Extraterrestrial Life Schedule

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UGS 303 WEL 1.316 Spring 2016

  Instructor Teaching Assistants
  Neal Evans Mo (Emma) Yu Matt Stevans Rebecca Tippens
Office: RLM 15.312A RLM 15.310E RLM 16.216 RLM 17.308
Phone: 471-4396 471-3387 471-0445 471-3415
Section: MAI 220A 8, 9, 10 11, 12, 1 2, 3, 4
Office Hours: TBA Th 11-12 Tu 11-12 M 1-2

EMAIL: nje@astro.as.utexas.edu; moyu@astro.as.utexas.edu; stevans@astro.as.utexas.edu; rtippens@astro.as.utexas.edu
Website: http://www.as.utexas.edu/astronomy/education/spring16/evans/303.html

Schedule: Be sure to do the reading assignments before the class they are assigned for. Those who are prepared and ask questions or contribute to discussion will receive extra credit. If the scheduled office hours are not possible for you, we will make appointments for other times. Reading Assignments refer to chapters in the Class notes (Evans) or to the whole of the novel Contact by Carl Sagan. You should start reading Contact by about Spring Break, marking passages that discuss communications or travel ideas. Then review these before classes when those topics are discussed.

Date Topic Reading Assignments Drake Equation Factor
 
1/19 Course Overview 1  
1/21 Origin of Elements 2  
1/26 Origin of Stars 3A-3C R*
1/28 Origin of Planets 3D fp
2/2 Nature of Solar Systems 3E  
2/4 Habitable Planets 3F ne
2/9 Habitable Planets 3F  
2/11 Test 1 (Ch. 1-3)    
2/16 Nature of Life 4A  
2/18 Origin of Life 4B-C fl
2/23 Origin of Life 4D  
2/25 Alternatives 4E-4G  
3/1 Life in Solar System 5A-B  
3/3 Life in Solar System 5C-D  
3/8 Test 2 (Ch. 4-5)    
3/10 Biological Evolution 6A Paper topics due
3/15 Spring Break Start Reading Contact
3/17 Spring Break    
3/22 Origin of Intelligence 6B fi
3/24 Cultural Evolution 7A-B fc, Paper outline, Para. 1
3/29 Lifetime of Civilization 7C L
3/31 Future of Civilization 7D Paper due
4/5 Section Talks   Reports from sections
4/7 More Talks, Drake Eq. 8 N, r
4/12 Test 3 (Ch. 6-7)    
4/14 Communication 9A-D  
4/19 Communication 9E Papers returned
4/21 Contact (Communication) Contact  
4/26 Travel 10A-B Paper rewrite due
4/28 Visitations? 10C  
5/3 Contact (Travel, Reactions) Contact Course evaluation
5/5 Test 4 (Ch. 8–10 & Contact)   This test is required