Ancient World Flashcards
Who is credited for inventing science and scientific inquiry?
ancient Greek philosophers, natural historians, and physicians
What is science?
it has a broad definition but it:
- anti-authoritarian
- seeks understanding + explanation
- focuses on natural explanations (not supernatural)
- focuses on rational explanations (not prophecies)
- evidence-based + publically analyzable = democratic
What does ‘Nullius in verba’ mean?
‘on the word of no one’ - how the Royal Society describes science
nothing is true/fact just because someone says so - fact is based on observations and experiments
also implies a democratic definition of science - debates and arguments
Explain why science has a transcultural character and what this means?
the attributes of science (anti-authoritarian, democratic, evidence-based, rational, natural, etc.) make it fundamentally universal to humans
there is no culture-specific science in terms of its aim to seek understanding and its democratic, anti-authoritarian, methodical approach to seeking understanding
What were the 6 traits of Greek character that were unusual for their time?
humanism - human-centered
rationalism - valued logical thought
curiosity
individualism - an understanding of individual’s rights (not established)
pursuit of excellence
love of freedom
What were the 3 assumptions the Greeks had about the world and studying the world?
- hidden order underlies the natural world
- the order is innate and not imposed from beyond nature (not supernatural) or by mysterious, capricious gods
- the order can be perceived by humans (humans are smart enough to figure it out)
What 2 means did the Greeks try to find natural causes by?
thought + reason
observation
What 4 reasons did the Greek intellectual traditions ignore religious and supernatural explanations of the world (which were unique to ancient Greece)? How did these allow Greek’s to ‘invent’ science?
Greek religion was incomplete and did not have a systemic explanation of the world - not comprehensive, more just a bunch of myths + legends
Greek gods did not really care for the world or the humans - not human-centered
Greek gods were humanistic with human flaws and characteristics
Priests did not dominate Greek civilization
this meant there were fewer restrictions on thought and assumptions = more free thought and ability to ask questions
What was the major school and who were the major players in the early natural period of Greek philosophy and natural history?
The Milesian School by Thales of Miletus, his intellectual heirs - Anaximander and Anaximenes
Empedocles
Democritus
Who was Thales and what was the Milesian school/his teachings?
Thales (~650-580 BC) and his intellectual heirs, Anaximander and Anaximenes’, ideas were recorded only by Aristotle (not themselves)
Thales is regarded as the first natural philosopher and his teachings included:
- earth (Greece and other established places) is a disc surrounded by water
- water is the fundamental element, out of which all else is made/it is the beginning of all things
- change in matter is caused by forces of consolidation (water dries into mud = consolidates as mud) and expansion (boiled water disappears = expansion of water into air)
Why do Thales and the Milesians have a claim to the invention of science?
because of their naturalism and thoughts on the unity of matter - everything comes from something that already exists (water) and can be transformed into something else (nothing just appears or disappears)
Who was Empedocles? what was his major contribution to understanding the natural world?
an intellectual heir of Thales
a natural philosopher with a materialist and causal view of nature
he invented the 4-element model of nature which believed that:
- fire, earth, wind, and water were the fundamental materials/elements that composed everything else and
- these elements combine and disassociate because of the forces of love (attraction) and hate (repulsion)
What was Empedocles’ view of biology?
he thought we think with our blood because the 4 elements (earth, wind, fire, and water) are most evenly mixed in our blood
animals have evolved over time from bizarre ancestors which originated as separate limbs, torsos and heads and combined at random and by chance producing different characteristics - some adaptive which survived and some that did not
Why does Darwin credit Empedocles for the principle of natural selection?
Empedocles first observed and thought about the idea of natural selection in that characteristics randomly and by chance combined to produce different combinations of things - some with advantages which survived and some that did not survive
Who was Democritus? What were his major contributions/ideas?
Democritus followed Empedocles in timeline
his most distinguished idea was ATOMISM
he represents the PEAK of first period Greek philosophy, he was a religious skeptic and natural historian
Who is known as the peak of first period Greek philosophy?
Democritus was most noted for his interest in the natural world for its own sake - a natural historian
Describe atomism - who is responsible for this idea?
Democritus learned and popularized atomism from his teacher, Leucippus, and became a prominent atomist and religious skeptic
atomism:
- atoms are infinite in number and shape
- qualities of matter derive from the number, size, shape and motion of the atoms in which matter is composed
basically, without atoms, everything would be reduced down to nothingness or dust - conservation of matter
Describe Democritus’ idea of biology?
he didn’t accept Empedocles’ 4-element model, but:
life = soul and the soul is made up of fire atoms
respiration brings in a fresh supply of soul atoms from the air and soul atoms are being released from the body constantly
sleep, asphyxia and death caused by a loss of soul atoms
sensory perception is a result of the movement of atoms from the perceived object to the perceiver - the soul atoms from the perceiver interact with atoms of the object
believed that brain was organ for thought, heart for courage and liver for sensuality
What was a unique biological belief of Democritus’ in regards to human organs?
he believed that the human brain was the organ for thought and the heart for courage
Who was the first to take scientific interest in animal anatomy? how did they do this?
Democritus - by dissecting animals
What type of animals did Democritus have the highest regard for?
insects - he thought they had the perfect body plans
Why is Democritus thought of as a religious skeptic? why did this cause issues for atomism?
did not believe in divine beings
believed that an impersonal necessity and natural law is what governs the world
atomism was often associated with atheism because of Democritus’ skepticism, so often atomism was rejected even though they were and are logically separate
What are 4 major limitations of first period Greek science?
- no hypotheses or experiments designed to test hypotheses - just observations
- some beginnings of atomic theory in chemistry but was not pushed passed atomism
- Empedocles’ 4-element model was the furthest ‘physics’ got to understanding forces and energy
- dogmatic (principles/ideas stated, taught and accepted as true/undeniable)
Which ancient Greek is associated with the Greek medical tradition?
Hippocrates (460-361 BC)
Prior to Hippocrates, what was Greek medicine like?
focused on religion and magical cures
Who were Asclepiads? How did one become an Asclepiad?
secular healers such as Hippocrates
the only people who could become an Asclepiad were sons of Asclepiad fathers
Describe the life of Hippocrates
460-361 BC (lived at the same time as Empedocles and Democritus - likely Thales was too early)
born on the ancient Greek island of Cos to an Asclepiad father
travelled to the Balkans and Asia Minor
Practiced medicine on Cos and Thessaly
became famous in his day and legends were created in his name
