The Scientific Revolution
Introduced| English | Meaning |
|---|---|
| heliocentric/ˌhelɪəʊˈsentrɪk/ | Describes a model in which Earth and the other planets orbit the Sun. |
| humoral theory/ˈhjuːmərəl ˈθɪəri/ | A historical medical theory attributing health and temperament to the balance of four bodily humours. |
| inductive/ɪnˈdʌktɪv/ | Using particular observations to develop a broader generalisation that may need further testing. |
| deductive/dɪˈdʌktɪv/ | Using general premises to reach a conclusion that follows necessarily if the premises and reasoning are sound. |
Astronomy questioned authority
- New ideas and methods in astronomy led individuals, including Copernicus, Galileo and Newton, to question the authority of the ancients and traditional knowledge, and to develop a heliocentric 日心说 view of the cosmos.
- The CED puts question the authority of the ancients before the heliocentric conclusion.
- So the revolution is first about who decides what is true, and only then about where the sun sits.
The CED puts which claim before the heliocentric conclusion?
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The revolution is first about who decides what is true.
Medicine did the same to Galen
- Anatomical and medical discoveries by physicians, including William Harvey, presented the body as an integrated system, challenging the traditional humoral theory 体液学说 of the body and of disease espoused by Galen.
- The parallel with astronomy is exact: an ancient authority replaced by a result obtained from observation.
- An integrated system is the new model — parts that work together, rather than four fluids in balance.
Induction generalises from observations; deduction derives a conclusion from premises
Harvey's work challenged which traditional theory?
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The body as an integrated system replaced four fluids in balance.
Two ways of reasoning, named
- Francis Bacon and René Descartes defined inductive 归纳的 and deductive 演绎的 reasoning and promoted experimentation and the use of mathematics, which would ultimately shape the scientific method.
- Induction works from many observations toward a general rule; deduction works from a principle toward a necessary consequence.
- The scientific method uses both, and the CED credits the pair jointly rather than either alone.
Follow a method from nature to society
The unit's central move is that a method built for nature gets turned on political and ethical questions.
Match each form of reasoning to its direction.
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The CED credits Bacon and Descartes jointly.
Alchemy and astrology were not a survival that scientists merely tolerated. The CED gives the reason they appealed: they shared with the new science the notion of a predictable and knowable universe. That shared assumption is why the same people could pursue both.
Alchemy and astrology shared with the new science the notion of a ____ and knowable universe.
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That shared assumption is why the same people could pursue both.
Old and new coexisted
- Alchemy and astrology continued to appeal to elites and some natural philosophers, in part because they shared with the new science the notion of a predictable and knowable universe.
- The CED gives a reason for the overlap, and it is a good one: both assume the world follows rules that can be found.
- At the same time, many people continued to believe that the cosmos was governed by spiritual forces.
The CED says the Scientific Revolution ended belief in spiritual forces governing the cosmos.
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False. The CED says many people continued to believe the cosmos was governed by spiritual forces; that is part of the "not unchallenged" of 4.1.
Developed and changed
- The objective is how understanding of the natural world developed and changed.
- Developed: method — observation, experiment, mathematics, and two named forms of reasoning.
- Changed: content — a heliocentric cosmos and a body as an integrated system, both against an ancient authority.
Both a horoscope and a planetary table assume the heavens are regular enough to be calculated. One turned out to describe something real and the other did not, and in 1650 that was the open question — not an obvious difference anyone could have pointed to in advance.
New ideas and methods in astronomy led Copernicus, Galileo and Newton to question the authority of the ancients and develop a heliocentric view. Harvey presented the body as an integrated system, challenging Galen's humoral theory. Bacon and Descartes defined inductive and deductive reasoning and promoted experimentation and mathematics. Alchemy and astrology continued to appeal because they shared the notion of a predictable and knowable universe.