The document discusses key scientific questions and revolutions throughout history, highlighting figures such as Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton who contributed to our understanding of the universe. It emphasizes the shift from geocentrism to heliocentrism and the development of laws governing planetary motion. Additionally, it touches on the unity of science, exploring the challenges and fragmentation in modern scientific knowledge.

1. Big Questions in Science

2.  Scientific revolutions
 Copernicus: the Solar System
 Newton: gravity
 Today's idea of unification
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3. • Oldest still working planetarium in the world, 1774-1781.
• Reproduces the motion of the planets around the sun in real time.
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4. The mechanism
http://www.planetariumzuylenburgh.com/CZ/Collectie_Z/Globes/Blaeu/Blaeu_EN.htm
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5. • Medieval science (12th century renaissance): trust in human reason
• Humanism of Renaissance:
• Challenge Aristotle Technique: bridges, cathedrals,
• New neoplatonic ideas fountains, optics, cartography,
• Methodology machines
• Value of technique
• Other factors: cities, trade, voyages, warfare.
Artificio de Juanelo, 16th century Toledo, Spain
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificio_de_Juanelo

6. • Applying the machine
principle everywhere in
science: animal bodies
as complex machines.
• Discovery of new worlds
in the large and small
scales: the universe is
huge and packed.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strasbourg_astronomical_clock

7.  Galileo showed all machines based on lever
principle.
 Kepler applied it to the planets (second law).
“My aim is to show that the machine of the
universe is not similar to a divine animated
being, but similar to a clock.”
 Galilei: also falling stones tick like a clock.
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8.  Atoms.
 Cartesian geometry.
 “Most of the major steps forward in mechanics during
the seventeenth century involved the contradiction of
Descartes” (Westfall). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_Descartes
http://800millionparticles.blogspot.nl/2009/09/rene-descartes.html
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http://www.redorbit.com/education/reference_library/space_1/universe/2574692/geocentric_model/

11. http://astronomy.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=203863
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12. Explanation of retrograde motion
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14.  Ptolemaic Model Simulation
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15. Heliocentric model: Sun at the center Big Questions in Science, fall 2012. SdH, AUC 15

16.  Planetary Orbit Simulator: Kepler’s First Law
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17. Phases of Venus
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18. Jupiter and its satellites: Saturn’s rings Sunspots
Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto
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19.  Planetary Orbit Simulator: Kepler’s 2nd & 3rd
Laws
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20. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Newton-Principia-Mathematica_1-500x700.jpg
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21.  Why does the Moon not fall on Earth?
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22.  It is in constant fall but direction keeps changing.
Kepler’s laws follow
The Moon should behave asBig Questions in physical 2012. SdH, AUC instance an apple.
any other Science, fall object, for 22

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27.  Read the first page of Kuhn’s “Revolutions as
Changes of World View”.
 What does he mean by “scientists see… different
things”, “scientists are responding to a different
world”?
 Give examples (dealt with in class and not dealt
with in class).
 Explain how the gestalt experiment relates to this.
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28. http://www.platypusart.com/
 Clockwork universe
 Ptolemy geocentrism
 Copernicus: heliocentrism
 Gelileo: moons of Venus, Jupiter's satellites,
Saturn's rings, sunspots
 Kepler's laws
 Newton unifies heavens and earth: law of
gravity
 Scientific revolutions
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29. The Unity of Science
 Goal: unity of knowledge.
 Place of science within the pursuit of truth.
 Common to modern science, Greek tradition,
Enlightenment.
 Unity of science can no longer be taken for
granted:
 Exponential growth of factual knowledge.
 Increasing specialization and fragmentation.
 Skepticism towards grand unifying schemes.
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30.  Big Question: what justifies our belief in the
underlying unity of knowledge?
 Interdisciplinary approach assumes this.
Disciplines are communicating vessels.
 Success of LAS program hinges on this
assumption.
 Possible answer: reductionism. Everything
can be reduced to physics.
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31.  Reduction still the goal in the natural
sciences.
 Explain new kinds of phenomena:
complexity, pattern formation, emergence,
self-organization, information.
 New paradigm includes cultural and social
dimensions of natural science.
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32.  Ethics, cosmos, logos:
 Man is central to the stage of science
(Kuhn’s revolution).
 Complexity of the world rooted on order
accessible to human enquiry and
experimentation.
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33.  Education should reflect both order and
complexity of nature.
 Approach problems from a multitude of academic
disciplines.
 Adopt and adapt different methodologies.
 Aim at synthesis.
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