Merenne’s Laws

Mersenne was born in 1558 in France and corresponded with prominent scholars after 1620. He was interested in protecting against occult influences. Merenne pursued the mathematical basis of acoustics without getting confused. Audible sound vibrates at a certain frequency. Mersenne’s laws tell how to tune a string instrument. Longer strings play lower notes, tighter strings play higher notes and heavier strings play lower notes. Mersenn gets the credit even though he didn’t come up with the idea. Galileo had the idea but didn’t think they could be proven but since Mersenne published his findings he got the credit. He spread them using the large network he had built over time. 

Cartesian Coordinates 

Descartes was born in France in 1596. He was educated by jesuits.  He joined the Duthch army and developed a thirst to systematize mathematical physics. He was a chistian who believed our reason was founded on God’s existence. His coordinate system was published in 1637. Cartesian coordinates let you graph coordinates on a plane. Descartes invented the modern algebraic notation. His coordinate system allows the platting of geometric shapes in algebraic notation: x2+y2=4 (circle.) Cartesian coordinates united algebra and geometry. Electrical quantities can be represented. Mathematics are man-made. Symbols and rules that incredibly conrespond. Descartes wasn’t the only person to invent the idea but the credit goes to Descartes because he published the idea. Mersenne’s scholarly not work helped spread Descartes ideas. Descartes’ system was initially a single axis. The Duch added the second axis when translating the book. 

Mechanical Calculator

Blaise pascal was born in France in 1623. His family’s wealth suffered ups and downs. His father became a tax collector for the king of France. Paslal observed the repetitive calculations he had to do. Pascal wanted to alleviate his dad’s burdes. He designed a special “carry” mechanism. His sautor linked wheels together automatically as one turned over from 9 to 0. It consisted of input wheels and display windows. Pascal’s machine wasn’t the first built but he gets the credit.

Blaise Pascal

  Blaise pascal was born in France in 1623 Pascal was a child prodigy gifted in math. His father took him to Mersenne’s meeting. He invented the mechanical calculator to help his father. He experienced a kind of religious conversion when he was 23. Pascal is best known for pascal’s law. He investigated the concept of the vacuum. He got involved with experiments associated with the invention of the barometer. Pascal laid the foundations of probabilistic theory. He wrote influential books. Pascal’s influence spread throughout Mersenne’s network. He died when he was just 39     

Johannes Kepler

Kepler was born in 1571 in the Holy Roman Empire his grandfather was a mayor and his father a mercenary. His mom took him to see a comet when he was six years old. He almost became a minister but moved to astronomy instead. Kepler viewed the universe as an analogy of the Trinity. His first book established his reputation and astronomy skills. It helped introduce him to Tycho Brahe. Kepler worked with Tycho for a year. 

Tycho died and Kepler was appointed his successor. His book on the orbit of mars was published in 1609. Kepler’s best known for his three laws of planetary motion. Kepler sent copies of his books to important astronomers. His laws weren’t immediately received. Galileo was a little cool towards Kepler because of Kepler’s astrological tendencies. 

Galileo Galilei 

Galileo’s father was a talented musician and he investigated the chord construction. Galileo learned how to do early science from his dad. He wanted to become a priest but his father convinced him to be a physician. By accident he took a geometry class and became interested in astronomy. Galileo was a bioner and also controversial He designed a new military compass and thermometer. He improved the telescope in 1609. Galileo applied mathematics to physics. Before there were appeals to Aristotle’s authority: Aristotle said. He was caught up in the “Galileo Affair” with the Roman catholic church for being critical of Aristotelian philosophy. 

The side Rule 

John Napier invented the logarithm in 1614. He did it to help sailors and astronomers. Napier’s book was a table full of logarithms. The slide rule was invented in 1630. The slide rule makes it easier to multiply and divide It also does away with the book of tables. The middle strip out between the top and bottom strips. More complex rules add more features. It quickly became popular Kepler used logarithms to produce his enhanced star charts but the calculations took a while. The slide rule in 1630 and made them faster. Improved models were continually developed.

John Napier 

John Napier was born in Edinburgh,Scotland (1550). He entered the university at 13 and became interested in theology. He applied his inventiveness to his estate. Napier applied his creativity to mathematics. Napier’s greatest achievement was inventing the logarithm. His motivation was to serve others. His commentary on Revelation was also important. He wanted to persuade Scotland to resole Catholicism. Napier’s “Bones” were popular tools that simplified calculations. He calculated ten million logarithms for his book. Napier explained the benefits of the logarithm through simple examples. The book caught the attention of a prominent English professor.   

The Compound Microscope

Optics began with Plato and Aristotle It was advanced in the Islamic Golden Age. Arabic Treatises permeated European universities after 1088 AD. Robert Grossest and Bacon promoted scientific interest in light. Compound microscopes use multiple lenses to produce magnification. A magnifying glass is a simple microscope. Compound microscopes generate 1000 xt magnification. It uses objective and eyepiece lenses They are useful for enlarging “ invisible” specimens. A handful of conflicting intention claims arose by the Duch around 1509. Galileo invented an improved telescope in 1609. By 1624 Galileo had developed his own compound Galileo was responsible for the microscope’s name. Antoine Van Leev Wenheek popularized the and became the “father of microbiology.

William Gilbert

Gilbert was born in 1540 in England Gilbert served the queen and deviated his time to magnetic experimentation. Gilbert’s 1600 book De Magnete was his big contribution. He resurrected scientific interest in magnetism. He created a spherical magnet as a model of earth for his experiments. He introduced consent of “attractive force.”  His book profoundly impacted the western world; his book influence Galileo and several popular English writers. It promoted the copernican cosmological.

 The Newspaper 

The printing press made it cheap to reach the masses.  Martin Luther used the printing press to spread the Reformation. The protestantants out printed the Roman catholics. Printers wanted to sell protestant reading material because it was profitable. Cultures determine the impact of an invention. Newspapers quickly transmit information. Printed words are more reliable than word-of-mouth. Popular topics: wars, foreign relations, and gossip. News papers are published frequently and they make money by selling advertising. Publishers got experience during the Reformation. The first newspaper began in Germany in 1605. 

The Telescope 

The Greek and Romans knew of lenses. Robert Grosseteste investigated vefaction. Eyeglasses were invented by 1300 by 1600 the Duthch were making lenses. Hans Lipperhey invented the  telescope in 1608. Telescopes magnify for away objects. They improve our ability to peer into the cosmos. The telescope spread quickly because of cultural interest in astronomy.  

Mercator Projection map 

Map-making began early in  history. The Greeks and Scripture viewed the world as a sphere. Major improvements developed at Alexandria around 225 BC. European maps in the middle Ages were more symbolic. They were helpful for sailing near land but not in the open ocean. The mercator projection map was very useful for sailors It simplified sailing with a compass. The mercator projection map was an important advance that took 100 years to become popular. It  combined geographic details and practical sailing charts. The mercator projection map removed the need to memorize rules of thumb.

      Mercator 

Gerardus Mercator was born in 1512. Mercator went to school to become a priest. At the university he experienced a crisis of faith studying Aristotle. Aristotle contradicts christanity but the Roman catholic church supported Aristotle’s philosophy. Contrading Aristotle was almost considered heresy. The same problems that Mercater faced in the university are still with us today. Mercator sought counsel from an older monk who had been through something similar. Francis the monk ( the older monk) helped salvage Mercator’s faith. It also introduced Mercator to globe-making and promised him a career. Mercator is known for the mercator is known for the Mercator projection and the atlas. The world atlas contained maps and christian commentary. Mercator wrote commentaries on the Bible and he experienced religious persecution. Mercator became famous during his lifetime.  His atlas wasn’t the first to be published even though it became the standard.

Tycho Brahe 

Tycho Brahe was born into Danish nobility. Raised by his uncle he went to school and studied Aristotle. Watching an eclipse when he was 13 years old sparked his interest in astronomy. He wanted to improve the accuracy of astronomical predictions. He returned home and committed to becoming a full time scientist. This helped booster the copernican model of the universe. He built his own instruments to develop greater measurement accuracy. He created a compromise model that preserved his Biblical interpretation. Tycho’s geo-heliocentric model briefly became popular. It was a comfortable compromise for astronomers. Tycho also won the support of the elite like King Frederick ll. Tycho developed horoscopes for rich people and he debated other scholars about their theories.          

The backstaff 

Economic growth engaged England in the Age Of Discovery. Marco polo helped fuel interest in finding the Northwest passage. It was another route to the East. John Davis persuaded Queen Elisabeth into fuding his expedition to find it. Davis became a master mariner and invented the backstaff. The backstaff determines the sun’s altitude without you having to look into the sun. It casts a shadow as the marking line. The backstaff had improvements over time.