Please read the Science Safety Rules and Procedures Agreement first. You must sign the lab safety agreement before you begin your first lab.
Labs are held on Thursdays. You must attend lab during your scheduled lab time. If for some reason you cannot attend your regularly scheduled time on a particular week and you want to attend another session, contact your lab monitor as soon as possible. You will be expected to go to the lab every week, unless told otherwise by your instructor.
For each lab, there is a pre-lab. You are expected to complete the pre-lab assignment before coming to lab and bring the lab procedures to the classroom. You will not be allowed to complete the lab if you have not first completed the pre-lab. The pre-lab is worth one point toward your lab score. The pre-lab must be completed prior to coming to lab in order to get this point.
Since you will be working on the lab with others, it is important that you start at the same time. As such, the lab room will only be open for the first ten minutes of the lab time. If you arrive more than ten minutes late, you will not be allowed to complete the lab during that lab period. Attendance will be taken at each lab. Be sure to sign in and have your pre-lab checked.
The first part of each lab will consist of some instruction on the concepts and procedures involved with each lab. The lab instruction will typically take no longer than a half hour of lab time. You then have the remaining hour and a half to work on the lab.
You will encounter three types of labs this semester. Listed below is a set of specific procedures for each.
| Standard Lab: This kind involves a set of lab equipment and a list of procedures to follow with that set of equipment. For this kind of lab, you will be expected to finish the lab during the lab period. You must turn in the completed lab before you leave the lab room. | |
| Video/Internet Lab: This kind of lab involves watching a video in lab while taking notes, then going to the Internet to find answers to some supplementary questions. Answers to all video lab questions need to be typed and answered in complete sentences. A set of scribbled notes taken during the video will not be accepted. You should submit your answers in the dropbox on Cobra. The questions for a video lab are due by Monday. Check with your instructor about penalties for late submissions. | |
| Stellarium Labs: This kind of lab involves completing an activity using the Stellarium software. You should install the software on your personal computer, but it is also in the computer lab in the Learning Commons. As with the video labs, answers to all video lab questions should be typed and submitted electronically by Monday. Again, check with your instructor about penalties for late submissions. |
Astronomy 102 is a lab course. You must achieve at least a 60% in the lab portion of the class in order to pass the class. Only the top thirteen labs will count toward your lab score. From these top thirteen labs, you must have a combined score of at least 156 points in order to pass the course.