{"id":280,"date":"2016-05-31T20:52:31","date_gmt":"2016-05-31T20:52:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/?page_id=280"},"modified":"2023-12-10T03:47:28","modified_gmt":"2023-12-10T03:47:28","slug":"a312-study-guide","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/?page_id=280","title":{"rendered":"ASTR 312 Study Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<table border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"10\" align=\"center\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#intro\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Introduction<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#earlyastro\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Early Astronomy<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#greeks\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Greeks<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#kepler\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Age of Reason: Copernicus, Brahe &amp; Kepler<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#newton\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Age of Reason: Bruno, Galileo &amp; Newton<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#modern\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Modern Age<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#space\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Space Age<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"intro\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">Introduction, Sky &amp; Astrology<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Where does our modern culture fall on the Cosmic Calendar?<\/li>\n<li>What idea does the Cosmic Calendar help to reinforce?<\/li>\n<li>What defines a constellation?<\/li>\n<li>Approximately how many stars can we see in the night sky (10? 100? 1000? etc.)<\/li>\n<li>What is the Celestial Sphere? Is it real? What is it useful for?<\/li>\n<li>How do stars appear to move throughout the night? Why?<\/li>\n<li>What is the Zodiac? What makes these constellations important?<\/li>\n<li>What is science? What sets it apart from, say, pseudo-science?<\/li>\n<li>What is astrology? What is it that makes astrology a pseudo-science?<\/li>\n<li>What forces do we know of? Why can none of these be the &#8220;astrological&#8221; force?<\/li>\n<li>Describe any other issues that make the validity of astrology questionable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"earlyastro\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">Early Astronomy<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Why was astronomy equivalent to astrology in ancient times?<\/li>\n<li>What importance did the sky have to ancient peoples? Why?<\/li>\n<li>Why must we take care when study ancient people &amp; their astronomical constructs?<\/li>\n<li>Choose 3 ancient cultures and describe their use of and\/or contributions to astronomy; you should be able to answer questions similar to those below.<\/li>\n<li>Some of the oldest constellation names originated with&#8230;?<\/li>\n<li>What connection to astronomy might the pyramids have had?<\/li>\n<li>Why might it be dangerous to be an ancient Chinese astronomer?<\/li>\n<li>Many star names originate from which culture?<\/li>\n<li>What (astronomical) things were the Mayans known for?<\/li>\n<li>What is so perplexing about the `sight lines&#8217; drawn in the desert by the Nazca?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"greeks\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">The Greeks<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Where did the Greek tradition of scientific enquiry originate? Why here?<\/li>\n<li>How did what the Greeks did differ from other ancient cultures?<\/li>\n<li>List 4 Greek scientists and their major accomplishment(s).<\/li>\n<li>How did we figure out the Earth had to be a sphere?<\/li>\n<li>How did we figure out the size of the Earth?<\/li>\n<li>What were some arguments against a `sun-centered&#8217; solar system?<\/li>\n<li>What is (stellar) parallax? Why could the Greeks not detect any?<\/li>\n<li>If science is so great, why didn&#8217;t it `take off&#8217; and dominate?<\/li>\n<li>What was the `geocentric model&#8217;?<\/li>\n<li>What major objection(s) emerged regarding this model? How were they addressed?<\/li>\n<li>Why did this (incorrect) view of the universe persist for so long?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"kepler\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">The Age of Reason: Copernicus, Brahe &amp; Kepler<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>How was some of the Ionian knowledge preserved?<\/li>\n<li>What events led to the `Dark Ages&#8217; in Europe?<\/li>\n<li>How is `changing your mind&#8217; perceived in general? In science? Why?<\/li>\n<li>What did Copernicus do? Why was his background important?<\/li>\n<li>Why was the idea of a heliocentric universe not instantly accepted?<\/li>\n<li>Who was Tycho Brahe? What was his major contribution to astronomy?<\/li>\n<li>How did Brahe&#8217;s observations challenge the geocentric model?<\/li>\n<li>Who was Johannes Kepler? How was he different from Brahe?<\/li>\n<li>Why was Mars a lucky choice for Kepler when contemplating planetary orbits?<\/li>\n<li>List and explain Kepler&#8217;s three laws of planetary motion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"newton\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">The Age of Reason: Bruno, Galileo &amp; Newton<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Who was Giordano Bruno? \u00a0What impact did he have on astronomy?<\/li>\n<li>What happened to Giordano Bruno? Why?<\/li>\n<li>What instrument was the pre-eminent astronomical tool for millenia?<\/li>\n<li>What is an `arcminute&#8217;?<\/li>\n<li>What is a telescope&#8217;s fundamental purpose? \u00a0What were early telescopes like?<\/li>\n<li>Who was Galileo? What was he known for?<\/li>\n<li>Be able to discuss Galileo&#8217;s telescopic observations.<\/li>\n<li>Why did Galileo have trouble with the Inquisition?<\/li>\n<li>Who was Isaac Newton? What did he accomplish?<\/li>\n<li>Discuss the Law of Gravitation.<\/li>\n<li>Why was Newton&#8217;s Law of Gravitation important, philosophically &amp; scientifically?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"modern\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">The Modern Age<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Why was determination of the distance to the Sun so important? How was it done?<\/li>\n<li>Today we laser-range the distance to the Moon but how did ancient Greeks do it?<\/li>\n<li>Why were Uranus, Neptune &amp; Pluto discovered later than the other planets?<\/li>\n<li>Why is the discovery of Neptune touted as a `triumph of science&#8217;?<\/li>\n<li>Why was it important to demonstrate that the Earth did in fact move?<\/li>\n<li>How was it shown that the Earth rotated &amp; revolved?<\/li>\n<li>Why was stellar parallax so difficult to demonstrate? How does this limit its use?<\/li>\n<li>What did many people feel the size of the universe was in Newton&#8217;s time?<\/li>\n<li>What did Newton feel were the characteristics of our universe? His `proof&#8217;?<\/li>\n<li>What problems were there with Newton&#8217;s view of the universe?<\/li>\n<li>What is a `globular cluster&#8217;? How were they important?<\/li>\n<li>Why was the true nature of `spiral nebulae&#8217; so difficult to determine?<\/li>\n<li>How did visible light telescopes advance during this time?<\/li>\n<li>Why are today&#8217;s largest ground based telescopes reflectors and not refractors?<\/li>\n<li>What are CCD&#8217;s? How did they revolutionize astronomy?<\/li>\n<li>Despite its modest size the Hubble Space Telescope was a huge leap &#8211; why?<\/li>\n<li>What is adaptive optics? \u00a0Discuss the overall idea and how it is accomplished.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a target=\"_top\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" name=\"space\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 align=\"center\">The Space Age<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>What event kicked off the Space Age?<\/li>\n<li>Why did a `Space Race&#8217; between American and the USSR start?<\/li>\n<li>Where did the American expertise in rocketry originate?<\/li>\n<li>What were the main differences between Mercury, Gemini &amp; Apollo?<\/li>\n<li>Describe the stages of an Apollo lunar mission, detailing the important steps.<\/li>\n<li>Why do some call the Lunar Module the first `true&#8217; spacecraft?<\/li>\n<li>Who were the first men to walk on the Moon?<\/li>\n<li>What happened to Apollo 13?<\/li>\n<li>What did we learn from exploring the Moon?<\/li>\n<li>Why did the missions to the Moon end?<\/li>\n<li>Current plans to return to the Moon look very similar to Apollo. Why?<\/li>\n<li>Despite the evidence, conspiracy theorists question the moon landings. \u00a0Why?<\/li>\n<li>Why is space exploration important?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Introduction Early Astronomy The Greeks The Age of Reason: Copernicus, Brahe &amp; Kepler The Age of Reason: Bruno, Galileo &amp; Newton The Modern Age The Space Age Introduction, Sky &amp; Astrology Where does our modern culture fall on the Cosmic &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/?page_id=280\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":366,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-280","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/280","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/366"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=280"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/280\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3418,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/280\/revisions\/3418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.viu.ca\/arkosg\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=280"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}