Stemplosion

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Syllabus

ASTR-110-6347 Spring 2017 Syllabus (subject to change)

Enabled: Statistics Tracking

Instructor: Brian Carter Email brian.carter@gcccd.edu (I will answer all emails sent M-F within 24 hours, weekends I will respond no later than Monday at noon) Work Phone 619-644-7315 (I check this during on campus office hours, it is always better to email) Office Location 34-160 (access thru 34-162) Office Hours Mon 9:00am-11:00am, Wed 9:00am-12:30pm I will have online office hours (checking email and the Discussion Board) M-F from 10-11pm

Required Texts & Materials:

Get the textbook, STEMplosion website access, and a scientific calculator.

The Textbook

Comins. Discovering the Essential Universe 6th edition

ISBN: 1464181705

The publisher offers an online textbook, $68.99 for 180 days (6 months) https://reg.macmillanhighered.com/Account/Unauthenticated?TargetURL=http%3a%2f%2

Make sure to choose "Find a Launchpad Course" and then on the next page "Need an

If you choose "I need to pay later" you can get free access to the textbook for 3 weeks for each email account that accesses the link.

Welcome My Courses

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Brian Carter

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$21.88 to rent as of 1/24/16 at amazon.com

STEMplosion Access Code ($25): When you go to the "Exercises & Videos" website you'll be taken to a payment page to purchase access for the entire semester.

A Scientific Calculator:

As an example I selected a TI­30XA (at Bestbuy for $12.50, although Walmart or your local store should have similar). These should have square root, exponent, and power buttons (usually they also have sin, cos, tan, trigonometry functions).

This is not the same as a business calculator ­ stay away from those.

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Course Schedule:

Enabled: Statistics Tracking

Week (Dates) Topic(s), Readings/Activities

1 (1/30-2/5) Discovering The Night Sky, Chapter 1

2 (2/6-2/12) Gravitation and Motion of the Planets, Chapter 2

3* (2/13-2/19) Light and Telescopes, Chapter 3

4* (2/20-2/26) Formation of the Solar System, Chapter 4

5 (2/27-3/5) Exam 1 (Ch 1-4), Exoplanets, Chapter 5

6 (3/6-3/12) Terestrial Planets and Their Moons, Chapter 6

7 (3/13-3/19) Terestrial Planets and Their Moons, Chapter 6

8 (3/20-3/26) The Outer Planets And Their Moons, Chapter 7

9 (4/3-4/9) Vagabonds of the Solar System, Chapter 8

10 (4/10-4/16) Exam 2 (Ch 5-8 ), The Sun, Chapter 9

11 (4/17-4/23) Characterizing Stars, Chapter 10

12 (4/24-4/30) Lives of Stars, Chapter 11

13 (5/1-5/7) Deaths of Stars, Chapter 12

14 (5/8-5/14) Exam 3 (Ch 9-12), Galaxies, Chapter 13

15 (5/15-5/21) Cosmology, Chapter 14

16 (5/22-5/28) Exam 4 (Ch 13-15) Astrobiology, Chapter 15

17* (5/29-6/4) Final Exam (Cumulative Ch 1-15)

* = Holiday No Class Sessions/Activities On: Feb 17-20, Mar 27-Apr 1, May 29

Assignment Schedule:

Each and every week there are tasks that must be completed during that week. There are exercises and videos to do at STEMplosion.com and message board postings here at the blackboard page. Any specific due dates and times are posted with the exercises and videos at STEMplosion. There are also exams on blackboard as noted on the schedule, which must be done during the week they are assigned. Information regarding exams are posted on the exam link when the exams become available. A due date is the time that a task is to be completed by ­ not when to start them!

The exercises are computer generated problems to be submitted at STEMplosion thru the EXERCISES & VIDEOS link. They can be done as many times as you would like prior to the due date until you get the score you desire. They are extremely similar to your textbook exercises, which are at the end of each chapter. The videos are also administered thru the same link. To prove you have viewed them, simply play them, take notes, and press the "I am Watching" buttons that show up randomly thru the video. If you try to cut corners and watch more than one video at a time (overlap them) or work on exercises when a video is playing ­ you will get no credit for any and all offending scores. Watching a video means that is the only thing you are doing and taking written notes ­ nothing else.

Entries are to be made each chapter on the Discussion Board.

Exams and the Final Exam are generally multiple choice, but could contain "fill in the blank" or matching style problems as well. You are only allowed one attempt prior to the due date/time on each exam. The exams are timed in such a way as to make using the internet impossible. Exam material is drawn from the textbook readings, exercises and videos for those chapters, and blackboard discussions. The Final Exam is cumulative and will contain

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questions selected from all material covered during the course including previous exams, video material, postings on the Discussion Board. Discussing an exam with other students during an examination time is academic dishonesty and will result in a score of zero to all offending participants.

Attendance

You are expected to do textbook reading/lecture powerpoints/exercises and videos/postings every week (and exams if available).

MISSING MORE THAN ONE WEEK OF ANY ACTIVITY (make sure to do each) MAY POSSIBLY RESULT IN BEING DROPPED FROM THIS CLASS FOR BEING INACTIVE.

You should expect to invest a minimum of 9 hours per week in all activities related to this class each week.

Plan your week accordingly, spread out the work during the week - and above all else -

DO NOT CRAM IT ALL INTO A SINGLE DAY DURING THE WEEKEND.

Class Participation:

Enabled: Statistics Tracking

Your participation grade will depend on your contributions on the discussion board. Each chapter (week), you are required to submit at least ONE question (not on Sunday), and ONE post regarding a video viewed (that's TWO posts total). If you can't think of a question to ask ­ post an insightful observation, hint, etc. that will help others with the assignment, or reply to another student with helpful information. Late postings (after we have finished the chapter) will not be graded since the message board and your grade is for class discussions and interaction ­ once the material is covered there isn't much interaction. Your posts must also have substance and be helpful or specific rather than short one liners (i.e., thanks, while polite, doesn't constitute credit for replying to a question). Postings must occur during the chapter coverage (for example, posts for our first chapter ­ chapter 1 ­ must be done during the first week of class)

Other things to post if you are interested in doing so:

Reading assignment and content of the week.

Homework problems due that week.

Debate issues from the assigned videos.

Relevant news or articles during the week (posters must provide links).

You should not discuss:

Exam questions or anything related to an Exam (including study tips) while testing is occurring ­ this is academic dishonesty (cheating) and will result in a ZERO for your score on that exam. Bite your tongue if you are considering doing anything on the Discussion

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Board or outside of class related to an exam.

Topics unrelated to coursework.

Your personal information such as contact info, phone, email, address, birthday, ID#, SSN.

Complaining about anything, shaming other students, name calling, etc. ­ try to keep this a positive learning environment

Your participation on the discussion board will be graded using a 2­point effort scale.

+2 points will be given for following guidelines and providing helpful topics/hints/insight.

+1 point for incomplete hints/insight/uninteresting topics (it has to be really horrible) or slight guideline violation.

0 points for offering nothing of value.

­2 points (that's taking points away from your total) for your first post being unsupportive, negative, degrading, insulting, calling names, disrespectful, etc.

­2 points for the aforementioned, for subsequent posts.

You may also be removed from the course discussion board and be referred to the dean of instruction for academic action if your content deems it necessary.

Here are a few guidelines that you are required to follow in order for our discussion board to be useful:

1. Make sure to give short descriptive SUBJECTS in your posts. Take the time to create meaningful subject headings or descriptors for messages to help people orient to the purpose of the information.

2. Careful with Formatting . On the Internet, less is more. Don't use fancy formatting and keep things simple. Use headings whenever possible for clarity. Similarly, don't include graphics, images or multimedia components (audio/video clips) or files in your posts unless you are fairly sure that the intended audience needs to view them. When including multimedia components in web documents, identify the format used (e.g., mpeg, wav, etc.) so people can determine what "plug­ins" (helper applications) are needed to run them. If you are using a specialized plug­in, provide a source location (ideally via a direct link) where people can obtain the plug­in.

3. Public domain. Think carefully about what you write. First of all, it is very easy for people to forward some or all of an email message/files to others ... so always assume that anything you post could be made quite public. Also your message may be read by a wide variety of people (particularly if it is posted to a public forum on the Internet/web); hence, all the more reason to be respectful of diversity.

4. Be kind and gentle. There is no need to make cyberspace a nasty place. Avoid sarcasm and mean­spiritedness. And if you read something that upsets you, don't react poorly; either ignore it or wait a day and send a rational response. The online environment is a wonderful place for debate and discussion, but remember to be civil and considerate.

5. Don't claim the website is wrong and you are right ­ most likely there is nothing wrong at all with the website or you. Some questions are very specifc to the text, and google can't help you. Just ask a question in a discussion board post and try not to come across in a negative way ­ it'll get a lot more feedback from others. Don't waste hours on a single problem ­ we are here together as a group, and some questions are meant to make you ask

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for help.

6. When someone asks for help, don't just give an answer ­ make sure that they have explained what they have tried, help them discover the answer with a little push in the right direction. If necessary give a detailed explanation for harder concepts in a response.

7. After your first post in each forum, read the discussion board first, in case someone has already asked a similar question. Don't make a new thread when one already exists.

Course Description:

This course is an introductory survey of contemporary astronomy. Topics covered include the solar system, stars and stellar evolution, the Milky Way Galaxy, and cosmology. This course is designed for students planning to take advanced courses in the Physical and Earth Sciences and for transfer students planning to major in astronomy. (FT) Transfer Credit: CSU and/or private college/university UC Transfer Course List.

Course Overview:

Topics to be discussed in the course include the following: 1. Definitions and concepts relating to the nature, sizes, and distances of objects in the

Universe. 2. Historical astronomy such as the Greek concepts of the Universe like the geocentric

system; renaissance astronomy such as the heliocentric system, Galileo’s observations, Kepler’s Laws, and Newton’s Laws.

3. Earth’s view of celestial phenomena such as constellations and eclipses; apparent motions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars.

4. Light and the electromagnetic spectrum: wave and particle properties of light, Doppler effect, spectroscopy; use of these properties and techniques to gather astronomical information.

5. Refractor and reflector telescopes 6. Origin and evolution of the solar system 7. Physical characteristics of the terrestrial planets and the Moon 8. Physical characteristics of the Jovian planets and their moons 9. Physical characteristics of the Sun

10. Stars: measurement, classification, locations, motions, physical characteristics, Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, evolution

11. White dwarfs, neutron stars, pulsars, and black holes 12. Milky Way Galaxy structure 13. Galaxy classification, structure, and motion 14. Theories of our Universe such as the Big Bang

Course Prerequisites:

There are no campus prerequisites for this course. However, you should realize that anstronomy requires both qualitative and quantitative understanding of subject material. As such, you will be expected to identify and explain the relationships among variables given in mathematical formulae and to perform basic

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calculations and/or graphical analyses with a proficiency equivalent to that encountered in high school algebra. You should also purchase a scientific calculator if you don't already have one ($15 or less) in order to facilitate these calculations. Since class content is delivered online, you also need a fast virus free computer with reliable reasonably fast access to the internet and the basic knowledge necessary to operate it. If not you may need to use a campus computer (library/tech mall).

Evaluation/Grading/Requirements:

Component Grading Weight

Participation 10%

Exercises And Videos 40%

Exams (lowest dropped) 25%

Cumulative Final Exam 25%

The formula to calculate your grade: Overall% = 0.10 x Participation% + 0.40 x ExercisesVideos% + 0.25 x Exams% + 0.25 x FinalExam% Prior to the final: Overall% = ( 0.10 x Participation% + 0.40 x ExercisesVideos% + 0.25 x Exams% ) ÷ 0.75

Overall % Score Range (%) Grade

85 – 100 A

75 – 84 B

65 – 74 C

55 – 64 D

Below 55 F

Course Policies:

Make­Up/Drop Score Policy

Exams will be given during a specific period of time. No make­up exams will be given after the examination period. This is mainly due to the fact that solutions are made public after the examination period, and it is your responsibility to take the exams when they are scheduled. There are no make­up assignments, no make­up discussion board postings, no make­ups for any graded task in this course. I will drop your lowest exam score (not the final).

Withdrawal Policy

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You MAY be dropped from the class if you do not participate in any of the class's activities for 1 week. Ultimately, it is YOUR responsibility to attend and/or drop the class if you are not attaining your academic goals. If you are enrolled after the drop deadline, you will receive a letter grade for the course.

You will be dropped from the class if you are inactive prior to the census date. After the census date, you may be dropped for being an inactive student.

You must log on to http://wa.gcccd.edu/ in order to drop the class yourself.

Computer/Network Usage

Careful and ethical use of computing resources is the responsibility of every user. You should not violate any of the Grossmont College policies regarding computer use. You should not in any way try to tamper with the course website which includes hacking, spamming, flooding, etc. These behaviors will be forwarded to the highest authorities on campus, and may result in severe penalties (possibly criminal) due to the scope of those potentially affected by such actions.

If it is detected that outside entities are using your personal information (most likely due to a computer virus on your system) you may be temporarily prevented from using the assignment server to protect the server from attack and to protect you from the entities receiving your personal information. I will contact you individually if I notice any unusual computer activity coming from overseas. This can quickly be resolved by using antivirus software, removing unnecessary add­ins and plug­ins from your browser, or by taking your computer to a professional.

Classroom Behavior and Student Code of Conduct:

Students are responsible for defining and making progress toward their education goals leading to a certificate degree or transfer to a four­year institution. Students are expected to respect and obey standards of student conduct while in class and on campus. The Student Code of Conduct, disciplinary procedures, and student due process can be found in the college catalog and at the office of the Dean of Student Affairs. Charges of misconduct and disciplinary sanctions may be imposed upon students who violate these standards of conduct or provisions of college regulations. The following are expectations of your behavior in the class.

1. Promote mutual respect and consideration of others.

2. Respect the work of others.

3. Demonstrate respect for tools, equipment and supplies.

4. Practice consideration in maintaining a clean learning environment.

5. Recognize everyone's opportunity to contribute information.

6. Student behavior resulting in the obstruction of the teaching­learning process will not be tolerated.

Academic Integrity:

Cheating and plagiarism (using as one’s own ideas, writings or materials of someone else without acknowledgement or permission) can result in any one of a variety of sanctions. Such

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penalties may range from an adjusted grade on the particular exam, paper, project, or assignment to a failing grade in the course. The instructor may also summarily suspend the student for the class meeting when the infraction occurs, as well as the following class meeting. For further clarification and information on these issues, please consult with your instructor or contact the office of the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities:

Students with disabilities who may need accommodations in this class are encouraged to notify the instructor and contact Disabled Student Services & Programs (DSP&S) early in the semester so that reasonable accommodations may be implemented as soon as possible. Students may contact DSP&S in person in room 11D or by phone at (619) 644­7119 (TTY for deaf).

Supervised Tutoring Referral:

Students are referred to enroll in the following supervised tutoring courses if the service indicated will assist them in achieving or reinforcing the learning objectives of this course: IDS 198, Supervised Tutoring to receive tutoring in general computer applications in the Tech Mall; English 198W, Supervised Tutoring for assistance in the English Writing Center (Room 70­ 119); and/or IDS 198T, Supervised Tutoring to receive one­on­one tutoring in academic subjects in the Tutoring Center (Room 70­229, 644­7387). To add any of these courses, students may obtain Add Codes at the Information/Registration Desk in the Tech Mall. All Supervised Tutoring courses are non­credit/non­fee. However, when a student registers for a supervised tutoring course, and has no other classes, the student will be charged the usual health fee.

Incomplete

An incomplete will not be issued nonchalantly and can only result from ‘incomplete academic work for unforeseeable, emergency, and justifiable reasons.’ See the College Catalog for further information.

Online Behavior

You are expected to respect and obey standards of student conduct while in class online and on the campus. The student Code of Conduct, disciplinary procedure, and student due process can be found in the Grossmont College Catalogue, Student Handbook, and at the Dean of Student Affairs Office.

Course Goals:

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs): Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Evaluate how the scientific method and astronomical observations are used to improve our understanding of the Universe and its contents.

2. Be able to identify the important components and fundamental forces of the Universe. 3. Explain the relationships between the components of the Universe.

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4. Explain how the Universe and its components change with time. 5. Recognize how the physical laws are responsible for the behavior of the Universe.