Welcome to Astro 1102/1102
Sections 11 and 12!
Section 11: 1:25pm Thursdays
Section 12: 2:30pm Thursdays
TA: Shoshe Cole
Office hours: Wednesday 12:30-2:30
425 SSB
shoshe@astro.cornell.edu
What we need to cover today
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Administrative stuff
Policies
Getting to know each other
Significant figures
Units
Algebra
Trig
The Celestial Sphere
Administrative stuff
• The course website is
http://astrosun2.astro.cornell.edu/academics/courses/
astro1102/
• No laptops
• No phones/txting (it will affect your section grade)
• Reviews 1 week before exams
• Please read homework before coming to section
• Get a section notebook (you will be taking notes)
• Please email me ahead of time if you’re going to miss
section
Assessment
• 3 prelims
– We’ll probably drop your lowest score
• Section grade every week (10 points/week)
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6 homeworks
Worksheets, quizzes, attendance, participation, etc.
We drop your 3 lowest grades
No makeups
Don’t just skip the first 3 homeworks! If you do, you
might have problems later on in case of illness,
exams in other classes, sports, etc.
• Final exam is Wed, May 12, 7-9 pm
Section Grade
• We’re going to learn:
– About the solar system
– How science works
– Critical thinking
• If you think that there’s a chance that you’ll need to
hand your homework in late, let me know ASAP
– at least by 7pm the night before it’s due
– Otherwise, you’ll lose 1 point per day
• Cite facts/numbers that are from resources other than
the lectures and textbook
– Wikipedia cannot be used as a scholarly reference
– it can be inaccurate and incomplete
My policies
• You are all smart people!
– You might not be used to thinking like a scientist, but you are
all capable of it!
• Discussion section is for discussion
– Please ask questions! I’m here to help you learn.
– If you have a question and are embarrassed to ask it in
section, email me and I’ll discuss it during section (I won’t say
who asked the question)
– If you don’t understand an answer in the homework you just
got back, please ask! Many other people have the same
question.
– If you have a serious grading question, please come to my
office hours (Wednesday 12:30-2:30). Discussion section is
not a time to try to get additional points on your homework.
• No laptops, and turn phones off
Recommendations
• Starry Night (or the planetarium software that
comes with your textbook)
• Google Earth (Sky, Mars)
• Fuertes Observatory
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Friday night lectures/stargazing
Mars at opposition!
http://www.astro.cornell.edu/research/projects/CAS/
(607) 255-3557
Getting to know each other
• Me
• You
Sig figs, units, algebra, trig…
• Calculating the area of a laptop computer
• Mars Climate Orbiter
• My house is 5.0 miles from Wegmans. How
many m is this?
• Bode’s Law and Kepler’s 3rd Law (homework)
• SOH-CAH-TOA
The Celestial Sphere
The Celestial Sphere