Topic > Major Contributors to the Scientific Revolution

The Scientific Revolution had a very large impact on the advancement of the way people thought about things and the way they examined and viewed the world. Without the scientific revolution we perhaps would not have been able to experience and observe the world as we do now; instead, blindly trusting traditional opinions and beliefs. There were so many who contributed to these advances achieved during the scientific revolution such as Francis Bacon, Galileo Galilei and René Descartes. Each of these men contributed to the scientific revolution by providing a better and deeper understanding of the world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayFor example, Francis Bacon, an English philosopher, helped influence the scientific method. He was born in 1561 on January 22nd and died in 1626 on April 9th. Throughout his life, Bacon spent his time increasing his interest in the study of science. This interest in scientific philosophy led him to set a precedent precedent for the scientific method we use today; It's called the "Baconian method". Although the “Baconian method” led to the modern scientific method, it is considered different because it does not include a hypothesis. However, Bacon wanted to ensure that science was empirical which, as defined by the Oxford Dictionary, means “based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience rather than on theory or pure logic.” This type of thinking clearly paved the way for the scientific method we use today. Thanks to Francis Bacon's advancements, people were able to observe the world and learn from experimentation to discover answers and truths. Furthermore, Galileo Galilei's discoveries and inventions would help reshape people's entire understanding of the universe. In his life, from February 15, 1564 until his death on January 8, 1642, Galileo was credited with many discoveries and inventions. He was an Italian astronomer, philosopher and mathematician. Two of his accomplishments included improving the invention of the telescope and proving that the sun is at the center of the universe, not the earth. This theory is called the “heliocentric” theory and was created by Nicolaus Copernicus, and went against the conventional wisdom of the time that the Earth was at the center. Using a telescope and mathematics, Galileo demonstrated the truth of the “heliocentric” theory, according to which the sun is at the center. He also used his telescope to discover that, like the Moon, Venus has different phases. Galileo's proof that the earth revolved around the sun got him into trouble with the Roman Catholic Church because this discovery went against their beliefs. The Church would go so far as to put Galileo under house arrest. However, this evidence supporting Copernicus' discovery was an important part of the scientific revolution because it opened people's minds to new possibilities. Furthermore, René Descartes is a French philosopher who had an impact on the scientific revolution. Descartes was born in 1596 on March 31 and died on February 11, 1650. He is considered the "father of modern philosophy" and contributed many ideas to the scientific revolution of his time. Descartes concentrated on logic; he didn't want to believe anything was true until it was proven to be true. He was an advocate of advanced thinking and reasoning and wanted people to know that just because something seems true doesn't always make it so. Decartes is said to have said "I think, therefore I am", which explains that because he can think he has proven himself to exist, making his existence true. This is an example of the kind of philosophy that Descartes wanted.