ASTRONOMY 101 LECTURE

Instructor:    Dr. Pamela J. W. Gore
Office phone: (404) 299-4099, or leave message with secretary, (404) 299-4100
E-mail address:  pgore@gpc.edu
Office room number:  D-108D
Office Hours: To be announced
Lecture schedule: MW 1:00-3:10 pm
Classroom: Central Campus, D- 204 (may be changed to D-112)
Astronomy 101 Class Home Page on the World Wide Web:   
http://www.gpc.edu/~pgore/gore.htm

Prerequisite:  MATD 098 or equivalent        Corequisite:  ASTR 101 Lab
If you have not completed MATD 098, or a higher math, or if you are not eligible to take
a college level math course, as determined by placement scores, you must withdraw from
the course and lab.

This course will cover the solar system, including the planets, moons, and smaller bodies.  


Required items :
     Textbook
     Planisphere, compass, and sextant (see below) 
     Calculator
     Scantron Sheets (882-E or 882-ES) - old form 882 not accepted.
     Your notebook with all notes for this class
     Notebook paper
     Pencil and eraser (preferable to pen for note-taking)
     Other items as announced



Lecture text: Chaisson, E. and McMillan, S., 1995, Astronomy - A beginners guide to the
Universe, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 497 p.

Planisphere:  You will need to obtain a planisphere (also called a star and planet locator, star
wheel, or sky wheel).  A planisphere is a flat plastic or cardboard circle that turns inside a flat
border, with dates and times around the outside edge.  They should be available in the
bookstore.  If not, they may be obtained locally in such places as:  Fernbank Museum Store,
the Nature Company, Discovery Store, or similar "outdoors" or nature stores.

You will also need to obtain a compass that will allow you to measure or closely estimate
degrees from north.  We will make a simple sextant in class.  You will use these tools when
you do your observation assignments.

                  Lecture schedule and assigned readings

Second class meets in LRC Open Computer Lab
     Introduction to the Internet, e-mail, World Wide Web, and Netscape

Ch. 1 - Scale, constellations, units of measure, celestial sphere, Earth movements, phases of
the Moon, eclipses, Scientific Method

Test on Ch. 1

Ch. 2 - History of Astronomy - Ancient astronomy, geocentric vs. heliocentric models,
Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler s Laws, Newton

Test on Ch. 2

(Ch. 3 will be covered in ASTR 102)

Ch. 4 - Telescopes

Ch. 5 - Introduction to the Solar System

Test on Ch. 4 & 5

Ch. 6 - The Earth-Moon System - Earth s interior, Moon s interior,  plate tectonics, erosion,
cratering, geological history, atmospheres, lunar surface features, gravitational effects,
magnetic field, origin of moon

Ch. 7 - The other Terrestrial Planets - Mercury, Venus, and Mars

Test on Ch. 6 & 7

Ch. 8 - The Jovian Planets 

Ch. 9 - Moons, rings, and Pluto

Test on Ch. 8 & 9

Ch. 10 - Interplanetary debris - asteroids, comets, meteorites; The Origin of the Solar System 

Midpoint of the Quarter is February 7, 1996.
Final exam is Wednesday March 13, 1:00 - 3:00 pm

PLEASE READ THE APPROPRIATE CHAPTERS IN THE TEXTBOOK BEFORE
COMING TO CLASS.  Be sure that you know all of the bold terms in the assigned pages.  Be
sure to study the review and discussion questions at the end of each chapter.  The textbook
does not necessarily cover all of the material presented in this course.

Movies or videos will be shown during some classes.  You are to take notes on them, and are
responsible for the material in them.  You will be tested on this material.

COMPUTER INFORMATION:
There will be assignments to be done on the computer in the Open Computer Lab in the LRC,
and there may be movies or videos to be seen outside of class time.  You may be given a sheet
of questions to be answered while watching the movies or videos.  

Students will be given e-mail accounts to enhance communication with classmates and
professor.  Students are expected to check their e-mail at least weekly.

A class discussion group or news group will also be established on the computer.  Students are
expected to participate.

You are not required to have a computer at home.  You are required to USE the computer,
and the LRC Open Computer Lab is available for your use.


FURTHER YOUR ASTRONOMY EDUCATION AT FERNBANK 
     Extra credit field trips to the planetarium and observatory at Fernbank Science Center
     are encouraged.
     The observatory at Fernbank is open on clear Thursday and Friday evenings from dark
     to 10:30 pm.  Try to attend several evenings.  FREE.
     Planetarium hours are Tuesday - Friday at 8 pm, and Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and
     Sunday at 3 pm.  Admission is $1.00 for students.  You will need to arrange your own
     transportation.  

     I also recommend the planetarium show "The Sky Tonight" at Fernbank, every
     Saturday at 11:00 am.  You should attend at least once, preferably early in the quarter.

     Every 2nd and 4th Wednesday at 9:15 pm, there is a FREE movie or lecture at
     Fernbank.  

GRADING POLICY:
     50% Chapter tests 
     30% Assignments, homework, computer work (including participation in discussion
          group), observations 
     20%  Final exam (cumulative and comprehensive)

     POLICY ON MAKE-UPS:
     Make-ups are available only if you have spoken with me in advance, and for valid and
     verifiable reasons.  There will be no makeups for those late to class or no-shows.  If
     you have a problem the morning of the test, you must e-mail or call my office and
     leave a message on the voice mail or with the secretary BEFORE CLASS.  You may or
     may not be allowed a make-up, at my discretion, depending in part on whether you
     have a doctor s note or similar officially verified reason.  See me if you have
     questions.

     You will receive grades on various tests and assignments prior to the midpoint of the
     quarter.  You are responsible for keeping track of your own grades throughout the
     quarter, and you may use these grades to calculate your course grade as of the midpoint
     of the quarter.  (There is no guarantee, however, that the final course grade will be the
     same as the grade at the midpoint of the quarter.)

     POLICY ON EXTRA CREDIT:
     There will be opportunities for EXTRA CREDIT projects or papers during the quarter. 
     Up to five earned extra credit points can be applied to your final class average. 
     Submit your ideas for extra credit in writing  to your instructor for approval of topics
     prior  to doing the extra credit.  It is up to the student to choose a topic in which he or
     she is interested.  Attach the signed and dated approval page to your extra credit project
     when it is turned in.  All extra credit projects must be typed. 

     Possible extra credit projects:
     1.  Writing a page for the World Wide Web in HTML (hypertext markup language).
     2.  Short paper (3 pages, typed, double spaced, with 2 - 3 outside references to
     magazine articles or books other than your text, such as articles from National
     Geographic, Sky and Telescope, or Astronomy).  BE SURE TO GET TOPIC
     APPROVED IN WRITING FIRST.
     3.  Telescope viewing sessions at Fernbank or Agnes Scott or Georgia State's
     observatory near Hard Labor Creek State Park, etc.
     4.  Public lectures on astronomy (local astronomy clubs, or Fernbank).
     5.  Watching astronomy videos, such as the Astronomers series, which we have in the
     LRC, or astronomy shows from television (especially on The Learning Channel, the
     Discovery Channel, or PBS).


CLASS POLICIES:

(1)  POLICY REGARDING MISSED WORK: 
     You are responsible for all material covered in class, and all announcements made in
     class.  Absence from class does not relieve you of this responsibility.  Please get the
     telephone number or e-mail address of at least two other students so that you can call
     them to find out what you missed.  If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to
     contact your classmates to get the lecture notes.  If you missed any handouts, inform
     the instructor as to which ones you need, and they will be given to you.  The instructor
     does not give lecture notes to students who miss class or who are unable to keep up
     with the class.  (Some lecture notes MAY be available on the computer.)

(2)  ATTENDANCE POLICY:
     Students are expected to attend all scheduled classes and are responsible for all work
     missed when absent.  Failure to attend class could have a detrimental result on the
     student's grade.  Should a student wish to withdraw from the course, it is his or her
     responsibility to initiate the request.  The instructor will not be responsible for
     withdrawing the student.

     Attendance will be taken in class.  It is your responsibility to sign the attendance sheet
     legibly so that you will be counted present. 

(3)  WITHDRAWAL POLICY:
     Student-initiated withdrawals:  A student who officially withdraws from a collegiate
     level course by the midpoint of the quarter will receive a grade of "W".  A student who
     withdraws after the midpoint of the quarter will receive a "WF" unless approval as a
     hardship withdrawal is received from the department head.

     It is not the instructor's responsibility to withdraw students.  If you choose to stop
     coming to class, you must complete the withdrawal process through the Registrar's
     Office by the specified dates, or you will receive an "F" for the course.

     Lecture and lab are corequisites.  Any student who withdraws (or is withdrawn) from a
     lecture must also withdraw (or be withdrawn) from the lab.  Likewise, any student who
     withdraw (or is withdrawn) from the lab must also withdraw (be withdrawn) from the
     lecture.  

(4)  POLICY REGARDING LATE ASSIGNMENTS:
     Each assignment has a specific due date.  You will be told this date when the
     assignment is given.  The assignment will be due on the date specified.  Late
     assignments will lose points (10% off for each class day late).  NO ASSIGNMENTS
     WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THEY ARE TWO WEEKS LATE.

(5)  POLICY ON QUESTIONS:
     Please feel free to ask questions of the instructor at any time.  As you review your
     notes from each class, make a list of any questions you have on material presented or
     in the textbook.  At the beginning of each class you will have an opportunity to ask
     these questions.  You may also submit questions by e-mail or the discussion group at
     any time.  Please remember that I have 10 hours per week scheduled to be in my office
     FOR YOUR QUESTIONS.

(6)  BEHAVIOR POLICY:
     Students are expected to maintain adult behavior at all times.  Be punctual.  If you are
     late, please enter quickly and quietly without disturbing the class or the instructor. 
     Talking or any other behavior which disrupts the lecture, or disturbs other students, or
     distracts the instructor (loud whispering, note passing, or reading the newspaper during
     lecture, for example), may result in your being asked to change your seat, to leave the
     room, or you may be withdrawn from the course.  Any behavior deemed disruptive and
     inappropriate for class will not be tolerated. 

(7)  POLICY ON ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:  
     Academic dishonesty (cheating and plagiarism) will not be tolerated.  Students should
     read the sections on cheating and plagiarism in the Student Handbook and the DeKalb
     College Catalog.

     Cheating includes (among other things), use of unauthorized papers during a quiz or
     exam (no matter what the content), copying from another student's paper during a quiz
     or exam, unauthorized access to old exams or to an exam given to the class if you are
     taking it late for some reason, copying another student's homework assignments, using
     or turning in a photocopy of another student's assigned work, paying someone to write
     a paper or do an assignment for you, buying a term paper, or leaving an exam without
     permission.  Plagiarism includes copying any sentence or sentences verbatim from the
     reference source without using quotation marks and without providing a complete
     reference (author, date, source of material, volume, pages, etc.), or printing out an
     article directly from a computer database (such as Encarta or off the World Wide Web)
     and turning it in as your own work.  Students must read, synthesize, and write their
     own original sentences; learn to paraphrase.  Even when paraphrasing, a complete
     reference must be provided to the paraphrased sentences.  NEVER steal words directly
     from any source and present them as your own.  Students are responsible for doing
     their own work, even if they "work together".  If two papers are turned in that show
     great similarity such that the instructor interprets it as evidence of cheating or
     plagiarism, both will be penalized.

     A report will be filed with the Campus Dean of Student Affairs for any alleged
     cheating or plagiarism incident.  (See procedures in DeKalb College Catalog).  The
     case will be heard in College Court.  Penalties may include suspension or expulsion.

     The faculty member is free to assign the grade he or she thinks is appropriate for the
     assignment or the quarter.  Any student found by the instructor to have represented
     someone else's work as his/her own, will receive a zero for that quiz, exam, or
     assignment for the first offense.  The second offense will result in the assignment of a
     grade of "F" for the course.  (If several papers are turned in together or at the same
     time, and each contains evidence of cheating or plagiarism, they will be considered as
     separate offenses, and will result in immediate assignment of a grade of "F" for the
     course.)  This policy applies to cheating or plagiarism on extra credit work as well.

     Cheating on an exam will jeopardize your grade; if you receive a zero on an exam, it
     will be extremely difficult to receive a passing grade for the course.  

(8)  You are expected to read and abide by the General Policies of DeKalb College, as
     stated in the DeKalb College Student Handbook and in the DeKalb College Catalog.


WELCOME TO ASTRONOMY!  (P.S.  This is not astrology!)