History of science

Question 1

______ is the unifying theory of biology

Answer 1

EVOLUTION

Question 2

What is the received view of who invented modern science? What is the reality?

Answer 2

• generalized view that modern science was invented in Europe in the latter half of the renaissance
• the reality is that modern science is the result of global exchanges of ideas and methods

Question 3

Why did the cold war/soviet union complicate the question on “Who invented modern science”?

Answer 3

• Cold war results in an influence of science, military weapons and scientific ideas skyrocketed.
• When the S.U. launched Sputnik, the West raced the put the first man on the moon.
• this lead to the West claiming they invented modern science and claimed ownership over the origin, officially breaking ties with science from Europe
• However, soviets claimed that communist science was more advanced, and made a break with pre-revolutionary science

Question 4

How are natural theories distinct from myths?

Answer 4

Natural theories: Rely on processes in the natural world, are evidence based, can be tested, and are not reliant on a belief system

Myths: Rely on supernatural phenomena, not evidence based, cannot be tested, rely on a belief system

Question 5

What does “Necessity made everyone a biologist” in reference to prehistory means?

Answer 5

• in prehistory, people had to have basic understandings of migration cycles, biological phenomenon, animal behavior, anatomy, and disease prevention.
• all these contributed to how long a person lived and how successfully they lived

Question 6

What is a prehistorical medical procedure that has roots in modern science? Why was it done? What does it tell us in general?

Answer 6

• Trepanation, drilling a hole into the skull
• it was believed to get rid of demons, but in reality it decreases welling in the brain and relieves pressure.
• in general, edges of the hole in the skull were rounded, which showed evidence that the person survived the procedure.

Question 7

When was the starting point of agricultural history?

Answer 7

• the holocene

Question 8

How did agriculture change societies?

Answer 8

• while farming is more labor intensive than hunting-gathering, and changes a culture from nomadic to sedentary, it can yield more calories and supports high population growth
• with agriculture, societies became far more complex and radically changed the way society operated

Question 9

When was the origin of written language?

Answer 9

3200 BCE