PDF-[BOOK]-The Construction of Modern Science: Mechanisms and Mechanics (Cambridge Studies

This introduction to the history of science in the seventeenth century examines the socalled scientific revolution in terms of the interplay between two major themes The PlatonicPythagorean tradition looked on nature in geometric terms with the conviction that the cosmos was constructed according to the principles of mathematical order while the mechanical philosophy conceived of nature as a huge machine and sought to explain the hidden mechanisms behind phenomena Pursuing different goals these two movements of thought tended to conflict with each other and more than the obviously mathematical sciences were affected the influence spread as far as chemistry and the life sciences As this book demonstrates the full fruition of the scientific revolution required a resolution of the tension between the two dominant trends. Exam Arrangements. Public Holiday Monday 2. nd. May – No School. Whole school timetable changes on Tuesday 3. rd. May. On . Tuesday 3. rd. May . (after long weekend) current S4-6 move to modified . “. To improve the knowledge of . naturall. things, and all useful Arts, Manufactures, Mechanic practices, Engines and Inventions by Experiment. .”. Robert Hooke (1635-1703). Early History of Science and the Scientific Revolution. As. . for. . the. life of . the. business man, . it. . does. . not. . give. . him. . much. . freedom. of . action. . . Besides. , . wealth. is . obviously. . not. . the. . good. . that. Science and the Enlightenment is a general history of eighteenth-century science covering both the physical and life sciences. It places the scientific developments of the century in the cultural context of the Enlightenment and reveals the extent to which scientific ideas permeated the thought of the age. The book takes advantage of topical scholarship, which is rapidly changing our understanding of science during the eighteenth century. In particular it describes how science was organized into fields that were quite different from those we know today. Professor Hankins\'s work is a much needed addition to the literature on eighteenth-century science. His study is not technical it will be of interest to all students of the Enlightenment and the history of science, as well as to the general reader with some background in science. Presents an evolutionary theory of technological change based on recent scholarship in the history of technology and on relevant material drawn from economic history and anthropology. Challenges the popular notion that technological advances arise from the efforts of a few heroic individuals who produce a series of revolutionary inventions that owe little or nothing to the technological past. Therefore, the book\'s argument is shaped by analogies drawn selectively from the theory of organic evolution, and not from the theory and practice of political revolution. Three themes appear, with variations, throughout the study. The first is diversity: an acknowledgment of the vast numbers of different kinds of made things (artifacts) that long have been available to humanity. The second theme is necessity: the mistaken belief that humans are driven to invent new artifacts in order to meet basic biological needs such as food, shelter, and defense. And the third theme is technological evolution: an organic analogy that explains both the emergence of the novel artifacts and their subsequent selection by society for incorporation into its material life without invoking either biological necessity or technological process. This volume in the highly respected Cambridge History of Science series is devoted to the history of science in the Middle Ages from the North Atlantic to the Indus Valley. Medieval science was once universally dismissed as non-existent and sometimes it still is. This volume reveals the diversity of goals, contexts, and accomplishments in the study of nature during the Middle Ages. Organized by topic and culture, its essays by distinguished scholars offer the most comprehensive and up-to-date history of medieval science currently available. Intended to provide a balanced and inclusive treatment of the medieval world, contributors consider scientific learning and advancement in the cultures associated with the Arabic, Greek, Latin, and Hebrew languages. Scientists, historians, and other curious readers will all gain a new appreciation for the study of nature during an era that is often misunderstood. This volume is a narrative and interpretive history of the physical and mathematical sciences from the early nineteenth century to the close of the twentieth century. Drawing upon the most recent methods and results in historical studies of science, the authors of over thirty chapters employ strategies from intellectual history, social history, and cultural studies to provide unusually wide-ranging and comprehensive insights into developments in the public culture, disciplinary organization, and cognitive content of the physical and mathematical sciences. Historians of science and Sinologists have long needed a unified narrative to describe the Chinese development of modern science, medicine, and technology since 1600. They welcomed the appearance in 2005 of Benjamin Elman\'s masterwork, On Their Own Terms. Now Elman has retold the story of the Jesuit impact on late imperial China, circa 1600-1800, and the Protestant era in early modern China from the 1840s to 1900 in a concise and accessible form ideal for the classroom. This coherent account of the emergence of modern science in China places that emergence in historical context for both general students of modern science and specialists of China. This introduction to the history of science in the seventeenth century examines the so-called \'scientific revolution\' in terms of the interplay between two major themes. The Platonic-Pythagorean tradition looked on nature in geometric terms with the conviction that the cosmos was constructed according to the principles of mathematical order, while the mechanical philosophy conceived of nature as a huge machine and sought to explain the hidden mechanisms behind phenomena. Pursuing different goals, these two movements of thought tended to conflict with each other, and more than the obviously mathematical sciences were affected - the influence spread as far as chemistry and the life sciences. As this book demonstrates, the full fruition of the scientific revolution required a resolution of the tension between the two dominant trends. This volume offers to general and specialist readers alike the fullest and most complete survey of the development of science in the eighteenth century. It is designed to be read as both a narrative and an interpretation, and also to be used as a work of reference. While prime attention is paid to Western science, space is also given to science in traditional cultures and to colonial science. The contributors, world leaders in their respective specialties, engage with current historiographical and methodological controversies and strike out positions of their own. Science and the Enlightenment is a general history of eighteenth-century science covering both the physical and life sciences. It places the scientific developments of the century in the cultural context of the Enlightenment and reveals the extent to which scientific ideas permeated the thought of the age. The book takes advantage of topical scholarship, which is rapidly changing our understanding of science during the eighteenth century. In particular it describes how science was organized into fields that were quite different from those we know today. Professor Hankins\'s work is a much needed addition to the literature on eighteenth-century science. His study is not technical it will be of interest to all students of the Enlightenment and the history of science, as well as to the general reader with some background in science. This volume in the highly respected Cambridge History of Science series is devoted to the history of science in the Middle Ages from the North Atlantic to the Indus Valley. Medieval science was once universally dismissed as non-existent and sometimes it still is. This volume reveals the diversity of goals, contexts, and accomplishments in the study of nature during the Middle Ages. Organized by topic and culture, its essays by distinguished scholars offer the most comprehensive and up-to-date history of medieval science currently available. Intended to provide a balanced and inclusive treatment of the medieval world, contributors consider scientific learning and advancement in the cultures associated with the Arabic, Greek, Latin, and Hebrew languages. Scientists, historians, and other curious readers will all gain a new appreciation for the study of nature during an era that is often misunderstood. This volume is a narrative and interpretive history of the physical and mathematical sciences from the early nineteenth century to the close of the twentieth century. Drawing upon the most recent methods and results in historical studies of science, the authors of over thirty chapters employ strategies from intellectual history, social history, and cultural studies to provide unusually wide-ranging and comprehensive insights into developments in the public culture, disciplinary organization, and cognitive content of the physical and mathematical sciences. This volume offers to general and specialist readers alike the fullest and most complete survey of the development of science in the eighteenth century. It is designed to be read as both a narrative and an interpretation, and also to be used as a work of reference. While prime attention is paid to Western science, space is also given to science in traditional cultures and to colonial science. The contributors, world leaders in their respective specialties, engage with current historiographical and methodological controversies and strike out positions of their own.