Announcements Archive
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Semester grades have now been submitted. For students who took the optional final exam, if your score was higher than for any earlier exam (included missed ones), there is a new numerical course total score posted on eGradebook. You may be interested to know that 17 students improved their course grade by taking this freely-available, optional make-up exam. I hope everyone enjoyed the course; have a nice and relaxing Winter Break! - Prof. Dinerstein & Kevin Gullikson |
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Grades for Exam 3, calculated totals for the exams, homework, and participation, as well as "Course Total Scores" are now posted on eGradebook. Take the last item, round up to the next integer, and look up your letter grade on the table on the Exams & Grading page. If you take no further action, this is your semester grade. However, if you take the optional Final Exam on Mon., Dec. 13, which will be given from 2 - 5 P.M. in Woolrich (WRW) 102, and do better on the final than on any of the earlier exams, the new score will replace the older one, and your semester grade may change. We will only make this change if it results in a better grade. The final exam covers the whole semester. There are no new Study Guides, since you have access to the three earlier ones. The format and length of the Final will be the same as the hour exams, however, so you may not need the whole three hours. It is against University policies to hold organized help sessions during exam week, but you can pick up your graded Exam 3 from Prof. Dinerstein on Wed., Dec. 8, 12:30 - 1:30 PM, or from Kevin on Thurs., Dec. 9, 12:30 - 1:30 PM in their offices, or at other times by advance appointment. |
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Lectures are over for the semester. Exam 3 will be given on Thurs., Dec. 2, in ART 1.102 as before. The Study Guide specifies the material to be covered on this exam. We will have regular office hours this week, and a Help Session on Wed., Dec. 1, 5 PM. Grades for Exam 3 and a projected course grade will be available on eGradebook early next week, no later than Wed., so that you can made an informed decision about whether to take the optional comprehensive Final Exam on Mon., Dec. 13. |
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We covered most of chs. 24 & 26 on Tues., Nov. 23 (we are skipping ch. 25). Homework 8 will be graded and returned in class on Tues., Nov. 30. Normal office hours will be held the week of Nov. 29 - Dec. 3, and the Help Session will move back to Wed., 5 PM. The Study Guide for Exam 3 is now available. The exam will be Thurs., Dec. 2 in the Art Auditorium, like the previous exams. Grades will be announced early the following week (around Tues.) so that you can decide whether to take the optional Final Exam. No assignments due over Thanksgiving; have a nice break! |
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We finished ch. 22, on black holes, on Tues., Nov. 16. Homework 8 was handed out. It is due Tues., Nov. 23 at the beginning of class, and no late homeworks can be accepted this time due to the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be a Help Session on Mon., Nov. 22 at the usual time and place. If you did not pick up Exam 2 in class, you may obtain it from the T.A. during office hours or a help session. Note that two points were added to the score on the paper, before entering your grade on eGradebook. Your letter grade for the exam is the same as the table for Exam 1, after adding the two points. We will be discussing Galaxies & Cosmology from now until the end of the semester. The chapters we will cover are ch. 23, 24, & 26. Exam 3 will be on Thurs., Dec. 2 in the Art building. A Study Guide will be distributed in advance. |
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There are a couple of minor problems with the original version of HW 7. The most significant is a typo in Problem 1: the correct value for the apparent magnitude of Mirfak is +1.82, not +1.38. Also, some of the notation might have been confusing; the parallax angle was indicated by the Greek letter "pi" but is called "p" in the textbook. In Problem 3, you should use a mass-luminosity relation of L varying as mass cubed as presented in class (rather than as mass to the 3.5 as stated in the book). You will receive credit either way, as long as you use a consistent mass-lifetime relation. A Revised HW 7 will be posted. Exam 2 is being graded, and will be returned on Thurs., Nov. 11. HW 7 will be handed out on Tues., Nov. 9 and will be due at the beginning of class on Tues., Nov. 16. Since we are shifting to Tuesday due dates for the next two homeworks, the Help Sessions will move to Mondays, same time and place as before. We are now in the middle of our unit on Stars. As with the topic of the Solar System, we covered the first couple of chapters in this unit fairly thoroughly (chs. 16 & 17), but now we will be selective and read only certain chapters and sections of chapters, chosen from chs. 18 - 22. See the Readings page for details. |
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Exam 2 is being graded, and will be returned on Thurs., Nov. 11. HW 7 will be handed out on Tues., Nov. 9 and will be due at the beginning of class on Tues., Nov. 16. Since we are shifting to Tuesday due dates for the next two homeworks, the Help Sessions will move to Mondays, same time and place as before. We are now in the middle of our unit on Stars. As with the topic of the Solar System, we covered the first couple of chapters in this unit fairly thoroughly (chs. 16 & 17), but now we will be selective and read only certain chapters and sections of chapters, chosen from chs. 18 - 22. See the Readings page for details. |
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The next exam will be Thurs., Nov. 4, in same room in the Art Building as Exam 1. The format will be similar, but Exam 2 will cover portions of chs. 6 - 16; see Study Guide 2 for details. There will be office hours and a Wed. afternoon help session during Nov. 1 - 3. You should read all of ch. 17 before Tues., Nov. 2. This material will not be included on Exam 2, but it will be addressed in Homework 7, which will be posted on Thurs., Nov. 4 and due on Thurs., Nov. 11. |
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We have now completed the topic of extrasolar planets, and are beginning our unit on the Sun and stars. The reading for the week of Oct. 25 - 29 is ch. 16, sections 1 - 4 and all of ch. 17. Homework 6 has been distributed and is due Thurs., Oct. 28 at the beginning of class. The next exam will be Thurs., Nov. 4, in same room in the Art Building as Exam 1. Details and a study guide will be made available next week. You can no longer drop Ast 307 except for documented non-academic reasons verified by your Dean. |
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As announced in an email from our T.A., there are a couple of typos in the initially posted version of HW 5. A revised version is now posted, but there are only two minor changes: In problem 2, the expression for escape velocity should read: v(esc) = sqrt (2GM/R). (See p. 169.) Problem 4, part (c) should read "move inward to 10 A.U. [from the central star]." HW 5 is due Thurs., Oct. 21 at the beginning of class, with a help session Wed. afternoon. In this class, we will continue Extrasolar Planets, and probably begin talking about the Sun, covered in ch. 16. Reminder: the last day you may drop this (or any other) course, except for documented non-academic reasons verified by your Dean, is Wed., Oct. 20. |
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We have finished our detailed study of our own Solar System, and are moving on to extrasolar planets on Tues., Oct. 19. Your book has only a few pages on this subject, Section 8-7. HW 5 was handed out, and is due at the beginning of class on Thurs., Oct. 21. By the last part of class on Thurs., Oct. 21, we may have moved on to the topic of our Sun, covered in ch. 16. Reminder: the last day you may drop this (or any other) course, except for documented non-academic reasons verified by your Dean, is Wed., Oct. 20. |
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On Thurs., Oct. 7 we finished talking about telescopes, and began ch. 7, the Solar System. HW 4 was handed out, and is posted on the Homeworks page. Prof. Dinerstein will be on travel until Wed., Oct. 13 and therefore will not hold Monday office hours the week of Oct. 11 - 15. On Tues., Oct. 12, the lecture will be given by Prof. John Lacy. Please see the Readings & Resources page for the relevant sections of the textbook. The reading for Thurs., Oct. 14 is ch. 8, sections 1 - 6. |
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Scores for Exam 1 will be accessible on eGradebook as of Wed., Oct. 6; a table showing the letter grade corresponding to a given numerical score is posted on the Exams & Grading page, along with a feedback (FMQ) file. There will be a Help Session on Wed., Oct. 6, at which you can pick up your Exam and ask about your missed questions; alternatively, you may pick up your exam in class on Thurs., Oct. 7. We will begin ch. 7, the Solar System, on Oct. 7, and HW 4 will be handed out. Prof. Dinerstein will be unavailable for office hours on Wed., Oct. 6 and Mon., Oct. 11 due to extra teaching reponsibilities and travel. On Tues., Oct. 12, the lecture will be given by Prof. John Lacy. Please see the Readings & Resources page for the relevant sections of the textbook. |
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Because of the campus emergency on Tues., Sep. 28, we will cover the topic of telescopes and astronomical techniques, discussed in ch. 6, on Tues., Oct. 5. (The revised schedule of readings is given on the Readings & Resources page.) Exam 1 is being graded and will be returned next week. The next homework will be handed out on Oct. 7. Note that we will have a special guest lecture by Prof. John Lacy on Tues., Oct. 12; you will be responsible for this material. |
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Most people did not attend on Tues., Sep. 28 due to the campus emergency. No new material was introduced; ch. 6 will be covered next week. Graded homeworks were returned, but you may also pick these up at the Help Session, which will be Wed., Sep. 29, 5 - 6 P.M. in RLM 13.132. Other than that, all we did on Sep. 28 was to go over some points from the Sep. 23 Index Card. Some of this is posted on the Cards page. The first exam will still be on Thurs., Sep. 30, in ART 1.102, and will cover only chs. 1 - 5 (see Study Guide). To find the exam room, enter the building through the southwest entrance, on the east side of San Jacinto near 24th St. After going up the ramp or stairs, enter the lobby and turn right into room 1.102. Take a seat such that there is no one sitting next to you on either side. In order for you to get credit for this exam you must arrive by 9:45 A.M., and no one will be allowed to leave until 9:50 A.M. Bring a calculator and pens/pencils. No need to bring blue books or paper. |
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The first hour exam will be given on Thurs., Sep. 30, in ART 1.102. The best way to get there is through the southwest entrance to the Visual Arts Center, on the east side of San Jacinto near 24th St. Come up the colorfully-painted stairs or the ramp. When you enter the lobby, room 1.102, a medium-sized auditorium, will be immediately to your right. Take a seat such that there is no one sitting next to you on either side. In order for you to get credit for this exam you must arrive by 9:45 A.M., and no one will be allowed to leave until 9:50 A.M. This exam covers ch. 1 - 5 and related material presented in class; see the Study Guide (under Exams & Grading) for details. There will be a pre-exam Help Session at the usual time and place: Wed., Sep. 29, 5 - 6 P.M., in RLM 13.132, as well as regular office hours on Mon., Tues., & Wed. |
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Homework 3 is due Thurs., Sep. 23 at the beginning of class. There will be a Help Session as usual on Wed., Sep. 22, 5 - 6 P.M., in RLM 13.132. The first in-class exam will be Thurs., Sep. 30, and will be held in ART 1.102. The Study Guide for this exam is posted on the Exams & Grading link (see left-hand menu). Also, if you are curious about the answer to the "You Are a Star" exercise in class on Tues.,, see the Index Card file for Sep. 21. |
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On Thurs., Sep. 16, we began a new topic: light and spectra. You should read ch. 5 & 6 for next week. Homework 3 is posted, and is due Thurs., Sep. 23 at the beginning of class. The Help Session for HW 3 will be Wed., Sep. 22, 5 - 6 P.M., in RLM 13.132. Looking ahead, our first in-class exam will be Thurs., Sep. 30. Due to the small size of our usual classroom, the exam will be held elsewhere: in ART 1.102. |
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On Thurs., Sep. 9, we got as far as ch. 4-4. The reading for next Tuesday is to finish ch. 4. Homework 2 is now available and will be due Thurs., Sep. 16, before class. The T.A. and Instructor will hold office hours as posted, and will offer a Help Session on Wed., Sep. 15, 5 - 6 P.M., in RLM 13.132. |
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We have now covered the material through ch. 3-2 of the textbook. On Thurs., Sep. 9, we will finish ch. 3 and begin ch. 4 (probably through 4-4). Homework 1 is due Thurs., Sep. 9, before class begins. If you have questions about it, office hours are being held on Tues. and Wed. this week and there is a Help Session on Wed., 5 - 6 P.M., in RLM 13.132. |
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At the first class meeting of Ast 307 on Thurs., Aug. 26, we reviewed the Syllabus and covered most of ch. 1, except Section 1-5 (pages 8-9). Next week we will start discussing the basic phenomena of the day and night sky (Unit 1). The reading for next Tuesday is ch. 1 and ch. 2-1 through 2-4. Homework 1 will be handed out on Thurs., Sep. 2 and due on Sep. 9.
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