ASTR 5
Life in Universe
Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. No special preparation required. Topics include formation and evolution of Earth and Sun, life on Earth, origin and evolution of life, solar system, habitability, extra-solar planets, search for intelligent life in universe, and interstellar travel. Draws primarily from astronomy and biology but includes some chemistry, geology, and physics. P/NP or letter grading.
Course statistics
- Predicted GPA
- 3.36
- n = 1,691 · 13 terms · ± 0.013
- A range
- 60%
- of letter grades
- Taken P/NP
- 8%
- 90% of those passed
- D / F / W
- 4.4%
- incl. withdrawals
Sections in Fall 2026
| Section | Status | Enrolled | Seat risk | Meets | Instructor | Predicted GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lec 1 | Closed |
154 of 154
100% full
|
fills | TR 2:00pm-3:15pm | Rich, M. | 3.49n=727 · this instructor |
Enrollment history
Final enrollment per term, averaged across that term's sections. Four years deep, summer excluded. Per-section live curves are on each section page.
- 16021F
- 7722W
- 18022S
- 16822F
- 12923W
- 16423S
- 17823F
- 13924W
- 17224S
- 14024F
- 14025W
- 17025S
Grade distribution
- A+ 199 · 10.7%
- A 527 · 28.3%
- A- 293 · 15.8%
- B+ 165 · 8.9%
- B 164 · 8.8%
- B- 99 · 5.3%
- C+ 83 · 4.5%
- C 60 · 3.2%
- C- 26 · 1.4%
- D+ 11 · 0.6%
- D 17 · 0.9%
- D- 13 · 0.7%
- F 34 · 1.8%
- P 136 · 7.3%
- NP 15 · 0.8%
- S 2 · 0.1%
- I 15 · 0.8%
Grey bars are non-letter outcomes — P/NP, S/U, incompletes. They are excluded from the GPA entirely rather than scored, because counting a P as a 4.0 would be a fabrication.
By instructor
| Instructor | Predicted | Raw | n | Terms | A range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RICH, MICHAEL | 3.49 | 3.49 | 727 | 5 | 63% |
| TREU, TOMMASO L | 2.97 | 2.96 | 400 | 3 | 44% |
| MCLEAN, IAN S | 3.79 | 3.82 | 176 | 1 | 86% |
| HANSEN, BRADLEY M | 3.34 | 3.34 | 150 | 1 | 53% |
| NAOZ, SMADAR | 3.70 | 3.73 | 136 | 1 | 87% |
| MALKAN, MATTHEW ARNOLD | 2.63 | 2.48 | 65 | 1 | 25% |
| CIURLO, ANNA | 3.38 | 3.38 | 37 | 1 | 59% |
“Predicted” is shrunk toward the course average, which is itself shrunk toward the department — so an instructor with a handful of students sits near the course mean rather than topping the list.
By term
- 21F 2.94 n=150
- 22W 2.48 n=65
- 22S 3.82 n=176
- 22F 3.84 n=154
- 23W 3.59 n=117
- 23S 3.40 n=136
- 231 3.38 n=37
- 23F 3.38 n=166
- 24W 3.02 n=126
- 24S 3.27 n=154
- 24F 2.92 n=124
- 25W 3.73 n=136
- 25S 3.34 n=150