Big Bang, Black Holes, No Math

Prof. David Toback

with assistance from

Jonathan Asaadi, Katherine Mabray, Christopher Maguire, David Rahmani and Amelia Williamson


 

Note: I will periodically update the textbook chapters. If they are indicated with an * this means they have been updated since the beginning of the semester.

 
Chapter Number and Title Last Updated Lecture Notes

Unit 1: Introduction

   
Ch. 1: Introduction

 01/06/10

Ch. 1
Ch. 2: Going Big  02/02/10* Ch. 2
Ch. 3: Going small  02/02/10* Ch. 3
Ch. 4: History and the Scientific Method  02/02/10* Ch. 4

Unit 2: Physics We Need

 
 
Ch. 5: Light and Doppler Shifts  02/02/10* Ch. 5
Ch. 6: Gravity  02/02/10*  Ch. 6
Ch. 7: Atomic Physics and Quantum Mechanics  02/02/10 Ch. 7
Ch. 8: Nuclear Physics and Chemistry  02/02/10 Ch. 8
Ch. 9: Temperature and Thermal Equilibrium  12/28/09 Ch. 9

Unit 3: Why We Believe in the Big Bang

   
Ch. 10: The Exploding Universe  01/06/10 Ch. 10
Ch. 11: Expanding Space-Time  12/30/09 Ch. 11
Ch. 12: The Cosmic Background Radiation  02/02/10 Ch. 12

Unit 4: Evolution of the Universe

   
Ch. 13: The Early Universe  02/02/10 Ch. 13
Ch. 14: After The First Three Minutes  02/02/10 Ch. 14

Unit 5: Big Objects and Black Holes

   
Ch. 15: Galaxy Formation  02/02/10 Ch. 15
Ch. 16: Stars  02/02/10 Ch. 16
Ch. 17: Black Hole Formation and Properties  01/08/10 Ch. 17

Unit 6: Early Times and the Fate of the Universe

   
Ch. 18: Possible Fates of the Universe  01/08/10 Ch. 18
Ch. 19: Dark Matter  02/02/10 Ch. 19
Ch. 20: Particle Physics  02/02/10 Ch. 20
Ch. 21: Inflation  01/20/10 Ch. 21
Ch. 22: Dark Energy  02/02/10 Ch. 22
     
     


The main course web page can be found here

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Created by Dave Toback (toback@tamu.edu)
(Last updated by Dave Toback on 01/31/10)