Orbital Motion

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Grade 12, U.S. National Science Education Standards

• HNS-12-3a: In history, diverse cultures have contributed scientific knowledge and technologic inventions. Modern science began to evolve rapidly in Europe several hundred years ago. During the past two centuries, it has contributed significantly to the industrialization of Western and non-Western cultures. However, other, non-European cultures have developed scientific ideas and solved human problems through technology. (Resources)
• HNS-12-3b: Usually, changes in science occur as small modifications in extent knowledge. The daily work of science and engineering results in incremental advances in our understanding of the world and our ability to meet human needs and aspirations. Much can be learned about the internal workings of science and the nature of science from study of individual scientists, their daily work, and their efforts to advance scientific knowledge in their area of study. (Resources)
• HNS-12-3c: Occasionally, there are advances in science and technology that have important and long-lasting effects on science and society. Examples of such advances include the following
  • Copernican revolution
  • Newtonian mechanics
  • Relativity
  • Geologic time scale
  • Plate tectonics
  • Atomic theory
  • Nuclear physics
  • Biological evolution
  • Germ theory
  • Industrial revolution
  • Molecular biology
  • Information and communication
  • Quantum theory
  • Galactic universe
  • Medical and health technology
  (Resources)
• HNS-12-3d: The historical perspective of scientific explanations demonstrates how scientific knowledge changes by evolving over time, almost always building on earlier knowledge. (Resources)
• HNS-12-1a: Individuals and teams have contributed and will continue to contribute to the scientific enterprise. Doing science or engineering can be as simple as an individual conducting field studies or as complex as hundreds of people working on a major scientific question or technological problem. Pursuing science as a career or as a hobby can be both fascinating and intellectually rewarding. (Resources)
• HNS-12-1b: Scientists have ethical traditions. Scientists value peer review, truthful reporting about the methods and outcomes of investigations, and making public the results of work. Violations of such norms do occur, but scientists responsible for such violations are censured by their peers. (Resources)
• HNS-12-1c: Scientists are influenced by societal, cultural, and personal beliefs and ways of viewing the world. Science is not separate from society but rather science is a part of society. (Resources)
• HNS-12-2a: Science distinguishes itself from other ways of knowing and from other bodies of knowledge through the use of empirical standards, logical arguments, and skepticism, as scientists strive for the best possible explanations about the natural world. (Resources)
• HNS-12-2b: Scientific explanations must meet certain criteria. First and foremost, they must be consistent with experimental and observational evidence about nature, and must make accurate predictions, when appropriate, about systems being studied. They should also be logical, respect the rules of evidence, be open to criticism, report methods and procedures, and make knowledge public. Explanations on how the natural world changes based on myths, personal beliefs, religious values, mystical inspiration, superstition, or authority may be personally useful and socially relevant, but they are not scientific. (Resources)
• HNS-12-2c: Because all scientific ideas depend on experimental and observational confirmation, all scientific knowledge is, in principle, subject to change as new evidence becomes available. The core ideas of science such as the conservation of energy or the laws of motion have been subjected to a wide variety of confirmations and are therefore unlikely to change in the areas in which they have been tested. In areas where data or understanding are incomplete, such as the details of human evolution or questions surrounding global warming, new data may well lead of changes in current ideas or resolve current conflicts. In situations where information is still fragmentary, it is normal for scientific ideas to be incomplete, but this is also where the opportunity for making advances may be greatest. (Resources)
• PS-12-5a: The total energy of the universe is constant. Energy can be transferred by collisions in chemical and nuclear reactions, by light waves and other radiations, and in many other ways. However,it can never be destroyed. As these transfers occur, the matter involved becomes steadily less ordered. (Resources)
• PS-12-5b: All energy can be considered to be either kinetic energy, which is the energy of motion; potential energy, which depends on relative position; or energy contained by a field, such as electromagnetic waves. (Resources)
• PS-12-4a: Objects change their motion only when a net force is applied. Laws of motion are used to calculate precisely the effects of forces on the motion of objects. The magnitude of the change in motion can be calculated using the relationship F + ma, which is independent of the nature of the force. Whenever one object exerts force on another, a force equal in magnitude and opposite in direction is exerted on the first object. (Resources)
• PS-12-4b: Gravitation is a universal force that each mass exerts on any other mass. The strength of the gravitational attractive force between two masses is proportional to the masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. (Resources)
• SI-12-1a: Identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations

  Students should formulate a testable hypothesis and demonstrate the logical connections between the scientific concepts guiding a hypothesis and the design of an experiment. They should demonstrate appropriate procedures, a knowledge base, and conceptual understanding of scientific investigations.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-1b: Design and conduct scientific investigations

  Designing and conducting a scientific investigation requires introduction to the major concepts in the area being investigated, proper equipment, safety precautions, assistance with methodological problems, recommendations for use of technologies, clarification of ideas that guide the inquiry, and scientific knowledge obtained from sources other than the actual investigation. the investigation may also require student clarification of the question, method, controls, and variables,; student organization and display of data; student revision of methods and explanations; and a public presentation of the results with a critical response from peers. Regardless of the scientific investigation performed, students must use evidence, apply logic, and construct an argument for their proposed explanations.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-1c: Use technology and mathematics to improve investigations and communications

  A variety of technologies, such as hand tools, measuring instruments, and calculators, should be an integral component of scientific investigations. The use of computers for the collection, analysis, and display of data is also a part of this standard. Mathematics plays on essential role in all aspects of an inquiry. For example, measurement is used for posing questions, formulas are used for developing explanations, and charts and graphs are used for communicating results.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-1d: Formulate and revise scientific explanations using logic and evidence

  Student inquiries should culminate in formulating an explanation or model. Models should be physical, conceptual, and mathematical. In the process of answering the questions, the students should engage in discussions and arguments that result in the revision of their explanations. These discussions should be based on scientific knowledge, the use of logic, and evidence from their investigation.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-1e: Recognize and analyze alternate explanations and models

  This aspect of the standard emphasizes the critical abilities of analyzing an argument by reviewing current scientific understanding, weighing the evidence, and examining the logic so as to decide which explanations and models are best. In other words, although there may be several plausible explanations, they do not all have equal weight. Students should be able to use scientific criteria to find the preferred explanations.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-1f: Communicate and defend a scientific argument.

  Students in school science programs should develop the abilities associated with accurate and effective communication. These include writing and following procedures, expressing concepts, reviewing information, summarizing data, using language appropriately, developing diagrams and charts, explaining statistical analysis, speaking clearly and logically, constructing a reasoned argument, and responding appropriately to critical comments.

  (Resources)
• SI-12-2a: Scientists usually inquire about how physical, living, or designed systems function. Conceptual principles and knowledge guide scientific inquiries. Historical and current scientific knowledge influence the design and interpretation of investigations and the evaluation of proposed explanations made by other scientists. (Resources)
• SI-12-2b: Scientists conduct investigations for a wide variety of reasons. For example, they may wish to discover new aspects of the natural world, explain recently observed phenomena, or test the conclusions of prior investigations or the predictions of current theories. (Resources)
• SI-12-2c: Scientists rely on technology to enhance the gathering and manipulation of data. New techniques and tools provide new evidence to guide inquiry and new methods to gather data, thereby contributing to the advance of science. The accuracy and precision of the data, and therefore the quality of the exploration, depends on the technology used. (Resources)
• SI-12-2d: Mathematics is essential in scientific inquiry. Mathematical tools and models guide and improve the posing of questions, gathering data, constructing explanations and communicating results. (Resources)
• SI-12-2e: Scientific explanations must adhere to criteria such as: a proposed explanation must be logically consistent; it must abide by the rules of evidence; it must be open to questions and possible modification; and it must be based on historical and current scientific knowledge. (Resources)
• SI-12-2f: Results of scientific inquiry-new knowledge and methods-emerge from different types of investigations and public communication among scientists. In communicating and defending the results of scientific inquiry, arguments must be logical and demonstrate connections between natural phenomena, investigations, and the historical body of scientific knowledge. In addition, the methods and procedures that scientists used to obtain evidence must be clearly reported to enhance opportunities for further investigation. (Resources)
• ST-12-1a: Identify a problem or design an opportunity. Students should be able to identify new problems or needs and to change and improve current technological designs. (Resources)
• ST-12-1b: Propose designs and choose between alternative solutions. Students should demonstrate thoughtful planning for a piece of technology or technique. Students should be introduced to the roles of models and simulations in these processes. (Resources)
• ST-12-1c: Implement a proposed Solution. A variety of skills can be needed in proposing a solution depending on the type of technology that is involved. The construction of artifacts can require the skills of cutting, shaping, treating, and joining common materials-such as wood, metal, plastics, and textiles. Solutions can also be implemented using computer software. (Resources)
• ST-12-1d: Evaluate the Solution and its consequences
  Students should test any solution against the needs and criteria it was designed to meet. At this stage, new criteria not originally considered may be reviewed. (Resources)
• ST-12-1e: Communicate the problem, process and solution. Students should present their results to students, teachers, and others in a variety of ways, such as orally, in writing, and in other forms- including models, diagrams, and demonstrations. (Resources)
• ST-12-2a: Scientists in different disciplines ask different questions, use different methods of investigation, and accept different types of evidence to support their explanations. Many scientific investigations require the contributions of individuals from different disciplines, including engineering. New disciplines of science, such as geophysics and biochemistry often emerge at the interface of two older disciplines. (Resources)
• ST-12-2b: Science often advances the introduction of new technologies. Solving technological problems often results in new scientific knowledge. New technologies often extend the current levels of scientific understanding and introduce new areas of research. (Resources)
• ST-12-2c: Creativity, imagination, and a good knowledge base are all required in the work of science and engineering. (Resources)
• ST-12-2d: Science and technology are pursued for different purposes.

  Scientific inquiry is driven by the desire to understand the natural world, and technological design is driven by the need to meet human needs and solve human problems. Technology, by its nature, has a more direct effect on society than science because its purpose is to solve human problems, help humans adapt, and fulfill human aspirations.

  Technological solutions may create new problems. Science, by its nature, answers questions that may or may not directly influence humans. Sometimes scientific advances challenge people"s beliefs and practical explanations concerning various aspects of the world.

  (Resources)
• SPSP-12-6a: Science and technology are essential social enterprises, but alone they can only indicate what can happen, not what should happen. The latter involves human decisions about the use of knowledge. (Resources)
• SPSP-12-6b: Understanding basic concepts and principles of science and technology should precede active debate about the economics, policies, politics, and ethics of various science-and technology-related challenges. However, understanding science alone will not resolve local, national, or global challenges. (Resources)
• SPSP-12-6c: Progress in science and technology can be affected by social issues and challenges. Funding priorities for specific health problems serve as examples of ways that social issues influence science and technology. (Resources)
• SPSP-12-6d: Individuals and society must decide on proposals involving new research and the introduction of new technologies into society. Decisions involve assessment of alternatives, risks, costs and benefits and consideration of who benefits and who suffers, who pays and gains. and what the risks are and who bears them. Students should understand the appropriateness and value of basic questions-"What can happen?" - "What are the odds?"-and "How so scientists and engineers know what will happen?" (Resources)


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