The Effects of the Scientific Revolution
Elbert Iliadi
AP European History
November 1 2014
The scientific revolution was one of the most important events of human history. The
foundation of the industrial revolution to the modern technology and society today has its basis on the
scientific revolution. Although there were many important scientific discoveries during that age, hence
the name, what was really revolutionary about the scientific revolution was the shift in how man took a
different approach to understand both scientific and social phenomena. Not only did the scientific
revolution advanced the knowledge of the natural world, but it also fostered ideas in the social sciences
such as politics and economics.
The start of the scientific revolution could be dated in the publications of works by early
astronomers such as Copernicus, Johannes Kepler, and Galileo. The pioneer astronomer who challenged
traditional beliefs regarding the sun and the earth was Copernicus. In fact some historians coined the
scientific revolution as the Copernican Revolution1. In the book “On the Revolutions of the Heavenly
Spheres “published on 1543, Copernicus theorized that Ptolemy’s earth centered theory was not
compatible with his geometric observations and thus his heliocentric (sun-centered) theory gave a
better explanation for the planetary movements.2 Copernicus’s work was a fundamental shift from past
scientists who have always worked and obeyed their authorities. His work influenced a German
astronomer Johannes Kepler. Kepler worked out intricate calculations that validates Copernicus’s
heliocentric theory and shows that the planets have elliptical orbits which made the theory justifiable.3
What Copernicus did to challenge traditional beliefs through his logical observations, Galileo
took a step further by using experimentation for data accumulation. Galileo was one of the first
scientists who realized that experimentation is important in the understanding of natural principles. By
1
Kreis, Steven. "Lecture 10: The Scientific Revolution, 1543-1600." The History Guide. Last modified August 4,
2009. http://www.historyguide.org/earlymod/lecture10c.html.
2
"Science, Scientific Revolution." In The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 17: S - Sn, 146-147. S.l: The World Book
Encyclopedia (International), 1996.
3
Ibid.
using the method of experimentation and analyzing the data from the experiments, Galileo found many
basic principles of mechanics.4 For example, Aristotle had taught that the heavier an object is, the faster
it will fall to the ground. Galileo was skeptical about this theory and set up experiments that proved
Aristotle wrong.5 Another significant contribution made by Galileo was the use of scientific instruments
such as the telescope and the pendulum clock to extend man’s capabilities to find accurate data for
proving conjectures and hypotheses.6
Years later in 1687 another great scientist by the name of Issac Newton published his
“Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy”. The “Principia” represents the integration of all the
works of other astronomers preceding Newton and becomes the basis of physics today. Newton’s work
explained the fundamental laws in which physical mechanics work. This was a revolutionary idea in that
the universe work in a set of fundamental scientific laws. In addition to scientific discoveries, new ideas
about the methods of science also arose during the 1600s by philosophers and mathematicians such as
Newton himself and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz who developed calculus.7 Rene Descartes also proposed
that all sciences should follow mathematics as a model because it was a systematic approach by basing
simple conclusions and moving step-by-step to find other conclusions.8 Thus mathematics became an
important tool to understand and prove these natural laws. It should be noted that the scientific
revolution did not solely advance the fields of physics and astronomy, but it also advanced man’s
understanding of chemistry and biology. Other notable scientists such as Vesalius, Tycho Brahe, William
4
Ibid.
Ibid.
6
HISTORY.com. "Galileo Galilei - Facts & Summary." Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.history.com/topics/galileo-galilei.
7
“Science, Scientific Revolution." In The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 17: S - Sn, 146-147. S.l: The World Book
Encyclopedia (International), 1996.
8
Ibid.
5
Harvey, Robert Boyle, Robert Hooke, Evangelista Torricelli, Alfonso Borelli, and others were also great
contributors in the progression of scientific knowledge. 9
What started with Copernicus and his Heliocentric Theory, it became much more than simply
science and developed into ideas regarding politics and economics. By using the same analytical method
in their approach to science, other scholars developed a systematic approach to understand the aspects
of the social sciences. The first to apply this scientific approach to solving social problems was John
Locke.10 Locke was a major advocate that reason-not faith-was the true source of knowledge and
understanding.11 He believed in the fundamentals of natural rights such as life, liberty, and property and
thus the purpose of the government is to protect these rights.12 What was significant about Locke’s idea
was his belief in the fundamental truths of human rights and the niche of the government that was
reflected on the scientific acceptance in the existence of natural laws.
French philosopher Montesquieu for example, believed in the fundamental idea that all human
beings are selfish and thus the government should consist of a system of checks and balances to
neutralize these selfish ambitions of men. 13 This idea of fundamentalism was also reflected in Adam
Smith’s theory of “laissez-faire” and the “invisible hand theory”14 which were based on Smith’s idea that
there are fundamental laws of economics that apply in order to maximize financial benefits for the
9
SparkNotes Editors. "SparkNotes: The Scientific Revolution (1550-1700)." SparkNotes. Accessed
November 1, 2014. http://www.sparknotes.com/history/european/scientificrevolution/timeline.html.
10
The future of everything. "Apollo: The Role of the Scientific Revolution in Catalyzing Social and Political Change."
Last modified August 26, 2012. http://spacecollective.org/Apollo/7844/The-Role-of-the-Scientific-Revolution-inCatalyzing-Social-and-Political-Change- .
11
Ibid.
12
Watkins, Jeffrey. "[Regents Prep Global History] Change & Turning Points: Scientific Revolution." Oswego City
School District Regents Exam Prep Center. Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.regentsprep.org/regents/global/themes/change/sci.cfm.
13
Indiana University Northwest - Indiana University Northwest. "Two Enlightenment philosophes." Accessed
November 1, 2014. http://www.iun.edu/~hisdcl/h114_2002/enlightenment2.htm.
14
Investopedia. "Adam Smith: The Father Of Economics." Accessed November 2, 2014.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/08/adam-smith-economics.asp.
individual and for the nation.15 Other social philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes, Voltaire, and
Rousseau16 all have different theories of how to best govern society, but what they all share in common
is their desire to find these fundamental laws to explain and improve the human society.
Nicolas Copernicus was simply eager to find the truth without the influence of traditional beliefs
and that of authorities. Copernicus would not have thought that his work would mark the beginning of a
new intellectual era. Built upon Copernicus’s hypothesis, scientists such as Galileo and Newton found
out that the universe follows an order of scientific laws. And these laws are able to be discerned through
the use of observations, calculations, and experimentation. Thus the scientific method was developed.
Eager to also find these fundamental truths, other scholars adopted the scientific reasoning of the
fundamental laws of nature in order to find their own fundamental laws of human society. Similar to
the scientific approach to explain the underlying factors of natural phenomena, all of these thinkers first
go back to the inherent nature of men and use this fundamental idea to find the best solution to match
the human condition. The systematic approach and methodology to understand is what makes the
scientific revolution unique and the chief reason why it was one of the most important events of human
history.
15
The future of everything. "Apollo: The Role of the Scientific Revolution in Catalyzing Social and Political Change."
Last modified August 26, 2012. http://spacecollective.org/Apollo/7844/The-Role-of-the-Scientific-Revolution-inCatalyzing-Social-and-Political-Change- .
16
Watkins, Jeffrey. "[Regents Prep Global History] Change & Turning Points: Scientific Revolution." Oswego City
School District Regents Exam Prep Center. Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.regentsprep.org/regents/global/themes/change/sci.cfm.
Bibliography
Investopedia. "Adam Smith: The Father Of Economics." Accessed November 2, 2014.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/08/adam-smith-economics.asp.
The future of everything. "Apollo: The Role of the Scientific Revolution in Catalyzing Social
and Political Change." Last modified August 26, 2012.
http://spacecollective.org/Apollo/7844/The-Role-of-the-Scientific-Revolution-inCatalyzing-Social-and-Political-Change-.
HISTORY.com. "Galileo Galilei - Facts & Summary." Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.history.com/topics/galileo-galilei.
Kreis, Steven. "Lecture 10: The Scientific Revolution, 1543-1600." The History Guide. Last
modified August 4, 2009. http://www.historyguide.org/earlymod/lecture10c.html.
"Science, Scientific Revolution." In The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 17: S - Sn, 146-147.
S.l: The World Book Encyclopedia (International), 1996.
SparkNotes Editors. "SparkNotes: The Scientific Revolution (1550-1700)." SparkNotes.
Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.sparknotes.com/history/european/scientificrevolution/timeline.html.
Indiana University Northwest - Indiana University Northwest. "Two Enlightenment
philosophes." Accessed November 1, 2014.
http://www.iun.edu/~hisdcl/h114_2002/enlightenment2.htm.
Watkins, Jeffrey. "[Regents Prep Global History] Change & Turning Points: Scientific
Revolution." Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center. Accessed
November 1, 2014. http://www.regentsprep.org/regents/global/themes/change/sci.cfm.