The North Star is one of the most important stars in the northern sky to almost all peoples, Indigenous and non-Indigenous. In so-called Canada and the United States, many Indigenous peoples told stories about the North Star and their relationship with that star. One such story comes from the Paiute peoples of the so-called western…
Tag: Astronomy
Astronomy through two lenses: Thinking about Eurocentric and Indigenous methodologies
Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island and elsewhere have lived on the land long before the scientific revolution and the so-called enlightenment. As part of this land, the peoples developed intimate knowledge of the environment and natural world, including knowledges of the sky above. That understanding was arguably built by centuries of detailed observations that have…
Between Us and the Stars
The night sky is a fantastic sight, stars moving across the sky, twinkling and shining. It feels as if we are related to the stars, they are like watchful grandparents. The stars have been there for millennia, watched by our ancestors and the stars watching back. Our ancestors wrote stories in the stars even before…
What is science?? Not just the scientific method…
This is a tough question even through it seems so simple. In our daily lives, we see science all around, in cars, medicine, construction, nature. We view it with hope for fighting diseases, climate change, solve the riddles of the Universe and basically improve the lives of people everywhere. At least, that is what we…