IH 1 – The solar system and the universe Your email is due to Dr. Leopold: A and C blocks E and H blocks before the start of Conceptual Physics class on FRIDAY, 9/14/12 before the start of Conceptual Physics class on MONDAY, 9/17/12 This assignment is to do something related to astronomy that does NOT feel like homework. Go see or do something “astronomical.” Enjoy yourself. Below you will find a list of some events. If you know of another event you would prefer attending, please get it approved by me first – send me an email with a website and/or description. I will probably approve it and add it to the list below. If you cannot get out to an event, you may choose to watch videos. See the list below for suggestions. Again, feel free to suggest additions. You may also read astronomy books and/or explore astronomy web sites. Finally, you may suggest an astronomy project you would like to do. You must get my approval though. You must spend at least 2 hours doing astronomy activities. You must send me an email when you have finished. Due date for your email is at the top of this page. In the email you must tell me: 1. what things you went to and/or watched and/or did, and how long you spent on each, 2. who you did them with 3. which activities were fun/interesting enough that you would recommend them to other freshmen, and why, 4. and one new thing you learned about astronomy. Your answers must be in complete sentences. The questions must be numbered as shown above. The length of your email should be in the range 120 - 160 words. Please make it interesting for me to read! For this you will earn 20 points. EVENTS DATE Any date TIME Saturdays and Sundays WHAT See a Planetarium show or two at the McDonnell Planetarium at the St. Louis Science Center. Choose from these: Mr Hubble’s Universe, Seeking New Earth’s, or Metal Moons (this one ends September 3). With any of these you also get to see a 25 minute Planetarium show. http://www.slsc.org/WhatToDo/Planetarium/ThePlanetariumShows.aspx August 25 Saturday, 8:30 pm View the night sky at the Richard D. Schwartz Observatory on the University of Missouri – Saint Louis campus during the Public Open House - weather permitting http://www.umsl.edu/~physics/astro/ VIDEOS The Elegant Universe PBS online http://www.pbs.org/search/?q=the+elegant+universe&mediatype=Video Asteroid PBS online http://video.pbs.org/video/1506748851 Stephen Hawking’s Universe Maybe the county library? 360 minutes long for 6 episodes (any 1 hour episode counts as 1 video) Any other PBS video listed at this web site http://video.pbs.org/subject/957383708/topic/957390630/viewmode/grid NOVA – Einstein’s Big Idea The Visible Universe: A Visual Journey Through Space and Back in Time. NASA Hubble Space Telescope library? library? EXPLORE ASTRONOMY WEB SITES A website that shows the relative sizes of all things, starting from the smallest and going to the largest This site has lectures on many topics Khan Academy Website of the mission that is looking for planets around other stars that could support life. http://www.primaxstudio.com/stuff/scale_of_universe/scale-of-universev1.swf http://www.learner.org/resources/series42.html?pop=yes&pid=560 Watch various short lecture videos on astronomy topics of interest to you http://kepler.nasa.gov/ READ ASTRONOMY BOOKS SOLAR SYSTEM: A Visual Exploration of the Planets, Moons, and Other Heavenly Bodies that Orbit Our Sun by Marcus Chown St. Louis County Library DO AN ASTRONOMY PROJECT Make a 3D, scale model of the planets Make a time line of history of the universe Poster about some aspect of astronomy Other We will hang these from the ceiling in the classroom. Figure out how to do that – have a string or something coming out of the top of each planet Be sure to include first homo sapiens in 50,000 BC, and big bang 13.7 billion years ago. Must be small enough to fit on ONE cabinet door in N3