How did the Scientific Revolution reflect humanistic ideals?

Need to know as quickly as it can be answered! Please and thank you! 🙂

Answer
? Favorite Answer

  • The th century Scientific Revolution broke new ground in the understanding of the physical world.; Ancient Greek, Arabic, and medieval European philosophers were handicapped by lack of instruments and were unable to verify their ideas by observation and experimentation. They relied upon authority figures from the Church and from the ancient world. Aristotle, Ptolemy and St. Augustine, among others, were considered to be the sources of truth. Medieval painters and sculptors were not interested in portraying the physical reality of this world. Rather, they were concerned with expressions of religious belief. In a largely illiterate world, pictures told a story where words could not.

    The Renaissance involved a different attitude about the world, one which focussed upon the human being rather than the gods, a humanistic natural viewpoint as opposed to a supernatural one. This change in attitude was essential to the scientific revolution.

    Also essential was a deepening skepticism about religion and about authority figures of the past. The invention of the printing press, the development of vernacular languages, the continued growth of a literate middle class in urban areas produced larger numbers of people who were not willing to blindly accept the teachings of the Church and its clergy; rather, they read the Bible and came to their own understanding. This increase in independent thinking among the intellectual elite of Europe was expressed in the Renaissance and in the Protestant Reformation. The Church was being challenged as the fountain of wisdom and the center of authority.

    An important aspect of the advances made in science in the th century was the invention of instruments of measurement.. As early as , a Dutchman, Zacharias Jannsen produced a compound microscope employing a double convex and a double concave lens. In , Galileo, hearing of a similar Dutch idea useful for seeing objects at a great distance, developed a telescope which he used initially to observe ships approaching port. When he turned the telescope to the heavens, he found great numbers of stars which were not visible to the naked eye. He was able to distinguish the moons of Jupiter and to make other fine discriminations. His latest version magnified the view by , times.

    See also  Question about the Humanist movement?

    Another important component needed for scientific progress was an improved knowledge of mathematics. The introduction of logarithms, the invention of the slide rule, and the development of a decimal system had been accomplished by the beginning of the th century. Algebra and geometry were among the essential foundations. These tools, mathematics and instruments of measurement and observation, permitted science to develop as a pursuit independent from philosophy.

    The continuing and increasing overseas voyages undertaken by Europeans in the th and th centuries created a demand for more accurate map-making. In a long life devoted to cartography, Mercator developed the”Mercator” projection and, in , issued a world atlas. An increasing knowledge of geography widened the horizons of knowledge for Europeans.The need to improve navigation stimulated developments in mathematics and astronomy.

    Significant progress was also made in the study of botany. A systematic classification of plants was carried out, and governments and universities sponsored the development of botanical gardens. In about , an obscure plant, the potato, was brought from Peru to Spain. The Spanish aristocrats who performed that service could hardly have been aware of the revolutionary consequences. The potato would, in subsequent generations, become a major source of food for Europeans, and contribute substantially to an unprecedented increase in population.

    In astronomy, Copernicus had begun a revolution by stating, as early as , that the sun, not the earth was the center of the universe. Although this theory was largely rejected at the time, and Copernicus had not been able to produce sufficient evidence to decisively refute the Ptolemaic theory, it stimulated doubt and later investigation. When Galileo, a century later, could observe the solar system with his telescope, he provided conclusive evidence in support of the Copernican theory.

    The man who has come to symbolize this age of scientific progress was an absent-minded professor by the name of Isaac Newton. Working as a scholar at Cambridge University, he combined experimentation with mathematics, and pulled together the works of several of his scientific predecessors and colleagues, to establish a comprehensive explanation of the physical laws that govern gravitation and astronomy.

    See also  What's the history of cake pops?

    Source(s): http://www.sunysuffolk.edu/westn/science.html

  • Other Related Questions

    WhAt ShOuLd I nAmE mY cHaRaCtErS?

    Answers Favorite AnswerNaming a character should feel like a parent naming their children. You wouldn't give that task to anyone else (least of all strangers). I'm guessing you don't feel that strongly about your story.. Jane Jennings. Mr. Wang. Bill Harting. Landon . Rachel . Charlie Lincoln. Ethan. Jane Jones, Jissle, Jankles, Jeels, Joles, Jamago,James. (I made all of these, other than Jones & James, up xD). Mr. Barker, Mr. James, Mr. Hudson, Mr. Lang.. Reg, Benson, Jacob, Kane.. Daniel, Sam, Aaron, Cameron, Justin.. Belle, Wella, Susie, Anne.. Cameron, Justin, Ben, Nathan, John, Jonathan.. Harold, Ken, Quinn, Samuel, Dan, Brad. Hope I helped! I do know I re-used the names, sorry they just fit with the description. :)Source(s): My brain.

    Whether attitude depends life experience or your life experience constitutes your attitude ?

    Answers Favorite AnswerGood question. Attitude is the base. Attitude helps in engaging in action, which builds experience, experience in turn enriches the basic attitude and people become more experience and so on.Life experiences form the person you are today of which your attitude is a reflection. Life experience is good and bad meaning your attitude can reflection of specific recent or recurring events. Both to your question because attitude depends on also how you deal with random events that occur.I think, Natural Attitude,Taking the Coaching with the Experiences, and Dancing Accordingly, with the Changing STEPS, with the Better Dance or with the Worst Dance Steps, Depending on the Personal Attitude of the Understanding of the DANCES.Attitude comes down to thinking and belief choices Balaji.Good Luck.Best Wishes.Mars Mission Soon In A Galaxy Near Yours..Source(s):Studies..Sure it can. I could handiest feel down for a whilst, but after the clouds are cleared, i'll proceed my existence as natural. I no longer dwell in the past dangerous expertise, as an alternative be taught from it. The sector is giant, so why stay at that one factor and not moving on. I is also equipped to experience something quality.It is like asking "what was first, Read more

    See also  What do you believe will happen on the th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide?
    Which is the more important legacy for Classical Athens, the democracy or philosophy?

    Which is the more important legacy for Classical Athens, the democracy or philosophy? Why? Which legacy had the greatest influence on western culture?Democracy by far. Nowadays everybody favors democracy it seems (save a tiny but growing minority of enlightened people) but few even heard of Plato, Aristotle etc.Its democracy made an impact on the Western Culture. Its values and philosophy of Plato and Aristotle had influenced the world and particularly the theory of democracy.Favorite AnswerDemocracy by far. Nowadays everybody favors democracy it seems (save a tiny but growing minority of enlightened people) but few even heard of Plato, Aristotle etc.Its democracy made an impact on the Western Culture. Its values and philosophy of Plato and Aristotle had influenced the world and particularly the theory of democracy.

    Would you please give me your opinion of which words should end this chapter?

    conversation-type novel: This may seem weird, not knowing what was previously written.Dear Wayne, Interesting launch for a Vietnam story. No ambushed patrol or shoot 'em up. Just that odd sign, the Kraits, and the black pajama boys to get out attention, then I was there; this is my story. You have my vote. I'll read on. Signed, Jerry PetersonDear Wayne, Okay the snakes and the prophetic sign gave me a serious case of the heebie-jeebies. You get my vote for most powerful images. - signed, Jennifer HDear Jennifer, Highway traffic gives me the heebie-jeebies. Do you catch my drift? Snakes, leeches, scorpions, and enemies that rustle the leaves- they all have a degree of logic, or a conscience of sorts, and they, whether they intend to or not, they give us early warning signs. -But those of you who drive on the highways are the bravest people on Earth. Why? You face dangers on a daily bases, more than just days of your life - which was my tour in Vietnam. And you face those highway dangers, knowing full well, there are no early warning signs. When a tire blows-out on the highway or a truck driver goes to sleep Read more

    Leave a Comment