Scientific Revolution
written by: Serena Whitlock
What was the change?
Beginning in the mid-1500s, a few scholars published works that challenged the ideas of the ancient thinkers and the church. As these scholars replaced old assumptions with new theories, they launched a change in European thought that historians call the Scientific Revolution. It was a new way of thinking about the natural world. During the Renaissance, European explores traveled to Africa, Asia and the Americas. Such lands were inhabited by peoples and animals previously unknown in Europe. These discoveries opened Europeans to the possibility that there were new truths to be found.The invention of the printing press during this period helped spread challenging ideas, both old and new more widely among Europe's thinkers.
Who were the people associated with the change?
Nicolaus Copernicus
In the early 1500s, Copernicus became interested in an old Greek idea that the sun stood at the center of the universe. He reasoned that indeed, the stars, the earth, and other planets revolved around the sun. He also knew that most scholars and clergy would reject his theory because it contradicted their religious views. He published his findings until 1543, the last year of his life. He received a copy of his book, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies, on his deathbed.
Johannes Kelper
in 1601, Kelper concluded that certain mathematical laws govern planetary motion. One of these laws showed that the planets revolve around the sun in elliptical orbits instead of circles, as was previously thought. Kelper's laws showed that Copernicus's basic ideas were true. They demonstrated mathematically that the planets revolve around the sun.
Galileo Galilei
Galileo learned that a Dutch lens maker had built an instrument that could enlarge far-off objects.He built his own telescope and used it to study the heavens in 1609. He discovered that the earth's moon had a rough, uneven surface, Jupiter had 4 moons, the sun had dark spots. Galileo's findings frightened both Catholic and Protestant leaders because they went against church teaching and authority. The church did not like him, they questioned other church teachings as well.
How did the change impact the society at the time?
Scholars, generally relied on ancient authorities, church teachings, common sense, and reasoning to explain the physical world.
How is that change evidence in today's modern society?
In time, scholars began to use observation, experimenation, and scientific reasoning to gather knowledge and draw conclusions about the physical world.