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Astronomy Course Syllabus

This syllabus outlines a course to help explain how recent discoveries like the Higgs boson, dark matter, antimatter, and dark energy provide clues about the origins and fate of the universe. The course is divided into 4 modules that will cover topics like the Big Bang, formation of elements, dark matter, inflation, and dark energy. Upon completing the course, students will be able to explain how these findings help answer fundamental questions about the beginning and future of the universe, what it is made of, and the laws that govern it.

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Assem Esmail (120210321)
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55 views5 pages

Astronomy Course Syllabus

This syllabus outlines a course to help explain how recent discoveries like the Higgs boson, dark matter, antimatter, and dark energy provide clues about the origins and fate of the universe. The course is divided into 4 modules that will cover topics like the Big Bang, formation of elements, dark matter, inflation, and dark energy. Upon completing the course, students will be able to explain how these findings help answer fundamental questions about the beginning and future of the universe, what it is made of, and the laws that govern it.

Uploaded by

Assem Esmail (120210321)
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Syllabus

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of the course, you will be able to explain how new research and
findings such as the Higgs boson, dark matter, anti-matter, and dark energy help
answer and provide clues to the following questions:

• How did the Universe begin?


• What is its fate?
• What is it made of?
• What are its fundamental laws?
• Where do we come from?

Modules and Themes


Module 1: From daily life to the Big Bang
Understanding the Universe in which we live and how to probe it can begin with simple
daily life experiences such as night and day and the four seasons. Starting from these
observations, you will take a journey from our local Earth at the present time all the way
to the edge of the universe and back to its birth, learning the techniques and findings in
modern physics that provide us this understanding.

Introduction (08:37)

1. Night and Day, and Four Seasons (09:54)


2. Revolution of the Earth (05:45)
3. Why Elliptic? (08:53)
4. Why Does Everything Fall the Same Way? (08:32)
5. Beginning of the Universe Look Far into the Past I (13:31)
6. Beginning of the Universe Look Far into the Past II (05:46)
7. Beginning of the Universe Look Far into the Past III (06:41)
8. Beginning of the Universe Look Far into the Past IV (08:54)
9. Beginning of the Universe Look Far into the Past V (10:20)
10. Cosmic Expansion (06:26)

Module 2: Birth of Elements and Higgs Boson


We are made of chemical elements. So one of the fundamental questions “where do we
come from?” leads to another question: “how were elements born?”. This is related to
the Higgs Boson, an important particle in answering this question which remained
elusive until its discovery was recently announced on July 4, 2012. You will learn recent
research outcomes on these topics.
1. Birth of Elements I (05:45)
2. Birth of Elements II (11:26)
3. Birth of Elements III (06:10)
4. Birth of Elements IV (09:37)
5. Birth of Elements V (14:10)
6. Higgs Boson Frozen into the Universe I (07:58)
7. Higgs Boson Frozen into the Universe II (13:52)
8. Higgs Boson Frozen into the Universe III (15:34)
9. Higgs Boson Frozen into the Universe IV (12:39)

Module 3: Dark Matter and Anti-Matter


You will learn about dark matter and anti-matter—some of the more mysterious sides of
the Universe. We know dark matter played an important role in the formation of stars
and galaxies, but much of properties are still unknown to us. In another strange
mystery, you will see how the beginning of the universe started with equal amounts of
matter and anti-matter, yet somehow only matter (which we are composed of!) survived.

1. Power Spectrum (11:05)


2. Dark Matter I (06:24)
3. Dark Matter II (10:20)
4. Nature of Dark Matter I (09:38)
5. Nature of Dark Matter II (09:29)
6. Neutrinos and Anti-Matter I (13:03)
7. Neutrinos and Anti-Matter II (13:23)
8. Neutrinos and Anti-Matter III (09:52)

Module 4: Inflation and Dark Energy


At the very beginning of the Universe, the Universe exponentially expanded during a
period known as cosmic inflation. The mysterious dark energy has caused the Universe
to enter another stage of expansion. In this lecture you will learn about dark energy,
inflation, and the possible fates of our Universe. Please note that extra lectures were
added in 2018 in order to offer some updates and the extra lectures do not affect you
grades.

1. Inflation (15:05)
2. Uncertainty Principle I (12:04)
3. Uncertainty Principle II (10:23)
4. Fate of the Universe (05:41)
5. Dark Energy (09:26)
6. Big Rip (06:57)
7. Future Observations (11:45)
8. Wrap-up (05:48)
9. Extra Lecture Series (7 video clips, about 1 hour)
Presentation Slides
You can download slide PDFs from the following links:

Module1.pdf
PDF File

Module2.pdf
PDF File

Module3.pdf
PDF File

Module4.pdf
PDF File

ExtraLecture1.pdf
PDF File

ExtraLecture2.pdf
PDF File

ExtraLecture3.pdf
PDF File
Glossary and Terminology
SI Prefix

Naming system
Short scale is used in this course.

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