- Scientific thinking is based on everyday ideas of observation and trial-&-error experiments!
- in keeping track of time and seasons
- for practical purposes, including agriculture
- religious & ceremonial purposes
- aiding navigation
- ancient ppl of central Africa (6500 B.C.) could predict seasons from the orientation of the crescent moon
Object English French Spanish
· Sun Sunday dimanche domingo
· Moon Monday lundi lunes
· Mars Tuesday mardi martes
· Mercury Wednesday mercredi miércoles
· Jupiter Thursday jeudi jueves
· Jupiter Thursday jeudi jueves
· Venus Friday vendredi viernes
· Satun Saturday samedi sábado
How did astronomical observations benefit ancient socieites?
- daily time keeping
- tracking the seasons & calendar
- monitoring lunar cycles
- monitoring planets & stars
- predicting eclipses
- navigational tools
- elaborate structures for astronomical observations
Egyptian Obelisk: Shadows tell the time of day
England: Stonehenge (completed around 1550 B.C.)
Mexico: Model of the Templo Mayor
New Mexico: Anasazi Kiva aligned North - South
SW United States: "Sun Dagger" marks summer solstice
Scotland: 4000 - year - old stone circle; Moon rises as shown here every 18.6 years
Peru: Lines & Patterns, some aligned with stars
Machu Picchu, Peru: Structures aligned with solstices
South Pacific: Polynesians were very skilled in the art of celestial navigation
France: Cave paintings from 18,000 B.C. may suggest knowledge of lunar phases (29 dots)
China: Earliest known records of supernova explosions (1400 B.C.)
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