Previous readings and assignments

Readings for Tuesday 22 April:

Readings for Thursday 24 April:

Short project due Monday 28 April, 5:00 PM

Topic: Demonstrate the astronomical, mathematical, and astrological practices that an astrologer had to master by casting a chart for a particular event (a nativity is most typical, but you can also do an interrogation or election) at a particular time and place of your choosing (see outline of example). Find the planetary positions for that time and place (using an ephemeris or an interactive planetarium and doing any necessary coordinate conversions); then calculate the position of the ascendant, determine the houses (according to the "equal house method"), and identify the characteristics of that configuration. Create a predictive interpretation of the chart using the principles in the Tetrabiblos.

Readings for Tuesday 29 April:

Readings for Thursday 1 May:

Second short paper due by Friday 2 May, 2:00 PM

Topic: Improve your intuitive sense of what astrological practitioners actually saw, and how it relates to the geometric models we have been using. The work will consist of the following steps:

  1. Select three times of day or night, at least 4 hours apart. At least two of those times should be when it's dark enough to see some other celestial bodies besides the sun.
  2. On three different clear days, observe the sky at each of those three times. Pick about five important celestial objects (other than the North Star!) and note their positions at each time (naturally, fewer will be visible during broad daylight). You may use a planisphere and almanac or interactive planetarium to help you identify some well-known objects if you're unfamiliar with them. Orient yourself to the directions by finding the North Star.
  3. At each observation, make roughly quantitative measurements of each celestial object's position with respect to your local horizon, zenith, and directions. Use whatever approximate measurement tools work for you; sighting along a protractor to measure angles, using a homemade mariner's astrolabe, holding fingers out at arm's length, etc. Your results will look something like "Jupiter: three finger-breadths due south of the zenith", "Moon: thin crescent, about 15 degrees above a point on the horizon 10 degrees south of west", etc.
  4. Draw the positions of the visible objects at each observation on one of our well-known observer's hemisphere pictures; orient them however is most convenient for you to indicate the positions.
  5. You now have nine sets of observational measurements and a corresponding hemisphere picture for each set, representing changes in the sky over time. Hand them in together with an approximately two-page writeup describing how these results illustrate the basic "two-sphere" geometric model of a geocentric universe that we've been using. Include a paragraph or so critiquing your rough-and-ready observational methods, and suggesting some improvements that a real (pre-modern) astrologer might make to get better data.
For the benefit of anyone feeling astronomically insecure, there will be a brief optional introductory observing session on Sunday evening (April 6, depending on weather) at 7:15 PM (DST) in Prospect Terrace Park, at Congdon and Cushing Streets (a couple blocks down the hill from Smith-Buonanno). Good chance for a rare sighting of Mercury! (Note added at 7:00 PM Sunday: there's a little more haze and cloud than I would like, but we're going to try it out tonight anyway.)

Final paper/project due Thursday 15 May, 12:00 noon

The final paper/project should be approximately equivalent in effort and substance to a 15-page research paper, but the student is free to choose the preferred topic and format (subject to the instructor's approval). Some possible ideas for individual projects include: