ASTRONOMY 104

The Milky Way Galaxy and the Universe Beyond

Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:55-11:10 in Thompson Physical Lab 203

Texts: The Cosmos: Astronomy in the New Millennium, 3rd edition (2007), by

Jay M. Pasachoff and Alex Filippenko (Cengage/Brooks/Cole Publishing),

See glow.williams.edu or http://www.williams.edu/astronomy/Course-Pages/104 for the syllabus and http://astronomy.brookscole.com/cosmos3 with a Student 1pass Login from the book purchase for some online study aids & www.williams.edu/astronomy/jay = www.solarcorona.net, where you can link to critical-thinking questions. flashcards at: http://tinyurl.com/3xt2ttl

Instructor: Professor Jay M. Pasachoff, Thompson Physics and Astronomy Lab 115, x2105

Office hours: Tuesday, 11:15-12, Wednesday, 10:30-11:30, and by appointment, jmp@williams.edu

Observatory Supervisor and Laboratory Instructor: Dr. Steven Souza, Thompson Physics and Astronomy Lab 117, x3210, Office hours: Wed., 10-11 AM, & by appointment; ssouza@williams.edu

Teaching Assistants: Observatory Control Room, Thompson Physics and Astronomy Lab (4th floor, access through stairs at east side, rear), x2165 during observing hours.

Observing Program: Students will observe with the Hopkins Observatory's 24-inch telescope, as well as with other telescopes and equipment. Details and requirements will be described in a separate handout, given at observing orientation sessions held in the Observatory Control Room on 2/7, 8 & 9.

Daytime Labs: There will be five scheduled daytime lab exercises during the semester; note that these afternoon labs are not weekly. Labs are 1–2:30 or 2:30–4 Tuesday or Wednesday, in TPL301. You have been assigned a lab section by the Registrar; if there is a conflict with a scheduled class, see Dr. Souza as soon as possible to see if a switch can be arranged.

Distances in Astronomy T, W 2/15-16

The Virtual Sky T, W 2/22-23

Hubble's Law and the Expansion of the Universe T, W 3/15-16

Galaxies, Active Galaxies, and Quasars T, W 4/19-20

Exploring Dark Matter T, W 5/10-11

Exams and Grading: First hour exam: Thurs., March 17; Second hour exam: Tues., April 19

Final exam: to be scheduled by the Registrar

Passing the course requires taking all exams, completing all lab exercises, attending almost all lectures, and completing all observing requirements. 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 modifying upward or downward the grade obtained from the average of the exams. This modification gives lab and observing a higher importance than mere averaging would. Attendance at labs/observing is required and 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. Certain critical-thinking concepts will be singled out during the course. They are linked to the williams.edu/astronomy/jay and williams.edu/astronomy/cosmos Web pages.

Honor Code: Students are strongly reminded of the honor system as described in the Student Handbook. No collaboration is allowed on exams. Similarly, all observing work handed in must be exclusively your own work. Students will work together in small groups in labs, 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).