on exams, so this is one of may reasons that class attendance
is necessary.
Daytime Labs: There
are five scheduled daytime lab exercises; note that these are not weekly. You
have been assigned by the Registrar to one of four lab sections: Tuesday or
Wednesday, 1:00-2:30 PM or 2:30-4:00 PM. All labs are in TPL301, except the
Lunar Samples lab that will be held in Room 305 in Clark Hall (Geosciences).
Details will be given in class.
Lab I: The Virtual Sky (Starry Night software) TPL
301 2/25,
26
Lab II: Lunar Samples Clark
305 3/12
and TBA
Lab III: Transit of Venus TPL
301 3/18,
19
Lab IV: Moons of Jupiter TPL
301 4/15,
16
Lab V: Comets & Asteroids TPL
301 5/6,
7
A planetarium demonstration will be scheduled on Tuesday, February
18th, at 8 pm.
Exams and Grading: tentatively—First hour exam: Tuesday, March
4; Second hour exam: Tuesday, April 29; Reading Period May 17-20; Final exam: to
be scheduled by the Registrar during May 21-26.
Passing the course requires taking all exams, completing
all lab exercises, attending almost all lectures, and completing all observing
requirements. Inadequate observing will
lead to subtractions from the final grade.
Makeup exams will be scheduled for those who arrange beforehand to be
excused and for those with medical excuses from the Infirmary. The judgment of
being "intellectually present" needed for a Gaudino
grade of G would be determined in large part by mastery of fundamental concepts
and facts as demonstrated on the exams and not by mere completion of the
required activities.
Final grades will be calculated
according to the following: 25% first hour exam; 25% second hour exam; 50%
final exam, with the quality of work on labs and observing possibly modifying
the grade obtained from the average of the exams. This modification gives lab and
observing performance a higher importance than mere averaging would. Attendance at labs and observing is
required; the labs/observing should also be fun!
Course attendance at each lecture
is also required, except for medical or other special excuses. Those who often miss many classes for
whatever reasons should not take this course.
Critical Thinking: Certain aspects of the course meet "critical
thinking" desiderata (linked to the williams.edu/astronomy/cosmos Web
page).
Honor Code: Students are strongly reminded of the honor system as
described in the Student Handbook.
No collaboration is allowed on exams. All observing work handed in must
be exclusively your own. In labs,
students will work in small groups, but each student must turn in his or her
own lab write-up. If there is any
question as to how the honor code applies, please consult the instructor(s).
The course is highly organized, but the organization should be followed by textbook sections.