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Lecture 1: Introduction

Lecture 1: Introduction. Why Astronomy is Fun The Scientific Method Group Activities in Lecture. Reading: E5, Appendix 1, 2 (5 pages) Homework: WebCT Diagnostic Survey, Horoscope for Thursday’s lecture. Why Astronomy is Fun. “Mostly Harmless”. radio. infrared. Syllabus. Logistics

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Lecture 1: Introduction

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  1. Lecture 1: Introduction Why Astronomy is Fun The Scientific Method Group Activities in Lecture Reading: E5, Appendix 1, 2 (5 pages) Homework: WebCT Diagnostic Survey, Horoscope for Thursday’s lecture

  2. Why Astronomy is Fun

  3. “Mostly Harmless”

  4. radio infrared

  5. Syllabus • Logistics • Office Hours • E-mail • Web page http://www.physics.drexel.edu/~jca32/teaching/phys181 • Book’s Web page (http://wps.prenhall.com/esm_chaisson_BG_5/) • WebCT • Text • Astronomy: A Beginner’s Guide to the Universe • Lectures • Starting/ending • Format • HW & Quizzes • Number/times • Format • Exams • Grading

  6. What is Science? Science – the process of distinguishing between the truth, the improbable, and the impossible.

  7. Scientific Progress • Most descriptions of new physical phenomena are wrong (e.g., Earth is flat) • New ideas can seem “wacky” (inconceivable even) at first (e.g., Earth is round) • Sometimes those wacky ideas turn out to be correct • Sometimes they are not • Often these ideas can be hard to test directly or can take a long time to prove/disprove • New ideas become accepted theories if they are capable of making correct predictions about future events

  8. The Scientific Method • Observe • Hypothesize • Predict • Test • Modify The Moon has craters The Moon is made of Swiss cheese The Moon tastes like cheese Astronauts find that it tastes like rock The Moon is rocky and the craters are cause by impacts?

  9. “Theories” • Something that has stood the test of time. • Not “just a theory”. • More like a law than a hypothesis • Something that has proven to be true time and time again, and is likely to be true upon further tests. “Theory, hypothesis are used in non-technical contexts to mean an untested idea or opinion. A theory in technical use is a more or less verified or established explanation accounting for known facts or phenomena.”

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