Scientific Reference Web Sites Links

	Links Directory.
Index

Causes of Scientific Revolution

The Scientific Revolution became a real break in the development of science. It influenced the development of philosophical and religious thought being the major contradiction and innovation in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and had a great influence on the life of educated people of the Western World. This article is devoted to the scientific revolution in the Western Civilization. In the paper special attention is paid to philosophical and religious thoughts in the connection to scientific thought.

The expansion of trade. Merchants undertook sea voyages and had navigational problems. These problems had to be solved and, as a result, there appeared scientific thought and research for finding possible solutions.

Medieval Universities. The philosophical talks and ancient philosophers’ studies, such as Aristotle and William Ockham, aroused interest and caused the thought.

The Renaissance was a period of great cultural development in Western Europe. It started in the 14th century. Leonardo da Vinci and Plato were interested in Mathematics. Thus, people became interested in this discipline too, because of the influence of great masters.

In general, the scientific revolution had several main aspects. They are the following:
• experimental method development;
• Mathematics and nature connection;
• scientific knowledge in practice;
• scientific institutions; development.
•
Scientific revolution did not appear at once. It developed for some period of time. Even though scientific revolution lasted for too long, it revolutionary changed the way people were thinking. The most significant changes occurred in biology (blood circulation study), astronomy (invention of a new universe model), chemistry (discovery elements of nature) and physics (invention of laws of gravitation and motion). 

Thus, occurring in the period of the religious thought and power, scientific revolution brought significant changes to Europe and the whole world. The achievement and discoveries of that period of time formed the basis for the present world and all its innovations. However, the religious thoughts did not lost its importance and influence on people remaining a necessary force in the lives of European people. The article briefly analyzes scientific revolution in the Western Civilization and its causes. Besides, the paper examines philosophical and religious thoughts in the connection to scientific thought.