ASTR 1290: Black Holes (Draft syllabus from Fall 2016)

MWF 11:00-11:50 am, Clark Hall 107

Instructor Shane Davis TA Christian (Chris) Hayes Office Astronomy 214 Office Astronomy 267 Office Hours Mon 2:30-4, Fri 1-2:30, or by appointment Office Hours By appointment E-mail swd8g@virginia.edu E-mail crh7gs@virginia.edu Phone (434) 924-4898

What we will think about

Black holes are weird. They exhibit bizarre, counterintuitive phenomena and are almost impossible to observe directly. No less a figure than Albert Einstein, whose theory of gravity predicted these objects, believed that their formation was impossible. Most brilliant physicists and astronomers of the day agreed with Einstein’s view. Black holes should have been relegated to the domain of science fiction. But, something strange happened. Theoretical physicists calculating the end states of stars concluded that the formation of black holes was inevitable. Astronomers started observing strange and unexpected phenomena that were difficult (impossible?) to explain without black holes being present. It took decades, but black holes evolved from being completely disreputable to widely accepted. They now form a foundation for our understanding of many areas of astronomy.

The story of how and why this transition occurred will form the core of this course. We will learn about how science progresses, including specific issues that arise in astronomy, where the objects under study are incredibly remote. Along the way, we will learn about the strange properties of these extreme objects. What would happen if you fell into a black hole? Why does time run incredibly slowly near a black hole? What happens when black holes collide? What is the information paradox and how are scientists trying to resolve it? Why do black holes have no “hair”? (What does that even mean?) What is Hawking radiation? What are quasars, gamma ray bursts, supernovae, neutrons stars, gravitational waves, and a host of other astronomical phenomena related to black holes? Should you believe any of this? What does that pretty picture at the top of the page represent? Answering these questions are some of the main objectives of the course.

What I want you take away

I hope that by the end of the course you will be able to:

Describe black holes and the important role they play in the universe.

Utilize scientific thinking and apply it to problem solving.

Evaluate news articles on recent scientific discoveries.

Explain and discuss scientific principles and ideas with others.

Manipulate mathematical formulas and relate them to the physical relations that they encode.

Identify some of the major constellations and bright stars. (If you tell mom or dad you are taking an astronomy course, it is usually the first thing they will ask.)

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Assignments and Exams

Homework

There will be (nearly) weekly homework assignments to be completed outside of lecture. Homework problems will be assigned through Learning Catalytics (see below). These will primarily assess your mastery of the course content and help you to identify areas of incomplete understanding. Many of the problems will be quantitative and will give you practice applying concepts and manipulating mathematical relations.

In class exercises

During classes, I will ask you to respond to a number of questions using the Learning Catalytics system. These exercises will help us to engage with conceptually difficult aspects of black holes, gain experience discussing scientific thinking, and apply what we’ve learned to problem solving. I will also use your responses to gauge the overall comprehension of the subject, to clear up any misunderstandings, and to learn your opinions on various topics. Group discussion will be encouraged and, in many cases, required.

Responses will be graded for both accuracy and participation. Over the course of the semester, you will be able to earn up to 100 points representing 15% of your final grade. If you exceed 100 points, you will not earn any additional credit, but I will think you are really smart. Since you will be given the opportunity to earn significantly more than 100 points, there is no make up for missed questions. You may not use another student's account to answer questions for them. Answering questions for another student, whether they are present or absent, is a violation of the honor code.

Constellation lab

This lab consists of learning the names and locations of the brightest stars and constellations, completing a worksheet, and passing a short quiz. This lab will give you some experience with “practical” astronomy and allow you to impress friends, family, and maybe even a romantic interest with your knowledge of the heavens.

The lab can be completed in a single night and you may repeat it until you pass. The lab is graded pass/fail and the number of points that you receive depends on the date that you complete the lab:

Therefore, you should complete the Constellation Lab as early as possible in the semester. There will be no exceptions to this schedule. The lab gets very crowded as deadlines approach and you run the risk of being clouded out. Some students will inevitably wait until the last week and something will go wrong. The lab operates every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening at both 9:00 and 10:00 pm and lasts one hour. The lab is operated in the garage area adjacent to the Astronomy Building (to the left of the Astronomy Building as seen from the Observatory Hill Dining Hall). You must sign up for a session in advance using the Sign-up tool on course collab site. If you completed the lab in a previous semester for another astronomy class, you must complete the lab again this semester. Consider this a good refresher and opportunity to gauge how well you learned it the first time.

You will significantly increase your chances of passing the quiz if you learn the names and locations of the major constellations and bright stars in the night sky. You can get very good star maps at SkyMaps.com and Heavens-Above. Go outside at night and use the star maps to locate the constellations and bright stars. At the start of the lab, the teaching assistant will review their locations and names.

The Constellation Quiz Lab will not operate if the skies are cloudy. If you are in doubt, call the Astronomy Department Night Lab hotline at (434) 924-7238 after 7:00 pm to learn if the labs will be open. If you pass the lab, your grade will appear in the Gradebook on Collab within a week. If you do not pass the lab, you will receive an email and you should schedule another lab session.

Dates Maximum Possible grade

Aug. 29 – Oct. 13 50

Oct. 17 – Nov. 3 40

Nov. 7 – Dec. 1 30

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Weekly blogs

Each week you will be assigned to write briefly about a topic. This could include a discussion of lecture or homework material, an article on black holes in the popular press, representations of black holes in popular culture, or other related topics. You will also be required to comment on the blog posts of others. Blogs will be graded based on on-time completion. These exercises will help us develop our abilities to assess scientific articles, explain scientific concepts, discus science with others, and will help us keep apprised of the latest developments in the study of black holes.

Final Exam and Quizzes

There will be three in-class quizzes that will constitute 10% (each) of your grade and a final exam constitutes 20% of your grade. The 2nd and 3rd quizes will focus on the material covered since the previous quiz, but you will always be expected to use concepts covered earlier in the course. (Don’t blame me – that’s just how science works.) The final exam will be comprehensive and cover all material in the course. It will be approximately twice as long as a quiz and will have similar types of questions.

Quiz 1 Friday, Sep. 23, in class Quiz 2 Friday, Oct. 21, in class Quiz 3 Friday, Nov. 18, in class Final Friday, Dec. 16, 9-12, Clark Hall 107

Final Grades

You final grade will be based on the following weighting of the exam, quizzes, homework, in-class exercises, blogs, and lab:

Homework 20% In Class Exercises 15% Blogs 10% Constellation Lab 5% Quizzes (each) 10% Final Exam 20% Grades will be posted on the course collab site. Final grades will be assigned as follows:

Letter Grade Percentage Letter Grade Percentage A+ 97-100% C 73-76%

A 93-97% C- 70-72%

A- 90-92% D+ 67-69% B+ 87-89% D 63-66%

B 83-87% D- 60-62%

B- 80-82% F 0-59% C+ 77-79% Pass >59%

There is no “curve” for the course. If I conclude that poorer than expected performance on a graded activity (assignment or exam) is due to an error or miscalibration on my part, I may improve the grade distribution for that specific activity.

Course Policies and Requirements

What you will need to buy

Unfortunately, there is no good introductory level textbook on black holes so we will be using a pair of popular science books for the readings. A big plus is that this should save you some money. The texts are:

• Gravity’s Fatal Attraction, Black Holes in the Universe by Mitchell Begelman and Martin Rees • Black Holes & Time Warps, Einstein’s Outrageous Legacy, By Kip S. Thorne

These texts will be supplemented with instructor’s notes that will be provided on the collab site. You will also need to purchase access to the Learning Catalytics interactive classroom system. To use Learning Catalytics, you will need to bring a web-enabled device (smart phone, iPad, iPod Touch, tablet, or laptop) to every class. If you do not have access to a web-enabled device, let me know right away. Learning Catalytics can be purchased for $12 at: http://learningcatalytics.com

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Coming to class

It is in your best interest to attend class as much as possible because black holes are really, really cool. If you need further incentive, keep in mind that you will be asked to answer a number of in-class questions using the Learning Catalytics system (see above). Credit will only be given for answers completed during class. You must attend the scheduled quizzes and the final exam. See me at least two lectures before an exam if you have a conflict. Makeup exams are given only at the discretion of the instructor.

How to get help

I strongly encourage you to take advantage of my office hours. It is hard to believe, but I actually get paid to do research on black holes. Therefore, I actually know quite a bit about black holes and really enjoy talking about them! I am always happy to meet with you to discuss the material and answer questions. If the posted hours do not work for you because of a conflict, please schedule an appointment with me for another time.

How to not distract yourself and others

Since you will be bringing a smart phone, tablet, or laptop to class everyday, please be respectful of me and the other students in the class. Restrict your use to Learning Catalytics, and class related research and note taking. In fact, you should probably avoid note taking by typing on a laptop. Lots of credible research suggests that taking notes by hand will help you to better recall the material than if you type on a laptop/tablet. For a nice summary of the negative effects of using your laptop in class, see this New Yorker article by Dan Rockmore.

Honor Code

ALL work for this class is subject to the Honor Code, even if you did not explicitly sign the pledge. Although you are free (encouraged, even) to discuss homework problems with your peers, you must ultimately work through and submit your own work. Do the right thing because you are a responsible adult and a good person. If you are ever unsure what the right thing is, ask me.

Schedule

Here is an approximate schedule of the topics we will be covering. A detailed, up-to-date weekly schedule will be maintained on the course collab site.

Week What We Will Be Thinking About Assignments and Quizzes Reading

1 Introduction to Black Hole Astronomy this syllabus

2 Classical Motion and Gravity Hw 1 due, blog notes

3 Introduction to Special Relativity Hw 2 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 1; notes

4 Special Relativity Hw 3 due, blog BH&TW Ch.1; notes

5 Foundations of General Relativity Quiz 1 BH&TW Ch.2; notes

6 General Relativity Hw 4, due, blog BH&TW Ch.2; notes

7 Black Holes Hw 5 due, blog BH&TW Ch.3

8 Black Holes Hw 6 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 7, 13; GFA Ch. 2

9 Death of Stars Quiz 2 BH&TW Ch. 4; GFA Ch. 2

10 Neutron Stars Hw 7 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 5-6

11 Accretion and X-ray Binaries Hw 8 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 8; GFA Ch. 3

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12 Gamma Ray Bursts and Gravitational Waves

Hw 9 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 10; GFA Ch. 6, 7, & 10

13 Supermassive Black Holes Quiz 3 BH&TW Ch. 9; GFA Ch. 4, 5, & 8

14 Supermassive Black Holes Thanksgiving – short week BH&TW Ch. 9; GFA Ch. 4, 5, & 8

15 Hawking Radiation and the Information Paradox

Hw 10 due, blog BH&TW Ch. 12; GFA Ch. 8

16 Course Review