astronomy

Paul Waldau

Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau rather than just read about it. In short: Paul Francis Waldau (born January 16, 1950) is an American ethicist and former professor at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, where he headed the graduate program on anthrozoology, which he founded. He has several times served as Barker Lecturer in animal law at Harvard Law School, and is the author of a number of books on animal rights and speciesism.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Paul Francis Waldau (born January 16, 1950) is an American ethicist and former professor at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, where he headed the graduate program on anthrozoology, which he founded. He has several times served as Barker Lecturer in animal law at Harvard Law School, and is the author of a number of books on animal rights and speciesism. Waldau has also served as the legal director of the Great Ape Project, which campaigns for rights for chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans. He has served as President of the Religion and Animals Institute since 2003.

Books (2001). The Specter of Speciesism: Buddhist and Christian Views of Animals. Oxford University Press. (ed.) (2006). A Communion of Subjects: Animals in Religion, Science, and Ethics. Columbia University Press. (ed.) (2008). An Elephant in the Room: The Science and Well-being of Elephants in Captivity. Center for Animals and Public Policy. (2011). Animal Rights: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford University Press. (forthcoming). The Animal Invitation: Religion, Law, Science and Ethics in a More-Than-Human World. (2013). Animal Studies: An Introduction. Oxford University Press.

References

Further reading Koch, John (1 July 2001). "Paul Waldau, Ethicist and Former Lawyer", The Boston Globe.

External links Official website

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Paul Waldau

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau

In research: Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau 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: Paul Waldau is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1950 births, Alumni of the University of Oxford, American animal rights scholars, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is Paul Waldau in simple terms?

Why does Paul Waldau 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 Paul Waldau?

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 Paul Waldau.