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1500
From Magic to Science
It wasn't until the late 1500s that Europeans saw much difference between the sciences and magic. Alchemists would use "magical formulas" while attempting to turn a substance into another substance, for example; turning lead into gold. During this time period, chemistry was not yet thought of, so the people didn't know it was impossible to change lead into gold. -
1500
Nicolaus Copernicus
Polish scientist Nicolaus Copernicus rebelled against the astronomer Ptolemy's theory made in the A.D. 100s that the Earth was in the center of the universe. In the early 1500s, Copernicus argued that the sun was in the middle of the universe, not the Earth. -
1500
The New Study of Nature
In this time period, scientists began examining the world around them more closely, and they began to observe things that did not agree to the traditional explanations/ religious beliefs. Because of their new findings in the world, the scientists began to question these ancient explanations. This new way of thinking was one of the first steps of the Scientific Revolution. -
1543
Copernicus's Theory
In 1543, Polish scientist Nicolaus Copernicus had his theory published. His theory was that the Earth was not located in the middle of the universe, but the sun was. This made a huge impact in science, however, at the time people paid little attention to his findings. People stated that if this were true, they would be able to feel the Earth moving. -
1543
On the Fabric of the Human Body
In 1543, a Flemish scientist named Andreas Vesalius published a seven-volume book that he called "De humani corporis fabrica libri septem" (On the Fabric of the Human Body). It was a book about his studies on how the human body was constructed. His illustrations of the body that he included in his book were very detailed for that time period. His illustrations especially helped people gain a visual understanding of the different parts of the body. -
Laws of Planetary Motion
German astronomer Johannes Kepler was a mathematician who used his observations, models, and mathematics to test the theory made by Copernicus. Kepler found that some of Copernicus's ideas were wrong, but in the end, he was able to prove that the heliocentric theory was indeed correct. In 1609, Kepler published his laws of planetary motion. -
Novum Organum
In 1620, an English philosopher and scientist named Francis Bacon published a book he called "Novum Organum". This book outlined this whole new system of knowledge. Francis Bacon felt that scientific theories could only be developed through observation. Bacon stated that assumptions could not be trusted unless they are proven through several experiments. -
Galileo's Findings
Italien scientist Galileo Galilei built his own telescope in 1906. When Galileo looked through his telescope, he discovered things that nobody else has ever noticed before. For example: spots on the sun, rings around Saturn, and mountains and valleys on the moon. He even studied Jupiter's moons. In 1632, he published his findings. Many people refused to accept his findings as they believed his theory contradicted the Bible. -
Discourse on Method
A mathematician and French philosopher named René Decartes was one of the leaders of the Scientific Revolution. He believed that assumptions should not be accepted without question. Decartes developed a philosophy in 1637, "Discourse on Method". He said that all assumptions must have been proven from known facts. Decartes also believed that all fields of scientific knowledge should be studied together since they were all connected. -
Boyle's Law
English-Irish scientist Robert Boyle studied the relationship between the volume and pressure of a confined gas that is held at a constant temperature. In 1662, he created "Boyle's Law". His law stated that PV=k. This means that pressure plus volume is equivalent to a constant. -
Isaac Newton
In 1687, scientist Sir Isaac Newton published a book that explained why the bodies in space moved as they did. Newton proposed the law of universal gravitation. This law states that all bodies in the universe attract each other. This book built upon the work done by Kepler, Galileo, and Copernicus. -
Antoine Lavoisier
Before French scientist Antoine Lavoisier, people thought that fire was an element. In 1768, when Lavoisier was elected to attend the Royal Academy of Sciences, he presented his studies about oxygen. He then showed that fire was not an element, but it is made when a substance is quickly combined with oxygen. This is a chemical reaction that is called combustion. -
Joseph Priestley
In 1774, English chemist Joseph Priestly discovered the element oxygen. The element was given the name "oxygen" later by Antoine Lavoisier. Oxygen is a chemical element that has the atomic number of 8 and the symbol O. It is very important that Priestley discovered this element because if we did not know about it, we wouldn't have been able to fully understand chemistry today.
