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The midterm is Wednesday Oct. 9.
Prof. Hiskes will have special office hours on Tues. Oct. 8, 2:00 – 4:00.
Prof. Holsinger will be out of town and unable to make appointments for Tues. Oct. 8.
The test will cover material from the lectures and all the assigned readings on the syllabus under Section I: What is Science, with the exception of the readings under the heading "E. Observations in Science – Facts or Hypotheses?"
You should also review 3 hand-outs of notes: (Available on the course WebSite)
3. Conjectures and Refutations in Cosmology
The test will be constructed from the four sets of study questions that are also available on the course WebSite, and it will have the following structure.
Part A. Short-Answer Questions. You will have some choice. E.g. do 4 out of 5, or do 5 out of 6. These will ask you centrally important “factual” questions. The key to doing well here is to choose your words carefully so that you hit the bull’s eye in giving the right answer.
Part B. Long-Answer Questions. Again you will have some choice. E.g Do 2 out of 3.
These questions will ask you to relate and compare different positions and concepts, and to defend your own point of view. The key to doing well on these questions is to display a mastery of the relevant material with a balance between general claims and supporting facts and details.