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Gear up for jobs in high-demand fields: data analytics, digital marketing, and more.Regardless of whether you’re already a scientist, studying to become one, or just interested in how modern astronomy works ‘under the bonnet’, this course will help you explore astronomy: from planets, to pulsars to black holes.
Course outline:
Week 1: Thinking about data
- Principles of computational thinking
- Discovering pulsars in radio images
Week 2: Big data makes things slow
- How to work out the time complexity of algorithms
- Exploring the black holes at the centres of massive galaxies
Week 3: Querying data using SQL
- How to use databases to analyse your data
- Investigating exoplanets in other solar systems
Week 4: Managing your data
- How to set up databases to manage your data
- Exploring the lifecycle of stars in our Galaxy
Week 5: Learning from data: regression
- Using machine learning tools to investigate your data
- Calculating the redshifts of distant galaxies
Week 6: Learning from data: classification
- Using machine learning tools to classify your data
- Investigating different types of galaxies
Each week will also have an interview with a data-driven astronomy expert.
Note that some knowledge of Python is assumed, including variables, control structures, data structures, functions, and working with files.