Should I study Astronomy??

Question

I love sciences and right now I am taking psychology, sociology and philosophy. Should I replace Sociology with Astronomy? I dont know much about it and Soc. is just an elective. It sounds very interesting, can i get some basic information about its basis and uses? I've only read up on some ancient astronomers and still don't know if I would be interested.

Answer 1

Think..are you interested of astronomy? If yes, then study it. Nothing will happen if you will study a specific subject even though you are not interested of it. Another is that you must be ready and be sure that you can study it without any problem.

Answer 2

I have the same taste in electives as you do. I took all the Sociology, psych and philosophy I could as electives. These "soft" sciences hardly required study for me to ace. It's easy to like what you do well ;)

I  also liked some aspects of the "hard" sciences like broad concepts, cosmological speculation and the scientific method, after all Sociology  employs the same methods on social groups.But I greatly feared my lack of technical knowledge and poor math skills so I put off taking the Sciences until I had to finally face my fears.

I can't tell you how glad I am that I did however. It was a real challenge for me (for a change) . I had to teach myself math that I should have learned in 4th grade and I had a little trouble in the beginning accepting some of the "givens" and accepted "laws" realizing, at last, that it's critical to learn the theories and current knowledge before you can hope to "go beyond". Finding that I was able, with work, to be somewhat successful in that was a thrill.

The most important thing I learned however is the mysterious way that science is related to culture and consciousness. How much we know and how little we know but how it is ALL somehow related. I remember sitting in class one morning and blurting out "Holy sh*t! I finally found my religion!" People looked at me like I was nuts but there it is....:)

I hope you "see the light" too :) From what you have said here I'm sure you could.

Answer 3

Check out the site nasa.gov and visit the links for the hubble space telescope. If that interests you then go for it! Interestingly both astronomy and philosophy will give you answers to the meaning of life stuff. astronomy will give you a world view that can be checked empirically and philosophy will give you a worldview based on someones opinion. Stick with something that can be proven or checked against reality if you want my opinion! Good Luck and happy exploring!

Answer 4

astronomy contains a lot of useful information that applies to a lot of things in other areas. if for nothing else it's good to know whats going on in Your domain.

Answer 5

I remember the days when brains could make you some money. Today, you can earn a higher income by being a clever parasite within the handout entitlement-public-assistance system. Or, of course, a bureaucrat employed to administer that system. Those guys presently make (or, rather, take) far more than any old astronomer. I've heard of a woman who gets maxed out social security benefits while taking an unreported income of about $200/day, mostly for watching an old person sleep. Her annual income is around $100,000, which is three times more than college educated me has ever earned in his life.

But, I say, go for whichever of those professions, for which you have an aptitude, which pleases you best. Money isn't everything. You can have it and still be bitter, still end your life feeling that you "missed out" on something important. You need enough income to survive, but after that interest and usefulness are the things to swear by.

Answer 6

My career was in engineering, but I encourage everyone to study what used to be called (still is, I guess) "Liberal Arts" , meaning a little bit of this, some of that.  This is especially true for the high school/ college student.  Even if one's father and grandfather were, say, chemists, and the child is absolutely , positively going to be a chemist, why should that person not know of Newton, Leibniz, Aristotle, Rousseau, Jefferson, and the other great minds that have shaped our world?

Answer 7

Astronomy is soooo interesting..

I say I would take it if I were you.