So you may be thinking in your mind right now that "What is really astronomy?", I mean, you may think that it is a really complicated science? Well don't worry, you will explore the world of Astronomy in this website and this will enhance your understanding of it. Also, it may inculcate this interest of Astronomy in you.


You see, Astronomy is not only about planets, universes, stars and comets, it is more than just a branch of science as it ranges from ancient astronomy (How ancient people study Astronomy), the inner planets, outer planets, giant planets, the birth & death of star, black holes, galaxies, history of universe and instruments used in the study of Astronomy.













So before you even embark on the learning journey of Astronomy in this blog, I think it is best for you to know what is Astronomy.
Astronomy can be defined like in many ways:

• Some say that it is the scientific study of the universe and the objects in it, including stars, planets, nebulae, and galaxies. Here astronomy deals with the position, size, motion, composition, energy, and evolution of celestial objects. In addition, astronomers analyze not only visible light but also radio waves, x-rays, and other ranges of radiation that come from sources outside the Earth’s atmosphere.

• Other says that Astronomy is the science which investigates all the matter-energy in the universe: its distribution, composition, physical states, movements, and evolution.

* Distribution: The position, arrangement or frequency of matter (or energy) over an area or throughout space.


Movements: Any condition related to the positional change of matter in space or on a coordinate grid.

Rotation: Period of time a body takes to complete one spin about its axis.

Revolution: Period of time a less massive body takes to complete one orbit around a more massive object

Physical States: The conditions which permit matter to be found as a solid, liquid, gas or plasma.

Solid: Matter with a definite shape, volume, and some fundamental strength.


Liquid: Characterized by free movement of the constiuent molecules among themselves, but without the tendency to separate from one another.

Gas: A fluid that has neither independent shape nor volume, but tends to expand indefinitely.

Plasma: A gas which is ionized which means that it is not electrically neutral. This gas is composed of ions and electrons. The ions (atoms or molecules) which compose the substance have an excess or deficiency of electrons (negative charge) in comparison to the number of protons (positive charge) that they contain.

Composition: The qualitative and quantitative chemical makeup of matter.

Qualitative Example: The sun is composed of hydrogen and helium. Components are merely identified.

Quantitative Example: The sun by volume is composed of 95% hydrogen and 5% helium, but by mass it is composed of 78% hydrogen, 20% helium, and 2% heavier metals. Components are identified by amounts in a numerical fashion.

Evolution: The process of change of the universe in a certain direction. The Steady State (no longer accepted), Big Bang, and Oscillating Universe detail evolutionary sequences for the universe.

Steady State: The universe was always here, always will be here, is infinitely expanding, and appears the same from all locations. Hydrogen is created in the voids between galaxies.

Big Bang: The universe started with a blast and will expand forever.

Oscillating Universe: The universe started with the big bang, but possesses enough mass (gravity) to halt the expansion so that it will one day collapse upon itself.

As you can see, Astronomy is a wide topic and no one really know what is it as people have different definitions of it (that's why it is so interesting!). But in general, Astronomy is a fascinating science and a study of everything that is in outer space including stars, planets, constellations, comets, the solar system, etc.
 
Here is a video which is recommended by me for you to watch if you want to know more about the introduction of Astronomy: (Enjoy)
 
Video Title: Astronomy Online Course - UniversalClass
URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewreKSiaW1I



So I would say that:

Astronomy is the study of everything in outer space

As you know, people who study outer space are called astronomers. So, if you are very interested in this study of Astronomy in the study of outer space, you could consider yourself an amateur astronomer.
So anything that's in space and can be studied is actually a part of astronomy. When you look up at the night sky and wonder about all those stars that you see, that's where astronomy starts at.

Astronomy, like every other science, begins with a curiosity about the world around you. So wait no more, continue to read my blog to uncover the fascinating world of Astronomy ahead of you......!

Here, you will see all sorts of photos, ranging from breath-taking sceneries to sumptious food. As the saying goes, "A picture is equal to a thousand words", hope you will enjoy......!

Today 's photo (1-3-10):

b. Who would you want to be friends with in the novel? Explain. If I were in the novel, I would definitely befriend with Atticus as I really admire his courage in the novel. I feel that he is very brave, smart and courageous which can be seen from his decision to defend Tom Robinson in the trail although everyone disapproved he. In addition, he also believed in equality and justice as he felt that the blacks should be treated equally as the whites. He is also fair to everyone despite the difference in skin colour.

2. Write a newspaper article / report on an incident that happened in the novel. Be sure to do your research on the language features of a newspaper report. (Please click "read more" to read the full news report written by me)

The Maycomb Times

Mar 2, 1960

Finally, a new year, a brand new start...... Since October last year, I had not published any blog post but the good thing is  I AM BACK! (Haha) To start off this year, I am doing an online learning assignment on my learning profile, Mulitple Intelligences.






(Code: jxt2cs8kn87218hgj)

Sign...... One more week left. Indeed, time really flies......

flies

flies

flies

In a blink of an eye, the year 2009 is soon coming to an end for my secondary one life. In my opinion, many things, good or bad, happy or sad, had happened in this 365 days. Now, it is the time for me to reflect and review on my secondary one life. In my secondary one life, many things had changed for me in many areas. Firstly, I had to learn to adapt to a whole new secondary school life which is more CHALLENGING......BUSY......EXHAUSTING......




- Challenges & problems faced in my secondary one life


Not only do we have more subjects, but also more assignments and group projects to complete. Firstly, I had to learn to adapt and cope with the changes in our lessons. In addition, I also had to learnt to work independently. Besides these, I still had a very busy schedule everyday as I had to cope with my CCA - NPCC, Japanese (Third Language) and project competition. As you can see, this year is quite busy and challenging for me.

- How I had changed in this year

Nonetheless, despite some setbacks suffered during my secondary one life, I had also benefited and most importantly, grew to be more independent, matured and sensible. In this 365 days, I had also became an independent adolescent from a childish boy. In this meaning year, I had learnt Language Arts which includes English language and Literature. Through this learning course of taking Language Arts, I had learnt to appreciate English language and also improved in many areas. In less than 365 days, I had learnt the following different areas:

• English Language:
• Blogging
• Letter-writing - Letter of complain
• Narrative Writing
• Comprehension
• Summary
• Letter-writing - Letter of response & request
  

• Literature components:
• Novel:

1. Little Ironies
2. Nothing But The Truth
3. Zebra
4. Village By The Sea

• Poetry:

1. The Lesson
2. Last lesson of the Afternoon
3. Mid-Term Break
4. 2 mothers in a HDB playground

In this whole course, I had first started on my blog and learnt how to convey my feelings to the readers effectively. I had also improved on my writing skills on letter-writing and learnt to understand deeper in comprehension. This also enhances my reading skills which enables me to understand the passage better. In addition, I had also learnt summary which is also one of the many important skills in life.

As for literature, I had read three enriching novels and a short inspiring story. This had certainly helped me in reading and comprehensive skills. In addition to this, we had also analysed Village By The Sea, which is written by Anita Desai, chapter by chapter which gave us a better and clearer understanding of the characters, themes, conflicts and all other elements in the novel. To make us understand more about the novel, my class had also put up a play based on this novel. Indeed, we had really enjoyed this play and thus know better of this novel,

In addition, we were also exposed to poetry which is really interesting to me. In this course, I had enjoyed a lot and also learnt much about poems. We had done quite a number of poetry analysis and examined the themes, purpose of writing, audience, voice, mood and many more ......

Hence, to sum up this academic year, I had to say that I had really gained an immeasurable amount of knowledge in Language Arts this year. My qualities and intangible skills have improved and changed for the better. In addition, my secondary school education system also encourages me to learn independently with initiative. Indeed through this course, I had become a more independent learner which is willing to hunt for knwoledge.

Of course with the ending of this year, there will be a beginning of a new year. As for my expectations for next year, I really hope that I can continue to improve and succeed in my academic and other areas. Nonetheless, I will strive for the BEST and improve myself further. I will aslo do more practices to better prepare me for another challenging year. As the saying goes, "Practice makes perfect". Although the next few years may be more exhausting, hectic and challenging, but I will always continue to work hard and will be prepared for it!