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The Scientific Revolution. Daniel In the Lion’s Den - Ruben. What is the Scientific Revolution?. It is the beginning of a great intellectual transformation that leads to the modern world concurrent with other major events
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The Scientific Revolution Daniel In the Lion’s Den - Ruben
What is the Scientific Revolution? • It is the beginning of a great intellectual transformation that leads to the modern world • concurrent with other major events • Copernicus is making discoveries at the time of the religious wars are breaking out in Europe • by the end of the Revolution Europe is about to embark on the Enlightenment, a cultural movement that largely rejected religion.
I. Before the Scientific Revolution • Scientists seek to understand HOW things happen • intent is to use science to “prove” God exists • earliest Scientists are usually priests/monks • earliest Scientists are astronomers • Believed in geocentric theory proposed by Ptolemy
How things stood • Aristotle • dominates how world is thought to work • world at rest, motion caused by angels • Ptolemy • astronomy based on Aristotle • Earth is center of universe
Witchcraft • Witchcraft in Renaissance Europe • Used to ward off new ideas and controversial teachings • By Renaissance people began to believe that witches actually flew and ate babies • witches must have committed a pact with the devil of their own free will • Major witch hunts occur during the century from 1560 to 1660 (slowly peters out after) • Crosses the Atlantic to Salem Massachusetts in 1692
Popular Images of witches (1600s) Departing for the Sabbath An Assembly of Witches
Witchcraft • Between 1450-1660 • approximately 110,000 went to trial • approximately 60,000 were executed • this is only for Church or government officiated trials - many instances are recorded of communities acting on their own • Women comprise 75% of those executed.
Magical Thought Magic in Renaissance Europe • Belief in magic was widespread • While most educated people professed not to believe, many still held charms (like Queen Elizabeth’s magic ring to ward off the plague) • Magic was viewed as being either good (tied to the church) or bad
The Alchemist - Jan Van der Straet
II. Causes of the Scientific Revolution • Trade and Expansion of Trade • navigational problems generated research • Medieval Universities • study of Plato, Aristotle, Ptolemy and Democritus were essential • The Renaissance • value of mathematics • Humanism.
IV. Main Scientists • Astronomers: Copernicus, Kepler, Galilei • Scientific Method: Bacon, Descartes • Synthesis: Newton
Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543) • Polish priest who studied in Italy • Earth is just another planet with a 24 hour rotation • Proposed heliocentric theory
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) • Student of mathematics and astronomy • Developed The “Laws of Planetary Motion” • Planets move in ellipses with sun as one focus • Planets revolve around sun • Planets are not perfect spheres
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) • Astronomy • used a telescope, proved the heavens are not perfect (craters on moon) • supported Heliocentric system • Developed “Laws of Motion” • dropping weights from the Tower of Pisa • imagined motion without constraint!!!! • Thought of inertia • Problems with the church • argues for separation of science and theology because we are endowed with reason • 1633 banned by Church and house arrest • Recanted heliocentric system to save neck.
Francis Bacon (1561-1626) • Proposed INDUCTION • make a lot of observations to form an opinion • Forefather of the scientific method
Rene Descartes(1596-1650) • Great mathematician! • Showed that any algebraic equation could be plotted on a graph • Supported DEDUCTION • go from a theory to the facts • Only wants what is absolute “Cogito ergo sum” • I think therefore I am • Father of rationalism • Reason is source of knowledge
Isaac Newton (1642-1727) • Possibly the greatest scientist who ever lived • born on the day Galileo died • Studied math/physics/astronomy • author of Principia Mathematica in 1687 • Universal Law of Gravitation (gravity) • to do so he had to develop calculus
Effects of Scientific Revolution • Effects of Scientific Revolution • rich get richer • not much immediate direct change for peasants • widens intellectual gap • Led to better navigation, map making and artillery • New way of observing the world.