Elaboração e Avaliação de uma História em Quadrinhos de Ficção Científica sobre Matéria Escura e a Estrutura da Ciência: Uma Proposta Executada no Planetário da Unipampa

Abstract

This is a Course Conclusion Paper presented to the Unipampa Physics Degree Course and aims to elaborate and evaluate a science fiction comic book that has in its narrative the structure of science proposed by Lakatos that defined the Scientific Research Programs. and how science evolves through scientific revolutions. In the comic book the dark matter theme was treated and two different research programs were confronted, one that considers the negative mass and dark energy described by the cosmological model ΛCDM and another that considers dark photons with magnetic monopolies that interact electromagnetically through a dark magnetic flux. unlike bright photons. Students received the comic at the planetarium and read it before attending the “Ghost of the Universe” summit session that deals with dark matter and provides some detection alternatives using particle accelerators. Multiple choice questions were elaborated based on the VOTS questionnaire, designed to evaluate conceptions about the concepts involving science and technology. From the questionnaire a quantitative analysis was made. The students showed understanding about what science is and that it is constantly changing and evolving, but it was not possible to know if they were motivated to research on frontier subjects such as dark matter.