HONR 218D, Life, the Universe, and Everything

Spring 2015

Policies and course outline

Class debate topics and schedule

HTML reading list with links

My lecture notes:

• Lecture 1: Introduction to life in the universe
• Lecture 2: The very early universe, origin of heavy elements, and planets
• Lecture 3: Evolution 1: early ideas and misconceptions
• Lecture 4: Evolution 2: fossil and microbiology evidence
• John Merck's notes about evidence of evolution
• Lecture 5: Origin of life
• Lecture 6: Extremophiles and mass extinctions
• No Lecture 7: Midterm
• Lecture 8: Requirements for life
• Lecture 9: Mars
• Lecture 10: Other places in Solar System, extrasolar planets
• Lecture 11: Future of life on Earth
• Lecture 12: Drake equation, development of intelligence, and alien visitations
• Lecture 13: Interstellar travel and the Fermi paradox
• Lecture 14: Relativity and time travel; terraforming other planets

Supplementary notes:

• Supplement 1: the age of the universe
• Supplement 2: the origin of elements
• Supplement 3: stellar properties and evolution
• Supplement 4: taxonomic classes
• Supplement 5: other places in Solar System for life
• Supplement 6: definitions of factors in the Drake equation
• Supplement 7: searching for other civilizations
• Supplement 8: rocket science
• Supplement 9: colonization of the milky way
• Supplement 10: special relativity

Send me to:

Cole's home page

astro home page