| Overarching Question |
MA DOE (6-8) Content Learning Standards Addressed |
MA DOE (9-10) Content Learning Standards Addressed |
| How do the development of new technologies to collect data in all regions of the electromagnetic spectrum contribute to our understanding of the origin, structure and evolution of the universe? |
- Recognize that the universe contains many billions of galaxies, and that each galaxy contains many billions of stars.
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- Differentiate between wave motion (simple harmonic nonlinear motion) and the motion of objects (nonharmonic).
- Recognize the measurable properties of waves (e.g., velocity, frequency, wavelength) and explain the relationships among them.
- Distinguish between mechanical and electromagnetic waves.
- Describe the electromagnetic spectrum in terms of wavelength and energy, and be able to identify specific regions such as visible light.
- Compare and contrast the various instrumentation used to study deep space and the solar system.
- Explain the Big Bang Theory and discuss the evidence to support it.
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| How does the principle of universal gravitation help to explain the architecture of the universe? |
- Recognize that gravity is a force that pulls all things on and near the earth toward the center of the earth. Gravity plays a major role in the formation of the planets, stars, and solar system and in determining their motions.
- Describe lunar and solar eclipses, the observed moon phases, and tides. Relate them to the relative positions of the earth, moon, and sun.
- Compare and contrast properties and conditions of objects in the solar system (i.e., sun, planets, and moons) to those on Earth (e.g., gravitational force, distance from the sun, speed, movement, temperature, and atmospheric conditions).
- Differentiate between weight and mass, recognizing that weight is the amount of gravitational pull on an object.
- Explain and give examples of how the motion of an object can be described by its position, direction of motion, and speed.
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- Explain the relationship between mass and inertia.
- Interpret and apply Newton's first law of motion.
- Interpret and apply Newton's second law of motion to show how an object's motion will change only when a net force is applied.
- Understand conceptually Newton's law of universal gravitation.
- Explain Kepler's Laws of Motion
- Explain how the sun, earth, and solar system formed from a nebula of dust and gas in a spiral arm of the Milky Way Galaxy about 4.6 billion years ago.
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| How does the life cycle of a star exemplify conservation of mass and energy in the universe? |
- Explain and give examples of how mass is conserved in a closed system.
- Differentiate between volume and mass. Define density.
- Recognize that there are more than 100 elements that combine in a multitude of ways to produce compounds that make up all of the living and nonliving things that we encounter.
- Give basic examples of elements and compounds.
- Differentiate between potential and kinetic energy. Identify situations where kinetic energy is transformed into potential energy and vice versa.
- Recognize that heat is a form of energy and that temperature change results from adding or taking away heat from a system.
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- Relate thermal energy to molecular motion.
- Interpret and provide examples that illustrate the law of conservation of energy.
- Identify the major components of the nuclear atom (protons, neutrons, and electrons) and explain how they interact.
- Compare nuclear fission and nuclear fusion and mass defect.
- Explain the relationship of an element's position on the periodic table to its atomic number and mass.
- Describe the four states of matter (solid, liquid, gas, plasma) in terms of energy, particle motion, and phase transitions.
- Use the Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram to explain the life histories of stars.
- Compare and contrast the final three outcomes of stellar evolution based on mass (black hole, neutron star, white dwarf).
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