Chapter 18

Scientific Method

-techniques for investigating a phenomena - gaining unknown knowledge -correcting and integrating previous knowledge

Adam Smith

- (1723-1790) - Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. - One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment - best known for "Wealth of Nations," written in 1776. - Smith is known as the "father of modern economics" and is still one of the most influential economic thinkers today

Emelian Pugechev

- 1742-1775 -Cossack soldier under Catherine II -he started the uprising of serfs in 1733 -he said that he was the true tzar and issued order abolishing serfdom, army service and taxes -thousands joined him and they all massacred landlords -his armies were defeated by Catherine the Great -ex-lieutenant of Russian imperial army who led the Cossack Rebellion (Pugacehv's Rebellion) during Catherine II's reign -an important revolt -began as organized insurrection of yaik Cossacks headed by Emelian -he assumed leadership of alternative government in the name of Peter III -he called for the end to serfdom -the revolt was ended in 1774 -Emelian was captured and executed

Francis Bacon

- English thinker -strong supporter of scientific methods and experimentation -he was politician and a writer as well -he rejected the Aristotelian and medieval method of using speculative reasoning -he argued for Empirical Research method -he formulated this theory of inductive reasoning wrote uncompleted 3 volume work called "Instaration magna" (The Great Renewal) where he called for new start to human knowledge -published "New Athens" which described scientific utopia with technological advancements -had an obsession with practical results

Voltaire

- French Philosophe (1694-1778) -his real name was Francois Marie Arouet -his father wanted him to become a lawyer but he instead gained a degree of Philosophy at the Louis-le-Grand from 1704-1711 -he was the son of a middle-class family -wrote more than 70 witty volumes -he died a millionaire because of shrewd business speculations -avid supporter of natural science such as Newton and human rights -he was a firm deist -spoke out against commonly held beliefs and was known for his wit -he went to jail twice -he spoke out against governmental abuses and wrote the Treatise of Toleration to explain how we are all God's creatures despite our race and religion - he was arrested on two occasions for insulting noblemen -he moved to England for 3 years in order to avoid a longer prison term in France and he came to share Montesquieu's enthusiasm for English liberties -Voltaire was a reformer not a revolutionary in social and political matters -he believed in a strong monarch because he said that human beings "are very rarely worthy to govern themselves" -he praised Louis XIV -Voltaire did not believe in social and economic equality in human affairs

Immanuel Kant

- German philosopher -widely considered to be main figure of modern philosophy -argued that human concepts structure our view of the world and its laws and that reason is the source of morality - synthesized early modern rationalism and empiricism, set terms for 19th and 20th century philosophy -Critique of Pure Reason, Critique of Practical Reason, Critique of the Power of Judgement -the main topic in his three Critiques is human autonomy -he argued that human understanding is the source of general laws of nature that structure our experiences -human reason gives itself the moral law which is our basis for belief in God, freedom, and immortality -scientific knowledge, morality, religious belief are mutually consistent and secure because they are all part of human autonomy

Philosophes

- group of French intellectuals who proclaimed that they were bringing the light of knowledge during Enlightenment -French word for "philosopher" -it was in France that the Enlightenment reached its highest development - the French Philosophes made it their goal to reach a larger audience of elites and not as strongly restrained as intellectuals -French was the international language of the educated and France was still the wealthiest country in Europe

Gresham College

- institution in Barnard's Inn Hall in London -founded in 1597 under Sir Thomas Gresham -when he died his will allowed for the college to exist -led to the use of Royal Society in 1663 -was at Gresham's mansion until 1768 -institution for higher learning -today there are many free public lectures

Theology

- study of deity and religion -Voltaire viewed Christianity as "glorified superstition" -Voltaire believed in God but he was firm deist -He believed that God was like a watchmaker who built a system but did not intervene with life on earth -theology was challenged by most Enlightenment thinkers who were against strict religion and religion intolerance

Johannes Kepler

-1571-1630 -German mathematician, astrologer, astronomer -prominent in the scientific revolution - renowned for his eponymous laws of planetary motion -his laws of planetary motions were through observations of Mars -his laws were later codified by other astronomers based on Kepler's "Harmonices Mundi", "Astronomia nova" and "Epitome of Copernican Astronomy" -provided one of the foundations for Isaac Newton's theory of universal gravitation -inspired by the belief that the universe was built of mystical mathematical relationships and a musical harmony of heavenly bodies -he showed that the orbits of the planets are elliptical instead of circular

Descartes

-1596-1650 -French philosopher -influential in supporting improved scientific methods based on mathematical reasoning -said that were correspondence between geometry and algebra and that geometrical spatial figures could be explained in algebraic equations -discovered analytic geometry

Bernard de Fontenelle

-1657-1757 -French author -most famous work was his "Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds" (1686) which allows the reader to share the pleasures of astronomy with an elegant lady and an entertaining teacher. The drawing also shows the planets revolving around the sun -Voltaire esteemed his opera called "Thetis et Pelee" -French scientist and essayist -Voltaire described him as the most universal ind produced by the era of Louis XIV - many of the Enlightenment ideas were inspired by his works -he was educated at the Jesuit college in Rouen -another of his famous works was the Entretiens sur la pluralite des mondes. These were sophisticated dialogues which were more influential than other works in securing acceptance of the Copernican system -he was somewhat unfortunate in publicating some of his works

Empirical Knowledge

-theory of inductive reasoning -calls for acquiring evidence through observations and experiments instead of reason and speculation -either qualitative of quantitative -Bacon created this method which was already used by Galileo and Brahe

Montesquieu

-1689-1755 -pioneered his The Persian Letter which was an extremely influential social satire published in 1721 -this work consisted of amusing letter supposedly written by two Persian travelers, Usbek and Rica, who were outsiders and saw European customs in unique ways and allowed Montesquieu to criticize the practices and beliefs -saw relations between men and women as representative of the overall social and political system -used oppression of women in the Persian harem to symbolize the political tyranny in the East -he echoed other critics of the informal power women gained in a absolutist system where royal mistresses could have more access to the kind than government ministers -he used his wit as a weapon against cruelty and superstition -he settled down on his family estate to study history and politics -his interest was partly personal because he was disturbed by the growth in royal absolutism under Louis XIV -he was inspired by physical sciences -he set out to apply the critical method to the problem of government in the Spirit of Laws in 1748 -focused on promoting liberty and prevent tyranny -he argued for a separation of powers, with political power divided and shared by a variety of classes and legal estates holding unequal rights and privileges -he believed that in France the thirteen high courts--the parlements--were frontline defenders of liberty against royal despotism

David Hume

-1711-1776 -during the Scottish Enlightenment -religious skeptic -argued that the human mind is nothing but bundle of impressions that originate in experiences and our habits -he believed that our ideas reflect our experiences so reason cannot explain anything about questions that experience does not explain -most important philosopher ever to write in English -renowned as historian an essayist -master stylist in any genre - A Treatise of Human Nature, the Enquiries concerning Human understand and concering the Principles of Morals

Catherine II

-Catherine the Great -renowned female leader of Russia -her husband was assassinated and she came into power - her husband was Peter III -Russia grew more prominent and stronger and gained recognition in Europe during her rule -she was known as Enlightened Absolutist -Golden Age of Russian Empire -she wanted to continue Peter the great's effort to westernize Russia, domestic reform, and expansion -her Constitutions is famous and she used Enlightenment ideas -she did not believe in governmental abuses as she saw them as tyrannical actions

Denis Diderot

-French philosopher, art critic, writer -prominent person during Enlightenment -best known for serving as co-founder, contributor, and editor to the Encyclopedie along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert -schooled by Jesuits at the University of Paris -he gained a master of art -he lived the life of a bohemian and in the 1740s he became a translator of English books -most recognized as the force behind the Encyclopedie which was published in France at the eve of the French Revolution -he also published comedies and tales -he became known for his Essai Sur La Merite et la Virtu (1745) -he gained interest for his support of John Locke's theory of knowledge in his Lettres sur les aveugles in 1749

Nicholas Copernicus

-Renaissance mathematician and astronomer -formulated heliocentric model of the universe which placed the Sun at the center of the solar system -polish cleric -drawn to intellectual and cultural vitality of the Italian Renaissance -studied at the University of Krakow -he studied astronomy and medicine and church law at the University of Bologna -published "De revolutionibus orbium" -began Copernican Revolution and influential in scientific revolution

Heliocentric

-astronomical model -Earth and planets revolve around a stationary sun at the center of solar system -this concept was opposite of geocentrism -Geocentrism declared that the Earth was the center of universe -Nicolaus Copernicus presented the mathematical model of this system (heliocentric system) in the 16th century -17th century: Johannes Kepler included the elliptical orbits -Galileo supported this model with his telescope observations

Jansenists

-believers in Christian movement -known as Jansenism -mostly in France -emphasized original sin, human depravity, and predestination -the movement came from posthumously published work of Cornelius Jansen -opposed by many Catholic Church -opposed by Jesuits and the Jesuits Gave them the name "Jansenists" as a way to represent them as Calvinist ideals

Principia

-by Isaac Newton -written in 1687 -Philosophical Naturals Principia Mathematica (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy) -merged the astronomy of Copernicus with the physics of Galileo and his predecessors -laid down 3 laws of motion using mathematics -theory of universal gravitation -his law that all objects are attracted to one another; force of attraction is proportional to the object's quantity of matter and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them

Cunning Folk

-deemed important -type of witchcraft that would help people deal with natural disasters -may have originated from from an attempt to end the Christian culture from spreading to other areas

Enlightened Absolutism

-incorporation of Enlightenment ideas such as religious toleration and freedom of speech into monarchical practices -it was often used to enhance the ruler's power by limiting the power of the church and the nobility -this term was created by historians to describe the rule of 18th century monarchs, who without renouncing their own absolute authority, adopted Enlightenment ideals of rationalism, progress, and tolerance

Enlightenment

-influential intellectual and cultural movement during the the late 17th and 18th centuries -introduced new worldview based on the use of reason, progress, and scientific method -philosophers used reason from to study human behavior and society - bring light to ignorance -concept of natural science was most important, as they used it to examine all aspects of life -nothing was to be accepted by faith, but rather by rationalism -social science was born during this period -created concepts of human rights, tolerance and equality

Maria Theresa

-only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last House of Habsburg -archduchess of Austria -Queen of Bohemia and Hungary -began when her father (Charles VI) died -able to inherit the throne because of his Pragmatic Sanction in 1713 -Theresa had 16 children including Queen Marie Antoinette -she promulgated reforms both educational and financial -she strengthened the army -Enlightened Absolutist

Wealth of Nations

-the great work of Adam Smith -first published in 1776 -it offers one of the world's first collected description of what builds a nation's wealth -it is a fundamental work in classical economics today -reflects over the beginning of the Industrial Revolution -touches upon labor, markets, and productivity

Rousseau

-wrote Social Contract which is renowned in modern political and social thought -he pondered about the best, ideal way to establish a political community in the midst of a commercial society -he was Genevan writer, composer, and philosopher -political philosophy had a major part in the French Revolution and the development of modern political and educational thought