Scientific Revolution Flashcards
how did evidence become more important in the sci-rev?
previously ideas were just accepted from textbooks and well respected figures, but now evidence and proof became far more important in new ideas
why did scientists design experiments?
- to establish new discoveries
- proof was essential in order for their idea to be accepted and respected
give an example of Isaac Newton doing an experiment?
- 1675 - royal society in London
- tested his theory of light, specifically of refraction
- used a glass prism
what became increasingly common over 17th C?
patronage of mathematicians and natural philosophers
how would patrons help scientists?
they would fund experiments/research
why were patrons needed?
17th C universities offered no support for those who were interested in new experimental nature
what did Galileo do?
- jan 1610 - used telescope to observe that Jupiter had 4 moons
- published findings in book called Siderius Nuncius
- named moons ‘Medicean starts’ after Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo de Medici
- sought out technological refinement of telescopes
what role did Universities play in sci-rev?
still remained central place of learning and research
what were universities particularly valuable for?
- study of medicine
- e.g. study of anatomy only really available at universities
- anatomy theatres built there
what were universities often the site for? why were these important?
- botanical gardens
- centralised site where people could discuss ideas
how did new world affect sci-rev?
discovery of new world expo did European world both intellectually and logistically
what problem did new world raise?
whether old framework represented by classical texts was still appropriate
what did the expansion of world stimulate?
- development of research
- research was intimately connected to the idea of discovery
what did Athanasius Kircher do?
- produced the first map depicting the world’s oceans currents
- made use of jesuit networks for his research
when were Coperncius findings published?
1543 - 1yr after his death
what were Copernicus findings?
- sun at centre of the universe
- earth + planets orbit it
what was Copernicus’s book called?
on the revolutionary of the Celestial spheres
what was the traditional view about the planets?
- everything orbits the earth
- based on Ptolemy’s views and derived from Aristotle’s work
what did William Harvey discover? when did he discover it?
- circulation of blood
- 1628
- ‘anatomical exercise on the motions of the heart and blood in animals’
what was Harvey’s argument?
- argued human heart serves to pump blood around entire body continuously
- arterial and venous system were 2 components of one larger circulatory system
- previously thought there were 2 separate circuits
how did Harvey prove his theory?
by experimenting on several animals and humans
what happened to Isaac Newton in 1703?
made president of royal society
how did newton contribute to maths ?
- contributed to several new theories and methods
- e.g. differential calculus
what physics breakthrough did Newton make?
- solved gravity puzzle
- 1687 ‘mathematical principles of natural philosophy’
- based on experimental observation
- 3 laws of motion
when was the term ‘scientific revolution’ coined?
1940s
how did original historians see the sci-rev?
- dramatic change in way europeans understood the physical world
- change manifested itself in the way people were thinking about nature
- viewed as an evident and clear break from the past
what did Herbert Butterfield argue?
- scientific developments in 17th C were basis of modern science
- referred to Francis Bacon as ‘father of science’
what have critics argued about the sci-rev?
there was no such thing as it is a misleading term
what did Steven shapin argue?
‘there was no such thing as the scientific revolution
what did John Henry argue?
- no single coherent cultural entity called science underwent revolutionary change in 16th and 17th C
- notion of science only emerged after 1800 - known an natural philosophy before
what did David wooden argue about sci-rev?
there definitely was a sci-rev
what did David wooden argue about modern science?
- modern science invented between 1572 and 1704
- when Tycho Brahe saw a new star and when newton published his book optics
what did David wooden argue about astronomy?
astronomy was transformed in the year after 1572 into the first true science
