Background:

• The scientific revolution was brought about by a medical worldwide dissolution.

• Medieval scholars had made use of Aristotle, Galen, and Ptolemy. Their accurate rendering of rocks, plants, animals, and human anatomy established new standards for the study of natural phenomena.

• New problems such as accuracy calculating the tonnage of ships started arriving. This made it so most technological advancements of that time were made outside of universities. Inventions of things such as the printing press and telescopes happened now.

• Another factor in the origins of the scientific revolution was magic. Renaissance magic was an international elite group from all of Europe; they believed in the spark of divinity and humans who had this spark could do magic.

A Revolution in Astronomy

• The greatest achievements in the 16th century were in the fields of astronomy, mechanics, and machine.

• The views of the later middle ages were built on the ideas of Aristotle, and as a result, the universe was seen as a series of concentric spheres with Earth motionless in its center, and everything rotating around It.

• This concept did not satisfy many astronomers, and that is when Nicholas Copernicus came in. He studied math and astronomy and came up with the sun-centered conception.

• This shift from earth-centered to sun-centered raised questions about Aristotle's theories.

• Galileo taught mathematics in one of Europe's universities. He discovered the craters on the moon, the four moons revolving around Jupiter, the phases of Venus, and sunspots. He confirmed that the universe was made of the same earth-like things.

• One of Galileo's problems was the principle of motion. Most people believed an object remained at rest until a force was applied to it. They also believed that if there is a force being applied it would stay constant and if the force was taken away the object would slowly stop moving.

• Newton's research helped with these theories. He began his work on gravity and motion after he accepted his chair of mathematics at the University. Newton was considered one of the last magicians. Newton's major work was the Principia or the laws of motion.

Advances in Medicine and Chemistry

• This was the smallest field in the revolution. Late medicine was dominated by the Greek physician Galen. His influence was on anatomy, physiology, and disease. Galen relied on animal dissection, instead of humans. He also formed some of the functions of the body such as there are 2 separate blood vessels. He used traditional herbal medicine for all his treatments.

• Paracelsus, Andreas, and William Harvey are the three main people associated with the change in the 15th century.

• Paracelsus was the first one to discover that the cure to the poison can be found within the poison itself.

• Vesalius studies medicine in Paris. He was a professor of surgery. He published a book on the body. His hands-on approach to anatomy was changing and helped fix some of Galen's crucial errors.

• William Harvey's reputation rests solely on his book on the motion of the heart and blood. He showed the heart as a starting point of blood flow and not the liver and the fact that the blood makes a complete circuit as it passes through the body. This theory laid the foundation of modern physiology.

Women and Modern science

• Women interested in science had to get a largely informal education. European nobles, however, had easy access to the resources they needed.

Margaret Cavendish

• Margret Cavendish was known for her debates on science for her time. She wrote a number of works of scientific matters, including observations over experimental philosophy.

• Maria Merian is a good example of female involvement in the scientific revolution. She represented the difficulties women face in being accepted in scientific work.