Sources and Methods: Cosmology and our Evolving Understanding of the Universe

Catalog description

This course is an exploration of humanity's ever-changing perception of the universe from the ancient Babylonians to today. We'll cover roughly 3000 years of evolving thought, examining four distinct eras of cosmology: the era of myth/philosophy, the era of enlightenment, the era of revolution, and the era of understanding. We will examine how paradigms shift and how our understanding of the universe has grown enormously in the last century. The course will culminate with a scientific yet non-technical description of the standard big bang model of cosmology along with the observational and theoretical evidence that supports it. CR: Only open to students in the Honors Program.