Science 101: How does a telescope work?

by: William C. Robertson, Ph.D.

It turns out that telescopes, microscopes, and binoculars all work on the same principles, so you get three for one in this answer. They give us information that we can’t get with the unaided eye. To do that, these devices gather as much information (in the form of emitted light or other electromagnetic waves or in the form of reflected electrons) as possible, focus it on a small area, and then enlarge the result for easy viewing. Now, if we could just develop a similar system to find out what’s going on in the mind of a teenager.

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Type Journal ArticlePub Date 2/1/2008Stock # sc08_045_06_52Volume 045Issue 06

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