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Subject offerings of new and developing areas of knowledge in aerospace engineering intended to augment the existing curriculum. See Class Schedule or department course information for topics and prerequisite. Course Information: 1 to 4 undergraduate hours. 1 to 4 graduate hours. May be repeated in the same or separate terms if topics vary to a maximum of 9 undergraduate hours or 12 graduate hours.

This course will introduce science and engineering that pertain to the existence and nature of possible life beyond Earth, including how it might be discovered or seeded. As the only example available, understanding life on Earth, especially cell biology, provides an important context for such exploration, and it will therefore constitute an important part of the course. We will consider how incredibly complex modern biology might have arisen from the relatively simple geochemistry of early Earth. Mathematical analysis and computer simulations will be used to make ideas and theories concrete and quantitative despite limited data. Simple ecological and evolutionary models will provide a framework for thinking about how life persists and adapts to habitats. Definitions of life will be considered, especially in regard to what we might search for ?out there?. Theories for and models of the origin of life will be introduced, including phase transition, dynamical systems, and inf