Online reading assignment question: confusing Midterm 1 astronomy topics

Astronomy 210 Reading Assignment 7, spring semester 2013
Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA

130317-midterm1confusing-hue
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Wordle.net tag cloud for confusing topics covered in Midterm 1, generated by responses from Astronomy 210 students at Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA (www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/6494216/Untitled).

Students have a weekly online reading assignment (hosted by SurveyMonkey.com), where they answer questions based on reading their textbook, material covered in previous lectures, opinion questions, and/or asking (anonymous) questions or making (anonymous) comments. Full credit is given for completing the online reading assignment before next week's lecture, regardless if whether their answers are correct/incorrect. Selected results/questions/comments are addressed by the instructor at the start of the following lecture.

List at least three words describing confusing subjects covered in class (up through this midterm). (Graded for completion.)

[Responses have been edited to consolidate related common subjects.]

Student responses
Sections 30674, 30676

rough, hard, hateit
parsecs, parallax, telescopes
moonphases, spectra, sunspots
luminosity
telescopes
magnitudes, resolvingpower
spectra Kirchhoffslaws
starwheel
spectra sun history
time telescopes history
sunspots, spectra, magnitude
parsecs, spectra, math
distance, parsecs, moonphases
planethunting, light, electrons protons
spectra
Newtonslaws, Keplerslaws, spectra
awkward, difficult mindblowing confusing
revolution rotation, focallength eyepiece primary
history
telescopes history, spectra
moonphases, magnitudes, time
starsizes, Dopplereffect, magnitudes distances
planethunting, telescopes, eclipses
starwheel, telescopes
telescopes, light, distances
notconfused justuninformed
moonphases, laws, eclipses
atmospheretransparency
telescopes moonphases
sun, moonphases, sunrise sunset
eclipses telescopes prograde retrograde
firstprinciples, laws, eclipses
parsecs
history, quantummechanics photosphere
nothing
retrograde, Aristotle, eclipses
moonphases, history, starwheel
neutrons spectra light
planethunting telescopes atmospheretransparency
parsecs, magnitudes, starwheel
hard, frustrating, sad
sunrise sunset sun, adaptiveoptics telescopes
telescopes, starwheel, planethunting, spectra

Describe your most confusing subject, and briefly explain why this subject confused you. (Graded for completion.)

The following are all of the student responses to this question, verbatim and unedited.

"It is just hard for me to remember all of the different topics. I just have to review very well."

"The star wheels were the most confusing to me, even though we had alot of time to practice and work with them in class. Its kind of confusing to find the stars and when I think I have the right time and date, its usually wrong."

"Spectas were the most confusing subject. It's hard to grasp the entire concept"

"How negative numbers represented higher luminosity. But I get it now."

"Types of telescopes because I missed the lecture."

"what i find confusing is apparent magnitude and absolute magnitude. Since i keep getting those two mixed up."

"Kirchoff's laws, i get the differences but when i'm told to identify which one it is i get lost."

"the starwheel and directions. just doesnt logicaly make sense"

"I still have trouble understanding what light produces what kind of spectrum."

"all the astronomers because there are too many to keep straight"

"Sunspots were a little confusing. Just because you would think that the spectra would change because the sunspots are darkish spots on the sun, but they are still just as hot. Thus, they are a continuous spectra."

"Parsecs because the math confuses me and how to find when they become dimmer and brighter because the magnitude is backwards in m mind."

"hmmm i'm going to have to say the phases of the moon, at what time you can see those phases, or given a time or a phase and try to figure out the phase or time of day/night because i wasn't too good at understanding it."

"I found planet hunting confusing. I tried really hard to understand it and read over the book again and again but for some reason it just doesn't click."

"Determining what type of light spectrum is emitted by a given source is still a little tricky for me. The question we had in class about what type of spectrum a sun spot gives off totally threw me."

"Probably Newton's three laws of gravity are the most confusing for me, I keep forgetting them and I feel I really need to review them before I feel I'm ready for the midterm."

"it was probably the starwheel because sometimes i wasn't sure if i was getting the answers right or placing the time with the date and so on."

"Parallax I don't understand how parallax or lack of showed astronomers the sky was ever changing or not"

"I have trouble remembering which astronomers did what."

"spectra's and sources, none of it really makes sense I don't 'see' what the difference is between continuous, emission and absorption"

"Gosh this who unit would make sense at the time then be hard after"

"Determining A Star's Size because there are so many things to keep track of on the H-R diagram. Also Determining a star's distance--that was counter intuitive at first--now I think I've got it."

"I do not understand the snowboarder, or how to find out which planet is closest and farthest from earth. I can not visualize the shadows, or figure out the equation."

"the star wheel because I'm not sure how to work it"

"I thought the telescope section was a little difficult to understand. It was just a lot of information jammed in a small section and it's hard to keep them straight."

"Why are so many things in science named after the people that discover them? It would make more sense, and seem less egotistical, if everything were named after a word that was relative to its aesthetics, or biological make-up. Even to the extent of creating words specifically for certain classifications. I feel like its just confusing to call things someone's last name. I.E. Calling it 'Coulomb's law' doesn't immediately commit to memory proportionate magnitudes of electrostatic forces... butttt, somehow I have to find a way to attach it to that deceased physician's name. I can't say I can think of a way to word it that is shorter, but maybe shorter is only convenient, not better..."

"all.... I feel atleast vaguely confused about all the concepts covered in class. The concepts I understand best are the ones I read in the book and write notes about."

"light spectrum, it just confuses me on how light is dispersed"

"I think in general the telescopes were. I got them confused and should have paid attention more when we talked about them. also the phases of the moon and how all that works together. i understand some of it but still confusion on some parts. interesting though."

"It is so difficult for me to understand how we are to know which month we are in by how the sun rises."

"prograde/retrograde models"

"The most confusing part is remembering all the scientists and their different principels and the different laws they have for the event.s"

"Penumbra's and remembering where the moon/sun is when their is a partial eclipse peeking from the bottom or the top of what is eclipsing."

"I need to remember all of the astronomers and their laws."

"remembering what each astronomer did."

"everything is very difficult in this class. I think the most confusing is the phase of the moon at a specific time."

"I was confused by the different light spectrums because I would get them mixed up for which lights they belonged to based on the patterns of continuous, emission, and absorption."

"Planet hunting is most confusing for me because I still am confused where the planets can be located at certain times."

"The star wheel because I thought i knew how to use it, and it turned I didn't know how to use it."

"telescopes, there is a lot to remember."

"I feel that basically everything from the first quiz, sun rising and setting in whatever location, location of stars, etc. the times, all confuse me. Almost all the questions from the first quiz confuse me most."

"The locating of planets, stars and constellations when you give us a scenario and we have to figure out where and when the certain subject will be in the sky. I don't always remember how to figure those things out and I am not really talking about the star-wheels I pretty much understand how to use that."