NATS 1880 Lecture 2: Chapter 2.docx
23 Oct 2014
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Document Summary
Astronomy is the oldest of all sciences. Ancient people all over the world observed with great accuracy the motion of the sun, the moon, planets and the stars. Will be a question about the rising and setting of the sun, moon, and stars rise in the east, sets in the west. Thales of greece suggested that the universe was inherently understandable and that there was a reason why the sun/stars/moon rose and set in a certain place. At this time, more weight was given to intuition and thought than observation. Nonetheless, open debate about theories and conjecture was heartily encouraged, a fundamental tenet of science. Math was developed principally by the greeks and used to help further their discussions on the construction of the universe. The celestial sphere is not scientifically correct, but gives us an image to relate to. Every point of light in the night sky is at a differing distance from earth.
