astronomy

Marjorie Thompson

Marjorie Thompson is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Marjorie Thompson rather than just read about it. In short: Marjorie Ellen Thompson (January 31, 1954 – September 15, 2014) was an American biologist and musician who served as Associate Dean of Biological Sciences at Brown University. Thompson received a ScB in biochemistry and a PhD in biology from Brown, in 1974 and 1979 respectively, and was appointed Associate Dean of Biological Sciences in 1983, a position she continued to hold until her death in 2014.

Key takeaways

Marjorie Thompson belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Marjorie Thompson to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Marjorie Thompson from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Marjorie Ellen Thompson (January 31, 1954 – September 15, 2014) was an American biologist and musician who served as Associate Dean of Biological Sciences at Brown University. Thompson received a ScB in biochemistry and a PhD in biology from Brown, in 1974 and 1979 respectively, and was appointed Associate Dean of Biological Sciences in 1983, a position she continued to hold until her death in 2014. Her awards as Associate Dean included the Barrett Hazeltine Senior Class Citation in 1994 and 1996, the Onyx Award in 1998 and the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and Advising in 2009. Outside of her work as an academic, Thompson also worked as a guitarist and singer-songwriter, releasing four albums, playing with Jorma Kaukonen, and appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show as part of an episode about "women who are changing the definition of middle age".

References

Illustrations

Marjorie Thompson: Marjorie Thompson at the Brown University Commencement 2014 — Marjorie Thompson at the Brown University Commencement 2014

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Marjorie Thompson

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Marjorie Thompson claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Marjorie Thompson before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Marjorie Thompson ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Marjorie Thompson

In research: Marjorie Thompson appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Marjorie Thompson in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Marjorie Thompson is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1954 births, 2014 deaths, American biologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Marjorie Thompson outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Marjorie Thompson in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Marjorie Thompson means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Marjorie Thompson out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Marjorie Thompson in simple terms?

Why does Marjorie Thompson matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Marjorie Thompson?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Marjorie Thompson.