Understanding Of Astronomy Research Articles

NASE Astronomy Training for Teachers and Amateur Astronomer with Physics Approach and Cultural Tourism

Physics teachers often face obstacles in training their students in the Astronomy Olympiad. Amateur astronomers also need some knowledge of astronomy. Astronomy knowledge which is the basis for studying astronomy has begun to be abandoned by the younger generation. These problems can be overcome by astronomical training with a physics and cultural approach to physics teachers and amateur astronomers from various provinces in Indonesia. The Network for Astronomy School Education (NASE) regularly holds astronomy training in various countries. The training is carried out for 4 days virtually using simple equipment and can be obtained easily and inexpensively. The equipment is to help the understanding of astronomy and astrophysics. In addition, a virtual visit to the Muhammadiyah Museum was conducted to introduce Muhammadiyah's contribution to the development of Islamic astronomy in Indonesia. The average increase in Pre-Test and Post-Test results was 24.3% of the 25 participants who submitted the test. The high increase was in the field of physics while in the field of culture there was a decrease. This is due to the disproportionate composition of training material between the fields of physics and cultural tourism. The implementation of online training also causes participants to lack understanding of cultural aspects in astronomy learning. Participants also provided feedback that more time was needed for observation activities

DOES VISUAL-SPATIAL COGNITION AFFECT CHILDREN’S ASTRONOMICAL EXPERIENCES?

Understanding of astronomical phenomena requires spatial reasoning skills. The current study examines the influence of spatial ability on conceptual understanding of secondary school students in elementary astronomy. The sample consisted of 38 ninth-grade students from a high school in Hyderabad. To evaluate participants’ spatial ability, spatial reasoning test, Purdue Spatial Visualization Test: Visualization of Rotations and mental rotation tests were used. Mental Rotation, Spatial Perception, and Spatial Visualization are the types of spatial ability tested in this study. To understand learners conceptual understanding in astronomy, 30 probes on astronomical topics were administered. The research study was quantitative in nature. Correlational analysis showed that all three spatial sub-skills namely Spatial Orientation, Mental rotation and Spatial Visualization is associated with astronomy conceptual understanding. The correlation coefficient of overall spatial ability and conceptual understanding was 0.693 (p Article visualizations:

Scientific Knowledge of the Moon, 1609 to 1969

Discoveries stemming from the Apollo 11 mission solved many problems that had vexed scientists for hundreds of years. Research and discoveries over the preceding 360 years identified many critical questions and led to a variety of answers: How did the Moon form, how old is its surface, what is the origin of lunar craters, does the Moon have an atmosphere, how did the Moon change over time, is the Moon geologically active today, and did life play any role in lunar evolution? In general, scientists could not convincingly answer most of these questions because they had too little data and too little understanding of astronomy and geology, and were forced to rely on reasoning and speculation, in some cases wasting hundreds of years of effort. Surprisingly, by 1969, most of the questions had been correctly answered, but a paucity of data made it uncertain which answers were correct.

Poster PresentationsUsing online resources to enhance mental health support in Educational Psychology practiceLost in transitionThe impact of attributions on the understanding and management of challenging behaviour in schoolsAre you ready to learn?: Evaluating the outcomes of a school based Theraplay project for Looked After ChildrenA study exploring the effectiveness of a therapeutic story writing intervention for children experiencing anxietyMapping teachers’

Poster PresentationsUsing online resources to enhance mental health support in Educational Psychology practiceLost in transitionThe impact of attributions on the understanding and management of challenging behaviour in schoolsAre you ready to learn?: Evaluating the outcomes of a school based Theraplay project for Looked After ChildrenA study exploring the effectiveness of a therapeutic story writing intervention for children experiencing anxietyMapping teachers’

Exhaustive Search for Sparse Variable Selection in Linear Regression

We propose a K-sparse exhaustive search (ES-K) method and a K-sparse approximate exhaustive search method (AES-K) for selecting variables in linear regression. With these methods, K-sparse combinations of variables are tested exhaustively assuming that the optimal combination of explanatory variables is K-sparse. By collecting the results of exhaustively computing ES-K, various approximate methods for selecting sparse variables can be summarized as density of states. With this density of states, we can compare different methods for selecting sparse variables such as relaxation and sampling. For large problems where the combinatorial explosion of explanatory variables is crucial, the AES-K method enables density of states to be effectively reconstructed by using the replica-exchange Monte Carlo method and the multiple histogram method. Applying the ES-K and AES-K methods to type Ia supernova data, we confirmed the conventional understanding in astronomy when an appropriate K is given beforehand. However, we found the difficulty to determine K from the data. Using virtual measurement and analysis, we argue that this is caused by data shortage.

Jeanne Dumée as Astronomer and Woman in Seventeenth-Century France: The Myth and Her Lost Voice

As the author of a manuscript defending the Copernican system in 1680, Jeanne Dumée is often cited among the few women who practised astronomy in early-modern France. However, her reputation is largely founded on a myth that was in place even before her work was available to the public. After her manuscript resurfaced at the Bibliothèque nationale de France, it took a long time for people to recognize that it hardly was original at all, a misunderstanding that is still leading some historians astray. In this paper, attempts are made to understand more about Dumée’s life and work, especially through a careful reading of her work and of her sources. It is argued that a careful rendering of Dumée’s voice may provide clues for a better understanding of astronomy’s place in early-modern women’s sociability.

EVALUATION OF CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORKS IN ASTRONOMY

Even though astronomy is the oldest science, it is still an open question how to evaluate students’ understanding in astronomy. In spite of the fact that some methods and evaluation tools have been developed for that purpose, the sources of students' difficulties in astronomy are still unclear. This paper presents an investigation of the changes in conceptual frameworks in astronomy among 50 engineering students as a result of learning a general course in astronomy. A special tool called Conceptual Frameworks in Astronomy (CFA), which was initially used in 1989, was adopted to gather data for the present research. In its new version, the tool includes 23 questions and five to six optional answers to each question. Each of the answers characterizes one of the four conceptual frameworks: pre-scientific, geocentric, heliocentric and sidereal. These four conceptual frameworks act as a taxonomical system that enables us to evaluate astronomical understanding. The paper describes the background of the CFA, its development, and discusses its validity and reliability. Using the CFA we were able to: (1) identify the students’ conceptual frameworks at the beginning of the course and at its end, (2) to evaluate the students’ paradigmatic change following the course. It was found that the measure of the students’ improvement (gain index) was g = 0.37. Approximately 45% of the students in the course improved their conceptual frameworks in astronomy and 26% deepened their understanding of the heliocentric or sidereal conceptual frameworks. The CFA can also be applied as an evaluation tool in all schools and institutions that teach astronomy. Key words: astronomy education, conceptual framework, diagnostic tool, engineering students.

Urban Middle-School Science Teachers Beliefs about the Influence of Their Astronomer-Educator Partnerships on Students’ Astronomy Learner Characteristics

This qualitative study investigates the extent to which urban middle-school science teachers’ beliefs about their students’ astronomy learner characteristics were influenced by their partnership with an astronomer in their classroom. Twelve urban middle-school science teachers were interviewed after their participation in Project ASTRO during the 2009–2010 academic year using semistructured, in-depth interview techniques. Constant comparative analysis was used to analyze the interview transcripts. Themes that emerged from the data were formulated in relation to the study’s grand tour research question. The findings suggest that teachers believed that their partnership with an astronomer largely influenced their students’ level of motivation and increased their students’ level of questioning. Teachers also believed that their astronomer partner positively enhanced their students’ learning experiences in astronomy by making the subject area more realistic, relevant, and scientifically rigorous. Additionally, the study showed that teachers believed that their partnership with an astronomer in their classroom positively affected their students’ behaviors and attitudes in middle-achieving and high-achieving schools. The study further revealed that partnering with an astronomer had a relatively minor impact on urban middle-school science teachers’ beliefs about their students’ mathematical cognitive ability. The implications of these findings suggest that astronomer-educator partnerships may enhance urban middle-school students’ learning experiences in astronomy and promote their engagement with science. However, new educational approaches need to be developed and assessed to help bolster students’ understanding of astronomy, especially in low-achieving urban school settings.

Remembering Einstein: lectures on physics and astrophysics

In 1905, Albert Einstein wrote five papers which marked a watershed between classical and modern physics. These papers dealt with the problem of 'Reality of Atoms'; 'Theory of Special Relativity', which overthrew Newtonian conceptions of space and time; and his most revolutionary 'Light-Quantum Hypothesis', which together with Planck's work on black body radiation started the Quantum Revolution. The year 2005 was celebrated by UNESCO as 'International Year of Physics' commemorating the centenary of the Relativity Principle. To celebrate this landmark, Nehru Centre, Mumbai organized a Lecture Series. Projecting the influence that Einstein's work has had on fundamental issues in physics, these lectures were delivered by eminent scientists and researchers. This volume includes the nine lectures delivered on the occasion. The first lecture by Virendra Singh highlights Einstein's novel contribution in 1905. Then Arvind Kumar elaborates on the route that Einstein took to resolve the problems of black body radiation. While Jayant Narlikar presents a historical account of how cosmology has developed since Einstein's 1917 paper, S.M. Chitre elaborates on how relativity has played a crucial role in solving the central problem concerning the source of energy for stars. While T. Padmanabhan writes on Einstein's role in shaping our understanding of astronomy and cosmology, Sandip Trivedi shows that Einstein had a quest, a central focus that increasingly dominated his scientific life after 1915. Abhay Ashtekar writes on how, at the beginning of the twentieth century, Einstein revolutionized the notions of space and time, and Naresh Dadhich narrates that in his monumental discoveries, the driving force for Einstein was consistency of concept and principle rather than conflict with experiment. The final lecture by B.N. Jagtap discusses one of the most fascinating topics associated with two great scientists of the twentieth century, Albert Einstein and Sathyendra Nath Bose.

Technological Innovation Leads to Fundamental Understanding in Cell Biology

Technological Innovation Leads to Fundamental Understanding in Cell Biology

Popularization as an Aid for Formal Education

In the following article we present the way in which professional astronomers are trying to influence the general understanding of astronomy in Mexico. The long-term goal is to have a population that includes science as part of its culture. The paper is mainly a list of some of the many things that can be done to enhance understanding of science, descriptions of the different items can be found in the references, which include the proceedings of three meetings on astronomy education and magazines dedicated to the teaching of astronomy.

Astronomy, Science Fiction and Popular Culture: 1277 to 2001 (And beyond)

Historically, developments in astronomy and changes in social environments have inspired new styles of science fiction. In return, popular culture has gained from science fiction an understanding of astronomy and of humankind’s place in the universe. However, approaches to plot and character in science-fiction stories color the presentation of astronomical discoveries, altering the way that popular culture views science fiction’s message about the universe and the self in sometimes subtle ways.

Summary

The quantity of scientific work in the area of astrochemistry is now enormous, and this meeting - in attempting to cover most of the aspects of our subject - has had problems in coping with it due to difficulty of reviewing very active, broad areas in a limited time. At this meeting we have had almost 40 hours of formal and informal discussion, and about 45 oral presentations at which I estimate that about 1500 transparencies and slides have been projected for our enlightenment. About 100 posters have been presented in three sessions. The posters were uniformly of a high standard and generated a great deal of interest and discussion. I think the prominence given in the programme to the posters has been particularly successful. The range of activity, and the enthusiasm with which it is pursued, demonstrate that astrochemistry is in a vigorous state. It has its own intrinsic interest, and in its present maturity is now making substantial contributions to understanding in astronomy.