Course manual 2019/2020

Course content

In this course, you will learn about the basic structure and evolution of the Universe. You will learn the basic laws that govern it, and how they derive from the laws of gravity, statistical physics, and quantum mechanics you have learnt before. And you will learn how to derive the observed state and behaviour of the Universe from those equations. Derivations of basic GR results, and field theory of the earliest Universe, are not dealt with, as they require MSc-level courses to build on.

Study materials

Literature

Ryden, 'Introduction to Cosmology', 2nd ed., ISBN 9781107154834, Nov 2016. The book is essential, students should have a copy during the course.

Other

Course slides will be made available after each lecture.

Objectives

Teaching methods

Hoorcollege
Werkcollege
Lecture
Seminar
Self-study
Presentation/symposium
Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis

Learning activities

See course guide

Academic skills

(technical:) Analytic thinking, solving integrals and differential equations, deriving equations for given input physics

(broader:) oral presentation and answering skills, critical reading

Attendance

Programme's requirements concerning attendance (OER-B):

Each student is expected to participate actively in each component of the programme that he/she signed up for. A student that does not attend the first two seminars of a course, will be administratively removed from the seminar group. A request for reregistration for the seminars can be applied to the programme coordinator.
If a student cannot attend an obligatory component of a programme's component due to circumstances beyond his control, he must report in writing to the relevant teacher as soon as possible. The teacher, if necessary after consulting the study adviser, may decide to issue the student a replacing assignment.
It is not allowed to miss obligatory commponents of the programme if there is no case of circumstances beyond one's control.
In case of participating qualitatively or quantitatively insufficiently, the examiner can expel a student from further participation in the programme's component or a part of that component. Conditions for sufficient participation are set down in advance in the course manual.
In addition to the above mentioned rules, in the first semester of the first year a student should be present in at least 80% of the seminars. Moreover, participation to midterm tests and obligatory homework is required. If the student does not comply with these obligations, the student is expelled from the resit of this course. Students in the double Bachelor's degree programme Mathematics and Physics are exempted from this requirement. In case of personal circumstances, as described in OER-A Article 6.4, a different study plan will be made in consultation with the study advisor.

Additional requirements for this course:

Full participation in the final presentation symposium is required, as of course is the exam. Attendance of lecture and problem classes is highly recommended but not required.

Assessment

Item and weight	Details
Final grade
1 (100%) Tentamen

Inspection of assessed work

A full set of solutions to the exam, plus indications of the grading model, are published 1-2 days after the exam. A time for inspection of the exam and asking questions on the grading is set within 1-2 days after the grades are published. This is done by the teacher based on the class schedule, and communicated via Canvas

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure