Term Paper

The Enlightenment period was a culture movement where philosophers, historians, theologians, and scientist alike began to redefine society. Isaac Newton, prominent for his scientific research, set up the framework for this period as nearly every scientific discovery followed his principles. So what had begun by the likes of scientists Newton and Galileo during the Scientific Revolution of the 17th century, gave way to the popularization of science by the 18th century. By the mid-18th century, Franklin, with the help of philosophy, pushed the envelope further than any professional during this period; he challenged widely held beliefs, including his own, by applying the scientific method and employed skepticism. For this reason, science influenced people across various fields to vet their knowledge on the natural world.

One of the most prominent scientists and leaders that came out of the 18th century was Benjamin Franklin. He became famous during the Enlightenment period for not only his theoretical work on the properties of electricity, but he was also respected for his signature writing style. Yet, he couldn’t have developed his techniques in science without the help of philosophers, specifically, J.T. Desaguliers. Desaguliers analyzed Newton’s perplexing principals and came out with a simplified version, “Experimental Philosophy”, which helped Franklin self-educate himself. From this and other philosopher’s nontechnical expositions on Newton’s theories, Franklin gained clarity on the Newtonian principles. Furthermore, Franklin became familiar with the “Newtonian respect”, meaning that he should carefully perform experiments that would later be accurately reported. Therefore, Franklin is celebrated for his style of effective ...

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...blic lectures in the mid-18th century, a diversifying and inquisitive audience enthusiastically welcomed scientist’s theories. For these reasons, a scientist defending their position became easier than ever: not only was a scientist’s work published for a broader audience but an audience also witnessed first-hand the scientist’s experiments. Yet, it’s also important that during this era, some of the major discoveries from scientific investigation wouldn’t have been possible without philosophers. Scientists were the people that put the speculative truths and theories of the era to the test through the use of experimentation. Because of the widespread popularity and enthusiastic acceptance of new knowledge in experimentation, as well as having Newton’s legacy as a framework in this time period and with the help of renowned philosophers, scientist had it pretty good.