PHSC111, Astronomy, Syllabus
Winter/Spring 2000
Dr. Harold Williams
Taught for Bowie State University
Department of Education in the School of Continuing Education and Extended Studies,
but my office is at Montgomery College at Takoma Park
[301]-650-1463 Planetarium, attached to Science South
[301]-565-3709 home
hwilliam@mc.cc.md.us
http://astrolabes.org/PHSC111/SyllabusWinter2000.htm

My Description: During this course we shall look up at the stars and answer the question, twinkle twinkle little star how I wonder what you are. We will also find out where to look for what in the sky and why some things are more easily seen in certain parts of the sky than others. We shall assemble a celestial sphere. Since almost everything we know about the cosmos comes from observing electromagnetic radiation (light), we shall spend some time talking and observing the properties of light. Many of these properties are outside everyday experience. We shall see how spectroscopes are used to break light apart by wavelengths and how different gases have unique light signatures (spectra) when heated. We shall assemble a spectroscope. We shall assemble a simple telescope of the same quality as Galileo use in 1610 to revolutionize our understanding of the universe. We shall assemble an ancient astronomical calculating machine called an astrolabe. With this we can predict the position in the sky of stars and the sun. We will measure the brightness and color of an open star cluster by running a computer program that is a virtual reality. We will measure the period of the orbits of the four bright moons of Jupiter by running a computer program that is a virtual reality. We will measure the orbital period of the planet Mercury by running a computer program that simulates bouncing a radio pulse sent from a radio telescope from Earth to Mercury and back. We shall see how and with what precision distances to planets, stars, galactic star clusters, globular star clusters, galaxies, metagalaxies, and super galactic clusters are determined. We shall see how color, temperature, mass, brightness, chemical composition, and age all affect stars. We shall have fun while doing this.

Clientele: Anyone who wants to understand the bigger universe outside of this planet.

Prerequisite: Willingness to read, think, and communicate.

Text:Horizons, exploring the universe by Michael A. Seeds as primary text  and College Astronomy Kit by William Luzaderas the laboratory manual. The college astronomy kit includes besides a laboratory manual, a 16 power telescope (similar to the one Galileo used), a celestial sphere, and a spectrometer. You get to build and keep all of this stuff. It is real neat, especially the spectrometer. Discovering the Universe now also comes with a CD-ROM which has  some videos and simulations that are not in the text. Even if you do not own a CD-ROM  playing computer you may use your CD-ROM in the Math Science Learning Center at Montgomery College, Takoma Park, Science North room 101.

My Expectations:
1. That you read the assigned portions of the text before coming to class.
2. That you will ask questions on the assigned portion that you did not understand.
3. That you will keep your Astronomy Portfolio current for every class.
4. That you will take a mid semester test and the one final exam.
5. That you will appreciate our place in the universe.

Grading Policy:
1. Mid semester test March 3, 2000---25%.
2. Laboratory Reports---25%.
3. One final exam, which will be comprehensive, March 24, 2000---50%.

A little about my educational philosophy
I shall not read the book to you in class. You are expected to do that before class. If your grandmother dies or your spleen ruptures or your job requires you to work unexpected overtime and you are unable to do the reading, please do not compound the problem by not showing up to class. Why be doubly disadvantaged?
What is your PHSC111 Portfolio?
Bowie State University has a policy of encouraging writing across all curricula. The PHSC111 Portfolio is a written record of your PHSC111 study and learning. Keeping this portfolio will help you learn astronomy and keeping a portfolio in any class will help you understand and remember the course material. It will also help you get a substantially higher grade in the course. It will consist of several parts. Your portfolio will be organized in chapters similar to the chapters in the book and it will have the following subsections in each chapter.
1. Notes in outline form of the chapter. You should also include questions in here about things that you didn't understand when you read the text. These questions you will ask me in class. I like to answer questions. Make me happy. Everything, definitions and all, should be expressed in your own words. You need to make astronomy real to yourself. Writing about it will help you do this. You have to organize your thoughts to write about them. Write as you read, please. Do not read an entire chapter in the text before summarizing it. Summarize subsections before going on to the next subsection.
2. Vocabulary words defined in your own words. Most of the vocabulary words will be in bold face type the first time they are used in the text. Do not copy the definition out of the glossary. I will consider that plagiarism. For you to really understand the meaning of astronomy's words and terms you must express it in your own words.
3. Notes taken in class about things that I say and problems that I work. Sometimes I will tell you things in a different way than in the text, or I may feel that certain ideas need to be introduced sooner than they appear in the book.
4. Laboratory exercisers that we do inside and outside of class.
5. A recapitulation or synthesis of all of the important ideas summarized in the chapter. You do this only after items 1--3 are finished. You should use this to study for test taking.
Besides items 1--5, which are done on each chapter in the text, the journal will contain laboratory exercises from College Astronomy Kit, and some labs that I will hand out written by me that are not in the labbook and three labs CLEA, Contemporary Laboratory Exercises in Astronomy, that you will do in the Math Science Learning Center using computers. Some of the most interesting things we will do all semester will be in these laboratory exercises. In the rear of the portfolio will be two graded exams with all of the exam questions that you missed reworked and done correctly. The same question or a very similar one will likely appear on the final.
Physically the portfolio can be a ringed binder or a cheaper brad binder. Papers will have to be taken in and out and rearranged from time to time. A spiral bound notebook will not work well. Please bring this to class, always! I will want to look at it from time to time to see how you are doing. Remember this is ultimately a portfolio for you. You can use your PHSC111 portfolio on the tests. It should be clear and neat enough so that not only I can understand what you are doing, but that you can understand what you did when you look at it ten years from now.
Class Members:
Crystal Tolar Marie Dolan
Charlene Danka Thamar Anderson
Franscio Quispe Tia Chrutchfield
Karen Allen Tamika Gatewood
Kimberly Emswiler Class photo 2-11-2000, assembling celestial spheres
Class photo 2-11-2000 in the Planetarium Class photo 2-11-2000 listening

Course Syllabus

The reading assignments on the dates listed are to be completed before coming to class. That means that I will assume on Thursday, November 2 that you have read Chapters 1 and 2.

Friday, February 4, 2000: Realm of the Universe (class 1)
I. Rules for the Class
II. Scope of Astronomy
III. Powers of Ten

Friday, February 11, 2000: The Heavens (class 2)
Chapter 1: The Scale of the Cosmos
Chapter 2: The Sky
Chapter 3: Cycles of te Sky
I. Rotation and Revolution---Sun, Earth, and Moon Dance we will assemble night nocturnes please bring a pair of scissors for cutting paper.
II.The Celestial Sphere
We will assemble the celestial sphere from your college astronomy kits. Bring the College Astronomy Kit box to class, please bring a pair of scissors for cutting paper, also Celestial Sphere Lab and Using the Celestial Sphere to Understanding Astronomical Coordinate Systems.

Friday, February 18: The Physical Laws (class 3)
Chapter 4: The Origin of Modern Astronomy
Chapter 5: Astronomical Tools
Chapter 6: Atoms an Starlight
We will assemble the Galilean telescope from the college astronomy kit and the spectroscope from the college astronomy kit.. Bring the College Astronomy Kit box to class.
Turn in Celestial Sphere laboratory exercise.
Turn in Using the Celestial Sphere to Understanding Astronomical Coordinate Systems laboratory exercise.

Friday, February 25: Planets (class 4)
Chapter16: The Origin of the Solar System
Chapter 17: The Earthlike Planets
Chapter 18: Worlds of the Outer Solar System
Chapter 19: Meterorites, Asteroids, and Comets
We will go to the MSLC to start doing the CLEA lab "Radar Rotation of Mercury (manual)." A data form which will help you do the Radar Rotation of Mercury Lab. Download CLEA "Radar Rotation of Mercury  (a zip file you must unzip and install yourself on a PC not a Mac) if you want to do it at home and not in the MSLC."  Download CLEA "The Moons of Jupiter (a zip file you must unzip and install yourself on a pc not a mac)" if you want to do it at home and not in the MSLC.
Start doing the CLEA lab "The Moons of Jupiter (manual)."  Download CLEA "The Moons of Jupiter (a zip file you must unzip and install yourself on a PC not a Mac)" if you want to do it at home and not in the MSLC.

Friday, March 3, 2000: Mid-semester test (class 5)
Exam covers Chapters 1-8, the celestial sphere labs, the first two CLEA Labs
Turn in report on CLEA Radar Measurement of the Rotation Rate of Mercury done in computer lab.
Turn in report on CLEA Revolution of the Moons of Jupiter done in computer lab.

Friday, March 10, 2000: Stars (class 6)
Chapter 7: The Sun-Our Star
Chapter 8: The Properties of Stars
Chapter 9: The Foirmation and Structure of Stars
Chapter 10: The Death of Stars
Chapter 11: Neutron Stars and Black Holes
Contemporary Laboratory Experiments in Astronomy (CLEA) lab "Photometry of the Pleiades Star Cluster (manual)"  Download CLEA "Photometry of the Pleiades Star Cluster (a zip file you must unzip and install yourself on a PC not a Mac)" if you want to do it at home and not in te MSLC.

Friday, March 17, 2000: Galaxies and the Universe as a Whole(class 7)
Chapter 12: The Milky Way Galaxy
Chapter 13: Galaxies
Chapter 14: Galaxies with Active Nuclei
Chapter 15: Cosmology
Chapter 20: Life on Other Worlds
Turn in report on CLEA Photoelectric Photometry of the Pleiades done in computer lab.

Friday, March 24, 2000: FINAL (class 8)
Comprehensive final on everything in the course.

The Math-Science Learning Center, MSLC, Science North Room 101 and 102

Besides coming to the lectures, making the tools to understand astronomy in class, and taking a midterm and final test, you should visit the MSLC. Their are numerous astronomy computer programs like The Electric Astrolabe and others that can be run in the MSLC. Several videos on astronomy are also in the MSLC. Your textbook contains a CD-ROM which can be explored using the computers in the MSLC.  The CLEA, Contemporary Laboratory Exercises in Astronomy, are installed on twenty new pentium computers in the MSLC. You will have to use them in the MSLC, or copy them and run them on your own IBM compatible computer with Windows 3.1, or Windows 95 or Windows NT. You have to do and turn in to me three of these CLEA labs. Teach each other astronomy. Teaching is the best way to learn something. The MSLC can become your assurance of understanding astronomy if you take advantage of it. Forming study groups and meeting with your study group partners in the MSLC or the library when the MSLC is closed is a good way of studying so you will pass the exams.
The telephone number there is 301-650-1427.

Extra Credit Opportunities

The University of Maryland Observatory on Metzerott Road is open on the 5th and 20th of every month. The United States Naval Observatory is open every Monday night that is not a federal holiday on Massachusetts Avenue. The National Capital Astronomers meet at the National Institutes of Health, Clinical Building, Lipsett auditorium the first Saturday of the month at 7:30pm. Write at least one page around 250 words about what you learned during a talk or clear night view through a telescope at an observatory. The Montgomery College Planetarium has monthly public programs given by your instructor.

Written by Dr. Harold Williams, last modified on February 5, 2000.