COURSE OUTLINE A S T 105IN Life in the Universe**********************************************************************************************************************************Spring 2014 and afterPart 1 of 3. Foundations—History of Astronomy, Science, LightI. Goals for this course (Intro Notes, Unit I., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)A. Increase awareness of, and interest in, your celestial neighborhoodB. Improve your "scientific literacy"C. Instill a "Cosmic Perspective" on your worldD. Contribute to your personal and professional growth through critical thinkingII. Origins of science and astronomyA. Origin of Astronomy (ca. 550 B.C.E. to ca. 400 C.E.)B. Origin of science 1. fundamental importance: a new way to understandinga. naturalistic vs. supernaturalisticb. Thales2. some astronomical contributionsa. Democritusb. Aristotle and geocentrism vs. heliocentrism3. The significance of Aristotle’s approachIII. The Scientific (Copernican) Revolution (ca. 1600 c.e.)A. Nicolaus Copernicus and his challenge to geocentrismB. Tycho Brahe and his observations of MarsC. Johannes Kepler and the Three Laws of Planetary MotionD. Galileo Galilei1. Telescopic discoveries2. Clash with the ChurchIV. Newton and MotionA. Isaac Newton (ca. 1700 C.E.)1. Laws of Motion2. Law of GravityV. The Introductory Course Notes Set (Notes are already in outline form, so only the major units are given here.)A. A Personal Statement on Teaching (Intro Notes, Unit II., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)B. U.S. Scientific Illiteracy (Intro Notes, Unit III., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)C. Science ) a learning process (Intro Notes, Unit IV., covered in class)D. Critical Thinking (CT) Skills (Intro Notes, Unit V., covered in class)E. Pseudoscience/Superstition/Anti-intellectualism (Intro Notes, Unit VI., covered in class)F. The Popularity of Pseudoscience (Intro Notes, Unit VII., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)G. Dangers of Pseudoscience (Intro Notes, Unit VIII., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)H. Non-psychological Reasons for the Acceptance of Pseudoscience (Intro Notes, Unit IX., covered inFoundational Homework Ass’t.)Page 2I. Psychological Reasons for Acceptance of Pseudoscience (Intro Notes, Unit X., covered in FoundationalHomework Ass’t.)J. Tests of Psychic Claims (Intro Notes, Unit XI., covered in Foundational Homework Ass’t.)VI. LightA. Starlight--what the naked eye can see1. brightness and magnitudes2. color and the electromagnetic spectrum3. direction and coordinate systems (brief)B. Using light to know the universe1. Temperaturea. definitionb. scales2. Kirchhoff’s absorption line spectruma. How and where formed in starsC. Observing methods1. imaging2. spectroscopy3. photometryTEST 1 covers to here and Assignments 1 - 3Part 2 of 3. The Cosmic PerspectiveVII. The Cosmic PerspectiveA. Cosmic Perspective—Space1. The Solar Systema. Sun at centerb. the 8 major planets and their satellites(1) the Astronomical Unit distance unitc. the minor planets(1) asteroids(2) comets2. Hierarchical structure of the universea. the light year distance unitb. VIDEO—“Powers of Ten”3. Our Milky Way galaxy--a typical spiral galaxya. size and our location(1) activity: the “penny solar system”4. Galaxies (brief slide show)a. morphological typesb. Most conducive to complex lifec. clusters and superclustersd. quasarsB. Cosmic Perspective—Time1. Bishop Ussher (17 century)th2. The Great 19 century Age of the Earth Debateth3. The age of the solar system4. Relative age datinga. crater countsb. surface geological processesc. crustal rock layersd. fossils5. Absolute age datinga. radioactive decay of unstable isotopes in rocksPage 3b. astrophysical estimates of the age of the sun(1) from its gross properties(2) from its internal oscillations6. Age of the universeVIII. The Universe–setting the stage for lifeA. Setting the 4D space-time continuum “stage” for the matter and energy “actors” of lifeB. What about life in the early universe?C. A comment on stars.D. VIDEO—The “Cosmic Calendar” from Cosmos #1IX. Star basicsA. Spheres of matter1. Chemical composition2. Mass range3. Size rangeB. Temperature–key property1. Range2. Luminosity (power)a. Intensityb. Size (specifically, surface area)3. Spectrum–result ofa. Temperatureb. chemical compositionc. Size (atmospheric pressure)d. other propertiesC. The types of stars–Spectral ClassificationD. A quantitative look at the major properties of stars1. Masses2. Luminosities3. Temperatures4. Sizes E. Double stars physical binaries1. astrometric binaries2. spectroscopic binaries and the Doppler Effect3. benefits to astronomy of double starsF. Luminosity FunctionG. Stellar populations (brief)1. Population 12. Population 23. The development of the terrestrial planet classX. Star & Planet Formation (Pre-main sequence phase)A. The role of gravityB. Step by stepC. How stars shine1. nuclear fusion and Einstein's famous equation: E=mc2XI. The Lives and Importance of StarsPage 4A. Main Sequence PhaseB. Post-main Sequence PhaseC. Closer looks at1. Heavy-weight stars2. The range of stellar masses3. Range of stellar lifetimesD. Astrobiological impacts of stars1. Births of stars2. Stellar energies3. Stars and cosmochemistry4. A followup look at Spiral-type galaxiesTEST 2 covers to here and Assignments 4, 5Part 3 of 3. Life!XII. Life on Planets around other StarsA. Habitable Zones1. Description2. Key roles of water3. The effect of differing stars on HZs4. Possible life outside HZsB. Extra-solar planets1. How to detect?2. Doppler effect3. The discovery4. What are we learning?5. Hot Jupiters6. Implications for terrestrial planets7. Double star planets8. Independent confirmationXIII. Earth and MoonA. The Moon1. Origin2. History of early solar system3. What roles it might play in life on EarthB. Planet Earth1. Early development and resulting structure2. Its dynamic nature3. Geology and continental drift-plate tectonics4. Atmosphere and climate5. “Snowball Earth”6. Rare EarthXIV. Life on EarthA. The nature of life1. Physical entity engaged in processes2. What enables the metabolic and other biological processes?a. DNA, deoxyribonucleic acidPage 5(1) structure(2) functionsb. Clarification: The role of RNA3. Cells—the basic chemical factory unita. Three basic levels of life’s complexityb. Cell structurec. Cell division—mitosis4. The four compounds of life5. Three-part working definition of Life a.