SCI101 SCIENCE AND ASTRONOMY

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1 SCI101 SCIENCE AND ASTRONOMY This sample unit outline is provided by CHC for prospective and current students to assist with unit selection. Elements of this outline which may change with subsequent offerings of the unit include Content, Required Texts, Recommended Readings and details of the Assessment Tasks. Students who are currently enrolled in this unit should obtain the outline for the relevant semester from the unit lecturer.

2 Unit code Unit name Associated higher education awards Duration Level Unit Coordinator SCI101 Science and Astronomy Diploma of Liberal Arts: Foundations of Learning Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts One semester Introductory To be advised Core/Elective Core Weighting Unit credit points: 10 credit points Student workload Delivery mode Pre-requisites/ Co-requisites/ Restrictions Rationale Total course credit points: Diploma of Liberal Arts: Foundations of Learning Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts Face-to-face on-site Timetabled hours 39 Personal study hours 111 Total workload hours credit points 240 credit points Students requiring additional English language support are expected to undertake an additional one hour per week. In order to be considered for a passing grade, students must attend at least 80% of class sessions. Face-to-face on-site Nil This unit (along with MTH101 and MUS101) initiates students into a key subject of the traditional quadrivium, which is essentially the study of pattern, harmony, symmetry and order in nature and mathematics, viewed as a reflection of the Divine Order. Thomas More argued, There are some who through knowledge of things natural construct a ladder by which to rise to the contemplation of things supernatural. That is a goal of this unit in relation to the progression of the larger curriculum. In this unit students explore at an introductory level the order of the physical world, including natural and cosmological beings. These topics are properly studied at the beginning of the path from what can be contemplated by the senses to what can be contemplated by the mind to what can be contemplated only by particular supernatural revelation. Without a thorough grounding in natural science and astronomy and an insight into our ages-long quest to comprehend our universe, one's conceptual paradigm for understanding God and human history is severely limited and anthropocentric. SCI101 Science and Astronomy Page 2 of 5 Author: Millis Institute

3 Prescribed text(s) Recommended readings In the first half of this unit, students inquire into the principles of natural beings, their coming into being and passing away. Although students do not engage in laboratory experiments, they do participate in basic activities of science, such as describing the appearances of the natural world, including the phenomena of change. Questions are raised about the meaning and nature of measurement and about what it is that is measured, the nature and bases of classification and naming of phenomena (are species "natural" or are they human constructs?), the nature of change in relation to time and to organic processes, and what it means to give a causal explanation of natural phenomena. In the second half of this unit, students explore the development of humanity's understandings and beliefs concerning the structure and origin of the universe and how these views have influenced belief systems, history and everyday life. Modern discoveries are incorporated into the course throughout the semester; however, to properly understand modern cosmology students need to understand the foundation and development of inquiry upon which it rests. They will therefore begin with the thought of Aristotle and Ptolemy and trace revisions and developments in cosmology through Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, Einstein and Hawking. Furthermore, to comprehend the science of cosmology students study the apparent movement of celestial bodies, the tools astronomers use to investigate the cosmos, the development of and controversy surrounding the geocentric universe theory, the basic make-up of the Sun, the phases of the moon, the origins and life-cycle of stars, the basic structure of the Milky Way, and the cause of the seasons. Students also visit the Brisbane Observatory to learn about and gain exposure to stars, nebulae, galaxies, quasars, etc. Such exposure helps to illustrate the tremendous difficulty that has confronted astronomers in striving to interpret celestial phenomena. Aristotle 1939, On the Heavens, trans. W K C Guthrie, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. Ptolemy 1998, Ptolemy s Almagest, trans. G J Toomer, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ. Copernicus, N 1995, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, trans. C G Wallis, Prometheus, Amherst, NY. Duncan, T & Tyler 2009, C, Your Cosmic Context: An Introduction to Modern Cosmology, Pearson/Addison Wesley, San Francisco, CA. Book of Readings (Available on Moodle ). Aristotle 1937, Parts of Animals. Movement of Animals. Progression of Animals, trans. A L Peck, & E S Forster, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. Chalmers, A F 2013, What Is This Thing Called Science?, 4th edn, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Australia. Danielson, D (ed.) 2002, The Book of the Cosmos: Imagining theuniverse from Heraclitus to Hawking, Perseus, Cambridge, MA. Fabre, J-H 1991, The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre, trans. A T de Mattos, Beacon, Boston, MA. Ferris, T 2003, Coming of Age in the Milky Way, Harper Perennial, New York, NY. Galen 1916, On the Natural Faculties, trans. A J Brock, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. Galileo, G 2000 Two New Sciences/A History of Free Fall, 2 nd edn, trans. S Drake, Wall and Emerson, Dayton, OH. Kepler, J 1995, Epitome of Copernican Astronomy and Harmonies of the World, trans. C G Wallis, Prometheus, Amherst, NY. Kuhn, T S 2012, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 50 th Anniversary Edn, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Plato 2000, Timaeus, trans. D Zeyl, Hackett, Indianapolis, IN. In addition to the resources above, students should have access to a Bible, preferably a modern translation such as The Holy Bible: New King James Version (NKJV). This translation and many others may be accessed free on-line at The Bible app from LifeChurch.tv is also available free for smart phones and tablet devices. SCI101 Science and Astronomy Page 3 of 5 Author: Millis Institute

4 Specialist resources requirements Content Learning outcomes Assessment tasks Nil 1. What is Science? Philosophical and Epistemological Challenges 2. Plato, Timaeus 3. Aristotle, Parts of Animals 4. Aristotle, On the Heavens 5. Fabre, The Insect World of J. Henri Fabre 6. Ptolemy, Ptolemy s Almagest 7. Copernicus, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres 8. Galileo, Two New Sciences 9. Kepler, Epitome of Copernican Astronomy 10. Newton 11. Modern Cosmology On completion of this unit, students will have: 1. Acquired an informed understanding of astronomy and celestial phenomena; 2. Comprehended the reason why objects in the galaxy appear to move as they do as seen from Earth; 3. Identified and understood basic concepts and methods involved in the study of physical beings and celestial phenomenon; 4. Understood and applied the four kinds of causes (material, formal, efficient, and final) and their relationship to natural phenomena, with attention to what it means to claim that the physical world is God s creation; 5. Developed discernment of major developments in the history of the study of physical beings and celestial phenomena; 6. Grasped the reason why the geocentric universe was accepted for thousands of years and compared its downfall to modern paradigm shifts/controversies; 7. Participated in group discussion by completing readings and contributing with clarity and coherence; and 8. Communicated at an appropriate tertiary standard with special attention to correct grammar, punctuation, spelling, vocabulary, usage, sentence structure, logical relations, style, referencing and presentation. Task 1: Class Participation Weekly Weighting: 10% Learning Outcomes: 6, 7 Assessed: Weeks 2-13 Task 2: Reflective Paper on Natural Science Weighting: 30% Learning Outcomes: 1-3, 7 1,500 words Assessed: Week 6 SCI101 Science and Astronomy Page 4 of 5 Author: Millis Institute

5 Unit Summary Task 3: Paper Comparing Two Cosmologists Weighting: 40% 1,500 words Learning Outcomes: 1, 3-4, 7 Assessed: Week 14 Task 4: Observatory Project Weighting: 20% 750 words Learning Outcomes: 1, 5, 7 Assessed: Week 12 This unit (along with MTH101 and MUS101) initiates students into a key subject of the traditional quadrivium, which is essentially the study of pattern, harmony, symmetry and order in nature and mathematics, viewed as a reflection of the Divine Order. Students explore at an introductory level the order of the physical world, including natural and cosmological beings. SCI101 Science and Astronomy Page 5 of 5 Author: Millis Institute

Required Texts. Course Description and Objectives

Required Texts. Course Description and Objectives The Templeton Honors College at Eastern University Honors 201 - Cosmology Fall Semester 2014 McInnis 322 MWF 11:00 AM Dr. David H. Bradstreet Professor and Chair of Astronomy and Physics, Observatory/Planetarium