Three Scientific Revolutions : How They Transformed Our Conceptions of Reality.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Schlagel, Richard H.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Science--History.

Science.

Religion and science.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (236 pages)

Place of Publication:

New York : Prometheus Books, 2015.

Summary:

Science has had a profound influence in shaping contemporary perspectives of reality, yet few in the public have fully grasped the profound implications of scientific discoveries. This book describes three intellectual revolutions that led to the current scientific consensus, emphasizing how science over the centuries has undermined traditional, religious worldviews.The author begins in ancient Greece, where the first revolution took place. Beginning in the sixth-century BCE, a series of innovative thinkers rejected the mythology of their culture and turned to rational analysis and the empirical study of reality. This change in thinking, though it lay dormant for the many centuries of Christian hegemony in the West, eventually gave rise to the Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries-the second revolution. Highlighted by such luminaries as Kepler, Galileo, and Isaac Newton, the Enlightenment laid the foundations for our current understanding of the world.Today we live amidst the third scientific revolution, including Darwin's theory of evolution, Planck's concept of the quantum, Einstein's relativity theories, Bohr's quantum mechanics, along with Watson and Crick's decoding of the human genome with the prospect of improving human nature. Besides technological wonders, this revolution has also supported widespread respect for freedom of thought, greater educational opportunities, and democratic governments. Looking to the future, Schlagel sees many exciting possibilities yet also potentially devastating threats to the environment. He underscores the need for widespread scientific literacy, stressing that only unfettered scientific inquiry offers a realistic hope of overcoming these daunting challenges.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Contents:

Intro

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Contents

Preface

Chapter I The First Transition Owing to the Natural Philosophic Inquiries During the Greek Hellenic and Hellenistic Period

Chapter II The Second Transition Owing to the Creation of Modern Classical Science

Chapter III The Culminating Achievement of Newton

Chapter IV The Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries' Advances, Including Inquiries in Magnetism and Electricity

Chapter V The Origins of Chemistry and Modern Atomism

Chapter VI Transition to the Third Reality in the Late Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

Chapter VII Construction of the Atom in the Twentieth Century

Chapter VIII The Impending Fourth Transition Along with the Future Prospects of Science

Notes

Index.

Notes:

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ISBN:

1-63388-033-8

OCLC:

1031963278