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PHY 111. Astronomy and Space Physics. (3)
An introduction to the modern science of astronomy. Topics covered include history, basic astrophysical science, planetary science, stellar astrophysics, galactic astronomy, cosmology, and the question of extraterrestrial life. Suitable for students with or without a technical background. IVB. PA-2B. CAS-D.
For PHY111, we will be using the text by Bennett, Schneider, and Voit: The Essential Cosmic Perspective, 9th edition, 2022. Note: you do not need to purchase a physical copy of the text. I suggest that you purchase a subscription from Pearson that includes the electronic text, the homework site MasteringAstronomy (MA), and the inclass student response system, Learning Catalytics (LC). The etext has a versaltile reader that can adjust text size, zoom into figures, and has a built in audio reader. The Study Area in MA contains many valuable study tools like review quizzes and videos explaining important items from the text. You must have access to all three. There are several ways for you to purchase these materials. By far, the easiest and most economical is to buy everything in one package directly from Pearson - see item #1 below.
- Buy the etext + MA + LC package (this includes everything you need) from Pearson:
- Follow this link to MasteringAstronomy. Hereafter abbreviated "MA".
- Sign in if you have an account with Pearson or register as a student if you don't.
- Register for our course using the Course ID: alexander32800
- Select the package that includes the etext, Masteringastronomy, and Learning Catalytics for $89.99 for 18 weeks. (Since this is a one semester course, you really don't need the 24 month package.)
- Pay for your registration with a credit card or paypal - if you can't pay immediately, Pearson allows a two week grace period.
- When using MA to read the text, do your homework, or participate in LC, always sign in using the link on our Canvas page.
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If you want a physical paper copy of the text, the bookstore won't have it, and since it's such a new edition, Amazon and Chegg might
not
have them for sale or rent.
However, if you want a paper copy, you can get one directly from Pearson. Once you've registered for MA, you can purchase a loose-leaf
version of the printed textbook. On MA, go to the Pearson eText link, and
follow the link "Buy the printed textbook" at the bottom of that page.
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IMPORTANT: Please get registered for MA as soon as you can. It's the only way that you can read the text, and if you're not registered by the end of the first
week, you'll be missing both homework and LC points.
If you're having difficulties registering for or accessing MasteringAstronomy, you should visit the Pearson Virtual Help Desk:
For Spring 2026, Pearson is holding Zoom Help Sessions to
help students get properly registered for Mastering.
Here's a schedule of the sessions.
If you're having any problems getting registered for Mastering or any issues accessing any parts of it, I strongly urge you to attend one of these
sessions - these are the real expert at Mastering.
Below is an outline of the topics covered in PHY111 with an estimate of the number of classes for each topic. The detailed reading assignments are on the Calendar page, and the Homework Assignments are on MA.
Topic(Exam dates are tentative) | Chapters | Aproximate Number | |||||||||||||
| The Sky from Earth, The History of Modern Astronomy, Essential Astrophysical Science | | | EXAM 1 (In Class; likely Mon 2/23)
| Solar System Astronomy
| | | EXAM 2 (In Class; likely Wed 3/18)
| Stellar Astronomy
| | | EXAM 3 (In Class; likely Wed 4/22)
| Galactic Astronomy, | Cosmology, The Dark Universe, Extraterrestrial Life | | COMPREHENSIVE FINAL EXAM
| (given during final exams week) |
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Part of the MasteringAstronomy package is access to the student response system, Learning Catalytics.
This is like clickers, but more powerful and versatile. Instead of using a clicker, you can respond to
questions with any internet enabled device, laptop, tablet, or smart phone - so make sure to bring one these to
class. When you register for MA, you're automatically registered for Learning Catalytics.
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Students are expected to attend every class.
Lectures will generally follow the text in outline form; however, I don't believe
that me just reading the text to you is productive. Instead, I will choose specific
topics from the reading that require reiteration or elaboration.
Where necessary, additional material will be included that is not in the text.
Even if we don't talk about something in class, you are still responsible for that material in the text.
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In addition to lectures, we will be watching several videos in class. These videos go more deeply into important topics than the text
or the lectures, and are an essential part of the course.
When we have a video in class, you will answer a few brief questions about the video on Learning Catalytics. These will
add directly to your grade on MasteringAstronomy.
Missed Video Policy: If you miss a video, there is no way to make it up. A few times during the semester, I
will post an extra credit MasteringAstronomy exercise so that you can make up the missed points from a video. However,
note that this will only be done a maximum of four times so that if you miss more than four videos, it will adversly affect your
grade.
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I suggest that before you come to class that you read the text material
assigned for that day, and that you also read over your lecture notes and lecture powerpoint from the
previous class.
- The PowerPoint and the Lecture Visuals will be posted on the PHY111 Calendar page after each class for you to use in your studying. This means that you don't have to spend all of your time in class taking notes - it's better that you pay attention to what I'm showing you and saying than trying to copy everything down. Past students have recommended minimal note taking, e.g. just jot down a few important things about each slide.
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Homework from the MasteringAstronomy web package will be assigned after every class (except days that we see a video). The assignment
will be posted on the MA calendar and will be due by the beginning of the next class.
The homework will involve questions and short problems based on your textbook readings and the material that
we cover in class; some will be for extra credit.
Each homework problem or exercise is worth 1 MA point.
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Late Homework Policy: Any problem completed before the due time
will be graded out of 1 point; any problem completed within 24 hours past
the due time will receive a
25% reduction; and any problem completed at any time later (including up to the beginning of the final exam),
will receive a 50% reduction. In light of this generous late policy:
NO HOMEWORK EXTENSIONS WILL BE GRANTED!
- MasteringAstronomy homework plus the Learning Catalytics counts for 20% in determining your grade on Canvas.
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There will be three mid-semester exams given in class and on paper, and a comprehensive
final exam given during the final exam period that will also be on paper.
The exams will consist of multiple choice questions and short problems.
Questions can come from your textbook readings plus lecture material and videos from class.
More details about the exam format and study suggestions will be provided before the first exam.
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One important item about the final exam: to receive a passing grade for the course, you must take the final exam,
and it must be taken at the time assigned by the registrar and listed on the course calendar.
- A final item regarding exams: No student is permitted to use, or have in his/her possession, any internet enabled device, including, but not limited to, a laptop, tablet, cellphone, or smart watch during any exam. If a student is caught with one of these devices, academic disciplinary procedures will be brought against the student immediately. Bottom Line: before the exam begins: power down your phone and put it where your instructor tells you to! Also, remove your watch - even if it's a dumb watch - and put it with your phone!
- You will be assigned a semester-long group observing project that will be 10% of your grade. The details will be announced and described in class on 2/2/26 when we talk about The Sky as Seen from Earth.
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After each exam, I will have Canvas calculate an estimated course score for you.
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The weighting scheme for your final grade is in the table below.
The final exam is comprehensive so it is weighted more than a mid-semester exam. For the final course grade, Canvas will use the following weights
(remember, the lowest of your mid-semester exams or MA grade is dropped at the end of the semester):
After the Final Exam
Mid-semester Exam 1 20% Mid-semester Exam 2 20% Mid-semester Exam 3 20% MasteringAstronomy (HW + LC) 20% The lowest of the above four scores will be dropped Group Observing Project 10% Comprehensive Final Exam 30%
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Before the final exam, the letter grade that Canvas lists for you will be based on a straight
percentage distribution (i.e., 100% to 93% = A; 93% to 90% = A-;
90% to 87% = B+; 87% to 83% = B; 83% to 80% = B-; etc.), i.e. there is no curve considered.
For the final course grade, after the final exam has been taken, these grade cutoffs MAY be
curved downward (they will never be curved upward!).
This means that during the semester, Canvas will be listing worst-case grade for you.
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Here's an example of how you can calculate your own Course Score. Suppose you have the following scores
at the end of the semester:
Mid-semester Exam 1 80% Mid-semester Exam 2 60% Mid-semester Exam 3 75% MasteringAstronomy (HW + LC) 93% Group Observing Project 86% Comprehensive Final Exam 82%
The score for Exam 2 is dropped, and the Course Score is the weighted average of the remaining scores using the weights in first table:
Course Score = (80)(0.20) + (75)(0.20) + (93)(0.20) + (86)(0.10) + (82)(0.30) = 82.8%
If you are a student with a disability and feel you may need a reasonable accommodation to fulfill the essential functions of this course, you are encouraged to contact Student Disability Services (SDS). SDS provides accommodations and services for students with a variety of disabilities, including physical, medical and psychiatric disabilities. You are encouraged to contact SDS (email: SDS@miamioh.edu) to learn more about registration and procedures for requesting accommodations.
Current SDS registered students should request accommodations according to SDS procedure. You are strongly encouraged to request and discuss your accommodations needs during the first 1-2 weeks of the semester.
- I expect that the students in this class will behave according to the rules given in the University Policy Library under
Undergraduate Students | Academic Integrity.
- The only exception that I make to these rules is for homework. I encourage students to work together in solving homework problems; although each student is to submit the problems individually on MasteringAstronomy. A word of caution about this: make sure that if you consult each other on homework that you're actually learning the material and not just copying what one student does. After all, there will be no collaboration for the exams. The rules for the exams are as given in the University Policy Library under Undergraduate Students | Academic Integrity.
The course withdrawal policy of the University can be confusing. In summary, the policy is:
- If a student drops a full semester course by the third week deadline, the course will be removed from the record. For Spring 2026, this date is Thursday February 12.
- If a student drops a course between the third week and ninth week of the term, a "W" will be recorded for the course grade on the student's transcript. For Spring 2026, this date is Monday April 6.
- A student cannot normally drop a course after the ninth week of the term (he/she is in it for the duration) and the only way to drop at this point is by petition.
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For a more complete description of the withdrawal policy, see the section "Dropping a Course" in the University Policy Library under
Undergraduate | Registration.