philo sec 1

what is science

science is a systematic way of studying the world through observations and testing explanations with evidence

what are two ways science can be understood

science is both a body of knowledge and an activity

what was considered the final source of truth in the western world before the scientific revolution?

christianity, specifically, catholicism

what is nicolaus copernicus responsible for?

the heliocentric model of the solar system, which states that the planets revolve around the sun

which islamic astronomer influenced copernicus

Al-Battani

who is considered the father of modern science

Sir Francis Bacon

what book did francis bacon write, and when

Novum Organum in 1620

what did francis bacon believe was the best way to discover truths about the world

through direct observation and experimentation

what is empiricism

the belief that our physical senses are the primary source of knowledge

what is objectivity

the belief that we can study the physical world as an object outside ourselves without bias

what is subjectivity

the idea that our subjective experiences and biases influence how we study the world

what is materialism

the belief that everything in the universe is made up of the same physical matter

why is materialism important to science

because science relies on observable things, and only physical things are observable

what is predictability

the assumption that the world is orderly and predictable and that established casual relationships will continue to hold

what is unity

the assumption that the universe has an underlying unified structure governed by the same natural laws