Short Term
2003
Course
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Study
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Exams |
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Instructor: Lee Roecker Science 302. Office Phone: 985-3318; Home Phone: (before 10 PM only)
985-0145
Office Hours: M-R 1-4 and gladly by appointment.
Textbook: Mars: The NASA Mission
Reports
Prerequisite: MAT 012 and GSTR 100.
Short Term
Thoughts:
I ENJOY short term! What I especially like about it is that
I get to think about topics that I don't have time to enjoy during the regular
semester. When I propose a topic
for a short-term course, I try to pick a subject that is a blend of different
scientific disciplines and that has an obvious impact on society. I usually don't know very much about the
topic. I picked it so I could learn more about it (and get paid for it)! What a life! You will see that I am learning with
you- exploring ideas seeing where they lead, hopefully discovering something
exciting and sure to hit a dead-end now and then. Considering what I have read and
thought through so far, I think we will have a great time.
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Course Goals:
1) Help you to become
life-long learners by showing you how to tackle a new
subject
2) Understand the basic principles behind
instrumental techniques used to explore our solar system-
particularly techniques in spectroscopy and
mass spectrometry.
3) Learn about the composition of our solar
system
4)
Learn or
improve skills using a variety of software packages such as Power Point,
Photoshop, and ChemDraw.
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Course Content: The major technical component to the class
will be to learn the basics of instrumentation used to deduce the chemical
composition of the solar system. We
will cover fundamentals of molecular structure, nuclear chemistry, energy, mass
spectroscopy and spectroscopic techniques such as infrared and ultraviolet
spectroscopy.
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Evaluation Methods:
Your performance will be evaluated by written examinations, homework
assignments, oral presentations and a paper. Below are details about the point
distribution/grading scale and some comments about
grading.
Point Distribution
600 points are possible in this course and are
distributed as follows:
Class participation (5 pts/day)
100
Exams (50 pts each)
100
Power Point Presentations (25
1st, 50 2nd)
75
Paper
100
Poster
50
Final Presentation (about paper/Power
Point)
75
HW/LAB Assignments
100
Grading Scale
A = 600 - 540 B = 539 - 480 C = 479 - 420 D = 419 - 360 F = <
360
More Specific Grade
Definitions:
A: An "A" grade signifies outstanding
achievement in all aspects of the course.
B: A "B" grade reflects work of good to very
good quality. Work at this level
often has outstanding characteristics but is not as consistent throughout the
semester or in all aspects of the course as required of "A"
work.
C: A "C" denotes that the student has attained
an acceptable level of competence.
The student has demonstrated a basic understanding of the course material
and abilities sufficient to proceed to more advanced courses in the
area.
D: "D" work is minimally adequate. A "D" raises serious concern about the
readiness of a student to continue in related coursework.
F: "F" work is unsatisfactory and unworthy of
credit.
Attendance Policy: Prompt attendance is expected and roll will
be taken daily. Obviously, your
class participation grade will be affected if you do not attend class. If you happen to miss class it is your
duty to obtain notes, and the other usual kind of stuff. Late work is not graded and make-up work
is never assigned.
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THURSDAY |
FRIDAY |
SAT |
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JAN 3 |
JAN 4 |
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JAN 5 |
JAN 6 |
JAN 7 Paper
Topic
Chosen
Student
presentation (1,2) |
JAN 8 Student
presentation (3,4) |
JAN 9 Student presentation (5,6) |
JAN
10
Student presentation (7,8) |
JAN 11 |
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JAN 12 |
JAN 13 EXAM 1 (60
min) |
JAN 14 Paper
Outline
Due |
JAN 15 Student
presentation (1,2) |
JAN 16 Student presentation (3,4) |
JAN 17 |
JAN 18 |
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JAN 19 |
JAN 20 NO
CLASS
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JAN 21 Paper
Draft
Due |
JAN 22 Student
presentation (5,6) |
JAN 23 Student presentation (7,8) |
JAN 24 Poster
Due |
JAN 25 |
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JAN 26 |
JAN 27 Final
Paper
Due |
JAN 28 In class presentations |
JAN 29 In
class
presentations |
JAN 30 EXAM 2 (120
min) |
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Papers: Your paper will focus on some detail of
space exploration that does NOT involve Mars. Here are several suggestions: 1) focus on a single instrument of a
mission. Provide details of the
mission it was used in, diagrams of the device, an explanation of how the device
works, a comparison to ground based instruments when possible, the results of
the experiment and their interpretation. 2) Pick a planet and describe its
chemistry. You will not only need
to report on its composition but also on how we know its composition. You will need details of experiments and
instruments.
Your final papers will be 6 pages long with one-inch
margins all around using TIMES FONT, 12 pitch. Deadlines are noon of the indicated due
date. Late efforts at any stage will lose 2 points per day. The grades of draft
1 and the final will be averaged together for 92% of the final grade. The outline is worth 8% of the paper
grade. Note it is possible that
your grade on the final version could be lower than your grade on draft 1
depending upon the revisions you make.
After making any needed corrections to your
presentation, we will post it on a WEB site.