European Scientific Revolution - Past is Present▕ European History The European Scientific Revolution was the emergence of modern science during the early modern period, when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology, medicine, and chemistry transformed views of society and nature. According to accounts, the scientific revolution began in Europe towards the end of the Renaissance era and continued through the late 18th century, influencing the intellectual social movement known as the Enlightenment. The science of the middle ages was significant in establishing a base for modern science. The renaissance enabled a scientific revolution which let scholars look at the world in a different light. Religion, superstition, and fear were replaced by reason and knowledge. Despite some challenges to religious views, however, most notable figures of the scientific revolution—including Nicolaus Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, Francis Bacon, René Descartes, Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz— were devout in their Christian faith. Some scholars see a direct tie between Christian metaphysics and the rise of science. This period saw a fundamental transformation in scientific ideas across mathematics, physics, astronomy, and biology in institutions supporting scientific investigation and in the more widely held picture of the universe. The European Scientific Revolution led to the establishment of several modern sciences. In 1984, Joseph Ben-David wrote: Rapid accumulation of knowledge, which has characterized the development of science since the 17th century, had never occurred before that time. The new kind of scientific activity emerged in Europe. Many contemporary writers and modern historians claim that there was a revolutionary change in world view. In 1611 the English poet, John Donne, wrote: [The] new Philosophy calls all in doubt, The Element of fire is quite put out; The Sun is lost, and th'earth, and no man's wit Can well direct him where to look for it. The scientific revolution was not marked by any single change. The following new ideas contributed to what is called the scientific revolution: The replacement of the Earth as center of the universe by heliocentrism. Deprecation of the Aristotelian theory that matter was continuous and made up of the elements Earth, Water, Air, and Fire because its classic rival, Atomism, better lent itself to a "mechanical philosophy" of matter. The replacement of the Aristotelian idea that heavy bodies, by their nature, moved straight down toward their natural places; that light bodies, by their nature, moved straight up toward their natural place; and that ethereal bodies, by their nature, moved in unchanging circular motions with the idea that all bodies are heavy and move according to the same physical laws. Inertia replaced the medieval impetus theory, that unnatural motion ("forced" or "violent" rectilinear motion) is caused by continuous action of the original force imparted by a mover into that which is moved. The replacement of Galen's treatment of the venous and arterial systems as two separate systems with William Harvey's concept that blood circulated from the arteries to the veins "impelled in a circle, and is in a state of ceaseless motion." Many of the important figures of the scientific revolution, however, shared in the Renaissance respect for ancient learning and cited ancient pedigrees for their innovations. Nicolaus Copernicus (1473--1543), Kepler (1571--1630), Newton (1642--1727), and Galileo Galilei (1564--1642) all traced different ancient and medieval ancestries for the heliocentric system.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_revolution

• published: 05 Nov 2013
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