300-Level Course Descriptions
A journey through space and time from the first 10-43 seconds to the
ultimate fate of the Universe billions of years in the future. Topics
include conditions during the first three minutes, creation of the
elements, stellar and giant black holes, the Big Bang and its remnant
radiation, relativity, galaxies and quasars, the large scale structure
of the Universe, and current ideas about the future of the Universe
and the end of time. In particular, we will explore the exciting new
results on the acceleration of the Universe's expansion, and the
precise determination of its age and fate.
General
- Format: lecture/discussion,
three hours per week.
- Evaluation will be based on two hour
tests, occasional homework, and a final exam.
- Not open to first-year students and sophomores. Non-major
course.
- No prerequisites. Closed to Astronomy, Astrophysics,
and Physics majors.Enrollment limit: 48;
expected: 48.
A famous dichotomy between the sciences and the humanities, and public understanding of them, was laid down by C. P. Snow and has been widely discussed, with ignorance of the second law of thermodynamics compared with ignorance of Shakespeare. In this seminar, we will consider several aspects of science and scientific culture, including how scientific thinking challenges the claims of pseudoscience. We will consider C. P. Snow and his critics as well as the ideas about the Copernican Revolution and other paradigms invented by Thomas Kuhn. We will discuss the recent "Science Wars" over the validity of scientific ideas. We will consider the fundamental originators of modern science, including Tycho, Kepler, Galileo, and Newton, viewing their original works in the Chapin Library of rare books and comparing their interests in science with what we now call pseudoscience, like alchemy. We will review the history and psychology of astrology and other pseudosciences. Building on the work of Martin Gardner in Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science, and using the current journal The Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine, we consider from a scientific point of view what is now called complementary or alternative medicine, including both versions such as chiropractic, osteopathy, and homeopathy, and newer nonscientific practices. We will discuss the current global-climate-change deniers and their effects on policy. We consider such topics as GM (genetically modified) foods, the safety and regulation of dietary supplements, and the validity of government and other recommendations relevant to the roles of dietary salt and fat in health. We consider the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) and reports of UFO's and aliens. We consider the possible effects that superstitious beliefs have on the general public's cooperation in vaccination programs and other consequences of superstition. We also consider the recently increased range of dramas that are based on scientific themes, such as Tom Stoppard's Arcadia and Michael Frayn's Copenhagen.
General
- Seminar, three hours a week.
- Evaluation will be based on bi-weekly 5-page
papers, participation in discussions, and a 15-page final paper.
- No prerequisites. Enrollment limit:
12. Preference will be given to juniors and seniors and to those with
backgrounds in science, history of science, or philosophy. This
course is writing intensive. Non-major course. Does not count toward
the Astronomy, Astrophysics,
or Physics major.
ASTR 338 (S): The Progress of Astronomy: From Galileo to the
Hubble Space Telescope (Same as History of Science 338) (W) (not offered 2012-2013)
Our
capabilities of understanding the Universe have progressed over the 500
years since Copernicus moved the sun into the center. Galileo's
breakthrough observations of the sky with the new-fangled telescope
led to hundreds of years of improving observations. In seminar format,
week by week, we will discuss each of the following topics (and look
at first editions in the Chapin Library): Copernicus and rare-book
variations and annotations; Galileo and his discoveries; mapping the
sky and constellations 1540 to the present through star atlases;
William and Caroline Herschel and the discovery of a new planet;
asteroids from 1 Ceres to 5100 Pasachoff, contemporary surveys, the
extinction of dinosaurs, and possible damage to the Earth and its
inhabitants; astronomy teaching from when Williams College students
first built Hopkins Observatory through the Committee of Ten to the
Journal of Astronomy Education Reseach; planetariums from pasted stars
to optomechanical and digital 21st century projection; woman
astronomers and astronauts and their reception and roles; transits
of Venus: from Horrocks and Capt. Cook through the 2004/2012 pair; the
launch of Sputnik and the race to the Moon; the formation of NASA and
its transformation through space shuttles and the International Space
Station; the past, present, and future of the Hubble Space Telescope;
NASA's "Great Observatories," including not only the Hubble but also
the Chandra X-Ray Observatory and the Spitzer Space Telescope;
NASA's "Vision" of sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars; advances
in ground-based observatories and telescopes; mapping the Universe
through projects like the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and 2dF; and the
discovery that the Universe's expansion is accelerating and its
ramifications. We consider the role of leadership in the various topics.
General
- Seminar, three hours a week. Planetarium
demonstration with individual planetarium work on request.
- Evaluation will be based on two 10-page
papers and participation in discussions.
- No prerequisites. Enrollment limit:
19. Preference will be given to juniors and seniors and to those with
backgrounds in science, history of science, or philosophy. This
course is writing intensive. Non-major course. Does not count toward
the Astronomy, Astrophysics,
or Physics major.
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