Announcements -- AUTUMN 2008

Preparing for Exam 3

Exam 3 will be roughly allocated to topics involving ~15% first third of the quarter (to exam 1), ~15% second third of the quarter (exam 2), and ~70% last third of the quarter.

There will be a review session with Dr. Larson Sunday, 7 December 2008, PAA A102, 6:30 - 8:00 pm. Final exam is 8:30 am, 8 Dec. 2008.

Here is a compendium of the learning goals for the last third of the quarter.

Here are two study guides that will help you with classifying galaxies and analyzing the kinds of stars that make up the different types of galaxies.

Optional Studies for the Final Exam

Preparing for Exam 2

NOTE: Every PowerPoint slide that I use in class is reproduced in the lecture notes available at:
http://www.astro.washington.edu/larson/Astro101/lecture_outlines_au08.html

What you DO need to know:

• What goes on in the core of a sun-like star when on the MS, sub-giant branch, red giant branch, horizontal branch, 2nd red giant branch, and when becomes a white dwarf.
  • This includes what element is present and if fusion is going on or if the core is inert
• Given a sun-like star and a very massive star, pick out what its life-path (evolutionary track) will be and how it will end up.
• For variable stars, the general process that makes these stars pulsate and how the outward pressure and inward pull of gravity are involved.
• Answers to all of the learning objectives for lectures
• Material in the tutorials and exercises
• You should review the review questions emphasized in the text
  (see http://www.astro.washington.edu/larson/Astro101/comins_eoc_questions.html)
• Previous exams have included tables of magnitudes, parallaxes, and B-V values. Expect similar things this exam.
  

What NOT to worry about for Exam 2, Astronomy 101, Autumn 2008 that's in the textbook:

Ch. 11

Binary stars providing information about stellar masses
Kepler's Third Law
Orbital motion of binary stars
(Doppler effect of light)

Ch. 12

Exoplanets and brown dwarfs
Estimating distances using variable stars
Mass transfer in close binary stars

Ch. 13

White dwarfs in close binary systems
Type Ia supernovae
Details about supernova 1987A
Binary neutron stars
X-ray bursts
More exotic end products of stars, like magnetars and quarks stars

Ch. 14

Special relativity
Different types of black holes
Supermassive black holes (comes later)
Binary systems of black holes and neutron stars
Gamma-ray bursts
Evaporation of black holes

In general:

We will have nothing about galaxies, nor anything about distance measurements using variable stars.

From a class member on Monday: "What is the answer to the question of life, the universe, and everything?" 42

Questions about what is important in the class for exams:

Many students have been curious as to how much of the text they need to know for the class, especially for the exams. Be sure to note the list of required chapters that are given in the first column of our course calendar. Exam questions for the midterms and final will be taken from the lecture learning objectives you get at the start of each lecture, the exercises, the tutorials, the worksheets you do in sections, and the video questions you get when we watch a movie.

Material in the text that relates to what we do in lecture and sections is what is important as it will give you a slightly different view of what we discuss and more background that will increase your understanding. The "end-of-chapter" questions also guide your retention of the text material.

Specifically, we don't care what epicycles are or were, nor do we need to memorize astronomer names, places, or accomplishments. Moon phases, seasons, tides, and eclipses are for Astronomy 150. If the topic has to do with solar system planets, we don't go there.

Mathematics is the language of the Universe and we have quite a bit in the exercises that we do in sections. Thus, the need to do some review on scientific notation, and how to use our calculators. But, for exams, the questions will involve mathematical reasoning and not solving equations. If you can divide 25 by 5, or square 3, or take the square root of 16 (for example), you will be OK on exams. Please see the past exams for the level of math. For much of what we do in this class, if you can determine the distance between two cities on a map, using the map scale (1 inch = 5 miles, for example), you will do fine.

Please do keep asking your TA and me about what you are confused about as we get started. Thanks for showing up so steadily for lecture -- you will appreciate that you did when the exams come around!

How to maximize your grade in this class:

Attend all lectures and sections

Make sure you are clear about all assignment requirements and deadlines

Read through the week's reading assignment in the text before attending lecture and sections

Go see your TA! Visit with your prof!

Form a study group before exams; come to the review sessions.