ASP1022: Life and the Universe

Coordinators: Prof John Lattanzio (CL_28/307)
and Dr Allie Ford (CL_28/316)

Subject Lecturers

Subject Overview:

This subject will address one of the most profound questions we can ask: are we alone in the Universe? We will not be able to answer this question by pure thought, of course. But in thinking about the question we will see that we need to understand many different areas of active research, from star formation to understanding consciousness, from asteroid impacts to the expansion of the Universe, and many things in between.

Resources available

• Subject Information
• Subject timetable
• Assessment
• News
• Lecture Material - Handouts are available from Blackboard after each lecture
• Other Support Material
• Useful WWW Sites
• References
• Past Exams

Special Event: Debate on Life in the Universe

The top two students in this subject will receive a free trip to the Parkes Radio Observatory (in NSW), where they will spend a week working with radio-astronomers on various projects. Note that Parkes is actively involved in the search for alien intellignence through the Southern Serendip project. More information is available here.

Interview with John Lattanzio

• Part 1
• Part 2

• Part 1
• Part 2

Interview with Andrew Prentice

• Part 1: Supersonic Turbulence
• Part 2: Planets and Satellite Formation
• Part 3: The Saturn System