Essay on Amateur Astronomy

Hey everyone.

I wrote an essay for my english class here at the University of Washington.
It's about amateur astronomy.

If any of you are exceedingly board and want to read 13 pages, feel free to
follow the link.

http://students.washington.edu/bsteph

Then under "Walker Percy," click "Final." It is a Word document (*.doc).

Feel free to reply to this post about all the things you disagree with
I'm sure there will be plenty.

I'm afraid I found the essay a little weak in the understanding of some of the
facts of Amateur astronomy and the way the hobby actually works, as well as
stating so-called "dangers" to newbies which are either overblown or do not
exist in the first place. True, there are a number of things which the new
person needs to understand and a few things which need to be avoided, but
accessories like red flashights, starmaps and star parties? Come on now!!
Your viewpoint in places is somewhat unrealistic and paints an overly
pessimistic view of the hobby. Your outlook may have been somewhat distorted
by some experience you had in the past, but there are a lot of things which
you just plain didn't get quite right. You might just need a bit more
experience in the hobby. Much of the "judgement" you seem to express in that
article misses the entire point of the hobby: to *see* and at least begin to
understand objects few people on this planet have ever seen before. That is
the single most important item when it comes to amateur astronomy. Come to
the Nebraska Star Party and sit in on the Beginner's Field School. Then,
maybe, if you are lucky, you will understand things better.
--
David W. Knisely
Prairie Astronomy Club: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org
Hyde Memorial Observatory: http://www.hydeobservatory.info/

**********************************************
* Attend the 11th Annual NEBRASKA STAR PARTY *
* July 18-23, 2004, Merritt Reservoir *
* http://www.NebraskaStarParty.org *
**********************************************

"Brian" wrote in message ...
Hey everyone.

I wrote an essay for my english class here at the University of Washington.
It's about amateur astronomy.

If any of you are exceedingly board and want to read 13 pages, feel free to
follow the link.

http://students.washington.edu/bsteph

Then under "Walker Percy," click "Final." It is a Word document (*.doc).

Feel free to reply to this post about all the things you disagree with
I'm sure there will be plenty.

-Brian

I feel you confuse loss of wonder with knowledge and experience. They
are not mutually exclusive. What is often most damaging to that
childlike wonder, unfortunately, is formal teaching of a
subject.(Including astronomy)

Nothing is more calculated to kill interest for the average learner
than to be subjected to it in a classroom situtation. If somehow, a
subject could be absorbed in depth outside the classroom. Then it is
more likely to retain a lifetime's interest. The teacher is always the
key to unlocking knowledge without loss of wonder. It is a rare gift
and massively underrated worldwide.

It is said that: "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach."
Nothing could be more indicative of the complete failure of the human
race to keep 99% of its population aboard the learning train for life.
Than this desperately sad reflection of dismal reality! Meanwhile the
human potential for real growth and progress remains forever locked
away.

By the way: What have you got against red? Your references to it stand
out like a ... rag to a bull. :-)

Chris.B

I took a bit of time to read this Essay.

What I saw was a "young observer" in the process of discovering what excites
him about amateur astronomy. Ignoring the judgements and commentary, to me
this was the essence.

It is nice to see that the author, like just about all of us here, was able to
discover, inspite of himself and newsgroups and star parties, what it was that
he found inside himself that made it worthwhile.

I believe that for each of us it is that internal, personal experience that
keeps up going outside each night. There is no way to really discuss these
experiences other than maybe a bit of poetry or music.

But I also believe that this internal experience is different for each of us so
that trying to place a judgement or value on someone elses choices is not only
a waste of time but actually detrimental to ones own growth .

It will be interesting to see how the thoughts and opinions of this budding
astro-geek change as he develops and discovers some of the subtle pleasures
that await.

Jon

English class. Bored.
Bill Meyers

David Knisely wrote:
Hey everyone.

I wrote an essay for my english class here at the University of
Washington.
It's about amateur astronomy.

If any of you are exceedingly board and want to read 13 pages, feel
free to
follow the link.

http://students.washington.edu/bsteph

Then under "Walker Percy," click "Final." It is a Word document (*.doc).

Feel free to reply to this post about all the things you disagree with
I'm sure there will be plenty.


I'm afraid I found the essay a little weak in the understanding of some
of the facts of Amateur astronomy and the way the hobby actually works,
as well as stating so-called "dangers" to newbies which are either
overblown or do not exist in the first place. True, there are a number
of things which the new person needs to understand and a few things
which need to be avoided, but accessories like red flashights, starmaps
and star parties? Come on now!! Your viewpoint in places is somewhat
unrealistic and paints an overly pessimistic view of the hobby. Your
outlook may have been somewhat distorted by some experience you had in
the past, but there are a lot of things which you just plain didn't get
quite right. You might just need a bit more experience in the hobby.
Much of the "judgement" you seem to express in that article misses the
entire point of the hobby: to *see* and at least begin to understand
objects few people on this planet have ever seen before. That is the
single most important item when it comes to amateur astronomy. Come to
the Nebraska Star Party and sit in on the Beginner's Field School.
Then, maybe, if you are lucky, you will understand things better.

A real knot-head, I'd say, eh Bill?

"Bill Meyers" wrote

English class. Bored.
Bill Meyers

You make a common mistake. Astronomy as a human activity is not a thing,
but a process. The same could be said of writing essays!
jerry



Brian wrote:

Hey everyone.

I wrote an essay for my english class here at the University of Washington.
It's about amateur astronomy.

If any of you are exceedingly board and want to read 13 pages, feel free to
follow the link.

http://students.washington.edu/bsteph

Then under "Walker Percy," click "Final." It is a Word document (*.doc).

Feel free to reply to this post about all the things you disagree with
I'm sure there will be plenty.

-Brian