the origins of science - a study in the history of scientific thought throughout the ages

8/22/2019 The Origins of Science - A Study in the History of Scientific Thought Throughout the Ages

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Origins & Nature of Science


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Pre-Aristotle

Viewed the world as a stage upon which

supernatural forces played.

World is a reflection of the Creator imbued

with motives, goals, etc.

Assumption ofFinal Causation. Using this worldview, how would

you explain thecause of

Lightening and

thunder?

Humandisease?


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Platos View of Reality

Understand natural world via reason/reflection. Senses unreliablecan only see shadows; not

reality itself.


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300s BC - Aristotle

Departs from Plato - Radical thinking in

Greece

Tried to explain nature without invoking

supernatural forces or motivations.

Best way to learn about nature is to observe

nature itself.

First to rely on Efficient Causation to explain

natural phenomena.

Emphasis on empirical data.


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Aristotle

Natural objects consist of:

List some of Aristotles contribution tounderstanding nature:

One insight: Change is cyclical.

Universe is without beginning or end

* Described the water cycle

* Described the rock cycle

* Anticipated great age of the Earth

Matter

Potential Form

* Anticipated climate change


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Aristotle

List some of Aristotles contribution to

understanding nature:

One insight: Change is cyclical.

Universe is without beginning or end

* Described the water cycle

* Described the rock cycle

* Anticipated changing climate* Anticipated great age of the Earth


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Aristotles Ideas lost.

Catholic Church dominates Europe

400 ADSt. Augustine

Argued that Truth is revealed by God in Scripture.

So, study scripture to understand the natural world. If natural world contradicts scripture scripture

holds Truth, contradiction = test of faith.

Appeal is to Authority for Truth.

Think like St Augustine:How would you explain:

Crop failure

Purpose of Butterflies

or Flowers

Sickness


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500-1500 Middle Ages (aka Dark Ages)

Main focus of science = cataloging nature

naming and describing things.

Catholic Church needs people who can read

Latin, keep track of the heavens .

Leads to establishment of the University.


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Medieval Warm Period (1000-1300)

European wealth increases. Catholic Church brings brightest scholars together

start of residential university.

Result very fruitful intellectual life.

Toward end of period Pope launches Crusadesinto Middle East

Bring back valuablesincluding books

Aristotle returns to Europe Scholars translate him into Latin.

Leads to conflict between Church and EmergingScience.


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1600-1800s Enlightenment Period

Science gets fully launched

Empirical methods catch on cultural change!

Naturalists becoming scientists. Science shifts from cataloging to explaining.

Explanations mostly based on efficient

causation but some final causation persists.


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Modern Science

Late 1800s shift in who does science

From gentlemen naturalists to middle classpeople.

Consequences:

Increasing specialization Disciplines of scienceestablished.

Darwinlast of gentleman naturalists.

Scientific work becomes associated with Universities.

Funding shifts toward Government.


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Modern Science

Darwin deals final blow to final causation in

science.

Supernatural is not part of scientific inquiry

anymore.

Why Not?

These types of explanations did not lead to progressNaturalistic explanations did.


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examples

Treatment of diseases dramatically improved

when approached via naturalistic framework.

Development of more effective medicines

fueled by empirically-based experimentation.

Industrial revolution fueled by naturalistic

understanding of chemistry and physics.

Of all the Liberal Arts, Science is the only one that progresses

over time.

We expect our knowledge not

to just change but to improve.

And it does.


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Modern Science Prefers questions that are falsifiable.

Uses hypothesis testing to test ideas.

Empirical evidence can either support orreject a hypothesis science does notprove.

Results must be repeatable and public(not private revelation).

Develops Theories to bring sense to pilesof facts.


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Whats wrong with this common

misconception?

Hypothesis

Theory


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Role of Theories

Is an EXPLANATION a framework thatexplains a wide variety of facts &

phenomena. Explains patterns including the

mechanism driving the pattern.

Makes predictions of what will happenwhen you change a variable.

Predicts what other patterns/phenomenayou would expect to see but have not yet

observed.

What is the difference between a Theory and a

Hypothesis?


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What do you have when you do your experiment

over and over and always gets the same result?

a. Your hypothesis is elevated to a Theory.b. You have the TRUTH.

c. You have established a Fact.

Often hypotheses are tested with EXPERIMENTS


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Assumptions underlying modern

science:

The world exists and it is independent of our

perceptions.

The Universe/nature is structured in some

way and the principles underlying that

structure can be discovered and understood.

All phenomena have natural causes.

Nothing is self-evident. Truth claims must be

demonstrated objectively.

the origins of science - a study in the history of scientific thought throughout the ages

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