Course Description

The concept of time has intrigued thinkers from all ages. The impact of measuring and marking time intervals on the development of human culture, and our understanding of the world around us, cannot be
understated. The drive to measure and understand time led ancient peoples to a very sophisticated knowledge of the sky; from that knowledge emerged accurate calendars, as well as mathematics itself. We will look at how changing concepts of time and the technological accuracy of measuring time drove fundamental changes in physics, and deepened our understanding of the world around us. The first half of the course covers timekeeping methods, including the sky as a clock, mechanical clocks, and quartz and atomic clocks. The second half of the course focuses on modern issues of time including time perception, Einstein’s revolutionary discoveries on the relative nature of time, and cosmic time. NCR Note: This course is not open to any student who has passed or is taking SC/PHYS 1010 6.00,
SC/PHYS 1410 6.00, SC/PHYS 1420 6.00, SC/PHYS 1011 3.00, SC/PHYS1012 3.00, SC/PHYS1411 3.00, SC/PHYS1412 3.00, SC/PHYS 1421 3.00, SC/PHYS1422 3.00