Scientific Revolution

How did the Protestant Reformation and discovery of the New World influence the Scientific Revolution?

They led to major changes and people began to question everything.

What is the Scientific Revolution?

It is the rejection of consensus and the idea that science involves false starts.

What challenges exist with using the term 'revolution' in the context of the Scientific Revolution?

Revolution typically implies war or violence, but this revolution rejects consensus.

Who was Ptolemy and what was his impact on Western astronomy?

He created the Geocentric model of the universe.

What are epicycles?

Small circular orbits that follow around much larger orbits around the earth.

What is retrograde motion?

An optical illusion of a planet appearing to go backwards.

What is heliocentrism?

The theory that the sun is at the center of the universe.

What is geocentrism?

The theory that the earth is at the center of the universe.

Who was Nicolaus Copernicus and what did he accomplish?

He wrote 'On the Revolutions of Heavenly Spheres' and developed the theory of heliocentrism.

How did Copernicus' cosmology address the problems with Ptolemy's model?

He created a sun-centered system that explained retrograde motion without complex epicycles.

Who was Tycho Brahe and what was unique about his cosmology?

He believed everything revolved around the earth but thought planets orbited the sun.

Who was Johannes Kepler and what did he accomplish?

He was a student of Brahe who embraced Copernicus' ideas and wrote 'Mysterium Cosmegraphicum'.

What was unique about Kepler's cosmology?

He embraced elliptical orbits.

How did Kepler incorporate Plato's five solids into his cosmology?

By nesting them within each other to create a geocentric model for the six known planets.

Who was Galileo Galilei and what did he accomplish?

He used a telescope to discover celestial bodies and phenomena such as moons of Jupiter and sunspots.

Who was Isaac Newton and what did he accomplish?

He wrote 'Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy' and formulated the three laws of motion.

What are Newton's three laws of motion?

1. An object at rest stays at rest; 2. F=ma; 3. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

What is gravity?

A force that attracts two bodies towards each other.

What is the concept of 'nature as mechanism'?

Nature operates like a machine.

Who was Francis Bacon and what did he accomplish?

He is known as the Father of Empiricism and encouraged philosophers to 'Be Like the Bees'.

What was Bacon's chief criticism of the scholastics?

He believed they did not challenge themselves.

What is empiricism?

The theory that knowledge is gained through experience and observation.

What was Bacon's recommendation for studying nature?

To gather materials and transform them, like bees.

Who was Rene Descartes and what did he accomplish?

He invented analytical geometry.

What is deductive reasoning?

Going from many premises to one specific conclusion.

What is inductive reasoning?

Going from one premise to many universal conclusions.

What is the foundation of Descartes' philosophy?

'I think therefore I am' and the method of skepticism.

What are Descartes' two categories of the world comprehensible by human reason?

Mind and body.

Who was Thomas Hobbes and what did he accomplish?

He wrote 'Leviathan' and supported absolute monarchy.

What is Hobbes' primary political argument in 'Leviathan'?

To choose strong virtuous men to make decisions for everyone's benefit.

What is the 'state of nature'?

The natural state of man without society.

Who was John Locke and what did he accomplish?

He wrote 'Treatise on Government' and argued that government is not necessary but makes life easier.

What is Locke's primary political argument in the Second Treatise of Government?

Government is legitimate only when based on the consent of the governed.

What is Locke's argument in 'Essay Concerning Human Understanding'?

Each individual is a tabula rasa, or blank slate at birth.

What were the new 'institutions of sharing' that emerged during the Scientific Revolution?

The Royal Society of London.

What was the limited role of women in the Scientific Revolution?

Women had traditional education and were not expected to attend college.

Who was Margaret Cavendish and what did she accomplish?

She critiqued the Royal Society's reports and was invited to join the society.

Why were women typically excluded from education during this time?

There was a belief in a significant difference between men's and women's minds.

What challenges did the new science present to religion?

Issues of agreement, authority, and morality.

How did Galileo's trial highlight tensions between science and faith?

It demonstrated the conflict between the heliocentric model and the church's geocentric teachings.

What was Galileo's understanding of how the Bible should be interpreted?

The Bible should not be interpreted literally.

How did Blaise Pascal attempt to reconcile reason and faith?

He tried to prove God's existence using mathematics.

What was Francis Bacon's 'two books' approach?

Science and religion can coexist.

Why did Europe experience witch hysteria between 1400-1700?

A combination of social, economic, and religious factors.

How can witch hysteria be explained in light of the Scientific Revolution?

It occurred in areas with little education and where the Scientific Revolution had not reached.

Why did witch hunts decline towards the eighteenth century?

Due to growing skepticism about evidence, shifts in legal attitudes, and a desire for greater control by authorities.