Scientific Revolution + Human Body Flashcards
(49 cards)
Which types of sciences are considered in the Scientific Revolution?
Mathematics
Physics
Astronomy
What was the major contribution of the Scholastics and other Medieval Scientists? Why was that age not considered revolutionary?
they mostly assimilated Greek and Islamic science into Christian and European frameworks but they didn’t really do a lot of their own direct studies of nature - some of the Medieval scientists outside of the tradition did though like Hildegard and Frederick II
What stimulated science in the 15th and 16th centuries?
Medieval technology
Explain these sentences: ‘Science can exist without extensive technology and technology can exist without science. Science needs literacy, but technology does not.’
Science can exist without extensive technology = the ancient Greeks did science without technology like microscopes and telescopes
technology can exist without science = lots of technology was produced during the Middle Ages that weren’t the product of science because the only literate people were of the Church and the Church didn’t care for technological advancements
Science needs literacy, but technology does not = technology and its uses can be practically or verbally demonstrated, whereas science cannot be
What is the Antikythera device?
An ancient Greek device that was an analogue computer used to calculate astronomical events with gears recovered from a trade vessel shipwreck
What other medieval technology has been important for later science?
grain and milling
stamping of currency on coins
modified catapults and military tech
windmills
wine presses were modified into printers
metals were key for farming in Northern Europe and wood in south
eye glasses
Why did the church lose control of science during the scientific revolution?
because science became established in technology and commerce, rather than written scholarship or the Church as it had been previously
When was the scientific revolution?
15th and 16th centuries (after the Black Plague in the 14th century)
Who initiated the Protestant Reformation?
Martin Luther in the 16th century
What was the Reformation?
the separation of western European Christianity into Catholic and Protestant camps
via anti-authoritarianism, independence of the human mind, and individualism
caused the War of Religion
Who was Martin Luther?
the initiator of the Reformation in the 16th century
Who was Johannes Gutenberg?
in the 15th century, accredited for popularizing the printing press (did not invent it, but made it accessible)
What was the significance of the printing press in the 15th century?
involved movable letters made of durable metal which could be used as stamps (instead of handwriting)
increased accuracy
it was inexpensive (comparatively to handwritten)
increased literacy
allowed for good, informative illustrations to be repeated
altered intergenerational relationships (no longer just received information from previous generation)
allowed for individualism and independent thought
no central authority controlling information - printing shops became prolific (inexpensive investment) = did not need the church
What was coffee’s role in the scientific revolution?
introduced in the 16th and 17th centuries
opposite of alcohol as it clarified the mind
so popular it created a political subculture
Who were the major contributors to astronomy, physics, and mathematics during the scientific revolution?
Copernicus
Johannes Kepler
Galileo
Isaac Newton
Who was Copernicus?
an astronomer in the 15th century who wrote a book on the heliocentric model of the solar system (died before publishing)
known as the guy who ignited the scientific revolution
Who was Johannes Kepler?
an astronomer in the 16th-17th centuries that showed the elliptical orbit of planets (not circular as previously thought)
Who was Galileo Galilei? what did his work emphasize?
an astronomer, physicist, mathematician, philosopher of science in the 16-17th centuries
one of the first Europeans to use a telescope (did not invent) and discovered the celestial imperfections (sunspots, mountains on moon, and Jupiter’s moons) = unveiled the ‘perfection of the heavens’ which Aristotle believed in
he emphasized the importance of mathematics and quantitative science
Who was Sir Isaac Newton?
a 17th-18th century astronomer, physicist, mathematician, philosopher of science
popularized the idea that universe operates according to simple, universal, quantitative laws (parsimony)
explained by the elliptical orbit of the planets
determined the relationship between gravity, sun, moon and the tidal patterns
What influence did Newton’s work have on science? How did this affect historical sciences like biology and geology?
the idea that the universe operates according to simple, universal, and quantitative laws was so successful and powerful that it became the MODEL for what science should be doing
probably caused biologists and geologists to waste a lot of time in search of these universal laws, which have since been realized to not be applicable to historical sciences
Who was Leonardo Da Vinci?
a Renaissance artist from the 15-16th centuries who finished few projects and never published any of his scientific work - not as influential as he could have been
a polymath, painter and illustrator, musician, anatomist
What was Da Vinci’s main influence in biology/medicine?
his incorporation and study of anatomy into his art
he did his own legal dissections to study human anatomy
Who was Andreas Vesalius?
A precocious anatomist in the 16th century
wrote the first accurate high-quality book of about human anatomy ‘On the Fabric of the Human Body’
