LEARNING OUTCOMES
The student will familiarize him/herself with seven exciting hot topics in contemporary astrophysics.
The student will learn to read review papers and specialised research articles.
The student will learn how to interpret and understand the main results from a research article.
The student will learn how good research papers are written and how to best present scientific arguments.
The student will learn to discuss research articles, and how to present scientific points in a discussion.
CONTENT
During the course we will cover 7 different topics in modern astrophysics, with each topic discussed for two weeks. The new topic will first presented by the Lecturer based on a recent review paper typically published in the Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics. During the second week the topic will be discussed in more depth by highlighting recent research articles in the relevant area. Finally, the topic will be rounded off by a problem set for which the students will have to read two research articles and answer questions based on the papers. The final exam will be a written exam in which the students will be asked questions about the various topics covered during the course at a general level and more in depth questions on a few chosen subjects.
The topics to be discussed during the course have been chosen to cover a broad range of astrophysics, including exoplanets, stars, galaxies and cosmology. In general the topics have been chosen to cover a broad range of astrophysics, including exoplanets, stars, galaxies and cosmology. The aim is to learn about interesting research topics that are likely to remain at the core of modern astrophysics in the coming decades. The exact content of the course will vary from year to year depending on what topics are considered particularly interesting for that year. In the previous year the following topics have been discussed: 1. The detection and properties of Extrasolar planets, 2. The formation and evolution brown dwarfs, 3. Gamma-Ray Bursts: Observation and Theory, 4. Massive black holes and gravitational waves, 5. Dwarf galaxies and structure formation, 6. The First Galaxies, 7. Dark Energy and the Accelerating Universe.
