astronomy

Norman Sperling

Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling rather than just read about it. In short: Norman Sperling (born March 19, 1947) is an author, editor, publisher, teacher, and telescope designer living in San Mateo, California. Sperling received a BA from Michigan State University after graduating from Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Norman Sperling (born March 19, 1947) is an author, editor, publisher, teacher, and telescope designer living in San Mateo, California. Sperling received a BA from Michigan State University after graduating from Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland. He followed that with an MA in History of Science from the University of California, Berkeley. He has taught astronomy and related courses at Sonoma State University, California State University, Hayward, UC Berkeley, and San Francisco State University.

Publisher and author Sperling founded astronomical supplier and publisher Everything in the Universe in 1977. He has been assistant editor for Sky & Telescope magazine and was science editor for AltaVista. As of 2011, Sperling is the editor and publisher of the Journal of Irreproducible Results, a science humor magazine. He authored What Your Astronomy Textbook Won't Tell You and Any Parent's Recipe for Great Baseball He edited and published John Dobson's book How and Why to Make a User-Friendly Sidewalk Telescope. He has also been published in Academic American Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Americana online, Technology Review, San Francisco Examiner, Astronomy, Pacific Discovery, Journal of College Science Teaching, Mercury, Rittenhouse, Popular Astronomy, Telescope Making, Griffith Observer, Reflector, and The Pundit. Sperling created the Catalog of North American Planetaria (CATNAP), which later expanded into the Planetarium Directory. He has been planetarium director at Duncan Planetarium, Princeton Day School, New Jersey; Rotary-Chabot Planetarium, Chabot Observatory and Science Center, California; and Edgewood Junior High School Planetarium, Maryland, and he has been a lecturer at Morrison Planetarium in San Francisco.

Inventor As an inventor, Sperling, with Mike Simmons, created the Astroscan telescope for Edmund Scientific, as well as "The Stars Above" star-finder for Spherical Concepts.

Expert witness Sperling serves occasionally as an expert witness in the field of astronomy. The most high-profile case in which he testified was known as the Billionaire Boys Club case in 1992. He was able to nullify the testimony of a key prosecution witness. The defendant was acquitted.

Volunteer service Norman Sperling is a recipient of the National Service Award by the Western Amateur Astronomers, and had been recognized "For special and meritorious service for his unusual dedication and service to the astronomical community in all areas of astronomy" by the Astronomical Association of Northern California. He is a Fellow of the International Planetarium Society (first induction). Sperling is active in the Bay Area Skeptics, Northern California Historical Astronomy Luncheon and Discussion Association.

Notes

External links Everything in the Universe

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Norman Sperling

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling

In research: Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling 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: Norman Sperling is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1947 births, American astronomers, California State University, East Bay, faculty, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Norman Sperling in simple terms?

Why does Norman Sperling 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 Norman Sperling?

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 Norman Sperling.