Reviews for Science of Galileo, Vol. 3 - Michael Bernkopf - Paperback

The average rating for Science of Galileo, Vol. 3 - Michael Bernkopf - Paperback based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2014-08-15 00:00:00 Luis Duran The science of the Greeks gradually subsided with the rise of Christianity and was modified and reorganized before eventual¬ly being translated into Syriac, Arabic, and Latin. Marshall Clagett's Greek Science in Antiquity was a two-part study of the science of the Greeks. The first part was concerned with describ¬ing the pre-Socratic period (600-400 B.C.), through the fourth- century study of Plato and Aristotle, to the Hellenistic period (300-100 B.C.). The second part was a study of the Greco-Roman science to 600 A.D. and of the effects Christianity had on it. Included in this section was an introduction of medieval and early modern science to 900 A.D. The structure of the book was topical while being loosely chronological. Often topics were introduced non-chronologically in an attempt to provide subject continuity. This was also writ¬ten from a diachronistic standpoint with some excursions into how ideas stood the test of time; for example the stations and retro¬gradations of the planets are explained by using the Copernican system (107). This was introduced in the section on Greek astron¬omy. Part one of the book began with Egypt and Mesopotamia. It was here that the first steps toward the empirical organization of data on nature was achieved. The Mesopotamians attempted to predict nature and describe natural phenomena mathematically, but failed in that they were unable to escape the irrational grip of supernatural causation. The origins of the scientific method began with the "Greek Miracle" which occurred in the sixth century B.C. with the Ioni¬ans and the beginnings of natural philosophy. The Eleatic School then developed a methodology of reason and logic. This was fol¬lowed by Aristotle's scientific method which was also devoted to finding principles, elements, and causes by induction. Experimen¬tation was established by the Pythagoreans in their work with the quantification of nature. Greek medicine and biological studies began with the Hippo¬cratic medical school at Cos where the greatest advancements made were with clinical descriptions. Hellenistic medicine achieved its success with the anatomical studies of Herophilus and Erasis¬tratus. After Hippocrates, the greatest figure in medicine was Galen who carried out experimentation for his teleological theory of the body. Aristotle contributed to the distinction of biologi¬cal fields such as zoology and botany with his classification of a hierarchal nature. Early Greek mathematics developed the building blocks for later advancements. Their important methodological achievement was the development of analysis and synthesis. The Hellenistic period provided the most lasting contribution with the field of Greek mathematics. It was during this time that Euclid synthe¬sized geometrical knowledge, and Archimedes developed his method of exhaustion for finding curved areas. Greek physics before the Hellenistic period was dominated by Aristotle. He felt that the study of nature was the study of movement. His physics contained the ideas of locomotion, qualita¬tive alteration, quantitative augmentation, and diminution. He also developed his doctrine of natural place. Every object had a natural resting place; and movement towards this area was defined as natural movement, whereas movement away from it was termed violent motion. After Aristotle, in the Hellenistic and post- Hellenistic period, Ctesibius, Hero, and Ptolemy were the domi¬nate thinkers. Greek astronomy applied geometrical techniques to scientific inquiry. Eudoxus provided the first mathematical system with a homocentric center. Heraclides theorized that the earth was the center also; but he felt that for mercury and venus, the sun was the center. Aristarchus went further still by saying that all the planets revolved around the sun. Practical applications were made with astronomy. It was Eratosthenes who determined the circumfer¬ence of the earth with a relatively low margin of error. Hippar¬chus also used astronomy to correctly determine the length of a month. Roman science lost the concept of the Greeks research; however, Rome found great success with engineering achievements such as aqueducts, sewage systems, roads, and hospitals. Beyond these achievements, Rome also had brilliant scholars among them. Lucretius was the first atomist (all matter is made up of atoms), and he also developed a primitive evolutionary theory. Vitruvius made a description of wind currents and developed a classifica-tion of machines. Pliny was an encyclopedist who wrote a natural history which was widely read in the Middle Ages. Part two began with a discussion of sciences and spiritual forces in late antiquity. Greek science started to gradually sub¬side, but there were still some notable achievements with Ptole-my, Hero, and Pappus. The main reason for this leveling off was with the rise of spirituality. The Christian church began to attract men who would have made their lives as scientists, and the new ideology was one of revelation. This revelation was now the process of gaining truth and, as a result, overturned the "Greek Miracle." Truth by revelation was not the only disagreement the new church order had with philosophy. St. Basil was not in favor of the constant disagreement among the philosophers. He felt the simplicity of spirituality was its main advantage. Tertullian actually went so far to say that the Greeks actually received their knowledge by the prophets, thereby discounting all scien¬tific method. St. Augustine, while also discounting philosophers because of their internal disagreement, did feel that their astronomical work was useful. Clement also had a slightly better opinion of philosophy as he described it as the "handmaiden to religion." Western Latin science in late antiquity was influenced by spiritualism and the Hellenistic thought. The writings of this period were didactic works which influenced medieval science. In the fourth and fifth centuries Chalcidius produced a translation and commentary on Plato's Timaeus. Also in this period, Macrobius provided an account of Heraclides' work and described the number mysticism of Pythagorus. In the fifth and sixth centuries the didactic writings continued with Boethius and Cassiodorus who helped to spread the advancements of the ancient Greeks to the Middle Ages. The Latin science of the early Middle Ages (to 900 A.D) was dominated by the encyclopedists. These works were concerned with cataloging previous information with little advancement in thought. Isidore of Seville had only a superficial knowledge of the Greeks; but he wrote of their astronomy, cosmology, and mete¬orology. Gregory Bishop of Tours described the wonders of the world by dividing them into seven that were man made and seven which were divine. John Erivgina, in contrast with Isidore, possessed extensive knowledge of the Greeks. He translated Neo- Platonic work and provided an account of Eratosthenes. The end of part two returned to the sixth century for a discussion of Greek science in the age of Justinian. During this period, the handbook, translation, commentary, and encyclopedia were all important. Examples of their importance can be found with the organization of medical literature and in the descrip¬tion of Hippocrates' and Galen's work. The Greek corpus was translated into Syriac by the Edessa school in northern Mesopota¬mia. The Jundi-Shapur became the greatest Syriac school and was famous for its near east medical teaching. Hunain Ibn Ishaq was the most influential Arabic translator. It is through him that we know of Sergius' translation of Galen. The conclusion was brief and simplistic. Clagett stated that it was the Greeks who contributed the most to scientific studies. The period after 100 B.C. contributed little original thought; however, the Greek science did not decline rapidly. Instead, there was a slow, leveling off of activity. I. Bernard Cohen wrote a positive review of Clagett's book in American Historical Review (Vol. 62, No. 1, 1956, p. 102). He felt that the book was a good introduction to medieval and early modern science and that it was well written and would be a good textbook for a class studying this field. He had no negative comments. My opinion of this book is that it was structured poorly. I didn't understand the placement of the Justinian chapter, at the end of the book, which claimed to be a discussion of sixth-cen¬tury science. I also failed to see how the topic of the ninth- century Syriac translations of Hunain Ibn Ishaq fit in with sixth- century science. The book should have been less topical and more concerned with chronology. I often was confused by the time frame of some of the discussions. The title was also misleading. I was expecting a book on Greek science; but, while overviewing the book, the later chap¬ters advanced as far as 900 A.D. I was almost surprised that the conclusion did not include a discussion of Einstein as he was understood in 1955. The content of the Greco-Roman period (100 B.C to 600 A.D.), which comprised the second half of the book, and the influence from the ancient Greeks required recognition in the title. A more appropriate title would have been The Dis¬semination of Greek Science to 900 A.D. The material covered in book two on the spread of Greek science to the medieval and early modern periods was appropriate and insightful. It explained both the gradual demise and the continuity of Greek science throughout the centuries; but, for coverage on the Greeks themselves, I would recommend Lloyd's two books on the subject.

Review # 2 was written on 2021-01-29 00:00:00 Aaron Fleck This book is for you if you want to affirm the idea that progress in knowledge is real and not in doubt. It is an outline of ideas and understanding relevant to the development of science and mathematics from the age of antiquity, as in Mesopotamia and Egypt and through classical Greece. Some of the ancient ideas were then adopted and interpreted by Latin thinkers in subsequent ages. With a layman's knowledge of basics in science and math, a reader can marvel at what were grasped with clarity in ancient times, such as geometrical principles and notions of empirical research, during which time very little was available in the knowledge repository and in the scientific tools and instruments. The interpretations by subsequent Latin writers, many of whom revered revealed truth over truth by reason, there was then a path away from empirical methods and from rational thinking. In tracing some of the lineages of thought, it is amazing that today, with our technology and procedure for knowledge production, we have returned to building our knowledge enterprise upon ideas laid out more than 2000 years ago.