Copernicus's model of the solar system gave much better predictions than the model of Ptolemy
False
Process of Science: If any single test of a scientific hypothesis contradicts it, the hypothesis must be
revised. (Assume that you've ruled out errors in the testing process; that is, the test result really
does contradict the hypothesis.)
true
It is possible for science as a whole to be objective despite the fact that all individual scientists have
personal biases and beliefs.
true
The Ptolemaic model of the solar system was useless for predicting planetary positions.
false
The names of the seven days of the week are derived from the names of the members of the solar
system that are visible to the naked eye.
true
In the Ptolemaic system, Venus should not show phases.
false
All of the following are true. Which of the following gives evidence that Earth's orbit is not
perfectly circular?
both A and B
What was the Ptolemaic model?
as earth centered model of plan
The names of the seven days of the week are based on ________.
the seven nakedeye objects that appear to move among the constellations
What is meant by a scientific paradigm?
a generally well-established scientific theory or set of theories
Ptolemy was important in the history of astronomy because he
developed a model of the solar system that made sufficiently accurate predictions of
planetary positions to remain in use for many centuries.
People of central Africa predicted the weather by
observing the orientation of the crescent Moon relative to the horizon
One of the "nails in the coffin" for Earth-centered universe was
Galileo's observations of the moons of Jupiter
The astrology practiced by those who cast predictive horoscopes can be tested by ________
comparing how often the predictions come true to what would be expected by pure chance.
Kepler's second law, which states that as a planet moves around its orbit it sweeps out equal areas
in equal times, means that
a planet travels faster when it is nearer to the Sun and slower when it is farther from the Sun
Which of the following is the reason for the leap years?
Earth year being a non-integer number of Earth days
Compared with the standard hour of 60 minutes used today, the hour of ancient Egypt
was longer than 60 minutes in the summer and shorter than 60 minutes in the winter
Which of the following statements about scientific theories is not true?
A theory cannot be taken seriously by scientists if it contradicts other theories developed by
scientists over the past several hundred years.
What is meant by Occam's Razor?
the idea that scientists should prefer the simpler of two models that agree equally well with
observations
Where was the Sun in Ptolemy's model of the universe?
between the orbits of Venus and Mars
Kepler's third law, p2 = a3, means that
All of the above are correct.
The controversial book of this famous person, published in 1543 (the year of his death), suggested
that Earth and other planets orbit the Sun.
Copernicus
Which of the following is not consistent with the major hallmarks of science?
Science consists of proven theories that are understood to be true explanations of reality
Why did Ptolemy have the planets orbiting Earth on "circles upon circles" in his model of the
universe?
to explain the fact that planets sometimes appear to move westward, rather than eastward, relative to the stars in our sky
In order to tell time at night, the ancient Egyptians of 3000 B.C. used
star clocks, which measured time based on the positions of stars at particular times of night and particular times of year.
He was the first to prove that comets lie beyond Earth's atmosphere
Tycho Brahe
Earth is farthest from the Sun in July and closest to the Sun in January. During which Northern
Hemisphere season is Earth moving fastest in its orbit?
Winter
All the following statements are true. Which one follows directly from Kepler's third law (p2= a3)?
Venus orbits the Sun at a slower average speed than Mercury
Ptolemy was important in the history of astronomy because he ________.
eloped a model of the solar system that made sufficiently accurate predictions of planetary positions to remain in use for many centuries
When and where did the Library of Alexandria exist?
from 300 B.C. to A.D. 400 in Egypt
Which of the following statements about sidereal and solar days is not true?
The time it takes for the Moon to make one circuit of our sky is one solar day.
The lunar month is longer than the sidereal month because
the Moon has to complete more than one full orbit around Earth to complete the cycle of lunar phases
The ancient Greeks get a lot of attention for their contributions to science because ________.
they were the first people known to try to explain nature with models based on reason and mathematics, without resort to the supernatural
The average length of a solar day is
24 hours
What do scientists mean by verifiable observations?
statements that a person can, in principle, verify for himself or herself
Suppose a comet orbits the Sun on a highly eccentric orbit with an average (semimajor axis) distance of 1 AU. How long does it take to complete each orbit, and how do we know?
1 year, which we know from Kepler's third law.
Galileo challenged the idea that objects in the heavens were perfect by ________.
observing sunspots on the Sun and mountains on the Moon
Our calendar has leap years because
a tropical year is slightly more than 365 days
Which of the following best describes how modern astronomers view astrology?
Astrology played an important part in the development of astronomy in ancient times, but it
is not a science by modern standards.
Galileo observed all of the following. Which observation offered direct proof of a planet orbiting
the Sun?
phases of Venus
Which of the following was not observed by Galileo?
stellar parallax
The great contribution of Tycho Brahe was to ________
observe planetary positions with sufficient accuracy so that Kepler could later use the data to discover the laws of planetary motion
How did the Ptolemaic model explain the apparent retrograde motion of the planets?
It held that the planets moved along small circles that moved on larger circles around the Sun
According to Kepler's third law (p2= a3), how does a planet's mass affect its orbit around the Sun?
A planet's mass has no effect on its orbit around the Sun
From Kepler's third law, a hypothetical planet that is twice as far from the Sun as Earth should have a period of
more than 2 Earth years
During the Dark Ages in Europe, the scientific work of the ancient Greeks was preserved and further developed primarily by scholars in
Baghdad.
What is meant by a hypothesis?
an explanation for a phenomenon that makes a prediction
From Kepler's third law, an asteroid with an orbital period of 8 years lies at an average distance from the Sun equal to
4 astronomical units
He discovered that the orbits of planets are ellipses
Kepler
When did Copernicus live?
about 500 years ago
(You might need your lecture notes) The three bright stars that make up the Winter Triangle are
Betelgeuse, Procyon, and Sirius
The Metonic cycle is the
19-year period over which the lunar phases occur on about the same dates
Suppose you live at latitude 40°N. Which of the following describes the conditions that make a star circumpolar?
Stars are circumpolar if they have declination > +50°.
Historians trace the origins of a 24-hour day to
the ancient Egyptians
