ASTRONOMY 154LOL: Online Astronomy Laboratory Fall 2010
REQUIRED MATERIALS:
Instructions for obtaining these are found in the Moodle homepage for the course
The course information, Lab assignments, reading, and quizzes are accessed through the Moodle system http://moodle.csun.edu . Log in with your CSUN user ID and Password and click the link to this course. Your user ID is the one with your initials followed by 5 numbers. If you are unsure what it is, you can look it up using the link found on the login page. Once logged in, click the link to the course and read the instructions posted to proceed with the course.
This course covers the basic techniques used in gathering and analyzing data obtained from observations of the heavenly bodies. What we measure, how we measure it, and how we analyze it.
The course material is divided into sections called LABS.
Each lab is broken up into sections. The sections present vary for different labs. The types of sections are:
LAB POLICIES
The due dates for the labs and quizzes will be listed in the calendar, and are also reflected as the availability date on the Webassign page itself in the case of the labs. Students are free to work ahead on future labs that have been released. However, students are required to COMPLETE EACH LAB AND QUIZ BEFORE ITS DUE DATE.
LABORATORY FINAL
After the completion of all labs, students will be given a laboratory final that will include both data taking skills and concept understanding. This final requires the use of the Equatorial Star Chart and the Star and Planet Locator but does not require Starry Night. Like all other quizzes it is to be done individually, within the time limit and taken only once. The questions will be similar to those found in previous quizzes.
GRADING
The Online Astronomy Laboratory is graded on a point scale. Each point for an exercise or quiz counts equally. The amount of points for each exercise/quiz varies depending on the content of the lab. The final grade for the laboratory will be based on a percentage of the total possible points found by adding up all your points and dividing it by the total possible (then x 100%).
SCALE:
90.0-100.0 = a or a-
80.0-89.9 = b+, b, or b-
65.0-79.9 = c+, c, or c-
54.0-64.9 = d+, d, or d-
0.0-53.9 = f
GETTING HELP
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CLASS SETUP
Before beginning work for Astronomy 154 LAB online there are some things that need to be set up. NOTE: If you are or have taken the online lecture and already have a webassign account and the starry night software. Then you can use the same accounts for both the lecture and the laboratory courses.
1. EXERCISE PAGE SETUP.
csun 0036 2703
2. STARRY NIGHT SOFTWARE
The software is available to CSUN students at a discounted rate. Visit the website http://www.starrynighteducation.com/college and enter the four digit referral code: d508.
The version you need to download is called “Starry Night College”.