The Scientific RevolutionChapter 8, Lesson 1

● “Natural Philosophers”o Middle Ages scientistso Relied on ancient authorities like Aristotle for scientific knowledgeo Old views abandoned when changes occur during 1400s and 1500s

● Renaissance Humanistso Learned Greek and Latino Discovered the works of Plato and Archimedeso Realized that not all ancient thinkers agreed with Aristotle and other

accepted authorities of the Middle Ages

Origins of Scientific Thought

● Technical problems needed observation and accurate measurement to be solved

● Invention of telescope and microscopeo Encouraged direct observationo Led to fresh scientific discoveries

● Printing Presso New ideas spread quickly and easily

Lead Up to the Revolution

● Ptolemaic System (Geocentric)o Model of the universe that was geocentric (Earth placed at the center

of the universe)o Universe is a series of spheres, one inside anothero Earth is fixed in the centero “Heavenly bodies” revolve around the Eartho The last sphere moves itself and makes the other spheres moveo Past the last sphere is Heaven and God

Geocentric vs. Heliocentric

Geocentric Model

● Copernican View (heliocentric)o Created by Nicolaus Copernicus (astronomer and mathematician)o Believed in an heliocentric universe (the sun is at the center of the

universe)o Planets revolve around the sun, moon revolves around the Earth

● Johannes Keplero Observations confirmed that the sun was at the center of the universeo Kepler’s First Law: orbits of the planets around the sun are not

circular (like Ptolemy said), but elliptical (egg shaped) with the sun close to the end of the ellipse

Geocentric vs. Heliocentric

Heliocentric Model

● First European to use a telescope to study the universe and discovers:o Mountains on the Earth’s moono Four moons revolving around Jupitero Sunspots

● Believed in Copernicus and a heliocentric universe● Came under suspicion of the Catholic Church after publishing The Starry

Message and making more Europeans aware of the heliocentric universeo Copernican ideas threatened the Church’s beliefs about the universe

(Earth and humans at the center)● By 1630s and 1640s, most astronomers accept a heliocentric universe

Galileo Galilei

● Professor of mathematics at Cambridge University● Wrote Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy (known as

Principia)o Defined the three laws of motion that control the planets and objects

on Earth● Universal Law of Gravitation

o Explains the elliptical orbits of the planets and all motion in the universe, which is controlled by gravity

o Every object in the universe is attracted to every other object by gravity

● Concept will dominate science until Albert Einstein (early 1900s)

Isaac Newton

● Galeno Late Middle Ageso Used animal dissection to describe human anatomyo Not accurate at all

● Andreas Vesaliuso Dissected human bodies at University of Paduao Accurately described individual organs and structure of the human

body

Medicine and Chemistry

● William Harveyo Showed that the heart was the beginning point for blood circulationo Galen had said that the liver was the beginning pointo Proved that the same blood flows through veins and arteries, making

a complete trip throughout the body● Blaise Pascal

o Pascal’s Law: if pressure is put on a liquid, it will be distributed evenly over all of the fluid

o Led to tools like the syringe and hydraulic press● Robert Boyle

o Boyle’s Law: volume of a gas changes with the pressure it is under

Medicine and Chemistry

● Margaret Cavendisho From an English aristocratic familyo Not formally educated in science, but wrote a number of books about

scientific matterso Critical of the idea that humans were the masters of natureo Published under her own nameo Contributions widely known today, but not taken seriously during her

time period because of her gender

Contribution of Women

● Maria Winkelmanno German astronomero 1650-1710, women made up 14% of German astronomerso Learned from a self-taught astronomero Married Gottfried Kirch, Prussia’s most famous astronomer, and

worked as his assistant o Made original contributions to astronomy (discovered a comet)o Applied to be an assistant astronomer at Berlin Academy

Denied because she was a woman and had no formal degree Feared that hiring a woman would set a bad example

Contribution of Women

● French philosopher● Decided to set aside everything that he knew and begin again● One thing he knew to be without doubt: he existed

o “I think, therefore I am”● Accepted only the things his reason said were true● “The mind cannot be doubted but the body and material world can. The

two must be radically different”o Separation of the mind and bodyo Matter was something that was completely detached from the mind

and could be investigated independently by reason

Rene Descartes

● English philosopher● Created the scientific method

o Procedure for collecting and analyzing evidenceo Based on inductive reasoning: start from the specific and move to the

general● Believed that knowledge of the natural world could be achieved through

observation and experimentation● Thought that human power could conquer and control nature

o Becomes an important concern of science and technology

Francis Bacon

Scientific Method