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AST 208 is the first rigorous course in the astronomy major. Its prerequisite course, AST 207, serves as more of a broad survey over the entire field, whereas AST 208 contains a laboratory (observing) component and explores in more depth planetary science \citep[using, e.g.,][]{Lissauer2013Fundamental-Pla}. The marriage of a lecture-based planetary science course with a laboratory course on observational practice came about as a quirk of history. Indeed, in previous editions of the course these two components operated independently.  We felt that a tighter integration of the lecture and lab would improve student gains in using statistical techniques and numerical tools.  \subsection{An integrated approach to learning outcomes} outcomes across the major}  Because AST 208 is the gateway course for astronomy majors, it provides an opportunity to develop some core skills that can be developed further in the junior/senior level courses AST 304, \emph{Stars}, and AST 308, \emph{Galaxies}. In brief, AST 208 covers statistics and introduces the students to numerical computation; AST 304 focuses on computational problem solving; and AST 308 incorporates the use of large databases.