European History SG - The Scientific Revolution and the Englightenment Flashcards
Aristotle’s universe
motionless earth at the center of the universe and encompassed by 10 crystal spheres that revolved around it and above this is heaven
Physics
sublunar world = earth, 4 elements: air and fire (light elements) and water and earth (heavy elements), can be affected by humans, uniform force moves an object at constant speed until force is removed and object stops
Ptolemy - the universe
planets moved in small circles called epicycles which also moved around a larger circle called a deferent, accurate model for planetary motion
Galen - anatomy/meds
4 humors: blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile, illness = imbalance of humors
natural philosophy
- fundamental questions about the nature of the universe, its purpose, and how it functioned
- what we call “science”
the Medieval University
- basis for curriculum = Greek texts reentering the world through Arabic/Islamic culture
- new professorships = mathematics, astronomy, and optics
- union between mathematics and science
the Renaissance
- patrons funded scientific work
- artists used geometry to create 3D artwork
- texts were rediscovered
technology
- rise of printing
- better instruments for navigation gave rise to experimentation
Which three developments aides the Scientific Revolution?
the Medieval University, the Renaissance, and technology
Nicolaus Copernicus
Key discoveries: the sun is at the center of the universe and copernican hypothesis
What was the name of Copernicus’s famous book, and when was it published?
On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres (1543)
What were the four implications of the Copernican hypothesis?
- stars remained in place while the earth rotated
- universe is “unthinkably” large
- justified his theories through math, not philosophy
- where is Heaven?
Johannes Kepler
German, three laws of planetary motion: 1. orbits around the sun are elliptical, not circular, 2. planets do not move at uniform speed, 3. time of complete orbit is related to its distance from the sun
Galileo Galilei
Italian, experimental method and law of inertia, used telescope to discover Jupiter’s four moons, the Sidereal Messenger (1610)
experimental method
repeatable and controlled experiments rather than speculation
law of inertia
an object continues in motion forever unless stopped by some external force
Why did the Roman Catholic Church oppose Galileo?
The new experimental method questioned established authority because it included learning and investigation. The RCC felt threatened by this, so it outlawed all the books of new scientists.
Isaac Newton
English, tried to find elixir of life (alchemy), law of universal gravitation, centripetal force and acceleration
What famous work did Newton publish in 1687? What is it about?
Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, described Newton’s three laws of motion, using mathematical laws
law of universal gravitation
every body in the universe attracts every other body in the universe in a precise mathematical relationship
“Newton’s synthesis of mathematics with physics and astronomy prevailed until the _______ century and established him as one of the most important figures in the history of science”
twentieth