History of Science

p Copernicus ' De Revolutionibus

Sixteenth Century Readers ' Arguments

The development of science is of complex nature . Man 's quest to explain phenomena in his environment leads him to think and rationalize . He has leapt and conquered the many questions that once seemed unfathomable but science proved that there is nothing impossible to a curious mind However , this quest also became an arena of belief systems , for science 's greatest nemesis , religion , constantly challenged its validity and the two then seemed incompatible even from their conception . Modern western empirical science has surely

been the most impressive intellectual development since the 16th century . Religion , of course has been around for much longer , and is presently flourishing , perhaps as never before . The relation between these two great cultural forces has been tumultuous , many-faceted , and confusing (Plantinga , par . 1 While religion tries to transcend a physical world into a world more spiritual , science tries to empirically prove that this world and all the things present has a material origin and did not just come out of the blue . According to the Center for the Study of Science and Religion sciences respond to a felt need to understand the world , and religions respond to a felt need for the world to have meaning (Science and Religion , par . 1

Revolutionary ideas are difficult to accept especially if it involves debunking current knowledge which the majority believes in . Scientific truth is largely determined by authority and this has always been so Today , any new idea must be supported...