Astronomy 2022A
The Origin of the Universe
Fall 2011

An introduction to current ideas about the origin of the Universe. Topics to be discussed include: The history of creation stories. Why is the Universe the way it is? The Big Bang and why we think it happened. The beginning and eventual fate of the Universe. Dark matter, dark energy and quantum weirdness. How will the Universe end? How do we know?

The course is largely non-mathematical and will focus on the simple geometrical, physical and philosophical arguments that lie behind modern theories of the origin of the Universe. This course is suitable for non-science students.

Prerequisites: none
Antirequisites: Earth Sciences 1086F/G, Physics 1028A/B, 1301A/B, 1401A/B, 1501A/B or the former Physics 1020, 1024, 1026.
This course may not be taken for credit by students in the Faculty of Science
Unless you have either the requisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enroll in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.

Course Topics

1 The shores of light: an introduction to the Universe
2 The dynamic Universe
3 The shape of space
4 Blast from the past: the origin of matter
5 The riddle of Dark Matter
6 The large-scale structure of the Universe
7 Cosmic evolution?
8 Symmetry and imperfection
9 The speed of space
10 The origin of the Universe(s)
11 Quantum weirdness
12 A place for us

Instructor:
Paul Wiegert
Room 238, Physics and Astronomy Building (PAB)
You can reach me via e-mail at pwiegert[at]uwo[dot]ca (replace the [at] and [dot] and put in the @ and . symbols) or by phone at 661-2111x81327. When contacting me by e-mail, please use your UWO e-mail account. Other accounts (such as hotmail and yahoo) are often tagged as spam and may not reach me.

Textbook The required textbook is "The State of the Universe: A Primer in Modern Cosmology" by Pedro Ferreira, available at the UWO Bookstore.

Lecture times MW 2:30-3:30 pm in Western Science 55 (WSC 55).

Office Hours: My usual office hours are Mondays 3:30-4:30pm. You are welcome to drop by at this times. If this time is not convenient, you can also send me e-mail or talk to me after class if you would like to arrange a meeting. The TA's office hours are posted below.

Tests and exams: There will be one midterm test plus a final exam. Each midterm or exam will generally test all the material taught up to that point. Questions may involve drawing diagrams or figures. There may be short answer questions, questions requiring one or two sentence answers, or short paragraph answers. There will not be extended essay-style questions. Examination and assignment scores are posted on WebCT. The midterm test will be held during class time but may not be in the same classroom. The time and location of the midterm will be announced in class.

Writing assignments: There will be two writing assignments. Each one should be 1000 to 1250 words long (you may use extra room for references if needed). The due date of each assignment will be announced in class. The anticipated due dates are

  • Assignment 1: Thursday September 29 2011 at 4:30pm. For topics, click here
  • Assignment 2: Thursday November 10 2011 at 4:30pm. For topics, click here

    but are subject to change.

    For the second assignment, a paper copy of the writing assignment is to be handed in at the dropbox in the hallway outside Physics and Astronomy Building 138. A dropbox has now been installed so there is no need to take it into the main Physics and Astronomy office. To see the location of the dropbox click here and here. Please ensure you include the course number (Astro 2022) on your assignment. There will be no deadline extensions for assignments: late assignments will receive a zero.

    Electronic versions of the writing assignments must also be submitted through the Turnitin.com website. You will need the course ID (4174240) and password (universe) to upload your files and enroll yourself in the class on the Turnitin website.

    When you submit an assignment to Turnitin.com successfully, you will receive a Turnitin Digital Receipt. Save this receipt. This is your proof that you have submitted your assignment on time. If your assignment is not on the Turnitin.com website and you do not have a Digital Receipt, your assignment will be considered to be late and you will receive a mark of zero.

    The deadline for Turnitin submission of an electronic version of your writing assignment is 11:59pm on the day the paper copy is due. Both deadlines must be met. Submission of the assignment to turnitin.com and/or emailing it to me or a TA before the paper deadline does NOT count as an on-time submission of the assignment. Missing either the paper submission deadline or the turnitin.com submission deadline will result in a zero for the assignment.

    Note that it is your responsibility to ensure that you submit your assignment to Turnitin.com sufficiently in advance of the deadline to avoid any potential problems with computers. Having the internet go out or your computer crash as you attempt to submit your assignment just before the deadline does NOT constitute a valid excuse.

    Students must write their essays and assignments in their own words. Whenever students take an idea or a passage from another author, they must acknowledge their debt both by using quotation marks where appropriate and by proper referencing (such as footnotes or citations). The assignments should not include lengthy quotes from other authors even if properly referenced. Plagiarism or excessive quotation may result in a zero on the assignment. More information and a description of what plagiarism is can be found at www.plagiarism.org.

    Maximum length: 1250 words. The assignment may be single-spaced. A cover page is not necessary as long as you ensure your name and student number are listed. Use a 12 point font size. You may use extra words in order to include a bibliography or list of references. References should be in APA format, described here and here. Please put your name and student number on the upper right hand corner of your assignment. Please indicate the course number and assignment number on your sheet. Marks will be deducted if you do not follow these guidelines.

    Once marked, your grade will be posted on WebCT. You will be able to pick up the paper copy of your assignment at your TA's office hours, posted below. Writing assignments are marked out of 40. The rubric for the writing assignments is here.

    The TAs will have office hours as posted below, starting on Monday Sept 26 2011th. If you wish to speak to the marker before the deadline for the assignment, you may do so. They may briefly review your draft and provide some initial comments. However they will not completely mark a draft for you before the deadline due to time restrictions. The last day of classes is also the last day of TA office hours.

    TA OFFICE HOURS:

    Marker's name Email (@uwo.ca) Office hours Location Class section (last names)
    Teznie Pugh tpugh Mondays 11am-12 noon;
    Fridays 10-11am    		 Western Science G17 A - DZE
    Ruma Samadder rsamadde Tuesdays 12noon - 1pm;
    Fridays 2-3pm    		 Physics and Astronomy 102 E- MAC
    Maryam Tabeshian mtabeshi Tuesdays and Fridays 2:30-3:30pm Western Science G6 MAD - RUS
    Neven Vulic nvulic Mondays 3-4pm;
    Tuesdays 2-3pm    		 Western Science 6 S - ZYZ

    Mark distribution The final mark will be weighted as follows:
    Midterm = 25%
    Assignments= 15% each = 30%
    Final=45%
    Please note: the Department of Physics and Astronomy may in exceptional cases adjust the final course marks in order to conform to departmental policy.

    Midterm: scheduled for Wednesday Oct 5 at 2:30pm (the usual class time) in WSC 55 (the usual classroom). Time is subject to change.

    Final: scheduled for TBA in TBA

    Course Policies

  • Electronic Devices: No electronic devices will be allowed during tests and examinations.

  • Missed assignments: There is no grace period. You will receive a mark of zero. Only a serious medical or family excuse can override this. If this is the case, you should speak to your academic counsellor, who will confirm your excuse. No accomodations can be made without the approval of your academic counsellor.

  • Missed midterm test: Documentation must be provided to the instructor in order for you to receive permission to write a make-up. This process should be begun by your bringing the documentation to your student counselling office. If you miss the make-up, again documentation must be provided, and your mark will be pro-rated.

  • Missed final exam: Documentation must be provided to the academic counselors in your faculty in order for you to receive permission to write a make-up (usually scheduled the day following the end of the exam period: plan your travel accordingly!). If you miss the make-up, again documentation must be provided, and you will then write the exam at the next sitting of this course's final exam (typically one year later).

  • Illness or other serious circumstances: If you are unable to meet a course requirement due to illness or other serious circumstances, you must provide valid medical or other supporting documentation to the Dean's office as soon as possible and contact your instructor immediately. It is the student's responsibility to make alternative arrangements with their instructor once the accommodation has been approved and the instructor has been informed. In the event of a missed final exam, a "Recommendation of Special Examination" form must be obtained from the Dean's Office immediately. For further information please see the medical section of the Academic Handbook.
    A student requiring academic accommodation due to illness should use the Student Medical Certificate when visiting an off-campus medical facility or request a Record's Release Form (located in the Dean's Office) for visits to Student Health Services. The form can be found here. Students seeking academic accommodation on medical grounds for any missed tests, exams, participation components and/or assignments must apply to the Academic Counselling office of their home Faculty and provide documentation. Academic accommodation cannot be granted by the instructor or department.

  • Religious holidays: A student who, due to unavoidable conflicts with religious holidays which (a) require an absence from the University or (b) prohibit or require certain activities (i.e., activities that would make it impossible for the student to satisfy the academic requirements scheduled on the day(s) involved), is unable to write examinations and term tests on a Sabbath or Holy Day in a particular term shall give notice of this fact in writing to his or her Dean as early as possible but not later than November 15th for mid-year examinations and March 1st for final examinations, i.e., approximately two weeks after the posting of the mid-year and final examination schedule respectively. In the case of mid-term tests, such notification is to be given in writing to the instructor within 48 hours of the announcement of the date of the mid-term test. The instructor(s) in the case of mid-term tests and the dean in the case of mid-year and spring final examinations will arrange for special examination(s) to be written at another time. In the case of mid-year and spring final examinations, the accommodation must occur no later than one month after the end of the examination period involved. It is mandatory that students seeking accommodations under this policy give notification before the deadlines, and that the Faculty accommodate these requests. The list of approved dates is given in the UWO calendar.

  • Accessibility Statement Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 661-2111 x 82147 for any specific question regarding an accommodation.

  • Registrarial and Support Services Student Support Services, Student Development Services and the Registrar are available on-line

  • Other Advice for successful performance The class notes are provided on the web but do not necessarily include everything which might be tested. Some explanations given in class might not appear in the class notes but are testable material. To do well in this course, you must do the weekly readings. Some of the midterm and exam questions will come from the textbook but will not have been addressed in class. p

    Academic misconduct

  • Cheating University policy states that cheating is a scholastic offence which can result in an academic penalty (which may include expulsion from the program). If you are caught cheating, there will be no second warning. Cheating includes having available any electronic devices other than a watch. You may not have a cell phone accessible during tests or exams, even to use it as a watch. Complete information on the University policies on academic offenses can be found in the Undergraduate section of this document.
    Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams may be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.

  • Plagiarism Students must write their essays and assignments in their own words. Whenever students take an idea or a passage from another author, they must acknowledge their debt both by using quotation marks where appropriate and by proper referencing (such as footnotes or citations). Plagiarism is a major academic offence. For more details, see this document.
    All required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to the commercial plagiarism detection software under license to the University for the detection of plagiarism. All papers submitted will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between The University of Western Ontario and Turnitin.com ( http://www.turnitin.com ).

    Class notes: You'll also find the weekly readings here, next to the links for the notes for each week.

    Class notes:

    (password protected)