WHAT IS SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION??
By
dictionary’s definition, revolution means “a
radical and pervasive change in society and
the social structure”. The Scientific Revolution (1543 - 1687) was a period of
time in which many breakthrough discoveries were made in science and
philosophy, as well as a time in which the Europeans’ mindset of the universe
was changed forever.
Many
hundred years ago (11th to 14th Centuries), during The
Middle Ages period, life was so different from the type of life you and I are living
in now. Their lives were different from ours in many aspects; namely society,
religion, way of life, culture and more.
Religion
played a huge role in the Middle Ages. In Europe
during that time, the only religion ever known was Christianity, of which it
was in the form of Catholiticism. Church dominated the lives of the people, be
it you’re a farmer, a rich man or a king. They were all highly influenced and
controlled by the Church.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
The
problem started when the Church (the most powerful institution in the world
back then) claimed that all the other planets revolve around us – Earth. The
Church felt that the image of “man” should define the world, hence they
preached to the world that Earth is in the centre, and that they ruled the
world. This concept is known as the Geocentricism. We all know this can’t be
true, as we have already learnt about how other planets revolve around Earth,
in primary school science.
So
who saved the day and shed some light on this false idea? Scientists did,
namely Nicolaus Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, Francis Bacon and Isaac Newton. They took note of inadequacies of standard
theories and began questioning them. They were also interested in what was
known as “magic” (did you know it was seen as a serious science!); these
sciences contributed to the outpouring of new ideas, the questioning of the old
theories and the use of math. Also, another cause of the Science Revolution was
the European’s interest in technology. With new instruments and devices (printing
press, telescope often made for other purposes), many of the new discoveries
was made possible
.
.
what the church thought the solar system was
WHO? WHAT? WHEN?
1. Nicolaus Copernicus (1475 – 1543)
Copernicus
studied both astronomy and mathematics. He was always a careful Mathematician
and a faithful Christian too. He was doubtful of the geocentricism and was the
brave one that published a book based on his ideas.
*FUN
FACT: Copernicus’ brother was a priest, his sister a convent nun
2. Galileo Galilei (1564 -1642)
Galileo
was the most successful scientist of the Scientific Revolution, except perhaps,
Isaac Newton. He studied physics, specifically the laws of gravity and motion,
and did you know Galileo’s the man who invented the telescope and microscope we
often see nowadays? He eventually combined his laws of physics with the
observations he made with his telescope to defend the Heliocentric (sun is at the
centre) concept. Upon the publication of his masterwork, he was reprimanded by
the Catholic Church and sentenced to house arrest in 1633, where he remained
until his death in 1642.
*FUN
FACT: Galileo didn’t complete his medical degree, he decided to switch to
Mathematics instead
3. Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
Bacon
was one of the great philosophers of the Scientific Revolution. His thoughts on
logic and ethics in science and his ideas on the interaction of the various
fields of science, have remained influential in the scientific world
till this day.
*FUN
FACT: Bacon is believed, by some to be the author of the plays, to be accredited
to William Shakespeare
4. Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Probably
the most influential scientist of all time, Newton took the initial theories on astronomy
to a greater level and formulated a reliable, comprehensive model of the
workings of the universe based on the law of gravity. He explained his theories
in the 1687 revolutionary work, often called simply the Principia. His
work also went along way toward developing calculus (a method of calculation in
Mathematics).
*FUN
FACT: Newton
almost became a farmer; he was born on Christmas
SO HMMM OUT OF THE 4 GREAT MEN, WHICH DO YOU
THINK MADE
THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTION? :D
IMPACTS - POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE?
As
mentioned earlier on, when the scientists started having doubts about the
geocentric concept, the general public’s trust and dependency upon the church
was challenged, and this led to various positive and negative impacts:
POSITIVE:
Well
it was a positive outcome for the rest of the society who did not conform to
the belief of the church – a new discovery and increased knowledge. The people
at that time finally had the freedom to deviate from established theories,
which increased new developments. Next, the scientists were “accomplished”, causing
other scientists (who were previously fearful of proving something) were then
inspired; they felt more confident, more creative, and finally had more freedom
to be skeptical about things around them. Scientific revolution also led to great
leaps of improvements in medicine
NEGATIVE:
Churchmen
started to have doubts over the church; religious people now have doubts about
the existence of heaven and hell (what they believed in). The church’s unity
was permanently destroyed and many members of the church left; religious people
couldn’t depend on the church as their refuge anymore, too. Lastly, people
living during this era of scientists, like Galileo, were not able to enjoy the
fruits (benefits) of their discoveries completely, as the full extent of their
discoveries could only benefit the future generations.
ALL IN ALL
Scientific
Revolution was simply a period of time of optimism that gave way to an Age of
Reason in the 18th century. We won’t be enjoying many of the privileges we have
right now if it weren’t for the scientists of that time :)
Anyway
thank you so much for visiting my blog, I really hope I have conveyed all that
I can about Scientific Revolution and its main concepts to you guys! Think
you’ve understood all about Scientific Revolution and would like to test your
knowledge? Try a quiz here! http://myquizcreator.com/take/6422
HAVE A NICE DAY :)
word count: 1015 words (excluding picture captions)
