Habitable Worlds

Catalog description

This course focuses on the concept of habitability and the search for habitable conditions in our galaxy. Students learn about the requirements for life and the conditions for circumstellar and galactic habitable zones. They will explore the possibility of life both within our solar system and on planets that orbit other stars, known as exoplanets. Students will study the Drake equation and use this important tool to understand the conditions for the development of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. They will consider the differences between primitive and intelligent life, and current efforts to search for both. Completion of at least college algebra prior to taking this course is highly recommended. (Prerequisite SCIN134)