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Chapter 7:
FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO THE DAWN OF SCIENCE

Zeitgeist (1350–1700)

Introduction

This chapter covers the time from the end of the Middle Ages to the dawn of science, a period of over 400 years.
Heliocentrism ― the astronomical model in which the planets revolve around the Sun in elliptical orbits.

The Renaissance

The Renaissance

Erasmus (1467–1536)
Erasmus was one of the first to take full advantage of the power of the printing press and was the first author to enjoy the benefits of a mass market.

Figure 7.1

The Reformations

Martin Luther (1483–1546)
Luther’s use of the printing press, printing in Latin and German, allowed others to learn of his ideas quickly.
The precipitating event for Luther’s revolt was the sale of indulgences, a long-standing practice in the Roman Catholic Church.

The Reformations

The Counter Reformation
The Roman Catholic Church set up a new mechanism, the Index of Prohibited Books. Anyone caught reading or possessing a book on that list could be labeled a heretic.
Another mechanism was the establishment of the Roman Inquisition in 1542 by Pope Paul III.

The Rise of Science

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543)
His only major work, On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres, was published in 1543 just before his death.
In his book, Copernicus switched the positions of the earth and sun, placing the sun at the center of the universe.

Figure 7.2

Figure 7.3

The Rise of Science

Tycho Brahe (1546–1601)
His hybrid system was a less radical modification of Ptolemy’s and was, thus, more palatable to astronomers than was copernicus’s.

Figure 7.4

Figure 7.5

The Rise of Science

Johannes Kepler (1571–1630)
He disliked Ptolemaic theory because of its complexity, lack of neatness, and dependence on a variety of hypothetical devices (e.g., epicycles, deferents, and equants).
He published a book detailing his model the Mysterium Cosmographicum (The Mysteries of the Universe).
Kepler took Brahe’s precise observations and interpreted them mathematically.

Figure 7.6

The Rise of Science

Galileo (1564–1642)
The book, Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, was published in 1632. His punishment was house arrest at his home near Florence.
While under house arrest, Galileo wrote his last book, Discourses and Mathematical Demonstrations Relating to Two New Sciences. It he covered his life’s work including technologies, the physics of motion, the strength of materials, and acceleration.

Photo 7.1

Religious Intolerance

Isaac Newton (1643–1727)
His theory of universal gravitation along with his co-discovery of a new kind of mathematics, the calculus, would change physics and science itself forever.
De Motu (On Motion), explained the reason why the planets moved as Kepler had described.
Within a few years of publishing De Motu, Newton published his greatest scientific work, the Principia Mathematica.