ASTRONOMY 101-DEMING
Laboratory and Discussion Syllabus
You may attend any of our office hours for help!
Mrs. Deming's office hours: Mon. 9:00-11:00; Thurs. 12:30-2:30
CSS 1233 405-1562 deming@astro.umd.edu
Ankur Mehta Sections 0107/0108
CSS 1107
405-0363
anky009@yahoo.com
Rick Murphy Sections 0105/0106
CSS 0252
405-1545
grmurphy@astro.umd.edu
Office Hrs. Fri. 12 - 2
Office Hrs. Wed. 1 - 2, Th. 2 - 3
Abhishek Pani Sections 0101/0102
CSS 1107
405-0363
Office Hrs. Th. 3:45 – 5:45
apani@rhsmith.umd.edu
Akhil Singh Sections 0103/0104
CSS 1107 405-0363
akhils@glue.umd.edu
Office Hrs. Wed. 1 - 3
PURPOSE OF LABORATORY
Lab is intended to let you work through various examples of astronomical projects that
astronomers really have done. In these labs, we will emphasize how astronomers use
observational data in order to study the universe. Many times there is no one "correct" answer,
just as there is no unique answer in frontier research. The emphasis is on your judgment, how
you think through the procedures to obtain a "reasonable" interpretation of your observations.
Key themes which will recur throughout many of the labs are the following: a) How far
away are things and how big are they? b) How and why do we classify things? c) How do we
find mathematical relationships between physical quantities and how reliably can we predict
things from the relationships we find? The key point is not to learn miscellaneous astronomical
facts but to get used to thinking logically about a set of observations, some of which may not be
very accurate. The exercises start close to home and gradually work their way through the Solar
System to the edge of the universe. We hope to show how each step outward builds on the
previous ones.
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LAB MANUAL
1. Buy a copy of the lab manual "Experiments in Astronomy" by Leo Blitz and Michael
A'Hearn, 1991 edition.
2. All reports must be handed in on the pages from the manual. If you lose your lab
manual, you must buy another!
3. There is a packet of photographs in your lab manual. Put your name and section
number on the packet and GIVE IT TO YOUR TA.
LAB REPORTS
1. We encourage you to read the lab before coming to class.
2. Do not write anything in your lab book before coming to lab. All written work
required for the lab must be done in class.
3. Most weeks you will work with a partner to take data. Except for these data, your
report must be your own work, not a transcription of your partner's. You are
expected to do your own calculations and answer questions in your own words.
4. Be sure your work is legible—if we can't read it, we can't grade it.
5. All lab reports must be turned in, by you in person, to your TA at the end of your lab
period. The only exception to this rule is Lab #1.
GRADING
1. Each lab counts 12 points except Lab 1 counts 10 points and Lab 2, Celestial Sphere,
which takes two weeks, and counts 24 points.
2. Today’s MILKYWAY subscription is worth 5 pts. and must be completed by Feb. 17.
See your TA or Mrs. Deming if you have problems—do not miss the deadline.
3. Your numerical grade for lab and discussion is calculated by your TA by summing
your points.
4. Astronomy 101 exams will contain questions concerning the labs. The lab topics are
closely connected to the lecture topics and should help you understand the
concepts.
MISSED LABS
1. If you miss your lab, contact your TA before your next lab.
—send your TA email (BEST)
—phone your TA and leave a message
2. The university recognizes only three excuses for missing class:
religious holidays, university-approved travel, or illness.
3. We will also accept these excuses, but only for 1 lab:
car trouble or death in the family
additional problems: TA will listen and make a decision whether or not you may
makeup the lab.
4. If your excuse has been approved by your TA, he will write it down and you will be
entitled to a makeup lab (Apr. 22-25, or May 14—see p. 6 of BIG syllabus)
5. Unexcused absences for a Lab result in a grade of zero.
6. Missed discussion activities may be excused, but only if you contact your TA within a
week.
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ACADEMIC HONESTY AND YOUR LAB EXPERIENCE
We stress that your calculations and answers must be your own even if you worked with
a lab partner to get the data. Many students are unclear how to draw the line between individual
learning and/or useful and permitted collaboration. We also know that a few students may find it
very tempting to violate the Honor Code intentionally.
We quote from the Code of Academic Integrity distributed by the Student Honor
Council:
"A. CHEATING: Intentionally using or attempting to use unauthorized materials,
information, or study aids in any academic exercise.
B. FABRICATION: Intentional and unauthorized falsification or invention of any
information or citation in an academic exercise.
C. FACILITATING ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Intentionally or knowingly helping
or attempting to help another to violate any provision of this Code.
D. PLAGIARISM: Intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another
as one's own in any academic exercise."
Suspected cases of academic dishonesty will be referred to the Student Honor Council for
review. If you are found to have violated the Code of Academic Integrity, you are likely to
receive an XF grade for the class rather than just a zero on the lab.
In the specific context of this course, academic dishonesty includes copying another
person's lab report, fabricating lab data, and utilizing lab reports from past years. Although we
encourage you to read the labs before class, all work on lab reports must be done in class. It is
not allowed to arrive at the beginning of class with a completed lab, to arrive at class with the
answers on another piece of paper and transcribe to your lab manual, to use completed lab
reports from past years as "reference" sheets, or to turn in a lab report which was not completed
entirely by you in class.
In the labs where you are working with a partner gathering data, it is expected that both
partners have an understanding of the lab, and that the parts of the lab beyond data gathering
(specifically the calculations and questions) will be done independently. Your lab report should
always be in your own words, never a verbatim copy of your lab partner's report. In labs where
you are supposed to work individually, consultation between normal lab partners should be
limited to questions of how to make measurements and how to do calculations. You should not
copy any part of another student's report or consult with another student to arrive at answers to
questions.
If you have any questions or are uncertain about anything in this syllabus, ask your TA or Mrs.
Deming for clarification.
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