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

Departing for the Sabbath An Assembly of Witches

Popular Images of witches (1600s)

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.

Examination of a Witch

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”

1 Planets move in ellipses with sun as one focus

2 Planets revolve around sun

3 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.

Sight - Jan Brueghel