Steps to Modern Thought
1. Renaissance
*humanism
*start
to think about man's life on earth
*the power of the Catholic Church starts to decrease
2. Reformation
*Catholic
Church's authority is challenged by Luther, Calvin & others
*People start to think about an individual's relationship
with g-d
*People begin to read the Bible on their own
3. Scientific Revolution
*scientists use logic, reason, human
mental ability to solve problems
*universe is viewed as a machine
*people tried to predict outcomes (results) based
on logical thinking & observation
4. Enlightenment
*philosophers use scientific methods (logic, reason, observation,
etc) to look at human behavior
*use scientific methods to solve human problems and create ideal situations (eg - what kind
of government is the best?)
Scientific
Revolution Notes (9/2012)
Rene Descartes (deductive reasoning) – Discourses on Method
Too many laws lead to confusion, so a country is best guided by only a few laws. I use only 4 rules of logic which
work well for me.
1. Never believe something is true unless I know it for certain.
2. Divide problems
into as many manageable small parts as possible.
3. Start with easy & work way to most complex till I’ve
solved the problem.
4. Will keep complete notes so I won’t forget anything.
These rules are the same in geometry;
it is a good example. So, stop blindly accepting as truth things that people are unsure about & investigate all problems
using a step-by-step method to allow deduction of one truth from another.
Steps to Scientific
Method:
1.
State problem.
2. Gather info on problem.
3. Organize and order collected info.
4.
Create a hypothesis/solution based on gathered info.
5. Draw deductions from hypothesis/solution.
6. Check
truth of hypothesis/solution.
Francis Bacon (inductive reasoning) – Magna Instauratio
People who are content with the present are not making plans for the future.
Books nowadays say nothing new, only old/same stuff over & over. Knowledge of science hasn’t progressed at all.
No new answers or questions, even in academics. People, only a few, do conduct experiments, but don’t have a set step-by-step
standard. People rely on old books rather than own intellect. People should record only carefully designed experiments. Facts
should prove all hypotheses true or false.
Notes on the Enlightenment, 9/5-6/07:
Enlightenment = Age of Reason
during 1700s/ 18th century
philosophe/philosopher
John Locke -
1600s
people can govern themselves
natural rights = life, liberty, & property
Baron de Montesquieu -
1700s
every government is valid
constitutional monarchy vs. absolute monarchy
GB vs. Fr
Magna Carta
checks & balances
3 branches of government = executive, legislative & judicial
Thomas Hobbes -
1600s
people are mean, warlike, brutish, can't run own lives
absolute monarchy
John Jacques Rousseau -
the General Will = rule of the majority
Voltaire -
freedom from censorship, of religion, of speech
Notes on the Enlightenment 9/7/07-
Adam Smith
gov't should not interfere with business or trade
physiocrat
laissez-faire
supply and demand
Wealth of Nations
Mary Wollstonecraft
Vindocation of the Rights of Women
women are equal ot men
women should be educated
doaughter Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein
Enlightenment (Section 1.2) deals with:
Enlightened ideas spread via books and salons
Enlightened Despots are - Frederick II of Prussia, Catherine the Great of Russia and Joseph
II of Austria
Social/Cultural Trends - music, art & serfs
