AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab Course Syllabus & Course Policy 1. Instructor: Tim Carey Email: wtimothycarey@gmail.com Phone: 617.354.0399 Office Hours: TBA 2. Course Title/Number: AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab 3. General Course Description (according to college catalog): This course covers an introductory study of basic astronomy, including the planets, the apparent motions of celestial objects, the seasons, constellations, comets and meteors, stars, galaxies, and the large-scale structure of the universe. The course includes current events in space exploration. The course meets General Education “Science and Technology” Requirement Area 5. Course meets: 1.25 hrs. lecture; 2.75 hrs. lab. Prerequisites include: Writing Skills II (ENG095) and a grade of C or better in Foundations of Algebra (MAT097) or placement equivalency. LECTURE, WEDSNESDAY 11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m. B216 LAB, MONDAY 11:30 a.m. – 2:15 p.m. B329 4. Required Resources; • Required Text: Universe, Solar Systems, Stars, and Galaxies,7th edition, by Michael Seeds & Dana Blackman. © 2012, 2010, 2008 by Brooks Cole, Cengage Learning. Library of Congress Control Number: 2010941135. ISBN-13: 978-1-111-42567-8. ISBN-10: 1-111-42567-1. This is available in the BHCC bookstore and includes a copy of the software Starry Night College 6 • Software: Starry Night College 6. This is available in the BHCC bookstore when you purchase the required textbook. • Internet Access: Online assignments are part of the requirements for this course. Students that do not have access to a computer/internet at home must use school computers or other resources. • Other Required Materials: Students are required to bring to class: a “laboratory notebook” (i.e., a bound notebook with alternating pages of lined pages and graph paper); a scientific calculator; a ruler with both English and Metric scales (i.e., inches and centimeters); and a protractor for measuring angles. • Suggested Text: The Essentials of Astronomy, by Charles O. Brass, © 1998, 1995 by Research & Education Association. Year 2004 Printing. Library of Congress Control Number 98-65424. ISBN-10: 0-87891-965-1. This book is available in the BHCC bookstore. • Suggested Text: Spark Charts - Astronomy, by Mark A. Hartman, © 2003 by Spark Publishing. ISBN-13: 978-1-5866-3637-1; ISBN-10: 1-5866-3637-5. This book is available in the BHCC bookstore. • Other Texts: may be provided from time to time by the Course Instructor 5. Course Topics: The course consists of three units, largely following the required text Universe, Solar Systems, Stars, and Galaxies By Seeds and Blackman. • Unit 1: Exploring the Sky • Module 1 Introduction; • Module 2 Stars; The Sky and its Motion; • Module 3 Cycles of the Sun; Earth’s Climate; Cycles of the Moon • Module 4 Classical Astronomy; Copernican Revolution; Planetary Motion; Kepler’s Laws • Unit 2: Exploring the Solar System • Module 5 Light and Telescopes; • Module 6 Atoms and Spectra • Module 7 The Sun; Origins of the Solar System • Module 8 Planetology; Mercury Venus & Mars; The Gas Giants; The Outer Solar System; Meteorites. Asteroids & Comets • Unit 3: Exploring Beyond the Solar System Page 1 AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab Course Syllabus & Course Policy • Module 9 Stars; Stellar Evolution; Neutron Stars and Black Holes • Module 10 The Milky Way Galaxy; Galaxies • Module 11 Cosmology Each Module consists of: a lecture; an assigned reading; a homework assignment; and a lecture/laboratory with a required lab report. Some modules may require supplemental reading as provided by the course instructor. Each Unit is followed by a Unit Test. 6. Teaching Procedures (briefly described): Each Module begins with a lecture on a new topic on Wednesdays. A reading and homework assignment is given with a due date of the following Monday. The reading will usually be from the required text, Universe, Solar Systems, Stars, and Galaxies by Seeds and Backman. Occasionally, the course instructor may provide a supplemental reading assignment. Homework assignments include problems, short answers to questions, and longer writing assignments on interesting or controversial topics selected by the course instructor. On Mondays, there is a combination lecture/laboratory session where students will work collaboratively on exercises to demonstrate and elaborate on the Module topics. Individual students will each record the results of the laboratory sessions in their laboratory notebooks. Laboratory reports are due the following Monday. There is a unit test at the end of each unit. Unit tests include material from the module lectures, the readings, homework assignments, and the laboratories. There is a final exam at the end of the course. There is a required student Term Paper and Class Presentation due at the end of the course on the topic of Astrobiology: Life on Other Worlds. Term papers should be 5 – 10 pages and the presentation will be 10 minutes (about 5 Power Point Slides). The Student Term Paper and Class Presentation is a chance for the student to research a topic under the general topic of astrobiology. The student conducts a broad literature search, chooses a topic, conducts a more detailed literature search, reads the pertinent literature, and draws her/his own conclusions as to the state-of-the-art of the selected topic. There are four hours of class time per week. Students should expect to supplement that with an additional four to six hours per week doing the readings, homework, writing lab reports, preparing for tests and the exam, and writing the term paper. 7. Instructional Objectives: The course satisfies the general BHCC Education Area 5 requirement – Science & Technology. • Students use scientific methods of inquiry to investigate the ideas, laws, and theories used to explain the physical universe, its life forms and its natural phenomena. • Students study the interrelationships between science and technology; and how advances in science and technology have affected the global community, the environment, and the quality of life. Detailed course instructional objectives are summarized in Appendix A. 8. Basis for Student Grading: Student grades for the course will be based on a weighted average of the individual average grades for homework assignments, lab reports, unit tests, the final exam, the term research paper/presentation, and student attendance. Individual grades included in the final weighted average are a numerical score (typically from 0-100%). The score is the percentage of correct answers (for homework and tests) or the percentage of classes attended. A letter grade (A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, F) for Page 2 AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab Course Syllabus & Course Policy lab reports, written essays, and the term paper/presentation will be converted to a numerical grade for averaging. Homework and Lab Reports are due the Monday following their assignment, submitted at the beginning of class. Late homework and lab reports can be submitted on the next Wednesday (two days late), with a 50% reduction in the received grade. Late homework and lab reports submitted after Wednesday will receive a score of zero. Unit tests are scored using a variant of “minimum grading”. Students that fail a unit test (score less than 50%) are offered a re-test for that unit if they so desire. The final unit test score will be the average of the two scores. The weights for combining individual grades are as follows: • Attendance – 10% • Unit Tests – 20% • Lab Reports – 20% • Homework – 20% • Term Paper/Presentation – 15% • Final Exam – 15% 9. Procedure (criteria) for evaluating student performance: Student performance is evaluated through a combination of class performance, homework, laboratory experiments, testing, and personnel research. All work submitted by the students is evaluated according to the competencies described in Appendix A. Students are expected to pay attention in class, take notes effectively, and combine the classroom material with the textbook material to gain an understanding of the subject. Homework and Laboratory reports are “open book” in the sense that the students can use any resources available to them to complete these assignments. Unit tests and the final exam are “closed book”, with the exception that each student may bring a single 8 ½” by 11” sheet of paper with useful notes and information (“cheat sheet”). The “cheat sheet” must be hand written and submitted as part of the test. 10. Tentative test schedule/assignment(s) schedule: Page 3 AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab Course Syllabus & Course Policy 11. Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend class. Attendance is taken at each session. Half of the learning of the course is in the laboratory sessions, which comprise 68% of the classroom time. The experiential nature of the laboratories and the collaboration with other students is very important to the learning process. The material presented in the lectures and laboratories is available only in class. Material presented only in class will be included on the tests. Laboratory material will be included on the tests. Students that miss a laboratory will not have an opportunity to make it up; this is due to the limited time laboratory equipment is available. It is the student’s responsibility to insure that the learning associated with the missed class is achieved. See the course instructor for alternate ways to learn the missed material, unfortunately no course credit can be awarded for a missed lab, but the likelihood of the student performing well on the unit test is enhanced. Students that miss a unit test, can request a “re-test”, with a grade reduction of 50%. Student that miss the final exam do not have an opportunity for a “re-test”. Students that arrive late to class can cause disruptions that upset the learning of their fellow students. Students arriving after the start of class are seated at the sole discretion of the course instructor. 12. Cell Phone/Laptop Policy: Modern smart phones and computer laptops with internet search can enhance the class-room experience by allowing students to do research in real time, “in the moment”, reinforcing classroom learning. The following are the rules for cell phone and laptop behavior in class. • ALL cell phones must be set to SILENCE. No ringing. No ring tones. No vibrating. • NO cell phone conversations are allowed in class under ANY circumstances • No texting or email in class unless it is class related. Persistent violators will be asked to leave their electronic devices at the front of the class for retrieval after class • Web searches must be related to class discussions. Use of BHCC WIFI and internet connections must be in accordance with BHCC policy. Students must show good judgment by not visiting inappropriate web sites. 13. Classroom Ethics: In our classroom, we will work together as a team to learn and master the course material. We will take advantage of our diversity and diverse skills to help each other to succeed. We will treat each other with respect and dignity. We will not race ahead so fast that our colleagues are left behind. Similarly, we will not fall so far behind that we are holding our colleagues back. We will give everyone a chance to speak and we will not speak over others. Page 4 AST – 102 Astronomy/Lab Course Syllabus & Course Policy Appendix A – Instructional Objectives for AST-102 Astronomy/Lab Students can demonstrate BHCC Core Competencies for critical thinking and writing skills. • Students demonstrate the ability to interpret, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information from multiple sources in a logical and coherent manner. Evidence for this ability includes: • Interpreting information logically by selecting and organizing relevant facts and opinions and identifying the relationships among them • Analyzing an issue or problem by separating it into its component parts and investigating the relationship of the parts to the whole • Synthesizing information by combining ideas from multiple sources to come to an independent conclusion • Evaluation of information to make informed judgments as to whether the information is accurate, reliable, or useful • Students demonstrate the ability to write a focused composition that demonstrates a clear understanding of the subject matter • Approach writing as a process, which proceeds from determining audience and purpose, through idea gathering, planning, writing and revising, to editing a final draft. • Write a composition that is well focused, well organized and well developed; uses language appropriate to audience and writing situation; and demonstrates a clear understanding of the subject under discussion • Effectively incorporate information for other sources, using quotation and paraphrase, and give credit to such sources in an appropriate manner Students can demonstrate Area Five Science and Technology Specific General Education Competencies. • The Student can describe the major concepts and connections that define the particular division of Astronomy • The Student can use the Scientific Method to solve scientific problems • The Student can test a hypothesis by performing an experiment and formulating a conclusion based on the experimental results • The Student can use measuring devices, data collection techniques, and graphical analysis to solve scientific problems • The Student can explain the interrelationships of science and technology • The Student can describe how advances in Science and Technology have affected the conditions of the global community, the environment and the quality of human life Students demonstrate mastery of the specific knowledge presented in the course through quantitative calculations, experimentation, descriptions, discussion, and exposition. 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