Interpreting the Visual Evidence
Astronomical Observations and the Mapping of the Heavens
One (often-repeated)
nar rative about the
scientific revolution is
that it marked a crucial
break separating modern
science from an earlier period permeated
by an atmosphere of superstition
and theological speculation. In fact, medieval
scholars tried hard to come up
with empirical evidence for beliefs that
their faith told them must be true, and
without these traditions of observation,
scientists like Copernicus would never
have been led to propose alternative cosmologies
(see "Ptolemaic Astronomical
Instruments" on page 495).
The assumption, therefore, that
the "new" sciences of the seventeenth
century marked an extraordinary rupture
with a more ignorant or superstitious
past is thus not entirely correct. It
would be closer to the truth to suggest
that works such as that of Copernicus
or Galileo provided a new context for
assessing the relationship between observations
and knowledge that came
from other sources. Printed materials
provided opportunities for early modern
scientists to learn as much from each
other as from more ancient sources.
The illustrations here are from scientific
works on astronomy both before
and after the appearance of Copernicus's work. All of them were based on
some form of observation and claimed
to be descriptive of the existing universe.
Compare the abstract illustrations of the
Ptolemaic (image A) and Copernican
(image B) universes with Tycho Brahe's
(image C) attempt to reconcile heliocentric
observations with geocentric assumptions,
or with Galileo's illustration
of sunspots (image D) observed through
a telescope.
Images
Questions for Analysis
1. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d What do these illustrations tell us
about the relationship between knowledge
and observation in sixteenthand
seventeenth-century science? What
kinds of knowledge were necessary to
produce these images? |
|
2. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d Are the illustrations A and B intended
to be visually accurate, in the sense
that they represent what the eye sees?
Can one say the same of D? What
makes Galileo’s illustration of the sunspots
different from the others? |
|
3. fiogf49gjkf0d fiogf49gjkf0d Are the assumptions about observation
contained in Galileo’s drawing of
sunspots (D) applicable to other sciences
such as biology or chemistry?
How so? |
|
Submit to Gradebook: