What did The Scientific Revolution Bring to the European World?

Humans and Nature during the Scientific Revolution The Scientific Revolution took place in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It was not a "revolution" in the classic sense as it did not involve rapid political changes nor large numbers of people, but it was revolutionary in the sense that it completely changed people's way of thinking and their outlook on the world we live in. It was definitely one of the most important events in history as it marked the birth of modern science. With the Scientific Revolution, man became more curious about nature. He wanted to learn more about natural phenomena and the mechanisms of nature, and he also adopted a new method for the study of nature.

The Impact of the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment on the West The Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment period were both a time of immense growth in scientific discovery and an increase in the secular view of the world. The Scientific Revolution would include the use of direct observation and experimentation, dependence on mathematical confirmation, and inventions to test new scientific discoveries (Kwak). The new discoveries of the Scientific Revolution led the growing number of literate middle class individuals in the Enlightenment period. This growth of enlightened individuals led to more intellectual and cultural attitudes that shaped modern history throughout the world (Fiero, 134).

Shapere, Dudley. “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.” The Philosophical Review 73, no. 3 (Jul., 1964): 383-94. Accessed March 11, 2014. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2183664.

Transitions of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment Periods The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were times of great emphasis on reason and questioning of faith. The scientists and philosophes of these eras discovered and taught new ideas that often contradicted what the church and former thinkers had taught and believed before them. Most of the intellectual, political, economic, and social characteristics associated with the modern world came into being during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.1 During the Scientific Revolution, people began to question beliefs that they had always taken for granted. Scientists changed people's views of the world they lived in through discoveries such as the theory of the heliocentric universe. During the Enlightenment, philosophes challenged beliefs formerly held by the church and government by insisting that human reason would lead to the solution of all problems.

The Enlightenment was a turning point in European history because of the breakthroughs in scientific discovery that led to new beliefs in human nature and the differing opinions between religion. The first important development that led to the origins of the Scientific Revolution was the creation and establishment of universities. The Scientific Revolution was the breakthrough that led into the start of the Enlightenment. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, discoveries about intellectual thought created the modern worldview we possess today. Scientific and mathematical thought was the way of thinking during these centuries and the Scientific Revolution used modern science. “In the eighteenth century philosophers extended the use

Scientific Revolution The Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, was an intellectual and cultural movement in the 17th and 18th centuries. It concentrated on reason, logic, and freedom over blind faith. During this time more and more people reject absolute authority of the church and state. The driving force of the enlightenment across Europe and England came from a small group of thinkers and writers that are known today as “philosophes.” The English Enlightenment differed from other European countries, like France.

Pancaldi, G. (2003) Volta: Science and Culture in the Age of Enlightenment. Princeton, NJ, 2003.

Henry, John. (2001). The scientific revolution and the origins of modern science. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Publishing

Discuss the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment along with the subsequent reaction as embodied by the Romantic movement. Give specific examples of how these movements affected the arts. What was their eventual impact on the western intellectual world.

Famous scientists that are still honored today for their work, such as Galileo’s telescope discoveries and Isaac Newton’s motion laws were created during the Scientific Revolution of the seventeenth century. The new understanding of science allowed people to comprehend their world surroundings. The intellects, on the other hand worked on the understanding of one’s self. Philosophers, like Descartes and Locke noticed concepts such as rationalism, which inspired people of this time to create their own identity and embrace the “blank mind.” As scientific reason and education were honored during these two revolutions, Europe went through an intellectual change that brought greater understanding to their world’s principles and themselves as