3. Scientific Revolution
The scientific revolution was the emergence
of modern science during the early modern
period, when developments in mathematics,
physics, astronomy, biology (including human
anatomy) and chemistry transformed views
of society and nature.
4. Before 1500, the Bible and Aristotle were the
only authorities accepted as truth
A geocentric model of the universe, in which
the Earth is at the center was supported
during the Middle Ages
5. Three scientists challenged traditional theories
about the universe and the Greco-Roman idea
that the Earth was the center of the universe:
•Copernicus (mid-
1500’s)
•Galileo Galilei (early
1600’s)
•Isaac Newton (late
1600’s)
New Ideas About the Universe
6. Up to the time of Copernicus, people thought that
there was a sort of crystal sphere the kept the
planets, moon, and stars in orbit around the Earth.
It was Copernicus that proposed the idea that the
Earth revolved around the sun, and not vice versa…
The sun was the center of the Universe, not the
Earth.
Most scholars rejected Copernicus’s theory.
Nicholas Copernicus
8. Nicholas Copernicus and Galileo
Galilei were two scientists who
printed books that later became
banned. Copernicus faced no
persecution when he was alive
because he died shortly after
publishing his book. Galileo, on the
other hand, was tried by the
Inquisition after his book was
published. Both scientists held the
same theory that the Earth
revolved around the sun, a theory
now known to be true
9. Galileo Galilei
The Church punished
him for his belief in
this idea. He was
questioned by the
Inquisition and forced
to confess that his
ideas were wrong.
He built a telescope and became the first man to
use this tool to study the moon and planets. What
he saw made Galileo believe Copernicus's idea that
the Earth was not the center of the universe.
10. Why would the Church
try to prevent this
idea from becoming
popular????
11. The Church disapproved of this
theory because the Holy Scriptures
state that the Earth is at the center,
not the Sun. As the contents of the
Bible were taken literally, the
publishing of these books proved, to
the Church, that Copernicus and
Galileo were sinners; they preached,
through their writing, that the Bible
was wrong.
12. Galileo Galilei
Galileo was an Italian mathematics teacher, astronomer and
physicist, and one of the first true scientists. He used an
experiment to test one of Aristotle’s theories.
Galileo’s
Experiment:
Finds objects of
different weights
will fall at the same
speed (in a
vacuum).
Aristotle’s
theory:
Heavier
objects fall
faster than
lighter ones
13. Question: If you drop a
baseball and a bowling ball
off a ten story building,
which one will hit the ground
first?
17. Newton’s discovery was that the same force ruled
the motions of the planets, the pendulum, and all
matter on earth and in space.
Every object in the universe attracts every other
object. The degree of attraction depends on the
mass of the objects and the distance between them.
Law of Universal Gravitation
18. Newton (1642-1727)
By the mid-1600’s, the accomplishments
of Copernicus and Galileo had shattered
the old views of astronomy and physics.
Isaac Newton brought it all together
under a single theory of motion.
19. How did The Scientific
Revolution change the way
people thought about the
world?????
23. Causes of the Scientific Revolution
Printing press spread new ideas
Age of Exploration fueled a great
deal of scientific research
because of technology needed for
navigation
Translation of the works of
Muslim scholars opened the minds
of European thinkers to new
scientific knowledge
24. Rene Descartes
“I think,
therefore I am.”
•Descartes believed everything should be
doubted until proved by reason. Tradition
should not be accepted as truth.
•Instead of using experimentation, Descartes
relied on mathematics and logic. He linked
algebra and geometry as a new tool for
scientific research.
“The Father of Modern Philosophy”
25. Descartes shifts thinking from
"what is true" to
"of what can I be certain?“
Descartes shifted the
authoritative power of truth
from God to Man.
(While traditional concept of
"truth" implies an external
authority, "certainty" instead
relies on the judgment of the
individual Man)
Rene Descartes
26. The Scientific Method
This new method relied on experimentation and observation rather
than past authorities. It is still used by scientists today.
27. New Inventions of the Scientific Revolution
• Edward Jenner introduced the first vaccine for
smallpox. (inoculation- injecting a germ in the body
to create an immunity).
• Telescope (1608, Dutch) A Dutch glass maker
constructed a primitive telescope. Galileo heard
about it and improved on the design.
• Microscope (1590s, Dutch)
• Barometer (early 1600s, Italian) - measure air
pressure
• Thermometer (1611) for chemical and medical
studies
28. During the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment,
one similarity in the work of many scientists and
philosophers was that they
• Examined natural laws governing the universe
• Received support from the Catholic Church
• Favored an absolute monarchy as a way of
improving economic conditions
• Relied heavily on the ideas of medieval thinkers
29. When all was said and done…
the major thinkers of the Scientific Revolution
(Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Descartes) had
revealed a universe which seemed like a perfectly
run machine, comprehensible by the human mind
and the enlightened scientific understanding it
had now gained.
30. Which statement best describes the effects of the works of
Copernicus, Galileo, Sir Isaac Newton, and Descartes?
Interest in Greek and Roman drama was
renewed.
The English government increased funding for
education
The scientific method was used to solve
problems.
The acceptance of traditional authority was
strengthened
