GETTING HELP: The Instructor and T.A. have scheduled regular times for office hours (see the top of this syllabus).
Please try to bring your questions to us at these times if possible, since we both have other responsibilities in addition to
Ast 307 duties, and may not always be available at other times of the week. However, if you cannot attend any of our regular office
hours, please contact us and we will try to find an alternate appointment time. The T.A. will hold help sessions shortly before
homeworks are due, and before hour exams. You can also contact us with questions by email. However, please check the class
website first, to see whether the answer is already posted. We will be posting frequent announcements, updates, and other information
there. (I do not encourage students to set up or participate in chat groups or the equivalent that discuss the homework. This
has the potential of spreading misinformation; and giving answers to problems to other students will be considered scholastic
dishonesty.)
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: Upon request, the University of Texas at Austin provides appropriate academic adjustments
for qualified students with disabilities. Contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, or (TTY) 471-4641, or via email to
ssd@uts.cc.utexas.edu or see
http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/.
SPECIAL EVENTS: The Astronomy Department offers evening Star Parties (viewing through small telescopes) on campus.
Star Parties will take place on certain Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays; details will be announced and posted at
http://outreach.as.utexas.edu/public/viewing.html.
As you may have noted above, it is possible to earn a (small amount of) extra credit by attending one of these star parties;
in order to earn this credit you must get a signed slip from the person presiding over the star party. Warning to the naïve: Star
parties are held only when the weather permits! They are cancelled when it's too cloudy to see anything, so it is very dangerous
to procrastinate and assume that you can wait the end of the semester. If it's cloudy that evening, you will be disappointed - and
out of luck!
DEPARTMENTAL INFORMATION: If issues arise during the semester that cannot be resolved with the instructor or TA,
you may contact the Chair of the Undergraduate Studies Committee, Prof. Gregory Shields (471-1402 or
shields@astro.as.utexas.edu),
or the Chairman of the Department of Astronomy, Prof. Neal Evans (471-3302,
chairman@astro.as.utexas.edu). More information can be found in a
separate document, "Memo to Undergraduate Astronomy Students," handed out in class and also posted at
http://outreach.as.utexas.edu/students/memo.html.
