Stephen Wlliam Hawking
1. Who are you researching?
2. Where were they from/ where did
this project take place?
3. Between what years were they
alive/when did this project take
place?
4. What was most significant about
the discovery/project?
This research model is about
Stephen Hawking, in full Stephen
William Hawking. He was best
known for his discovery, the black
hole area theorem.
The scientist was born in Oxford,
United Kingdom. He specifically
grew up in St. Albans, a cathedral
city in Hertfordshire, England, and
the main urban area in the City and
District of St Albans.
He was born on January 8, 1942,
and passed away on March 14,
2016. He was 76 years old.
Dr. Hawking proposed the theory of
exploding black holes drew upon
both relativity theory and quantum
mechanics in the year 1974 which
shook the world of science forever.
The theorem states that the total
area of a black hole's event horizon
— and, for that matter, all black
holes in the universe — should
never decrease. This phenomenon
was dubbed "Hawking radiation,"
and it remains one of the most
fundamental discoveries about
black holes to this day.
5. What ‘working scientifically’ skills
did the scientist(s) show in making
their discovery/ working on the
project?
6. Why was this discovery/ project
important?
7. What else would you like to know
about this person or project?
8. What other interesting facts did
you discover about this person or
project?
Along with all the skills he
demonstrated, the most important
skill he showed would be his
perseverance to process and
analyze data. Despite his
worsening condition, he devoted
his life to his work which is now one
of the biggest contributions to
Science.
Stephen Hawking's formulation is
considered the closest we have to
a theory of everything because his
writing on matter escaping black
holes–the so-called ‘'Hawking
Radiation’’–seems to be the first
time a scientist has created a
comprehensive hypothesis that
relies on both quantum mechanics
and classical physics.
I would love to know his political
views and his moral stance
regarding different issues. For me,
a person’s political standing mirrors
his principles in life.
"There is no God. No one directs
the universe," Hawking stated in his
book "Brief Answers to the Big
Questions." During his lifetime, he
has always denied the existence of
a higher being. Interestingly
enough, her ex-spouse, Jane
Hawking, was a daughter of a
pastor.
Eratosthenes of Cyrene
1. Who are you researching?
2. Where were they from/ where did
this project take place?
3. Between what years were they
alive/when did this project take
place?
4. What was most significant about
the discovery/project?
The second scientist I picked is
Eratosthenes of Cyrene. He was a
Greek polymath: a mathematician,
geographer, poet, astronomer, and
music theorist.
He was from Cyrene, Libya.
Eratosthenes discovered the
circumference of the Earth in
Alexandria, Egypt when he was
appointed as the chief librarian by
King Ptolemy III.
He was born 276 BC and is known
to have passed away in 195 BC. By
500 B.C., the majority of ancient
Greeks believed that the Earth was
round, not flat. They didn't know
how big the planet was until
Eratosthenes devised a clever
method of calculating its
circumference around 240 B.C.
Not only did he measure the
Earth’s diameter, but he was also
the first to use the word geography.
Eratosthenes analyzed the
observations under the assumption
that the earth is a sphere and that
the sun is very far away
5. What ‘working scientifically’ skills
did the scientist(s) show in making
their discovery/ working on the
project?
6. Why was this discovery/ project
important?
7. What else would you like to know
about this person or project?
8. What other interesting facts did
you discover about this person or
project?
Eratosthenes had heard from
travelers about a well in Syene that
had an unusual property: at noon
on the summer solstice, which
occurs around June 21 every year,
the sun illuminated the entire
bottom of the well without casting
any shadows, indicating that the
sun was directly overhead. Thanks
to his curious nature, he conducted
his investigation by measuring the
angle of a shadow cast by a stick at
noon on the summer solstice in
Alexandria. He questioned,
conducted, and processed data,
which are all important skills a
scientist should have.
What makes this project so
remarkable is how he was the first
to accurately measure the Earth’s
circumference by using simple
geometry and trigonometry. Most
Greek scholars of that time agreed
that the Earth is a sphere, but no
one really knew how big it was.
I would love to visit where this
project took place and see it for
myself. It would also be interesting
to know if the project would have
the same results if it wasn’t a
summer solstice.
Eratosthenes is also famous for his
work on prime numbers. There is a
method named after him called
“The Sieve of Eratosthenes” or a
mathematical algorithm of finding
prime numbers between two sets of
numbers.
Aristarchus of Samos
1. Who are you researching?
2. Where were they from/ where did
this project take place?
3. Between what years were they
alive/when did this project take
place?
4. What was most significant about
the discovery/project?
Aristarchus of Samos, an ancient
Greek astronomer, and
mathematician. He is most
celebrated as the first to propose a
sun-centered universe.
He was born in Samos, Greece,
the same island Pythagoras was
born on 260 years earlier.
He was born in about 310 BC and
died in about 230 BC. Aristarchus
of Samos proposed the fully
developed model of Heliocentric
Model in the 3rd century BC.
The heliocentric theory argues that
the sun is the central body of the
solar system and perhaps of the
universe. This theory was then
used as an inspiration for Nicolaus
Copernicus’ work. Because of
Aristarchus, the heliocentric model
wouldn’t have existed.
5. What ‘working scientifically’ skills
did the scientist(s) show in making
their discovery/ working on the
project?
6. Why was this discovery/ project
important?
7. What else would you like to know
about this person or project?
8. What other interesting facts did
you discover about this person or
project?
All scientists should be great
observants. Aristarchus of Samos
definitely is one. He discovered the
circumference of the Earth by
observing the Moon during a lunar
eclipse and by estimating the angle
and the size of the Earth. He
observed his surroundings using
his senses, and process and
analyzed those data, and arrived at
what is now one of the biggest
contributions to Science.
He was the first heliocentric, even
before Nicolaus Copernicus. He
boldly presented his theory
although it was rejected because
the geocentric theory was more
favored during that time.
Since very know very little about
Aristarchus’ life, I would love to
know more about his personal life
and struggles. I want to know his
endeavors out of Science.
His greatest work presenting the
heliocentric model is unfortunately
lost. We know about it because
Archimedes mentions it in his book,
‘The Sand Reckoner’.