Astronomy 101: Introduction to Astronomy
Where did our universe come from? What is it made of? Are we alone? What else is 'out there'? These are some of the most natural and fundamental questions that humans have been asking since the dawn of time. Given the complexity and diversity of such questions, it is not at all surprising that astronomy itself is a diverse field of study. In this course you will work directly with astronomical data, and even direct a robotic telescope closer as you learn how we answer these questions.
This online course is open to everyone, and there are no prerequisites. There are approximately weekly online Lesson Quizzes (instead of more traditional in-person exams). We do not assume or require that you have a scientific or mathematical background. That being said, we will expect you to do some algebra. You will need to know how to use a scientific calculator and office software (e.g. Word or Powerpoint, or Google Docs). If you do not have access to these tools, please make a point of speaking with your instructors or TAs as soon as possible.
This class is built around the textbook, with labs providing additional perspectives and activities, and discussion groups for peer interaction.
Textbook Options
This quarter is unusual for a lot of reasons, but one of them is that we are updating this class to use an open-license textbook that is free to read or download. We think it is important to offer this option for students who did not expect to have to buy a textbook, or find that this is not a good quarter to purchase a traditional text. The open-license text is,
- Astronomy, by Andrew Fraknoi, David Morrison, and Sidney Wolff. OpenStax, 2016
This is an open license textbook, which means it's free to view or download.
The course was originally designed with a traditional textbook in mind, so although we will do our best to offer equivalent readings in the open-license book, some things may not match up well. For a seamless experience, you can use,
- Astronomy: At Play in the Cosmos, by Adam Frank. New York: W.W. Norton, 2016. ISBN: 978-0-393-93522-6
You do not need to purchase access to their electronic resources (Smartwork or the videogame). Copies of the Adam Frank text are available at the UW Bookstore or on Amazon. Although we quite like this book, there are several errors we've found. Please refer to the At Play in the Cosmos Errata page for corrections. Note that you can purchase the ebook, or sign up for a 21-day free trail, at https://digital.wwnorton.com/cosmos.
Things to Know
- Participate each week: Success in this class hinges upon your commitment to complete the assignments every week of the quarter. Many of the people who choose this course have jobs or other commitments as well, but you must still commit to completing the assignments in a way that works with both your schedule and the course's, and ideally gives you enough time to get help when you need it. This course moves quickly through material, so we do not allow registrations beyond the first week.
- Required Materials: In addition to the textbook, you are responsible for the information presented on the course's Canvas site, including announcements and messages sent to you via Canvas.
- Late assignments: If you have a special situation, talk to us. We do not grade late work submitted without prior communication. Shortly after the Lesson 4 due dates, your scores on all previous assignments from the first half of the course are considered final; similarly, shortly after the Lesson 9 due dates, your scores on all previous assignments from the second half of the course are also considered final.
- Academic honesty: Cheating and/or plagiarism is not tolerated. Except on the weekly Lesson Quizzes, you are allowed and encouraged to work with other members of the class, but all of your assignments must be in your own words with citations to other people's work. The examples of academic misconduct in the statement of Student Academic Responsibility are useful for understanding how to avoid plagiarism. In addition:
- We use the VeriCite tool to automatically check lab assignments for originality and appropriate references for material that is quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. The UW's Plagiarism Detection FAQs page describes the process and how VeriCite addresses FERPA and privacy issues.
- If we suspect academic misconduct then we will withhold your grade and report the suspected activity to Community Standards & Student Conduct.
- The University of Washington Department of Astronomy does not tolerate harassment of any kind: Harassment is any behavior by an individual or group that contributes to a hostile, intimidating, unwelcoming, and/or inaccessible work environment. Anyone can experience harassment. If you believe that you are being harassed, the Astronomy Department's Statement on Harassment lists resources where you can find support.
Accommodations & Support
This class provides accommodations for temporary health conditions and permanent disabilities through UW DRS. Support is available to discuss safety and well-being 24 hours / 7 days a week through SafeCampus.
Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form.
Evaluation and Grading
Weekly Quizzes -- 50% of your grade
Each lesson culminates in a written quiz, which will be available for only 24-hours. These quizzes are to be completed by each student separately and individually (students may not work jointly on any of the weekly quizzes). We will drop the lowest score. Please see the Course Readings and Schedule.
Labs -- 20% of your grade
You will learn how to use internet-based astronomy resources, even a small telescope! The assignments are completed individual as a Word document or pdf.
Discussions -- 20% of your grade
Credit will be based on the timeliness, frequency and relevance of your posts. There is a deadline for your first post in each discussion, read the Discussion Guidelines for all the details.You must participate throughout each week for full credit.
Self-Checks -- 10% of your grade
You have multiple attempts on these multiple-choice self-check quizzes so you can test your knowledge without fear of losing points.
Pre- and Post-Tests -- 1% extra credit
The Astro 101 Pre-Test and Post-Test help me evaluate how well I'm teaching astronomy. They are graded entirely on your participation, not your score. However, you have to complete both the Pre-Test and the Post-Test to get this credit.
Final Grade
Your final grade is determined by transforming your overall percentage to the 4.0 scale. A percentage score of at least 60% is required for credit, unless you have chosen Satisfactory/Not-Satisfactory grading; in which case you will need a 2.0 or better to receive credit.