This article over at PBS shows cute letters from children to museum curators about the classification of Pluto changing from a planet to a dwarf planet. (I actually went to Wikipedia's Pluto article because I wasn't sure what Pluto is considered these day.) Many of the letters ask questions like, "Why do you think it's not a planet any more?" or flat out disagree with the scientists.
These letters got me thinking, how did Pluto get changed from a planet to a dwarf planet? So, I did what any normal person would do and searched for images and youtube clips!This video gives one explanation about the change in Pluto's status.
What do you think about the idea of scientists coming together and voting on definitions? Is this just a modern day example of Polanyi's Republic of Science or Kuhn's scientific revolutions? Or, did something completely different happen?
Thanks to Jayme for the link that inspired this post!
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