"There are more things in Heaven and Earth,

Horatio, than are dreamt of in our philosophy."

William Shakespeare, Hamlet, act I, scene 5.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read this entire page and know that you are expected to understand all of the prior conditions

and requirements stated below before you move on to the form page.

 

DO NOT SKIP OVER ALL OR PART OF THIS PAGE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To newly registered AST Students:

Orientation for this course is conducted entirely on-line, so you will not need to come to campus for this. This web site, the course web site, and some other relevant web sites are set for a screen resolution of 1024 x 768. Visit How To Change Your Computer's Screen Resolution for more information.

Getting Ready to Complete the Orientation:

Failure to correctly complete the orientation may result in you being listed as a "No Show" for the course, so please read through this. To complete this orientation, you may need the course term schedule you received when you enrolled. There you will find your 7-digit student ID number.

 

AST 102 is a transferable, 4 credit hour, lab-based science course taught on the internet. The internet versions of AST 101 and AST 102 are taught by J. L. Hopkins, Physics & Astronomy professor at Midlands Technical College.

 

This course is not on WebCT nor Desire 2 Learn. The main course web site and support sites like this orientation are all coded, developed, and maintained by me on the college's servers. If there are problems with any web pages or links, just e-mail me and I'll fix it.

 

This is not a self-paced course, nor is it easier than the on-campus course - for some it is harder. To be successful in this internet course you must be a self-motivated, hard worker, and follow all the guidelines outlined herein. This course is very similar to the version taught on campus.

 

 

There may be several important handouts that are PDF files, so you may need Adobe Reader - free software that lets you view, print, search, and share Adobe Portable Document Format (This icon means the file is PDF) files.

 

If you don't have Adobe Reader, click on the icon to the right to access the download site.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is your responsibility to set up and maintain your computer, ISP, and browser to readily access all parts of this course. If your computer is inoperable in any way, you must fix it and/or find an alternative. You will need considerable computer skills to complete this course.

 

You must have nearly daily access to a computer with an Internet connection with a personal email account. (Do not use someone else's email account and be wary of free accounts like hotmail or yahoo. Many say they never have problems with these or similar free-based accounts, but problems always seem to arise.)

 

To easily explain how to check and/or change your Java, JavaScript, cache, and several other computer settings, go to the Computer How To's.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The labs for this course are designed to be done at home without the need for specialized equipment. Each lab is a module and will be submitted approximately once a week using online forms. Exact due dates will be on the Lab Schedule page of the website. You may use the internet and your textbook and notes; but all work must be your own. Since you have at least 7 days to complete each lab - more if you work ahead - no lab will be accepted late without penalty nor will there be any make-up assignments.

 

 

This entire orientation, coupled with the web site's FAQ, constitute the heart of the syllabus; however, a concise document is prepared and set for you to download from the course web site once you successfully complete this orientation. However, here are a few highlights that you might like to know now:

Drop/Add

If you complete this form and start the class, you may only drop it for another class (perhaps an on-campus astronomy section) during the Drop/Add period during the first week. After that, you may not move from one astronomy section to another.

Will there be any math ?

Yes - but it is no more than basic high school level math - no algebra or calculus.

Prerequisites

No prerequisites above DVS reading. AST 101 is NOT a prerequisite for AST 102, but it is somewhat common for students to take them in order.

Course Grading

Grading Scale:

A 100-90

B   89-80

C   79-70

D   69-60

F    59-0

 

Grading:

60% Quizzes

15% Final Exam

25% Lab

 

The final exam counts the same as a class test.

 

 

I have developed this course web site and its many support web sites over the last decade. In fact this was the first MTC science internet course. I love physics and astronomy and thus have spent considerable efforts to develop many useful tools and techniques within this site to help teach you and also lead you toward learning the foundations of astronomy and to bring you up to date with modern astronomy.

 

I know not many, if any, of you want to be an astronomer - I am an experimental atomic physicist actually; however, I take my position seriously in helping you learn enough about astronomy that you are better educated and more well-informed that most of the people in the world on knowing about the Earth and Moon, the stars and galaxies, and the many fascinating objects that exist just beyond our daily experiences.

 

As for me as a person, well you will learn more about that from our web site and our interactions. I look forward to meeting and/or communicating with you.

 

There are two types of tests in this course: quizzes and the Final Exam. There will 6 or so quizzes given throughout the term. The quiz format may be multiple choice, identification, definitions, short answers, essay, problem-solving and/or a mixture of these formats. I will not be any more precise at this time, because the emphasis will be on learning the concepts and nature of astronomy - not on the nature of testing. The quizzes and the final exam are all designed for you to take at-home on specific testing dates. If you miss one quiz or do poorly on one, then the final exam grade will be duplicated to replace it If you miss more than one quiz, then the grade will be zero on those.

 

 

A discussion forum is a web site where you may post questions, answers, and comments. The one for our class is called G2V .(pronounced "gee -two-five"). This forum is very important mode of communication between students for AST 102. You will be expected ask and answer questions of fellow students each week on the forum. Any important announcements from the professor will be posted there as well; you should check in to the forum roughly every other day.

 

Please post an acceptable, astronomy-related entry or respond to someone else's post 3 days out of that same 7-day week. Doing this means you are not only properly participating in this course, but makes you eligible to receive extra credit when it is offered.

 

If you have a question of the professor, then use the email form on the website - the forum is basically for student-to-student conversations.

 

 

If 5 absences are earned, you must drop or be withdrawn from the class with a "W" or "WF". Here is how attendance is measured in this internet course. You must

Absences, regardless of the reason, are cuts. Notes from doctors, employers, courts, etc. do not excuse an absence; they merely explain to the instructor why you missed class.

Withdrawal:  If you want to drop from the course, don't expect someone to do if for you. Do it yourself. Missed tests, labs, and other assignments will count as zeroes - which may result in an "F" unless you officially drop the course yourself.

 

 

 

- You will need this text and other materials. Work from the text will be assigned often throughout the term - starting the first week. -

 

Foundations of Astronomy

Michael A. Seeds, 10th Edition

 

AST 102 BUNDLE, LSW, , 1st, 08, LSW

LSW, 2008

(Look at the package carefully when you go to the bookstore.

This package looks almost identical to the one for AST 102.)

Scientific Calculator

(any type)

 

Metric Ruler

(one might come with your lab packet)

 

Computer with Internet Access

(any type)

You will need access to a computer at least 3 days out of the week, and a personal, reliable e-mail account.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Email will be our 2nd most important form of communication in this course other than our forum - G2V. If you don't use the online email form to contact me but instead use your own emailer, please make sure to always put AST 102 in the subject heading along with your name and email topic. By doing that, my filtering system is sure to catch your email and bring it to the top of my list. This is important because I receive about 45 to 75 e-mails a day associated with my internet astronomy and physics courses, both my on-campus physics courses and hybrid physics courses, and of course, my professional correspondences.

 

IMPORTANT: You will be receiving email from your professor from both of these email servers: midlandstech.edu and sc.rr.com, so set your email client to accept both. If you have email set for only those who fill out a request, you must do that yourself - I have too many students to fill out such forms.

 

                                  

 

Make sure you include the course and section number in the subject

heading to ensure your email does not get trashed as potential spam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have more questions about the course, feel free to ask them on the class forum once you get this orientation completed or email me using the Email page on our website. Also check out and read the FAQs on the site which may answer many of those questions. So having read all of the above, you are now ready to complete the online orientation form.

 

If you complete the form on the next page correctly, you will receive within 24 hours the needed URL for the course website and the required username and password to enter.