Lecture Course

Cosmic Origins

November 2017-January 2018
University Groningen





Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel: Creation of the Sun, Moon and Planets






Lecturers:

    Rien van de Weygaert,
                      Kapteynborg ZG 186, Zernike Campus   tel. 3634086,   weygaert@astro.rug.nl






Lectures:

The lecture schedule will be:

      Monday    19:05-21:00       hoorcollege/lecture              
                                                          Academiegebouw, vd Leeuwzaal     


      Friday           15:00-17:00        hoorcollege/lecture (4 classes), werkcollege/tutorial (4 classes)             
                                                          Academiegebouw, vd Leeuwzaal     




Announcements:

First lecture on monday November 13, Academiegebouw

Second lecture on friday November 18, Academiegebouw)

Third lecture on wednesday November 22, Academiegebouw.

Lecture monday December 11, Academiegebouw (19:00-21:00): CANCELLED.

    Due to the weather alarm, heavy snowfall, and uncertain road and transport conditions, I decided to cancel the lecture.
    I will inform you asap about the timeslot for the replacement of the lecture.


Extra Lecture: thursday December 14, 15:00-17:00, Bernoulliborg, 5161.0151
    this lecture replaces the December 11 monday evening lecture that had to be cancelled because of the weather alarm.




Lecture friday January 12, 15:00-17:00: cancelled, because of travel lecturer.

Extra Lecture: thursday January 18, 19:00-21:00, Academiegebouw, vd Leeuwzaal
    this lecture replaces the January 12 lecture that is cancelled because of travel lecturer.


Tutorial lecture friday December 8, Nijenborgh 4, 5114.0043.
Tutorial lecture friday December 15, Nijenborgh 4, 5114.0043.
Tutorial lecture friday January 19, Nijenborgh 4, 5118.-156.

Exam: monday January 22, 14:00-17:00; Bernoulliborg 5161.0165






Albert Einstein and Edwin Hubble,
studying the recession of galaxies at the Mt. Wilson 100inch telescope

Literature:

The course will be based on

lecture notes/slides (see below)

book:

           Cosmos, An Illustrated History of Astronomy and Cosmology
           John North
           2nd ed., 2008, Univ. Chicago Press (paperback)


additional books you may want to consult (ie., do not buy, these are not course books):

           Cosmology, the Science of the Universe
           Edward Harrison
           2nd ed., 2000, Cambridge Univ. Press

           Conceptions of Cosmos:
           From Myths to the Accelerating Universe: A History of Cosmology
           H. Kragh
           2013, Oxford Univ. Press

           the History and Practic of Ancient Astronomy
           James Evans
           1998, Oxford Univ. Press

           Ancient Cosmologies
           eds. C. Blacker, M. Loewe
           1975, George Allen & Unwin Ltd.


Selection of key scientific publications in cosmology:

           - Hubble E., 1929, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sciences, Vol. 15, 168-173
              a relation between distance and radial velocity among extra-galactic nebulae

           - Penzias A.A., Wilson R.W., 1965, Astrophys. J., 142, 419-421
              a measurement of excess antenna temperature at 080 Mc/s

           - Dicke R.H., Peebles P.J.E., Roll P.G., Wilkinson, D.T., 1965, Astrophys. J., 142, 414-419
              Cosmic Black-body Radiation






Mysterium Cosmographicum:
Kepler's Geometric Model of the Cosmos

Lecture Notes & Exam Material:

The course is based upon the lecture notes. The content of these is the exam material.
Below you find a listing of the notes, for you to download in 3 formats (pptx, pdf, pdf with 2 slides per page).

      Generals                                                                   pptx
         Generals                                                                   pdf

      Fundamental Questions                                            pptx
         Fundamental Questions                                            pdf
         Fundamental Questions                                            pdf, 2 slides per page

      Cosmology Timeline                                                 pptx
         Cosmology Timeline                                                 pdf

      Heavenly Rhythms                                                    pptx
         Heavenly Rhythms                                                    pdf
         Heavenly Rhythms                                                    pdf, 2 slides per page

      Gods & Myths                                                           pptx
         Gods & Myths                                                           pdf
         Gods & Myths                                                           pdf, 2 slides per page

      Order in the Cosmos                                                  pptx
                         how Babylonians and Greeks rationalized the heavens       
         Order in the Cosmos                                                  pdf
                         how Babylonians and Greeks rationalized the heavens       
         Order in the Cosmos                                                  pdf, 2 slides per page
                         how Babylonians and Greeks rationalized the heavens       

      the Universe Mechanized                                          pptx
                         Hellenistic Cosmology       
         the Universe Mechanized                                          pdf
                         Hellenistic Cosmology       
         the Universe Mechanized                                          pdf, 2 slides per page
                         Hellenistic Cosmology       

      the Universe Mechanized                                          pptx
                         the Antikythera Mechanism       
         the Universe Mechanized                                          pdf
                         the Antikythera Mechanism       
         the Universe Mechanized                                          pdf, 2 slides per page
                         the Antikythera Mechanism       




      the Scientific Revolution                                           pptx
         the Scientific Revolution                                           pdf
         the Scientific Revolution                                           pdf, 2 slides per page

      Gravity, ruler of the Universe                                    pptx
         Gravity, master of the Universe                                 pdf
         Gravity, master of the Universe                                 pdf, 2 slides per page

      the Big Bang                                                              pptx
         the Big Bang                                                              pdf
         the Big Bang                                                              pdf, 2 slides per page

      the Expanding Universe                                            pptx
         the Expanding Universe                                            pdf
         the Expanding Universe                                            pdf, 2 slides per page

      the Early Universe                                                     pptx
         the Early Universe                                                     pdf
         the Early Universe                                                     pdf, 2 slides per page

Tutorials:

November 24/December 15

                   Cosmology Awareness Poll, assignment
                   Cosmology Awareness Poll, group list

December 8/January 19

                   Cosmic Debates, assignment
                   Cosmic Debates, group list





Essay Topics:

Part of the course requirements is a 10-15 page (individual) or 20-25 page report on a specific cosmological topic. The essays should be written individually or in groups of two.

Topics may be on Physical Cosmology (ie. the present-day scientific cosmology), cosmological contributions by a range of scientists, cosmology of a range of philosophers/philosophies, cosmology in various cultures, cosmology in different religions and cosmology in an artistic context.

The following list contains a large list op suggestions for a topic. In addition, you may define your own topic, on the condition it will be approved by the lecturer.

In all cases, before starting the work on your essay, consult the lecturer to 1) inform with whom you write the essay, 2) the topic of your choice. The list of topics you find on:

         Cosmology Essay Topics                                                   pdf

In case the topic has already been claimed by another group, I may ask you to find another topic.




Exam:

The exam will be in the form of

written exam (monday Jan. 22, 14:00-17:00)
essay on a topic of cosmology, 10-15 pages (individual) or 20-25 pages, groups of 2 students (see above)



For the Written Exam, on monday Jan. 22 (multiple choice, 50 questions)
                                     the following material will have to be studied:

Lecture notes, lect1 up to lect10 (download from this page, see above)
                            * lect1, Fundamental Questions
                                        all slides
                            * lect1a, Cosmology Timeline:
                                        read thoroughly, appreciate time/epochs of cosmological developments
                            * lect2, Heavenly Rhythms
                                        all slides
                            * lect3, Gods and Myths
                                        all slides
                            * lect4, Order in the Cosmos
                                        all slides
                            * lect5, The Universe Mechanized
                                        all slides
                            * lect5a, The Universe Mechanized, the Antikythera Mechanism
                                        read thoroughly, appreciate context and significance Antikythera Mechanism
                            * lect6, Scientific Revolution
                                        all slides
-                           * lect7, Gravity
                                        all slides
-                           * lect8, the Big Bang
                                        all slides
                            * lect9, the Expanding Universe
                                        slides 1 -71
                                        slides 72-118 on accelerating universe: read thoroughly
                            * lect10, the Early Universe
                                        slides 49-89 on problems of standard Big Bang, and Inflation

Exam examples: 10 typical questions of a Cosmic Origins exam:

                               Exam example questions





Echo of the Big Bang: Temperature Map of Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (Planck satellite 2015)





Lecture Schedule:
(provisional, changes possible)















WeekDates
Hoorcollege
Subject Hoorcollege
1
November 13


Generals:
Course Generals


Introduction:
the Fundamental Cosmological Questions


November 17



the Fundamental Cosmological Questions



Cosmology Timeline


2
November 22 (!!!)



Heavenly Rhythms

November 24



Heavenly Rhythms


Tutorial:      Cosmology Awareness Poll, assignment
                    Cosmology Awareness Poll, group list

3
November 27


Gods and Myths


December 1



Order in the Cosmos:
how Babylonians and Greeks rationalized the heavens


4
December 4



the Universe Mechanized: Hellenistic Cosmology



December 8



the Universe Mechanized:
case study: the Antikythera Mechanism


Tutorial:      Tutorial: a Cosmic Debate between Worldviews

5
December 11



the Scientific Revolution: the Mechanization of Nature




December ?



Cosmology:
the philosophy of our world



December 15



Tutorial:      Cosmology Awareness Poll, presentations
6
December 18



the Dynamical Universe:
Einstein, Gravity and the Dynamics of our Universe


December 22



the Dynamical Universe:
Einstein, Gravity and the Dynamics of our Universe

7
January 8



the Big Bang

January 12



the Expanding Universe

8
January 15



the Early Universe


January 19



Tutorial:      a Cosmic Debate between Worldviews