Damian Cain
World History 4G
Scientific Method during the Renaissance
October 6, 2017
Have you ever wondered how science became one of the most popular beliefs of how the world works? The scientific method and science all together started to take off during the mid 1500s, some of the people that had a large portion in advancing science were Galileo and Isaac Newton, although there were others that made large advancements too, such as Robert Boyle and Hans Janssen. It was around the mid 1500s that science really began to take off. Galileo, Boyle and Isaac Newton were some of the better known scientists of that time. During this time the Church had more control of what the people saw, and they didn’t agree with science, but with the
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He invented the telescope and saw Jupiter's moons. He was also one of the first people to begin development of the scientific method. The scientific method is a method for determining how certain things work, first you hypothesise, then you experiment and observe, after that you check the results and redo the experiment to test it’s accuracy.
Sir Isaac Newton contributed to science near the end of the Renaissance. He made many huge advancements, such as his three laws, and gravity. He also began a form of early chemistry, called alchemy in his time. Newton's first law is that an object in motion will remain in motion or an object at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force. His second law states that . His third law states that for every object a force of motion acts upon everything no matter where it is.
Sometime around 1560, Hans Janssen and his son Zacharias created the first working microscope, magnifying things up to nine times the original size. Later on, however, Anton van Leeuwenhoek created a new microscope using glass beads, rather than tubes, that made the microscope increase 200 times their original size. Around the same time microscopes were being invented, Francis Bacon’s philosophies of experimentation and observation were being accepted and used by other scientists, further contributing to the evolution of
Isaac Newton discovered gravity when an apple had fallen on his head. He then began to think about how the apple had fallen onto his head and thus Newton’s three laws of motion were created. Newton’s first law of motion is an object in motion tends to stay in motion; an object at rest tends to stay at rest, unless another force is acted upon it. Newton’s second law of motion is about the formula for force, which is force= mass*acceleration. Newton’s third law of motion is for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Furthermore, Isaac Newton created the three laws of motion.
Sir Isaac Newton made an enormous amount of contributions to the world of physics. He invented the reflecting telescope, proposed new theories of light and color, discovered calculus, developed the three laws of motion, and devised the law of universal gravitation. His greatest contribution to physics was the development of the three laws of motion. The first law was called the law of inertia; this law stated that, “Every object persists in its state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed upon it.” The second law is called the law of acceleration; this law stated that, “Force is equal to the chan...
Isaac Newton, (1642-1727) was an English scientist and statesman. Although his views were thought to contradict the bible he was the only man of these three which proved his views to be true. He discovered gravity and the laws of motion. He stated that, 'every particle in the universe is attracted to every other particle by a force that is directly related to the product of their masses and inversely related to the squares of the distance between them.
Since Bacon and others pushed for a more empirical approach, numerous discoveries have been made. During this scientific revolution throughout the 16th century was categorized with big advances such as the making of new lenses by Galileo, Kepler and Huygens leading to new information about the stars and space, Magellan circumnavigating the earth, Columbus discovering the Americas, Gutenberg’s printing press advancing literature rapidly, and a religious reformation by Martin Luther that changed the church indefinitely (Graham, 2009). The scientific revolution continued far into the 17th century which was categorized with major findings in mathematics with Leibnitz and Newton independently discovering Calculus, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek discovered bacteria, William Harvey published his findings on the circulatory system, Newton’s laws of motion, and continued work on understanding the universe (Wikipedia Selection for schools – 17th century, 2008/9). The 18th century saw the invention of the steam engine which opened up the way for steel production, the discovery of photosynthesis, and the spinning jenny leading to the industrial revolution (Wikipedia Selection for schools – 18th century, 2008/9). More inventions and discoveries epitomized the 19th century which saw m...
Antoni and Hook were known for the development of the microscope. Before Antoni improved the microscope, the microscope could only magnify objects 20 or 30 times their natural size. Antoni, a Dutch lens-maker, learned to grind a lens that magnified over 200 times. One of Antoni’s inspirations came from a publication by Robert Hooke’s book Micrographia. In this book the term cell was used to describe the basic unit of a structure in plants and animal life. Hooker wrote about his observations through various lenses. Newton was the most important figure in the scientific revolution because of his book the Principia. In this publication Newton describes the universe and its guidelines. In this he created the universal law of gravity and its mathematical equation. He demonstrates that every object exerts an attraction to a greater or lesser degree on all objects. The Principia led to the creation of the Royal Society in
...ld of algebra and physics. His inventions add to his legacy as well, especially the improved telescope. The telescope allowed for many new opportunities for astronomers. His pet door was somewhat revolutionary as well, and it is an invention currently still used by millions today. Newton was an idol of success and proof that hard work and passion equals greatness. He also proved that anything is possible, even with restrictions.
"The growth of commerce and industry led to the technological advances, which in turn stimulated, and were stimulated by science.” (p. 403) The European scientific revolution was fueled by the blending of “liberal” and “servile” arts, in other words, science and technology. Because of the European expansion taking place throughout the world, new commerce and industries were advancing, creating the need for new technology and science. The theories and inventions that Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton provided were the first major advances during the scientific revolution, and perhaps were the most profound.
Wolf, A. A History of Science, Technology and Philosophy in the 16th and 17th Centuries. Vol. 2. New York: Harper, 1959.
Ancient Greek philosophies were also used in this era, and the scientific method and an empirical observation of the natural world were key concepts. Mathematics was more factual than ever, and knowledge was systemized to the greatest extent there ever had been (HST 318 Lecture: The Scientific Revolution). Practical experience was regarded tremendously, and Humanism, a system which focused on the nature of the human, rather than on that of a deity or ruler, came into effect. Humankind was united to find its relation to nature (HST 318 Lecture: The Scientific Revolution). Also, the Gutenberg press, the precursor to modern-day printers, was invented. The main problem that stood in the way of questioning and furthering practical knowledge was the restrictions placed by the religious bodies of the time. The greatest force which challenged the blockade on free inquiry was the Protestant Reformation, when the Protestants split apart from the Catholics. However, in doing so, this conversely restricted free inquiry, since the Church felt attacked. Needless to say, in the long run this controversy paid off by granting more freedom all around, but during the Scientific Revolution itself, it raised bitterness (HST 318 Lecture: The Scientific Revolution). An example of the unwillingness of the Church of the time to accept change was in the case of the rotation of the
The Scientific Method, as it is called, has existed for quite some time. Throughout human history scientists and mathematicians have followed the basic rudiments of the Method, although they were seldom documented and rarely followed the Method exactly. The term 'Scientific Method' was first coined by Italian doctor Francesco Redi in the late 17th century, following his experiment which disproved the spontaneous generation of maggots on decomposing trash. He first observed that maggots seemed to 'magically' form on decomposing meat, and hypothesized that this was not true. In his experiments, he had three pieces of meat, one in an open container, one in a container w...
History has brought many influential scientists. Sir Isaac Newton is perhaps the most influential scientist of all time. Without his works and discoveries, mankind might have been set back many decades or even scores in scientific and technological advancement. Therefore, because of his tremendous impact on mankind, it is important to study Sir Isaac Newton's life and acheivements.
Wolf, A. A History of Science, Technology and Philosophy in the 16th and 17th Centuries. Vol. 2. New York: Harper, 1959.
Many Renaissance scientists developed new techniques to further progress the understanding of human biology. Some Renaissance scientists also used current philosophies and techniques to learn more about human biology. First, the many theories about how the plague spread were overturned by renaissance scientists. Second, Roger Bacon showed how important experiment and reason are. Finally, Vesalius used the human body to learn about biology.
Throughout the Renaissance Era, the Christian faith was looked up upon highly and was followed by a majority. Scientist’s of that era recognized the church as the one thing that was the truth. “[It’s] as well to say that Christ was not born a virgin”(Bellarmine p.g. 34). “The motion of the heart was only to be comprehended by God” (Harvey p.g. 45). Both Bellarmine and Harvey believed in God. So when they found evidence that proved what the church said, they tread carefully. “The universe is a mechanical system in mathematical terms.” (Descartes p.g. 46). Descartes found proof that the earth was not the center of the universe but the sun was. This caused these men to proceed with caution.
He conducted experiments on sunlight and prisms. He discovered that sunlight was made up of different colors. This lead to his work on reflecting telescopes. At the same time he was working out his ideas of planetary motion. He returned to Cambridge in 1667 and became the a fellow, earned his MA and the following year became the chair of the math department. he then wrote a book on optics. Newton worked cooperatively wiht other scientists such as Robert Hookeand Edmund Halley on planetary motion. But he was later bitter and resentfull not wanting to give other any credit for their contributions to his work. Newton went on to serve in government positions such as a member of Parliament and later as Warden of the Mint. His only words spoken as a member of parliament were "shut the window." He had a mental breakdown of sorts resulting in thoughts of persecutiojn mania later in life.