The Milky Way
seen from California's White Mountains
(courtesy Bob Horton, Brown U. Dept. of Physics)
(click here for a larger version)
|Course Outline|Office Hours|
|Schedule and Reading Assignments|Final Exam|
click here for a .pdf version of the Course Outline
(To read the .pdf versions of the on-line documents,
you will need a free plug-in of Adobe Acrobat Reader)
INSTRUCTORS: |
Dr. Bob Mondi | |
OFFICE: |
SL 202 |
LI 225A |
TELEPHONE: |
626-7921 |
626-6186 |
E-MAIL: |
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COURSE HOME PAGE: |
http://physics.weber.edu/carroll/Honors-Cosmology |
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TEXTS: |
The Book of the Cosmos, Imagining the Universe |
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Big Bang, Simon Singh |
Cosmology is the study of the universe on the grandest scale. How did the world come to be, what is it like, and how does it work? We will examine the ideas of western cosmology, from the ideas of the presocratic philosophers to the theories of modern cosmology.
The course will use a seminar format based on the readings assigned for that day. Your grade will be based on your assigned classwork, attendance, and class participation. You should email a list of three questions about the assigned reading before 10 am on class days. A few papers on selected topics will be assigned during the semester. Several short assignments or observing projects will also be required. A final project is required, and must be approved by March 22 by the instructors. You will present your project to the class during the last week of the semester.
| Brad: | Bob: |
| 10:30 - 11:30 daily and any other time I'm in my office |
All day |
Click on a hyperlink for that day's handouts
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Jan |
09 |
Course Introduction |
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11 |
Cosmos, #1 - 4, p. 1 - 30 |
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| Jan | 16 | Cosmos, #5 & 6, p. 31 - 42 |
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18 |
Cosmos, #7 - 10, p. 43 - 65; Big Bang, p. 1 - 27 |
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Jan |
23 |
St. Augustine, Confessions, Book XI |
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25 |
Cosmos, #11 - 17, p. 68 - 101; Big Bang, p. 28 - 33 |
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Jan |
30 |
Cosmos, #18 - 20, p. 104 - 127 |
| Feb | 01 | Cosmos, #21 - 23, p. 128 - 144 |
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Feb |
06 |
Cosmos, #24 & 25, p. 145 - 162; Galileo, Letter to the Grand Duchess Christina |
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08 |
Cosmos, #26, p. 163 - 172; Big Bang, p. 47 - 75 |
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| Feb | 13 |
Cosmos, #27 - 33, p. 173 - 219 |
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15 |
Cosmos, #34, p. 220 - 228 |
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Feb |
20 |
Cosmos, #35 - 40, p. 229 - 258 |
| 22 | Cosmos, #41 - 43, p. 259 - 276; Big Bang, p. 75 - 83 | |
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Feb |
27 |
Big Bang, p. 85 - 116; Cosmos, #59, p. 366 - 370 |
| March | 01 | Big Bang, p. 116 - 143 |
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March |
06 |
Cosmos, #58, 60, 63, p. 356 - 365, 371 - 379, 390 - 393 |
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08 |
Big Bang, p. 144 - 163 |
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| March | 13 | SPRING |
| 15 | BREAK | |
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| March | 20 | Big Bang, p. 165 - 229 |
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22 |
Cosmos, #44 - 46, 48 - 50, 53, p. 277 - 293, 298 - 311, 326 - 332 |
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March |
27 |
Big Bang, p. 229 - 263; Cosmos, #52, 61, 62, 64, p. 317 - 325, 380 - 389, 394 - 400 |
| 29 | Big Bang, p. 265 - 355; Cosmos, #67, p. 411 - 415 | |
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April |
03 |
Big Bang, p. 357 - 437; Cosmos #72, 74, p. 433 - 437, 448 - 451 |
| 05 | Big Bang, p. 437 - 463, Cosmos #47, 76, p. 294 - 297, 460 - 463 | |
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April |
10 |
Alpha and Omega, Ch. 5, p. 63 - 89 |
| 12 | Big Bang, p. 469 - 493; Cosmos #73, 79, 81, p. 438 - 447, 482 - 487, 498 - 505 | |
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April |
17 |
Cosmos, #77, 78, 83, 84, 85, p. 464 - 481, 510 - 528; Weinberg, A Designer Universe? |
| 19 | Course wrap-up | |
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April |
24 |
Presentation of course projects |
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26 |
Presentation of course projects |
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Presentation of course projects
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Last modified: Monday, December 11, 2006 03:47 PM
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e-mail comments to: bcarroll@weber.edu