Thursday, April 25, 2019 at 4:00 PM

JILA Auditorium

Kevin McLin,

"The Big Ideas in Cosmology: An online interactive curriculum for introductory college students"

Abstract:

The past several decades have brought a revolution in our understanding of the universe, its origin, and its constituent parts. While this transformation in our understanding has captured the imagination of the public as well as scientists, it has not strongly impacted how introductory college astronomy courses are taught; many still emphasize discoveries of the ancient Greeks and the Renaissance while giving little attention to recent advances.

A group of us, believing contemporary discoveries in the field would be more engaging for students, set out to develop an introductory course in modern cosmology for college-level students. The curricula we have developed are based upon research into common student misconceptions related to cosmological ideas. They use real data sets and interactive computer exercises and simulations to help students overcome their misunderstandings and gain insights into the ideas underpinning current theories of the origin and evolution of the universe. In my presentation, I will demonstrate a selection of these activities related to helping students grasp cosmic expansion.

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