Astronomy 1 UCSB Fall 2008
Professor A. Zee
|
Image: Artist's impression of the planets orbiting the star 79 Ceti, 117 light-years from Earth (To learn more, click here) |
NOTE: The information on this page is subject to change.
Last updated December 2, 2008
Office: 2321 Kohn Hall
Telephone: 893-4213
e-mail: zee@kitp.ucsb.edu
Home page: http://www.itp.ucsb.edu/~zee/
Office hours: Thursdays 4:00-4:50 p.m. and Fridays 4:00-4:50 p.m.
A NOTE ON THE USE OF E-MAIL: When sending e-mail to your instructor, please be sure to include your full name, your perm number, and your e-mail address, and put "Astronomy 1" in the subject line of your message. This will help him to address your needs more efficiently. Failure to include "Astronomy 1" in the subject line of your message may result in its rejection by his spam filter.
Mike Blume--- e-mail:
mike@physics.ucsb.edu
Office hours: Tuesdays 11:00-2:00 p.m.
Grades homework for students with last names A-K
Ishai Rubin--- e-mail:
ishai@deepspace.ucsb.edu
Office hours: Wednesdays 11:00-12:30 p.m., Thursdays 9:00-9:30 a.m. and Friday 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Grades homework for students with last names L-Z
The TAs will hold their office hours in the
Physics Study Room,
Room 1019, Broida Hall.
The CLAS tutor for the course is Ellie Newton <elisabeth@umail.ucsb.edu>.
-
Astronomy 1 Lectures:
Monday, Wednesday and Friday 10:00-10:50 p.m., 1610 Broida Hall -
Astronomy 1 Discussion Sections:
IMPORTANT: All discussion sections will meet for the first time during the first week of classes. Make sure that you attend!
02964 Friday 9:00 - 9:50 a.m., ARTS 1426 --- TA: Ishai Rubin
02972 Wednesday 1:00 - 1:50 p.m., ARTS 1426 --- TA: Ishai Rubin
02980 Wednesday 5:00 - 5:50 p.m., GIRV 2128 --- TA: Mike Blume
02998 Wednesday 4:00 - 4:50 p.m., PHELP3505 --- TA: Mike Blume
03004 Wednesday 6:00 - 6:50 p.m., PHELP3505 --- TA: Mike Blume
03012 Monday 4:00 - 4:50 p.m., PHELP1425 --- TA: Ishai Rubin
An honors section will NOT be offered with this course in Fall quarter 2008.
Your textbook.
Whether you're using the eBook or a printed copy of the book, you must register on the textbook companion web site. For instructions on how to register, click here. (If you are using the printed version of the book, registering will allow you to use all of the features of the companion web site. If you are using the eBook, you won't need to visit the companion web site again, since all of its features are integrated into the eBook.) |
|
By an overwhelming margin, the class voted not to use the i>clicker system. You do not have to purchase an i>clicker for this course.
IMPORTANT: In order to get the most out of the lectures, you must read each assignment BEFORE the lecture.
A written homework assignment will be assigned each week, to be due the following Friday
at 3:30 p.m.
The written homework is worth 20% of of the total points toward your course grade.
Each assignment can be found on the Astronomy 1 homework web page
(click here to visit this page).
Assignments are to be handed in to designated boxes
at the rear of the lecture hall, 1610 Broida Hall.
Late problem sets cannot be accepted.
You are encouraged to work with your friends on the problem sets, but
you must hand in your own assignment in your own words.
If you can't do the homework problems by yourself, then you won't be able
to do the exams! The method you use to get the answer is as important as
the answer itself.
If you have questions about the grading of your homework assignment,
please refer them directly to the TA who grades your homework, NOT to the
instructor. The most efficient way to do this is by e-mail.
There will not be any online assignment in this course. All assignments will be written.
There will be two midterm exams, given in lecture on October 24 , 2008 and November 19 , 2008.
Each midterm exam is worth 20% of the total points toward your course grade.
For what the midterms will cover, see the syllabus page.
The final exam
will be given on Tuesday, December 9, 2008, 8:00-11:00 a.m.
in Broida 1610 (the lecture room). The final exam is worth 40% of the total points toward your course grade.
Calculators are permitted on the midterm exams and final exam,
but cell phones are NOT allowed.
IMPORTANT NOTE: It sometimes happens that a student is unable to take an exam due to
illness or a family emergency. If this should happen to you, you must contact the course
instructor, A. Zee, at the earliest opportunity by e-mail, phone, or in person.
Do not contact the TAs or homework graders, since they will only tell you to contact the
instructor. The excuse must be submitted and approved before the exam. No excuse will be approved after the exam.
Solutions to the homework set and to the midterm tests, scores on the midterm tests, the practice final exam etc are all posted on this web page set up by the TAs:
http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~astro1/f2008/
|
Extra credit method #1:
Attend a planetarium show at the
Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History,
located at
2559 Puesta Del Sol Road in Santa Barbara. Planetarium programs are offered Saturdays and Sundays in the Museum's Gladwin Planetarium. Each program lasts approximately 35 minutes. You can confirm the times of planetarium shows by calling 682-4711 or by visiting http://www.sbnature.org/ When you arrive at the Museum, check in at the entrance for a special reduced admission charge. You'll need to keep your receipt to serve as proof of your participation in a planetarium show. For driving directions to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, click here. For a map, click here. You can also get to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History via bus using the Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District (MTD). |
|
|
Extra credit method #2: Attend a "star party" offered by The Astronomical Unit, an organization of avid amateur astronomers. These are held once a month at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. "Star parties" are also held the third Friday of each month at Westmont College's Carroll Observatory. You should contact these organizations to find out the current schedule. |
|
How to receive extra credit: After attending one of these events,
write a one page description of your experience, including a description of what you learned.
Include your name and perm number and attach your proof of participation to your writeup
and give it directly to your professor.
The deadline for handing in an extra credit writeup is 4:00 p.m. on December 2, 2008
(a week before the final exam).
By popular demand, the deadline has been extended to 11 AM, Tuesday December 9.
You can only receive extra credit for one event.
Your course grade will be determined as follows: written homework assignments,
20%; first midterm exam, 20%; second midterm exam,
20%; final exam, 40%.
THIS COURSE IS NOT GRADED ON THE CURVE. Your grade in Astronomy
1 will depend on what percentage of the total possible points you receive (from written homework,
discussion section participation,
and in-class exams, plus any extra credit), using the following
scheme:
|
grade |
possible points needed for this grade |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Professor Anthony Zee is available to answer your questions about any aspect
of Astronomy 1 during
his office hours, or at other times by appointment. Please come by!
Physics Study Room (PSR):
Located in Room
1019, Broida Hall, the PSR
is where all physics TAs hold their office
hours. The PSR is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and TAs are on duty
at most times. Note that all the TAs you'll find in the PSR are able to
provide assistance with Astronomy 1, not just the TA assigned to the course.
This is a unique and extremely helpful component of our Physics Department.
Make full use of it!
Campus Learning Center (CLAS): CLAS provides tutorial assistance
for all courses, including special tutorial sections for Astronomy 1.
CLAS is located in the Student Services Complex area (telephone 893-3269).
For more information,
click here to visit the CLAS web site,
and click here
to see a map that shows where CLAS is located.
Ellie Newton is the Astro 1 tutor for CLAS this year. There will be two sections, one MW 9-9:50 and a second MW 12-12:50. Students can sign up in the SRB or on-line; sign-ups are first come, first serve. Additionally on Monday and Wednesday from 11-12 Ellie holds drop-in tutoring.
Stressed Out? This can help: Stress is a natural part of student life.
Santa Barbara physician Jay Winner, MD has created an effective
program for dealing with stress of all kinds.
For details, click here.
Academic dishonesty is not acceptable in Astronomy 1 or any other course
at UCSB. If you copy another student's homework assignment or exam, both
you and the student from whom you copied will receive a grade of zero for
that assignment or exam. In addition, a Faculty Report Form for Academic
Misconduct will be sent to the Office of the Dean of Students, and your
case will be referred to the Student-Faculty Committee on Student Conduct.
It is not uncommon for a first-time offender to be suspended from the University
for one quarter for committing one act of cheating. A second offense commonly
leads to permanent suspension from the University.
This is not an idle threat, but a description of what has happened on
previous occasions when cheating occurred. Remember that cheating hurts
everybody, and you should not hesitate to inform your instructor or teaching
assistant if you witness an act of cheating.
Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated.
- COMPUTERS AND ASTRONOMY 1
| In this course you will be required to use a computer and the World Wide Web on a regular basis. If you do not have your own computer with Web access, you may use the computers at Instructional Computing (IC) in Phelps Hall (http://www.ic.ucsb.edu/) or the computers Instructional Computing offers free workshops on how to use e-mail and the World Wide Web. For more information and a detailed schedule of these workshops, click here or call Instructional Computing at 893-3002. You may also use the computers in the Physics Study Room, Room 1019, Broida Hall, during the hours it is open (Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.). |
Copyright �2008 by the Regents of the University of California
