HSC 201 - Final Exam Vocab

Vocabulary from the whole semester. 12 of these will be on the Final Exam.

Nicholas Copernicus

• (1473-1543)

• Believed the sun was at the center of the universe, everything is still in rings

Isaac Newton

• (1642-1727)

• Gravity, mathematical physics

• Combines Galileo and Kepler's physics

• Active alchemist

Camille Flammarion

• (1842-1925)

• Created the original (wrong) narrative of the sci rev

• French astronomer and author known for his popularization of science. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy, particularly in the study of Mars and comets. He also wrote several influential books on astronomy and science fiction.

The Flat Earth Myth

• Wrongly depicted the earlier scientists as believing the earth was flat

• "clearly they couldn't know what we know"

Regiomontanus

• 1496

• Proves we’ve known the Earth was a sphere

Aristotle

Greek philosopher who was a student of Plato. Known for his work in fields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics. Developed the concept of the golden mean and the theory of the four causes. Thought of the universe as geocentric with harsh rings

Ptolemy

Ancient Greek astronomer and mathematician. Proposed the geocentric model of the universe, with Earth at the center and celestial bodies orbiting around it. Solved the retrograde problem with epicycles.

Aristotle’s Four Causes

• Material (what it was made of)

• Formal (what had to be done to it)

• Efficient (what job worked on it)

• Final (purpose for existing)

Retrograde Motion

Apparent backward movement of a planet in its orbit when observed from Earth. Caused by differences in orbital speeds and distances. Ptolemy “solved” this with epicycles.

Deferent and Equant

The equant was a point near the center of a planet's orbit which, if you were to stand there and watch, the center of the planet's epicycle would always appear to move at the same speed. Therefore, the planet actually moved at different speeds when the epicycle was at different points on its deferent.

“Preserves the Appearances”

People still believed Aristotle's pretty rings so everyone tried to keep them pretty

Andreas Osiander

• Wrote the foreword in Copernicus's book and basically called it bullshit.

• German theologian and early supporter of the Protestant Reformation.

• He is known for his controversial work on the preface to the first edition of Nicolaus Copernicus' book "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium," where he added a disclaimer suggesting that the heliocentric model was merely a mathematical tool and not a representation of physical reality.

Tycho Brahe

• (1546-1601)

• Geoheliocentric model

• Wealthy and owned Uraniborg

• Danish astronomer

• Accurate and detailed observations of the stars and planets

• Developed the Tychonic system, a hybrid model of the universe

• Discovered a supernova and a comet

• Influenced Johannes Kepler's laws of planetary motion

Comet of 1577

• Complicated things because comets are not permanent

• Proved comets existed beyond the moon

Tychonic Astronomy

• Geocentric model where the Sun and Moon orbit the Earth, and the other planets orbit the Sun.

• Proposed by Tycho Brahe in the 16th century.

Johannes Kepler

• German astronomer and mathematician who formulated three laws of motion

• Defended copernicanism

• Music of the spheres

• Asked what was between the planets

Galileo Galilei

• Compass and telescope

• Found craters on the moon

• Artist engineer

• The Galileo Affair

  • Around the book Dialogue by Galileo (1632)

  • Characters defined Ptolemy, Copernicus, and a middle ground

  • A conversation between the three

• Galileo honors Copernicanism in his Dialogue which makes people not too happy

• Role within the Church (wants science to be apart from it)

  • He is taken to court and called "suspicious" about supporting Copernicus

• "Father of Modern Science"

  • Followed the characteristics of math, science, and religion

  • Demonstrates that science is objective

Music of the Spheres

Ancient belief that celestial bodies create a harmonious sound as they move through space. Thought to reflect the mathematical relationships and harmony in the universe. Influenced early theories of music and astronomy.

Pythagoras

Mathematician known for the Pythagorean theorem, which states that in a right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides. Also worked with music and astronomy.

Practical Mathematics

Building things and being "logical"

Galileo and the Telescope

Found that the moon was not perfect :(

René Descartes

• French philosopher and mathematician

•  mechanical philosophy

• Corpuscles take up extra space

• Vortex theory- early thoughts of gravity.

Algarotti’s Newtonianism for Women

Theory by Francesco Algarotti promoting women's education in science during the Enlightenment. Advocated for women to study Newtonian physics to enhance their intellectual capabilities. Emphasized that women were capable of understanding complex scientific concepts and should have access to scientific education.

The Air Pump

Created the first vacuum and proved that there could be empty space.

Robert Boyle

Creator of the Air Pump

Miracle at Magdeburg

Famous people came to see the air pump at work

Leonardo di Vinci

• Italian Renaissance artist known for his paintings, such as the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, as well as his inventions and scientific discoveries.

• Automatons

• Party trick as an engineer

Patronage System

• Wealthy people paid people to do whatever they wanted.

• Paid for a lot of scientific discoveries and inventions

Automaton

• Automatic things

• Party tricks

Artist-Engineers

• 'practicalities' (math before math was math) were tied up with art

• These were actual academies, not like Galileo with his apprenticeship

• Mathematical books had pop up geometry (math had to be learned practically) and you would have to DRAW THINGS (sketches)

• Artist-engineers were kind of together, however they could eventually be separated. The gen-eds were the same.

• Mid 16th cent.

Humanism

• Focused on the study of the human person from a mechanical and artistic way

• came from Greek/Roman studies

• many mathematicians used the people's love for learning about the human body to make a reason to study math 

• people liked classical study

Hippocrates

• Greek physician known as the "Father of Medicine."

• Believed in the importance of observation, natural causes of disease, and the body's ability to heal itself.

• shaped the way that medicine worked before the scientific revolution (460-370 BCE)

Galen

wrote many biology textbooks about early medicine (129-216)

Pliny

wrote a natural history which was basically a biology textbook

The study of plants in the Scientific Revolution

plants were studied so much because they were a part of everyday life as a part of food or a type of medicine.

Andreas Vesalius

wrote a human anatomy textbook and was a teacher who wanted to spread the knowledge so he wrote On the Fabric of the Human Body

Dissection prior to the Scientific Revolution

mainly just a proctor sitting above a lecture hall and a butcher cutting up the body as directed.

Georg Bartisch’s Opthamology

 a book about the human body parts that included little pop ups and layers of the eyes on the pages

Christoph von Hellwig’s Anatomy of life

Another interactive textbook

Astrology

the study of how the planets interact with the human body

planetary conjunctions (double or triple)

when two + celestial bodies get really close to each other. Used in astrology for an important occasion

Zodiac Signs

12 constellations that circle the sun with the earth

Judicial Astrology

astrology that commanded the attention of military generals and officials

Medical Astrology

medicine based off of planetary positions

Alchemy

Organized study of matter and how it works

Compounds

matter made of multiple substances

Particulars

things that you can only make into certain things

Universals

matter you could make into anything

Philosopher’s Stone

a legendary stone that was a universal

‘the art is long, but life is short’

Newton (and other alchemists) would record his data because it would outlast his lifetime. Also, he could only put together so many things, so they had to be calculated

Recipe Books

books that listed ingredients for the different alchemy processes

Licit Magic

legal magic like alchemy

Illicit Magic

illegal magic like black magic, hexes, curses

Natural Magic

magic of natural forces

Printing Press

Invention that revolutionized the spread of knowledge by using movable type to print multiple copies of books and documents.

standardized text (or ‘typographical fixity’)

The term for consistent formatting and layout in printed materials, ensuring uniformity across different copies.

wood block (for printing)

A traditional printing technique where a design is carved into a wooden block, which is then inked and pressed onto paper or fabric to create a print. Wouldn’t last as long as copperplate engraving and was less detailed, but was less expensive

copperplate engraving (for printing)

Intaglio printmaking technique using a metal plate (usually copper) to create fine, detailed lines. The design is incised into the plate using a sharp tool. Ink is applied, wiped off the surface, and transferred onto paper using pressure. Known for its precision and richness in detail.

print culture in the scientific revolution

The widespread use of printing presses during the Scientific Revolution, enabling the rapid dissemination of scientific knowledge and ideas. This facilitated the exchange of information among scientists, leading to advancements in various fields and the development of the modern scientific method.

The Dark Ages

• 500-100

• Religious influences holding back the development of culture and intellectual development

• There were things happening in the dark ages, but in the 50s (and earlier) there was the idea that there was no development happening

Petrarch

• (1307-1374)

• Created the idea of the "dark ages"

• Amidst the misconceptions after the humanism movement, there were smart people who were surrounded by incorrectness

• So much of the knowledge of classical authorities came through word of mouth that news was new

• The use of gloomy words creates the idea of the DARK ages

• created the idea of the Darkness of the medieval period and the lightness of humanism and Greco-Roman ideas

Enlightenment and Scientific Societies

• Came after scirev

• Adopted the new discoveries

• "light" ages

Historiography

 "the study of history"; "the study of how history is told"

The “Warfare Thesis”

"there MUST have been a war between the church and science because why else would they repress it during the Dark Ages"

Royal Society of London

• Lots of religious turmoil in England

• People came together for the sake of the common good of the state

• You needed to be respectable and of a higher social standing

• You had to be elected to get in, monarchy was not involved

• (1660)

Royal Academy of the Sciences

• Very similar to british one

• King Louis XIV would visit and engage

  • He recognizes that it is valuable to be there

• (1666) French

The Dark Ages

• 500-100 ish

• Religious influences holding back the development of culture and intellectual development

• There were things happening in the dark ages, but in the 50s (and earlier) there was the idea that there was no development happening