History of science

Modern science is a body of verifiable empirical knowledge, a global community of scholars, and a set of techniques for investigating the universe known as the scientific method. The history of science traces these phenomena and their precursors back in time, all the way into human prehistory.

The Scientific Revolution {{seemain1|Scientific Revolution}}

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Modern science in Europe began in a period of great upheaval. The Protestant Reformation, the discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus, the Fall of Constantinople, the Spanish Inquisition, but also the re-discovery of Aristotle in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries presaged large social and political changes. Thus, a suitable environment was created in which it became possible to question scientific doctrine, in much the same way that Martin Luther and John Calvin questioned religious doctrine. The works of Ptolemy (astronomy), Galen (medicine), and Aristotle (physics) were found not always to match everyday observations. For example, an arrow flying through the air after leaving a bow contradicts Aristotle's laws of motion, which say that a moving object must be constantly under influence of an external force, as the natural state of earthly objects is to be at rest. Also, work by Vesalius on human cadavers also found problems with the Galenian view of anatomy.

Related Topics:
Europe - Protestant Reformation - Americas - Christopher Columbus - Fall of Constantinople - Spanish Inquisition - Martin Luther - John Calvin - Ptolemy - Galen - Aristotle - Arrow - Aristotle's laws of motion - Vesalius - Anatomy

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The willingness to question previously held truths and search for new answers resulted in a period of major scientific advancements, now known as the Scientific Revolution. The Scientific Revolution is held by most historians to have begun in 1543, when De Revolutionibus, by the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, was first printed. The thesis of this book was that the Earth moved around the Sun. The period culminated with the publication of the Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica in 1687 by Isaac Newton.

Related Topics:
Scientific Revolution - 1543 - De Revolutionibus - Polish - Nicolaus Copernicus - Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica - 1687 - Isaac Newton

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Other significant scientific advances were made during this time by Galileo Galilei, Christiaan Huygens, Johannes Kepler, and Blaise Pascal. In philosophy, major contributions were made by Francis Bacon, Sir Thomas Browne, René Descartes, and Thomas Hobbes. The basics of scientific method were also developed: the new way of thinking emphasized experimentation and reason over traditional considerations.

Related Topics:
Galileo Galilei - Christiaan Huygens - Johannes Kepler - Blaise Pascal - Francis Bacon - Thomas Browne - René Descartes - Thomas Hobbes - Scientific method

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