The Early Years of the Royal Society

1960 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 365-382
Author(s):  
Harold Spencer Jones
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Physical Basis ◽  
Mathematical Representation ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Ancient Greek ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Universe

This year the Royal Society celebrates the third centenary of its foundation. In this paper Sir Harold Spencer Jones, the late Astronomer Royal, who was the Institute's first President, describes the early years of the Society and shows how closely some of its work was related to navigation.For some two thousand years, until well into the seventeenth century, the writings of the ancient Greek philosophers, and in particular those of Aristotle, were regarded as the supreme fountain of wisdom and the source of all knowledge. The break with the Aristotelian dogma may be said to have started with the publication by Copernicus in 1543 of his De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium whereby the Earth was displaced from proud position as the centre of the Universe, fixed and immovable, and asserted to be not only rotating around an axis but also to be merely one of a system of planets revolving around the Sun as a centre. Copernicus had refrained for thirty years from publishing his theory as he knew that it would be received with ridicule, not merely because it was not in accordance with Aristotelian dogma but also because it would be held to be against the Scriptures. The Copernican theory met, in fact, with widespread opposition and more than a century elapsed before it came to be generally accepted; for long it was regarded as merely a convenient mathematical representation of the motions of the planets without any true physical basis.

Heavenly Bodies

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Wothers
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
The Sun ◽  
The Moon ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Night Sky ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Over Time

We don’t know for sure where the names of the longest-known elements come from, but a connection was made early on between the most ancient metals and bodies visible in the heavens. Figure 1 shows an engraving from a seventeenth-century text with the title ‘The Seven Metals’ (translated from the Latin). It isn’t immediately obvious how the image is meant to depict seven metals until we explore the connections between alchemy and astronomy. However strange such associations seem to us now, we shall see that new elements named in the eighteenth, nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries have had astronomical origins. We can’t properly understand why some of the more recent elements were named as they were without first understanding these earlier historical connections. As we look into the night sky, the distant stars remain in their same relative positions and seem to move gracefully together through the heavens. Of course, we now know that it is the spinning Earth that gives this illusion of movement. The imaginations of our ancestors joined the bright dots to pick out fanciful patterns such as the Dragon, the Dolphin, or the Great Bear—the latter being more often known today (with rather less imagination) as the Big Dipper, the Plough, or even the Big Saucepan. But, while these patterns, the constellations, remained unchanging over time, there were seven objects, or ‘heavenly bodies’, that seemed to move across the skies with a life of their own. They were given the name ‘planet’, which derives from the Greek word for ‘wanderer’ (‘planetes asteres’, ‘πλάνητες ἀστέρες’, meaning ‘wandering stars’). These seven bodies were the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, all of which were documented by the Babylonians over three thousand years ago. Until the sixteenth century, the most commonly held view was that the Earth was at the centre of the Universe and that the seven bodies revolved around the Earth, with the relative orbits shown schematically in Figure 2.

The Universities and Science in Seventeenth Century England

1971 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara J. Shapiro
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
The Moon ◽  
Interest In Science ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Major Exception ◽  
University Life ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
John Wilkins ◽  
The Universe

In the course of the debate over Puritan contributions to the scientific movement it sometimes has been asserted, and even more often assumed, that the English universities of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries were either unsympathetic towards or even hostile to the “new philosophy,” and that scientific studies had no place within their confines. Proponents of this position acknowledge one major exception to the scientific hiatus at Oxford and Cambridge, that of the Wadham group organized by John Wilkins in the 1650s which was the precursor of the Royal Society. However, the exception itself is said to result from Puritan intervention in the universities, and the dissolution of the group to follow from the demise of the Puritan regime.It will be the purpose of this paper to examine the state of the sciences in Oxford and Cambridge prior to, during, and after the Interregnum in order to suggest that universities had shown a continuous interest in science, that Puritan intervention did not significantly alter the pattern of scientific concerns and that the existence of the Wadham group of the 1650s does little to lend support to the notion of a connection between Puritanism and the development of science.The evidence for science in the universities before the Puritan Revolution is necessarily incomplete and scattered as is much of our knowledge of university life in that period. It might be best to begin with the work of Mark Curtis and F. R. Johnson who have already shown that the traditional framework of studies permitted the introduction of new ideas. By 1610 Oxford men had been disputing about such topics as the Copernican thesis, the infinity of the universe, the plurality of worlds, the habitability of the moon, and the earth as a magnet in formal university exercises.

Much Ado about (Practically) Nothing

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Energy Source ◽  
Atomic Nucleus ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Scientific Journals ◽  
Rare Gases ◽  
Important Work ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Life On Mars ◽  
The Universe

There are eight columns in the Periodic Table. The eighth column is comprised of the rare gases, so-called because they are the rarest elements on earth. They are also called the inert or noble gases because, like nobility, they do no work. They are colorless, odorless, invisible gases which do not react with anything, and were thought to be unimportant until the early 1960s. Starting in that era, David Fisher has spent roughly fifty years doing research on these gases, publishing nearly a hundred papers in the scientific journals, applying them to problems in geophysics and cosmochemistry, and learning how other scientists have utilized them to change our ideas about the universe, the sun, and our own planet. Much Ado about (Practically) Nothing will cover this spectrum of ideas, interspersed with the author's own work which will serve to introduce each gas and the important work others have done with them. The rare gases have participated in a wide range of scientific advances-even revolutions-but no book has ever recorded the entire story. Fisher will range from the intricacies of the atomic nucleus and the tiniest of elementary particles, the neutrino, to the energy source of the stars; from the age of the earth to its future energies; from life on Mars to cancer here on earth. A whole panoply that has never before been told as an entity.

scholarly journals III. On the nature and construction of the sun and fixed stars

1795 ◽  
Vol 85 ◽  
pp. 46-72 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Central Body ◽  
Planetary System ◽  
Considerable Progress ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Great Satisfaction ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The World ◽  
Celestial Bodies ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Made In

Among the celestial bodies the sun is certainly the first which should attract our notice. It is a fountain of light that illuminates the world! it is the cause of that heat which main­tains the productive power of nature, and makes the earth a fit habitation for man! it is the central body of the planetary system; and what renders a knowledge of its nature still more interesting to us is, that the numberless stars which compose the universe, appear, by the strictest analogy, to be similar bodies. Their innate light is so intense, that it reaches the eye of the observer from the remotest regions of space, and forcibly claims his notice. Now, if we are convinced that an inquiry into the nature and properties of the sun is highly worthy of our notice, we may also with great satisfaction reflect on the considerable progress that has already been made in our knowledge of this eminent body. It would require a long detail to enumerate all the various discoveries which have been made on this subject; I shall, therefore, content myself with giving only the most capital of them.

Cosmic Deer as an Archaic Symbol in the Narratives and Rituals of the Tungus-Manchus

2020 ◽  
pp. 112-121
Author(s):  
Татьяна Юрьевна Сем
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Time Model ◽  
Space And Time ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Cosmic Scale ◽  
First Time ◽  
The Universe ◽  
The Bronze Age

Статья посвящена мифологическому образу космического оленя в традиционной культуре тунгусо-маньчжуров. В работе рассматриваются материалы фольклора, шаманства, промысловых и календарных ритуалов, а также искусства. Впервые систематизированы материалы по всем тунгусо-маньчжурским народам. Образ космического оленя в фольклоре эвенов имеет наиболее близкие аналогии с амурскими народами, которые представляют его с рогами до небес. Он сохранился в сказочном фольклоре с мифологическими и эпическими элементами. В эвенском мифе образ оленя имеет космические масштабы: из тела его происходит земля и всё живущее на ней. У народов Амура образ оленя нашел отражение в космогенезе, отделении неба от земли. Своеобразие сюжета космической охоты характеризует общесибирскую мифологию, относящуюся к ранней истории. В ней наиболее ярко проявляется мотив смены старого и нового солнца, хода времени, смены времен года, календарь тунгусо-маньчжуров. В результате анализа автор пришел к выводу, что олень в тунгусо-маньчжурской традиции моделирует пространство и время Вселенной, характеризует образ солнца и хода времени. Космический олень является архетипичным символом культуры тунгусо-маньчжуров, сохранившим свое значение до настоящего времени в художественной культуре This article is devoted to the mythological image of cosmic deer in traditional Tungus-Manchu culture. It examines materials of folklore, shamanism, trade and calendar rituals as well as art and for the first time systematizes materials from all of the Tungus-Manchu peoples. The image of cosmic deer in the folklore of the Evens has its closest analogy in that of the Amur peoples, reflected in the image of a deer with horns reaching up to the sky. This image is preserved in fairytales with mythological and epic elements. In the Even myth, the image of a deer is on a cosmic scale, as the cosmos issues from its body. Among the Amur peoples, the image of a deer is also related to cosmogenesis, to the separation of the earth from the sky. The plot of a cosmic hunt is reflected in pan-Siberian mythology, dating back to the Bronze Age. It clearly illustrates the motif of the change of the old and new sun, the passage of time, the change of seasons, the Tungus-Manchu calendar. The author comes to the conclusion that deer in the Tungus-Manchu tradition, in depicting the image of the sun and the passage of time, model the space and time of the Universe. The cosmic deer is an archetypal symbol of Tungus-Manchu culture, which has retained its significance in artistic culture to the present day.

THE COSMIC JOURNEY OF ODYSSEUS

Numen ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nanno Marinatos
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Mediterranean Region ◽  
Near East ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Polar Axis ◽  
The Sun ◽  
East Mediterranean ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Universe ◽  
East Mediterranean Region

AbstractIn vain have scholars tried to produce a coherent geographical picture of Odysseus' travels. It is argued here that Odysseus makes a cosmic journey at the edges of the earth (perata ges), a phrase used in the text to describe several lands that the hero visits. The cosmic journey was a genre current in the East Mediterranean region in the Iron Age. It was modeled on the Egyptian the journey of the sun god who travels twelve hours in the darkness of the underworld and twelve hours in the sky. Evidence of similar concepts in the Near East is provided by a Babylonian circular map (now in the British Museum) as well as by Phoenician circular bowls. Gilgamesh seems to perform a cosmic journey. As well, Early Greek cosmology utilizes the concept of a circular cosmos. Odysseus' journey spans the two cosmic junctures of the universe: East, where Circe resides, and West, where Calypso lives. Another polar axis is the underworld and the island of the sun.

scholarly journals XXXIV. On the transit of Venus in 1769. To the Right Honourable The Earl of Morton, President to the Council and Fellows of the Royal Society, this discourse is, with all humility, inscribed, by their humble servant, Thomas Hornsby

1765 ◽  
Vol 55 ◽  
pp. 326-344 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Royal Society ◽  
The Sun ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Theory Of Gravity ◽  
The Right ◽  
Made In

The observations of the late transit of Venus, though made with all possible care and accuracy, have not enabled us to determine with certainty the real quantity of the sun's parallax; since, by a comparison of the observations made in several parts of the globe, the sun's parallax is not less than 8" 1/2, nor does it seem to exceed 10". From the labours of those gentlemen, who have attempted to deduce this quantity from the theory of gravity, it should seem that the earth performs its annual revolution round the sun at a greater distance than is generally imagined: since Mr. Professor Stewart has determined the sun's parallax to be only 6', 9, and Mr. Mayer, the late celebrated Professor at Gottingen, who hath brought the lunar tables to a degree of perfection almost unexpected, is of opinion that it cannot exceed 8".

James Bradley, Sailing on the Thames

Lightspeed ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 49-57
Author(s):  
John C. H. Spence
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Experimental Evidence ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Theory Of Relativity ◽  
Speed Of Light ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Independent Estimate ◽  
The Universe ◽  
At Home

The story of the astronomical observations of James Bradley in the eighteenth century, whose measurements of the small movements of a star throughout the year provided an independent estimate of the speed of the Earth around the Sun relative to the speed of light. His work provided the first experimental evidence in support of Copernicus’s theory that the earth is in motion, and against the idea that it is stationary at the center of the universe. His simple telescope at home, his brilliant idea and perseverance, and his life’s work and influence. The importance of his result for the development of Einstein’s theory of relativity and for theories of the Aether in the following centuries.

scholarly journals David Gwynne Evans, 6 September 1909 - 13 June 1984

1985 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 172-196
Keyword(s):  
Physical Chemistry ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Whooping Cough ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Grammar School ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Third ◽  
North Wales ◽  
University Department ◽  
The University

David Gwynne Evans was born in Atherton, near Manchester, on 6 September 1909 of Welsh parents; his father, a schoolmaster, was from Pembrokeshire and his mother from Bangor, North Wales. He was the third of four children in a distinguished family. His older brother, Meredith Gwynne, became Professor of Physical Chemistry in Leeds and later in Manchester and was a Fellow of the Royal Society. His sister, Lynette Gwynne, took a degree in modern languages at Manchester University and taught in girls’ high schools. His younger brother, Alwyn Gwynne, after holding a lectureship in Manchester University was appointed to the Chair of Physical Chemistry in Cardiff University. David left Leigh Grammar School in 1928 at the age of 18 years and worked for two years in a junior capacity for the British Cotton Growers’ Association at the Manchester Cotton Exchange. However, when Alwyn went up to Manchester University in 1931, David decided to go with him and both graduated B.Sc. in physics and chemistry three years later and M .S c. after a further year. At this time Professor Maitland in the Department of Bacteriology wanted a chemist to help in the public health laboratory which was run by his department. Professor Lapworth recommended David for the post and thus David entered the field of bacteriology and immunology, to which he was to contribute so much. He was appointed Demonstrator and soon afterwards Assistant Lecturer in the University Department. During these early years he worked with Professor Maitland on the toxins of Haemophilus pertussis (now Bordetella pertussis ) and related organisms, work that provided a sound basis for his subsequent interest in whooping cough immunization and later for his abiding interest in vaccination against other diseases and in the standardization of vaccines and antisera.

scholarly journals Astronomy and political theory

2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (S260) ◽  
pp. 595-602
Author(s):  
Nicholas Campion
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Near East ◽  
Natural Rights ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Political Uncertainty ◽  
Global Village ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Single Set

AbstractThis paper will argue that astronomical models have long been applied to political theory, from the use of the Sun as a symbol of the emperor in Rome to the application of Copernican theory to the needs of absolute monarchy. We will begin with consideration of astral divination (the use of astronomy to ascertain divine intentions) in the ancient Near East. Particular attention will be paid to the use of Newton's discovery that the universe operates according to a single set of laws in order to support concepts of political quality and eighteenth century Natural Rights theory. We will conclude with consideration of arguments that the discovery of the expanding, multi-galaxy universe, stimulated political uncertainty in the 1930s, and that photographs of the Earth from Apollo spacecraft encouraged concepts of the ‘global village’.

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