Astronomy 294 - Spring Quarter 2007
Life in the Universe

Prof. Scott Gaudi - MWF 1:30-2:18pm - 1015 McPherson Lab

Unit 4: Life in the Universe [May 7, 9, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23]

Lecture 1: Stars: Masses, Luminosities, and Temperatures [May 7]

Lecture 2: Stars: Habitable Zones, Lifetimes, and Other Considerations [May 9]

Lecture 3: Our Neighborhood: Nearby Stars, Stellar Populations, and the Galaxy [May 11]

Lecture 4: Other Solar Systems [May 14]

Lecture 5: The Pale Blue Dot [May 16]

Lecture 6: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence: The Drake Equation [May 18]

Lecture 7: SETI, Interstellar Travel, and Colonization [May 21]

Lecture 8: The Fermi Paradox and the Rare Earth Hypothesis [May 23]

Related Readings in Life in the Universe

Lecture 1: Chapter 11.1, 11.4

Lecture 2: Chapter 11.1

Lecture 3: Chapters 11.3

Lecture 4: Chapters 11.2

Lecture 5: Chapters 11.2

Lecture 6: Chapters 12.1-12.3

Lecture 7: Chapters 13.1-13.4

Lecture 8: Chapters 11.3, 13.3

Further Reading for Unit 4

The Search for Life in the Universe by Donald Goldsmith and Tobias Owen: Chapters 17, 18, 19, 20, 22

Astrobiology: A Multidisciplinary Approach by Jonathan I. Lunine: Chapters 15, 17

The links to the lectures provide outlines of the material covered in each class. In some cases they have additional text and links covering supplemental material or graphics. I will attempt to make the online lecture notes are made available starting the week in which the lectures occur, but some notes may not be accessible until later in the week for various reasons.

Please feel free to print out copies of these lecture outlines in advance of class, so you can follow along with the lecture. Many students find this helps them listen without the pressure of taking down detailed notes of their own, but while still making additional notes in the margins to highlight particularly emphasized points.

See A Note about Graphics to learn why some of the graphics shown in the lectures are not reproduced with these notes.

Students looking to explore these topics further using the Internet might want to look at Prof. Richard Pogge's Selected Astronomical Internet Links for this unit.

[ Return to the Astronomy 294 Main Page | Go forward to Unit 2 ]

Updated: 2006 December 27
Copyright © Scott Gaudi All Rights Reserved.