AP World 18.3
The revolution in science, culminating in the 17th century, set the seal on the cultural reorientation of the West. Although the Scientific Revolution most obviously affected formal intellectual life, it also promoted changes in popular outlook. At the same time, after the political upheavals of the Reformation, a more decisive set of new government forms arose in the West, centering on the emergence of the nation-state. The functions of the state expanded. The Western nation-state was not a single form, because key variants such as absolute monarchies and parliamentary regimes emerged, but there were some common patterns beneath the surface.
Did Copernicus Copy?
This is a chapter about big changes in western Europe during the early modern period. Big changes are always complex. One key development was the rise of science in intellectual life. A key first step here was the discovery by the Polish monk Nicolaus Copernicus, in the 16th century, that the planets moved around the sun rather than the earth, as the Greeks had thought. This discovery set other scientific advances in motion, and more generally showed that new thinking could improve on tradition. Copernicus is usually taken as a quiet hero of western science and rationalism.
Copernicus based his findings on mathematics, understanding that the Greek view of earth as central raised key problems in calculating planetary motion. Historians have recently uncovered similar geometrical findings by two Arabs, al-Urdi and al-Tusi, from the 13th and 14th centuries. Did Copernicus copy, as Westerners had previously done from the Arabs, while keeping quiet because learning from Muslims was now unpopular? Or did he discover independently? It's also worth noting that scientists in other traditions, such as Chinese, Indian, and Mayan, had already realized the central position of the sun.
What is certain is that based on discoveries like that of Copernicus, science began to take on more importance in Western intellectual life than had ever been the case in the intellectual history of other societies, including classical Greece. Change may be complicated but it does occur.
Science: The New Authority
During the 16th century, scientific research quietly built on the traditions of the later Middle Ages. After Copernicus, Johannes Kepler (1571-1630; Figure 18.3) was another important early figure in the study of planetary motion. Unusual for a major researcher, Kepler was from a poor family; his father abandoned the family outright, and his mother was once tried for witchcraft. But Kepler made his way to university on scholarship, aiming for the Lutheran ministry, but he was drawn to astronomy and mathematics. Using the work of Copernicus and his own observations, he resolved basic issues of planetary motion. He also worked on optics and, with the mixed interests so common in real intellectual life, also practiced astrology, casting horoscopes for wealthy patrons. Also around 1600, anatomical work by the Belgian Vesalius gained greater precision. These key discoveries not only advanced knowledge of the human body but also implied a new power for scientific research in its ability to test and often overrule accepted ideas.
A series of empirical advances and wider theoretical generalizations extended the possibilities of science from the 1600s onward. New instruments such as the microscope and improved telescopes allowed gains in biology and astronomy. The Italian Galileo Galilei publicized Copernicus's discover- ies while adding his own basic findings about the laws of gravity and planetary motion. Condemned by the Catholic Church for his innovations, Galileo proved the inadequacy of traditional ideas about the universe. He also showed the new pride in scientific achievement, writing modestly how he, "by marvelous discoveries and clear demonstrations, had enlarged a thousand times" the knowledge pro- duced by "the wise men of bygone ages." Chemical research advanced understanding of the behavior of gasses. English physician William Harvey demonstrated the circular movement of the blood in animals, with the heart as the "central pumping station."
These advances in knowledge were accompanied by important statements about science and its impact. Francis Bacon urged the value of careful empirical research and predicted that scientific knowledge could advance steadily, producing improvements in technology as well. René Descartes established the importance of a skeptical review of all received wisdom, arguing that human reason could develop laws that would explain the fundamental workings of nature.
The capstone to the 17th-century Scientific Revolution came in 1687, when Isaac Newton published his Principia Mathematica. This work drew the various astronomical and physical observations and wider theories together in a neat framework of natural laws. Newton set forth the basic principles of all motion (for example, that a body in motion maintains uniform momentum unless affected by outside forces such as friction). Newton defined the forces of gravity in great mathematical detail and showed that the whole universe responded to these forces, which among other things explained the planetary orbits described by Kepler. Finally, Newton stated the basic scientific method in terms of a mixture of rational hypothesis and generalization and careful empirical observation and experiment. Here was a vision of a natural universe that could be captured in simple laws (although increasingly complex mathematics accompanied the findings). Here was a vision of a method of knowing that might do away with blind reliance on tradition or religious faith.
The Scientific Revolution was quickly popularized among educated westerners. Here was a key step in the cultural transformation of western Europe in the early modern period. New scientific institutes were set up, often with government aid, to advance research and disseminate the findings. Lectures and easy-to-read manuals publicized the latest advances and communicated the excitement that researchers shared in almost all parts of Europe. Beliefs in witchcraft began to decline and magistrates grew increasingly reluctant to entertain witchcraft accusations in court after about 1670. There were growing signs of a new belief that people could control and calculate their environment. Insurance companies sprang up to help guard against risk. Doctors increased their attacks on popular healers, promoting a more scientific diagnosis of illness. Newsletters, an innovation by the late 17th century, began to advertise "lost and found" items, for there was no point leaving this kind of problem to customary magicians, called "cunning men," who had poked around with presumably enchanted sticks.
By the 1680s writers affected by the new science, although not themselves scientists, began to attack traditional religious ideas such as miracles, for in the universe of the Scientific Revolution there was no room for disruption of nature's laws. Some intellectuals held out a new conception of God, called Deism, arguing that although there might be a divinity, its role was simply to set natural laws in motion. In England, John Locke argued that people could learn everything they needed to know through their senses and reason; faith was irrelevant. Christian beliefs in human sinfulness crumbled in the view of these intellectuals, for they saw human nature as basically good. Finally, scientific advances created wider assumptions about the possibility of human progress. If knowledge could advance through concerted human effort, why not progress in other domains? Even literary authorities joined this parade, and the idea that past styles set timeless standards of perfection came under growing criticism.
Science had never before been central to intellectual life. Science had played important roles in other civilizations, as in China, classical Greece, Central America, and Islam. Europe's science built in fact on continuing contacts with work in the Middle East. But while the West was not alone in developing crucial scientific ideas, it now became the leading center for scientific advance. Its key thinkers stood alone for some time in seeing science as the key to gaining and defining knowledge.
Summary:
The 17th-century Scientific Revolution fundamentally transformed Western culture by establishing science as a central authority in intellectual life, marked notably by Copernicus's heliocentric theory, Galileo's laws of motion, Kepler's work on planetary orbits, and Newton's formulation of natural laws, which together challenged traditional worldviews and influenced emerging societal norms, government structures, and religious beliefs such as Deism.
The Scientific Revolution and Cultural Transformation
Overview: The Scientific Revolution of the 17th century significantly transformed Western culture, impacting not only formal intellectual life but also popular outlooks.
Nation-State Emergence: Post-Reformation political upheavals led to the rise of the nation-state, characterized by diverse government forms like absolute monarchies and parliamentary regimes, with expanded state functions.
Key Figures and Discoveries
Nicolaus Copernicus:
Discovered that the planets orbit the sun, challenging the previous geocentric view.
Used mathematical foundations to calculate planetary motions.
Historical Contributions: Arab mathematicians al-Urdi and al-Tusi also contributed to similar findings, suggesting a complex interplay of knowledge across cultures.
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630):
Continued Copernicus's work, resolving planetary motion issues, and practiced astrology.
Origin came from a challenging background, winning a scholarship to study.
Galileo Galilei:
Championed discoveries of planetary motion and the laws of gravity.
Faced condemnation from the Catholic Church for his findings, highlighting conflict between science and religion.
William Harvey:
Discovered the circulation of blood, emphasizing the role of the heart as a pump.
Development of Scientific Methods
Francis Bacon: Advocated for empirical research and predicted steady advancements in scientific knowledge and technology.
René Descartes:
Emphasized skepticism and rational thought in understanding nature.
Argued for human reason's capability to discover natural laws.
Isaac Newton (1687):
Published Principia Mathematica, integrating previous astronomical and physical theories into natural laws.
Defined gravity and motion principles, solidifying scientific methodology—a blend of rationality and empirical observation.
Impact on Society
Cultural Shift: The Scientific Revolution spurred the establishment of scientific institutions and public lectures to disseminate knowledge and findings.
Decline of Superstition: Beliefs in witchcraft waned as magistrates became reluctant to prosecute witchcraft.
Practical Applications: Innovations like insurance companies emerged, leading to greater societal changes.
Questioning Religion: Many began to challenge traditional religious beliefs; Deism emerged, positing that God merely initiated natural laws.
Shift in Human Perception: John Locke posited that knowledge is derived from sensory experience and reasoning, portraying human nature as fundamentally good.
Conclusion
Overall Significance: The Scientific Revolution positioned Europe as the leading center of scientific thought, reshaping intellectualism and the nature of knowledge, while forming critical views on tradition and faith.