Teaching Science through History II
 

The Magnetic Earth

by Zeenat Nahrin

This module focuses on properties of magnetism, and reasoning about the Earth's own magnetism. It is also designed to teach the concept and skills of experimental research by following William Gilbert's pioneering methods and discoveries in the late 1500s. Moreover, it depicts how science is shaped by earlier ideas, motivation, technology, culture, social status, multiple investigations and religion.


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Images

William Gilbert [wikipedia, public domain]

Gilbert

"Dr. William Glbert Showing his Experiment on Electricity to Queen Elizabeth and Her Court" by Arthur Ackland Hunt [~late 1800s]

Jean Batiste della Porta