We explore how the universe works through motions, forces, and energy. We discuss mechanics of solids, fluids and gas. At the end of the semester, students gain an understanding of basic physics and how it relates to their everyday life.
We survey the history of the Universe from the perspective of how humans learned and are learning that history. We will discuss how scientists developed, debated, and modified their theories as new observations, technology, and physical understanding progressed.
We examine ways that different cultures studied the heavens and the models they constructed to make sense of their observations. We learn how to decipher the motions of the stars, Sun, Moon, and other celestial objects. We then apply this knowledge to navigation and time keeping.
We describe the bulk behavior of large collections of particles. We explore how systems of particles behave when they have different properties and how they respond when they interact with the environment that surrounds them or when they undergo different processes. We accomplish this by connecting classical, quantum, and statistical mechanical concepts.
We explore how the universe works through motions, forces, and energy. We discuss mechanics of solids, fluids and gas. At the end of the semester, students gain an understanding of basic physics and how it relates to their everyday life.
We survey the history of the Universe from the perspective of how humans learned and are learning that history. We will discuss how scientists developed, debated, and modified their theories as new observations, technology, and physical understanding progressed.
We examine ways that different cultures studied the heavens and the models they constructed to make sense of their observations. We learn how to decipher the motions of the stars, Sun, Moon, and other celestial objects. We then apply this knowledge to navigation and time keeping.
We describe the bulk behavior of large collections of particles. We explore how systems of particles behave when they have different properties and how they respond when they interact with the environment that surrounds them or when they undergo different processes. We accomplish this by connecting classical, quantum, and statistical mechanical concepts.
We review the details of how stars emit light and how astronomers observe and interpret that light. This includes discussions on how energy transfers from the cores of stars and out of their atmospheres, in addition to the net effect this has on the observed spectrum. We discuss the properties and physics that govern stellar interiors and atmospheres. We further explore how stars are formed and how they evolve both on and off the main sequence.
We survey the gaseous material in galaxies, surrounding galaxies, and between galaxies and discuss how the flow of baryons is connected to the evolution of stars, galaxies, and the Universe. We discuss collisional and ionization processes, the mechanics of how particles emit and absorb light, and how light propagates though a gaseous medium. We further discuss the theory of how astronomers determine the physical properties of gas clouds through emission- and absorption-line spectroscopy and put that theory into practice using astronomical datasets.
We investigate how particles respond when they interact with the environment that surrounds them or when they undergo different processes. We explore how systems of particles behave when they are in thermodynamical equilibrium in idealize systems and discuss how their behavior would vary in non-idealized conditions. We describe the bulk behavior of small and large collections of distinguishable and identical particles and how they distribute themselves into different energy and positional states. We accomplish this by connecting classical, quantum, and thermodynamical concepts.
We review the details of how stars emit light and how astronomers observe and interpret that light. This includes discussions on how energy transfers from the cores of stars and out of their atmospheres, in addition to the net effect this has on the observed spectrum. We discuss the properties and physics that govern stellar interiors and atmospheres. We further explore how stars are formed and how they evolve both on and off the main sequence.
We survey the gaseous material in galaxies, surrounding galaxies, and between galaxies and discuss how the flow of baryons is connected to the evolution of stars, galaxies, and the Universe. We discuss collisional and ionization processes, the mechanics of how particles emit and absorb light, and how light propagates though a gaseous medium. We further discuss the theory of how astronomers determine the physical properties of gas clouds through emission- and absorption-line spectroscopy and put that theory into practice using astronomical datasets.
We investigate how particles respond when they interact with the environment that surrounds them or when they undergo different processes. We explore how systems of particles behave when they are in thermodynamical equilibrium in idealize systems and discuss how their behavior would vary in non-idealized conditions. We describe the bulk behavior of small and large collections of distinguishable and identical particles and how they distribute themselves into different energy and positional states. We accomplish this by connecting classical, quantum, and thermodynamical concepts.