A couple of posts ago, we discussed Francis Bacon’s exaltation of inductive reasoning from experience over the deductive reasoning from received authority. In this post we will deal with the philosopher who took reason without appeal to received authority as being the ultimate authority, Rene Descartes. We will deal with primarily with Descartes attempt to logically refute skepticism as well as his metaphysics which was closely related to his theory of mind. (more…)
May 12, 2006
The New Astronomy
Astronomy in Aristotelian Scholasticism was very different from the astronomy which is now accepted by almost every Western mind today. The earth was believed to be at the center of the universe and all celestial objects orbited it in perfect, concentric circles. We have also seen how causation and movement, in Aristotle’s system, were primarily qualitative in nature, they being teleological and having a certain degree of perfection to it. In this post we will consider how the work of three astronomers who lived from the end of the 16th century through the beginning of the 17th century overthrew this of the physical universe. (more…)
