HPS 0410	Einstein for Everyone	Spring 2010

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Schedule

This is the term's OLD schedule what has been modified as a result of the cancellation of classes on February 8-10 due to snowstorms. The new schedule is here.

Week	Lecture Date	Recitation Date	Lecture Topic	Assignment Due	Test
1	Wed. Jan. 6		Introduction: the questions.
2	Mon. Jan. 11		Special relativity: the basics.
		Mon. Jan. 11 Tues. Jan. 12		1. Principle of Relativity
	Wed. Jan. 13		Special relativity: adding velocities. Relativity of simultaneity
3	NO CLASS Mon. Jan. 18. Martin Luther King Day Tues. Jan. 19 Add/drop ends	Submitting assignments due on Monday
		Tues. Jan. 19		2. Adding Velocities Einstein's Way
	Wed. Jan. 20		Is special relativity paradoxical?
4	Mon. Jan 25		E=mc²
		Mon. Jan. 25 Tues. Jan. 26		3. Relativity of Simultaneity
	Wed. Jan. 27		Origins of special relativity Einstein's Pathway to Special Relativity		Test 1 What is it on? Grades
5	Mon. Feb. 1		Spacetime Spacetime and the Relativity of Simultaneity
		Mon. Feb. 1 Tues. Feb. 2		4. Origins of Special Relativity
	Wed. Feb. 3		Spacetime and the Relativity of Simultaneity Spacetime, Tachyons, Twins and Clocks
6	Mon. Feb. 8		What is a four dimensional space like? Philosophical significance of relativity
		Mon. Feb. 8 Tues. Feb. 9		5. Spacetime
	Wed. Feb. 10		Philosophical significance of relativity		Test 2 What is it on?
7	Mon. Feb. 15		Euclidean Geometry: The First Great Science Non-Euclidean Geometry: A Sample Construction
		Mon. Feb. 15 Tues. Feb. 16		6. Philosophical Significance
	Wed. Feb. 17		Non-Euclidean Geometry: A Sample Construction Spaces of Constant Curvature
8	Mon. Feb. 22		Spaces of Constant Curvature Spaces of Variable Curvature
		Mon. Feb. 22 Tues Feb. 23		7. Non-Euclidean Geometry
	Wed. Feb. 24		General relativity		Test 3 What is it on?
9	Mon. Mar. 1		General relativity Gravity Near a Massive Body Einstein's Pathway to General Relativity
		Mon. Mar. 1 Tues. Mar. 2		8. Curvature
	Wed. Mar. 3		General relativity
	SPRING BREAK
10	Mon. Mar. 15		Relativistic cosmology
		Mon. Mar. 15 Tues. Mar. 16		9. General Relativity
	Wed. Mar. 17		Relativistic cosmology		Test 4 What is it on?
11	Mon. Mar. 22		Big bang cosmology
		Mon. Mar. 22 Tues. Mar. 23		10. Relativistic Cosmology
	Wed. Mar. 24		Big bang cosmology/ Black holes
12	Mon. Mar. 29		Black holes
		Mon. Mar. 29 Tues. Mar. 30 Term paper topic submitted		11. Big Bang Cosmology
	Wed. Mar. 31		A Better Picture of Black Holes		Test 5 What is it on?
13	Mon. Apr. 5		A Better Picture of Black Holes
		Mon. Apr. 5 Tues. Apr. 6		12. Black Holes
	Wed. Apr. 7		Origins of Quantum Theory
14	Mon. Apr. 12		Origins of Quantum Theory
		Mon. Apr. 12 Tues. Apr. 13		13. Origins of Quantum Theory
	Wed. Apr. 14		Problems of Quantum Theory
15	Mon. Apr. 19		Problems of Quantum Theory
		Mon. Apr. 19 Tues. Apr. 20		14. Problems of Quantum Theory
	Wed. Apr. 21	Term paper due	Problems of Quantum Theory		Test 6 What is it on?

Test 1. Wednesday January 27. The test will be in the first 15 minutes of class and will consist of 3-4 questions requiring answers of a few sentences each. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "Special relativity: the basics," "Special relativity: adding velocities," "Relativity of simultaneity," "Is special relativity paradoxical?" and the assignments 1-3.

Test 2. Wednesday February 10. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "E=mc²", "Origins of Special Relativity," "Einstein's Pathway to Special Relativity," the three "Spacetime" chapters and the assignments 4 and 5.

Test 3. Wednesday February 24. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "Philosophical Significance of Relativity" and "Non-Euclidean Geometry" and the assignments 6 and 7.

Test 4. Wednesday March 17. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "Spaces of Variable Curvature" and "General Relativity" and the assignments 8 and 9.

Test 5. Wednesday March 31. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "Relativistic Cosmology" and "Big Bang Cosmology" and the assignments 10 and 11.

Test 6. Wednesday April 21. The material examinable is the content of the chapters "Black Holes," "A Better Picture of Black Holes" and "Origins of Quantum Theory" and the assignments 12 and 13.