The Rise of Science

Classical Antiquity Hermes Trismegistus (Greek for “thrice-great Hermes”) is credited with writing the Emerald Table.

THE EMERALD TABLET OF HERMES TRISMEGISTUS I SPEAK NOT FICTION, BUT WHAT IS CERTAIN AND MOST TRUE. WHAT IS BELOW IS LIKE THAT WHICH IS ABOVE, AND THAT WHICH IS ABOVE IS LIKE THAT WHICH IS BELOW FOR PERFORMING THE MIRACLE OF ONE THING. AND AS ALL THINGS ARE PRODUCED FROM ONE, BY THE MEDIATION OF ONE, SO ALL THINGS ARE PRODUCED FROM THIS ONE THING BY ADAPTATION. ITS FATHER IS THE SUN, ITS MOTHER WAS THE MOON, THE WIND CARRIED IT IN ITS BELLY, ITS NURSE IS THE EARTH. IT IS THE CAUSE OF ALL PERFECTION THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE WORLD. ITS POWER IS PERFECT IF IT BE CHANGED INTO THE EARTH. SEPARATE THE EARTH FROM THE FIRE, THE SUBTLE FROM THE GROSS, GENTLY, AND WITH JUDGMENT. IT ASCENDS FROM THE EARTH TO HEAVEN, AND DESCENDS AGAIN TO EARTH, THUS YOU WILL POSSESS THE GLORY OF THE WHOLE WORLD AND ALL OBSCURITY WILL FLY AWAY. THIS THING IS THE FORTITUDE OF ALL FORTITUDE, BECAUSE IT OVERCOMES ALL SUBTLE THINGS, AND PENETRATES EVERY SOLID THING. THUS ARE ALL THINGS CREATED. THENCE PROCEED WONDERFUL ADAPTATIONS WHICH ARE PRODUCED IN THIS WAY. THEREFORE AM I CALLED HERMES TRISMEGISTUS, POSSESSING THE THREE PARTS OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE WHOLE WORLD. WHAT I HAD TO SAY ABOUT THE OPERATIONS OF THE SUN IS COMPLETE.

Aristotle Classical antiquity was primarily concerned with practical goals (e.g., curing illnesses) and natural philosophy. Aristotle maintained that we come to know the truth through the external world which we perceive with our senses. The important legacy of this period of Greek science included: substantial advances in factual knowledge; awareness of the importance of certain scientific problems; and the importance of applying mathematics to natural phenomena and of undertaking empirical research.

The Middle Ages With the end of Roman civilization, most classical Greek scientific treatises of classical antiquity were unavailable. By the 1200s, however, there were reasonably accurate Latin translations of the main works of Aristotle, Plato, Euclid, Ptolemy, Archimedes, and Galen. Roger Bacon described the need for a cyclic process of observation, hypothesis, and experimentation, and independent verification. Scientific advances were suddenly interrupted by the Black Plague (1348).

Alchemy Although some alchemists were liars and charlatans, most were scholars and distinguished scientists (e.g., Isaac Newton and Robert Boyle) who attempted to explore the nature of chemical substances and processes. Alchemists enjoyed prestige and support for their contributions to the "chemical" industries of the day (e.g., ore testing and refining, metalworking, production of inks, dyes, paints, cosmetics, leather tanning, glass manufacture, etc.).

16th Century Alchemical Laboratory

The Renaissance Despite greater access to ancient texts and the development of printing, the Renaissance is usually seen as one of scientific backwardness. For example, there were no new developments in physics or astronomy. The Renaissance saw the rise of Humanism with the view that nature is an animate, spiritual creation not governed by laws or mathematics. Not until the 16th century would science be revived with the “Scientific Revolution.”

The Scientific Revolution The “Scientific Revolution” can be dated roughly as having begun in 1543 when Nicolaus Copernicus published “On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres.” The most important changes brought about by the Scientific Revolution were in the way in which scientific investigations were conducted and the philosophy underlying scientific developments.

Ages of Reason and Enlightenment The main components of Enlightenment thought are as follows:  The universe is fundamentally rational;  Truth can be arrived at through empirical observation, reason, and systematic doubt;  Human experience is the foundation of human understanding of truth; authority is not to be preferred over experience;  All human life, both social and individual, can be understood in the same way the natural world can be understood; Human beings can be improved through education and the development of their rational facilities; Religious doctrines have no place in the understanding of the physical and human worlds.

The Victorian Age Scientific advances continued, especially those applied to understanding human behavior and thought. Mesmer, Freud, Jung, and others began to explore the “unconscious” domains of the mind as well. Interest in “psychic” phenomena grew and attracted famous non-scientific personalities (e.g., Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), popularizing pseudoscientific interests in telepathy, astrology, clairvoyance, etc.

Seven Dials

Elias Ashmole