- How did Copernicus, Tycho, and Kepler challenge the Earth centered model?
- What are Kepler's three laws of planetary motion?
- How did Galileo solidify the Copernican revolution?
- How can we distinguish science from nonscience?
- What is a scientific theory?
- In what sense is the moon imperfect?
- Why did Kepler use ellipses instead of circles?
- When was Tycho Brahe born?
- When was Johannes Kepler born?
- When was Galileo Galilei born?
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Quiz
Chapter 3.4 Notes
Chapter 3.4
Notes
How can we
distinguish science from nonscience?
·
Defining
science can be surprisingly difficult.
·
Science
comes from the latin scientia, meaning knowledge.
Hallmarks of
science #2
·
Science
progressed through the creation and testing of models of nature that explain
the observations.
Hallmarks of
science #3
·
A
scientific model must make testable predictions about natural phenomena that
would force us to revise or abandon the model if the predictions do not agree
wit observations.
What is a scientific
theory?
·
The
word theory has a different meaning in science than in everyday life.
·
In
science, a theory is not the same as a hypothesis
·
A
scientific theory must:
Explain a wide variety of
observations with a few similar principles.
Be supported by a large,
compelling body of evidence.
NOT have failed any crucial test of
its validity.
Chapter 3.3 Notes continued
How did
Galileo solidify the Copernican revolution
·
Galileo
(1564-1642) overcame major objections to the Copernican view. Three key
objectives rooted in the Aristotelian:
Earth could not be moving
because objects in air would be left behind.
Noncircular orbits are
not perfect as heavens should be.
If earth were really orbiting sun, we’d
detect stellar parallax.
Overcoming the
first objection
·
Galileos
experiments showed that objects in air would stay with a moving earth.
Aristotle thought that
all objects naturally come to rest.
Galileo showed that objects will stay
in motion unless a force acts to slow them down (Newtons first law of motion)
Overcoming the
second objection
·
Tychos
observations of comet and supernova already challenged this idea.
·
Using
his telescope, Galileo saw:
Sunspots on the sun.
Mountains and valleys on the moon
(proving it is not a perfect sphere).
Overcoming the
third objection
·
Tycho
thought he had measured stellar distances, so lack of parallax seemed to rule
out an orbiting earth.
·
Galileo
showed stars must be much farther than tycho thought—in part by using his
telescope to see that the Milky Way is countless individual stars.
·
I
stars were much farther away, and then lack of detectable parallax was no
longer so troubling.
·
Galileo
also saw four moons orbiting Jupiter, proving that not all objects orbit earth.
·
Galileo’s
observations of phases of Venus proved that it orbits the sun and not earth.
·
In
1633 the Catholic Church ordered Galileo to recant his claim that earth orbits
the sun.
·
His
book on the subject was removed from the church’s index of banned books in
1824.
·
Galileo
was formally vindicated by the church in 1992.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Chapter 3.3 Notes
Chapter 3.3
Notes
How did
Copernicus, tycho, and kepler challenge the earth centered idea?
·
Copernicus
proposed the sun centered model.
·
He
used the model to determine the layout of the solar system.
·
Tycho
compiled the most accurate naked eye measurements ever made of planetary
positions
·
He
still could not detect stellar parallax, and thus still thought earth must be
at the center of the solar system.
·
He
hired keplar who used tychos observations to discover the truth about planetary
motion.
·
Keplar
first tried to match tychos observations with circular orbits.
·
But
an 8 arcminute discrepancy led him eventually to ellipses.
Chapter 3.2 Notes
Chapter 3.2
Notes
Why does
modern science trace its roots to the Greeks?
·
Our
mathematical and scientific heritage originated with the civilizations of the
middle east
·
Greeks
were the first people known to make models of nature.
·
They
tried to explain patterns in nature without resorting to myth or the
supernatural.
How did the
greeks explain planetary motion?
·
Earth
at the center of the universe
·
Heavens
must be “perfect”--- objects move on perfect spheres or in perfect circles.
·
The
most sophisticated geocentric model was that of Ptolemy.
·
The
Ptolemaic model had each planet move on a small circle whose center moves
around earth on a larger circle.
How did
Islamic scientists preserve and extend greek science?
·
The
muslim world preserved and enhanced the knowledge they received from the greeks
while Europe was in its dark ages.
·
Al-Mamuns
house of wisdom in Baghdad was a great center of learning around AD 800
·
With
the fall of Constantinople in 1453, eastern scholars headed west to Europe,
carrying knowledge that helped ignite the European renaissance.
·
Islamic
scientists archived and improved on greek learning. Their knowledge was
eventually carried back to Europe, helping to ignite the European renaissance.
Chapter 3.1 Notes
Chapter 3.1
Notes
In what ways do all humans employ scientific thinking?
·
Scientific
thinking is based on everyday ideas of observation and trial and error
experiments.
How did astronomical observations benefit ancient socities?
·
In
keeping track of time and season
For
practical purposes, including agriculture
For
religious and ceremonial purposes
·
In
aiding navigation
·
Ancient
people of central Africa could predict seasons from the orientation of the
crescent moon.
·
Keeping
track of time and seasons; navigation
What did
ancient civilizations achieve in astronomy?
·
Daily
timekeeping
·
Tracking
the seasons and calendar
·
Monitoring
lunar cycles
·
Monitoring
planets and stars
·
Predicting
eclipses
·
Egyptian
obelisk: shadows tell time of day.
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