USNA 287A Readings

The readings are very important to this course. They will form the basis for the discussion on the corresponding meeting date. Readings will come from both textbooks and other sources.

One textbook for this course is Cosmology The Science of the Universe (2nd Edition) [ISBN 0 521 66148 X] by Edward Harrison.
This book gives a thorough explication of both the science and philosophy of cosmology. It provides technical details for those who are interested.

Another text is Cosmology: Historical, Literary, Philosophical, Religious, and Scientific Perspectives by Hetherington et al.
This book amalgamates the work of many authors, and spans the gamut of human thought from the earliest civilizations to modern science.

A smaller text is Cosmos of the Ancients The Greek Philosophers on Myth and Cosmology [ISBN 978-1-4196-2773-6] by Stefan Stenudd.
This book gives a concise summary of the important ancient Greek philosophers.

The main texts are erudite and rather dense.
A more accessible tale is told in Coming of Age in the Milky Way [ISBN 0-06-053595-4] by Timothy Ferris.

Additional readings, to be assigned as appropriate:

Some biographical information about scientists important to the Copernican Revolution:
AIP web page
Copernicus biography
Brahe biography
Kepler biography
Galileo biography
The
Galileo Project

Modern works on cosmology and the "dark sector:"

The Inflationary Universe by Guth & Steinhardt (in Scientific American 1984)
The Inflation Debate by Steinhardt (in Scientific American 2011, in which Steinhardt has second thoughts)

Many lives in many worlds by Max Tegmark

The Case Against Cosmology by Mike Disney
Sociology of Modern Cosmology by Martin Lopez-Corredoira
Humans and Cosmology: Epicycles, Tenacious Beliefs and Test Particles in Motion by Greg Bothun

Dark Matter is Dead by Marcus Chown
Does Dark Matter Really Exist? by Moti Milgrom
Battlefield Galactica: Dark Matter vs. MOND by Govert Schilling
The Missing Universe (Astronomy Magazine April 2014)