EARTH AND HEAVENS: TWO SEPARATE UNIVERSES?

Abstract

The study of gravitation constitutes an exceptional occasion to show the richness and complexity of science and technology, contemplating, among other things: the problematic situations which are at the heart of the scientific knowledge, the difficulties encountered in the construction of knowledge and, especially, the necessity of overcoming “common-sense evidence” that proclaimed the existence of an insurmountable barrier between Earth and Heavens, hindering scientific development during many centuries. In this paper we present a program of activities to orient the study of Gravitation atUpperHigh School, favoring students’ participation in the reconstruction of this first scientific revolution and giving them the opportunity to see the importance of Astronomy both in the history of science and today.