Quiz · Science and Healing
A Two-Millimeter Hole That Measured the Sky: Mongol-Age Observatories
Two questions on this film. Watch it first, or answer now and watch afterward.
Watch or rewatch the film: A Two-Millimeter Hole That Measured the Sky: Mongol-Age ObservatoriesQuestion 1 of 2Europe’s Julian year was almost 11 minutes too long. How close was Guo Shoujing’s year?
Guo’s calendar used a year of 365.2425 days, about 26 seconds too long. The Gregorian reform of 1582 reached the same number on its own.
Source: EP48 claims T15-127, T15-128, T15-130, T15-132 (MacTutor; Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers); narrated at 10:07 of 12:49 (78%)
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The answer: About 26 seconds too long
Guo’s calendar used a year of 365.2425 days, about 26 seconds too long. The Gregorian reform of 1582 reached the same number on its own.
Source: EP48 claims T15-127, T15-128, T15-130, T15-132 (MacTutor; Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers); narrated at 10:07 of 12:49 (78%)
Question 2 of 2Did Guo’s calendar copy ready-made tables from the Muslim astronomers in Dadu?
Van Dalen finds no ready Islamic tables in Guo’s calendar. The two bureaus answered the same question almost alike, and almost alone.
Source: EP48 claims T15-141, T15-140, T15-161 (van Dalen 2002; Shi Yunli); narrated at 11:09 of 12:49 (86%)
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The answer: No, no ready Islamic tables are found in it
Van Dalen finds no ready Islamic tables in Guo’s calendar. The two bureaus answered the same question almost alike, and almost alone.
Source: EP48 claims T15-141, T15-140, T15-161 (van Dalen 2002; Shi Yunli); narrated at 11:09 of 12:49 (86%)
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These questions were drafted with AI assistance from the film’s researched script and its sources, and reviewed before publishing.