The rooms and times of both the final and the
make-up exams are now arranged. Go
to Examinations.
Main page
In this page:
Overview,
Logistics,
Textbook,
iClickers,
Syllabus,
Reading,
Homework,
Examinations,
Grades,
Learning Centers,
Students with Disabilities,
Observing,
Astronomy on the Web.
The course covers the structure and evolution of stars, the properties
of galaxies, and the past, present, and future of the Universe. The
huge quantity of information now available is expanding all the time,
so the emphasis of the course is on how astronomers know what they
claim to know, and how confident they are of their claims.
The companion course, PH 109, describes the historical foundations of
astronomy, and modern knowledge of our solar system and planets around
other stars, and how they might have originated. The two courses are
independent; if you wish to take both, they can be taken in either
order or concurrently.
The 109/110 sequence is intended for non-science majors. There are no
college-level prerequisites, but minimal high school math and science
preparation are assumed. Students with college-level science & math
credits should consider taking Ph 341/342 instead, which covers much
of the same material as 109/110, but at a more advanced level.
Lecturer The author of this page is the course lecturer,
Dr. Jerry Sellwood.
Office Hour My office hour is Monday 3:20-4:40. I can be found
in room 308 in
the Physics
& Astronomy Building, Busch Campus, telephone (732) 445-5500 xtn 5287.
I am also available to offer help and answer questions for a few
minutes just before or just after every class.
e-mail I prefer not to provide individual help with course
material by e-mail - please ask in class or in my office hour.
Questions on logistics not already on this web page etc. can be
sent to me at sellwood_at_physics.rutgers.edu.
Classes Classes are held on Wednesdays, period 3 (11:30 am -
12:50 pm) and on Fridays, period 4 (1:10 - 2:30 pm) in room 123 of
Scott Hall on College Avenue Campus.
Sakai I have created a course page in the Sakai system. Go
to sakai.rutgers.edu and log in
using your RUId and password. Click on the "Astronomy 110 Sp12
Sellwood" tab to enter the course site. If you have trouble logging
in, please send e-mail to sellwood_at_physics.rutgers.edu. All
homework assignments, lecture notes, practice exams, scores, and
important information about the course will be posted there, so check
it regularly.
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The book for both 109 & 110 is
The Cosmic Perspective: Fundamentals (2010) by Bennett,
Donahue, Schneider & Voit,(ISBN 0-321-56704-8) published by
Addison-Wesley. This excellent book is comprehensive, right
up-to-date and very well illustrated. It contains a lot of material,
some of which you will have to read yourself. Not all the material is
relevant to the course, but those with a strong interest should be
able to enjoy the whole book.
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We will also be doing
in-class quizzes using the iClicker classroom response system. You
will need to buy either the original iClicker or the second generation
iClicker 2; we will not use any of the new features. Once you acquire
your iClicker, you should register it through Sakai, using the
"i>clicker" option of the course page.
Responses with iClickers will be recorded in 25 classes, and your 20
best iClicker scores will count towards your grade. Any answer to a
question will get 1 point, the right answer gets 2.
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The lectures will not
follow the book very closely. I will omit some parts and provide
additional material over and above that provided in the book in other
areas. A preliminary outline of the topics of each lecture is
available through the
course Sakai website, together
with an indication of the most relevant chapter.
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The reading
assignments given in the syllabus are incomplete as I will frequently
draw material from many different chapters. However, by the end of
the course, I will expect all students to have read the entirety of
Chapters 7 thru 15.
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Weekly homework will be assigned and collected on-line
using Sakai. You can use the
browswer on your own computer, or any of the Rutgers student computing
center machines
(see
http://rucs.rutgers.edu/services/instruction).
Deadlines Assignments are due on Monday night (the actual
deadline is 5am Tuesday) every week beginning Jan/17 and ending on
May/30 (except for Mar/12), except in weeks when there is an
exam. Assignment scores and answers will be available immediately the
submission deadline is passed. No late homework submissions will
be accepted.
Copied Homework It can be beneficial to discuss homework
questions with your fellow students, but your submitted answers
must be your own. Representing someone else's work as your own
is a serious infringement of academic integrity that is reportable to
your College Dean.
Homework scores There will be twelve homework assignments and
your ten best homework scores will count towards your grade for the
course. Completing the homework assignments is the best way to ensure
a good grade because: (1) homework counts for towards your overall
score for the course, (2) homework scores are generally higher than
exam scores, and (3) many of the exam questions will test the material
covered in the homework - thorough preparation for the homework will
help a lot with the tests also.
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There will be three
examinations: two mid-terms and a final. The mid-terms will be held
on Wednesdays at the usual class time (11:30am) and location (Scott
Hall 123) on February 22 and April 4. The final exam will be held at
10am on May 8, also in Scott Hall rm 123. All exams will be multiple
choice and computer graded. Material from the lectures, homework
assignments, and text will be used in selecting exam questions, which
will not be cumulative. Sample mid-term and final exams will be
posted a week or so before each test.
Alternative Final Exam There will be an alternative final exam
during the exam period, at 10am on Fri May 4 in Scott Hall rm 103.
This alternative exam will have different questions from the main
final exam, but otherwise will be equivalent. Anyone who would
prefer, for whatever reason, can take this make-up instead of
the regular final, provided you notify Dr. Sellwood by the time of the
last class (Friday Apr 27).
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Your course grade will be
determined by your overall score out of 400, which is made up as
follows. Each exam will each be scored out of 100 making a maximum
possible exam score of 300. 50 points will be scaled from your ten
best homework scores, and the remaining 50 points for in-class
iClicker scores.
Exam scores and final grades will be available through Sakai.
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The Learning Resource Centers
provide a little support for this course.
the Math and Science LCs on
Busch and Douglas offer video tapes, experimental apparatus and
computer demonstrations. If there is a demand, the LRCs will try to
set up tutoring help.
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If you have a disability, it is essential to speak to Prof Sellwood
early in the semester to make the necessary arrangements to support a
successful learning experience. Also, you must arrange for Prof
Sellwood to receive a Letter of Accommodation from the Office of
Disability Services. For more information,
see
http://disabilityservices.rutgers.edu/.
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There are viewing sessions (which are open to the public) using
telescopes located on the roof of the Physics & Astronomy building on
Busch campus. They are held every 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month
when the sky is clear. See
the web
site for more information. Attendance at these observing sessions
is optional.
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This is
a good web
page for astronomical information. Those who like photographs of
planets, etc, can find all NASA's pictures on
their PhotoJournal
website.
Click here for information about
the Southern Africa Large Telescope (SALT), which has recently begun
observations in South Africa. Rutgers owns a 10% share of this
exciting new facility.
You might like to take part in the Galaxy Zoo project, which
involves the general public in classifying galaxies.
Start here to find out more -
it can be addictive!
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