Page 140 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Science, 2008 (revised)

Grade 12, University Preparation
B1. analyse the development of technologies that have contributed to our understanding of the universe, and evaluate the impact of milestones in astronomical theory or knowledge on the scientific community;
B2. investigate and analyse the properties of the universe, particularly the evolution and properties of stars, in both qualitative and quantitative terms;
B3. demonstrate an understanding of the origin and evolution of the universe, the principal characteristics of its components, and techniques used to study those components.
B1. Relating Science to Technology, Society, and the Environment
B2. Developing Skills of Investigation and Communication
B. AStronomy (Science of the univerSe)
OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 11 AND 12 | science
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
B1.1 analyse a major milestone in astronomical knowledge or theory (e.g., the discovery of the red shift in the spectra of galaxies; the knowl- edge gathered from the particle accelerator experiments at CERN in Switzerland), and explain how it revolutionized thinking in the scientific community [AI, C]
Sample issue: Prior to Copernicus, astronomers generally believed that Earth was the centre of the universe. Copernicus’s heliocentric thesis had a revolutionary impact not only on astronomy but on other areas of science as well.
Sample questions: How did the approach used by Galileo to support heliocentric thesis differ from Greek speculative philosophy about the structure of the universe? What impact did Galileo’s findings have on other astronomers and on scientists in general? How did Kepler’s calculations and mathematical models differ from earlier explanations of celestial motion? How did they influence subsequent astron- omers? How has Brahe’s work affected our view of our planet?
B1.2 analyse why and how a particular technology related to astronomical research was developed and how it has been improved over time
(e.g., the evolution from optical to radio tele- scopes and to the Hubble telescope) [AI, C]
Sample issue: In 1933, K.G. Jansky built a radio telescope to identify sources of static interfer- ence affecting telephone transmission. He discovered that much of the static came from deep within the Milky Way. Radio telescopes have since been modified to include large para- bolic dishes, which are used to study pulsars, quasars, and black holes.
Sample questions: What technologies in astro- nomical research were originally developed for military uses? In what ways have they been re- fined for scientific use? How has light collection and focusing improved with the use of the liquid mercury telescope operated by the University of British Columbia and Laval University? Why was the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory built? How have developments over time improved its usefulness?
By the end of this course, students will:
B2.1 use appropriate terminology related to astronomy, including, but not limited to: Doppler effect, electromagnetic radiation, protostar, celestial equator, ecliptic, altitude and azimuth, and right ascension and declination [C]
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