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Unit 3 Overview: Stars & Elements (9:26)

Key Ideas

As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.

Key Ideas

Think about the following questions as you watch the video


  1. 01:39 What is a supernova?
  2. 03:16 How do ancient historical texts, such as <em>The Book of the Later Han</em>, help scientists today understand astronomical phenomena like supernovae?
  3. 04:57 How did modern astronomers confirm that the “guest star” recorded by Chinese astronomers was in fact a supernova?
  4. 06:20 What is interdisciplinarity (interdisciplinary thinking) and why is it important in the Big History course?
  5. 07:03 What are the two thresholds for this unit?
  6. 07:31 How do stars “light up”?
  7. 08:20 How do dying stars create the building blocks for life?