Science,+Innovation+and+Technology

Science, Innovation and Technology By Aiden and Brayden __Science__ Scientists in the Renaissance started to question the ancient Greek philosopher and thinker Aristotle's explanations, including his ideas about the earth's elements.

During the Renaissance, Aristotle's works and other texts were translated into Latin which is when thinkers began to read the texts and dispute them.

Most of the scientists of the Renaissance believed in studying nature directly but when scientists found out their observations were different than the ancient thinkers, they thought the ancients must be wrong.

There were many types of science in the Renaissance that aren't included in today's science. As well as medicine, mathematics, botany, and astronomy, they also included law, theology, magic and philosophy. Out of all of these sciences, medicine was the only one that could earn enough to support a whole family.

For an interactive overview of scientists from the Renaissance go to Renaissance Prezi. __Astronomy__ Egyptian astronomer Claudius Ptolemaeus believed that the earth stood still and the moon, stars, planets and the sun revolved around it. This system was known as the geo-centric system which means "earth-centered".

On February 15th, 1564, Galileo Galilei was born. He became a physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher. He created a great improvement to the telescope which changed astronomy today.

Nicolaus Copernicus made the last major event in the Renaissance. He studied the new idea that the earth revolved around the sun. __Inventions__ There were several different inventions that came from the Renaissance time period. For example, things like clocks, flush toilets, Gunpowder, and the printing press were invented.

For an informational source on the innovations of the Renaissance go to Renaissance Inventions.

The first mechanical clock was created in the early 1300's, which resulted in time being measured in hours. In 1581, an Italian scientist by the name of Galileo discovered the pendulum. This improved the accuracy of time, from within 15 minutes, to within a few second of the correct time.

Flush toilets were another key invention in the Renaissance period. Sir John Harrington made the first flush toilet, for himself and his grandma, Queen Elizabeth. His friends made fun of him for this, so he never made another one. Alexander Cummings, 200 years later, re-invented the toilet, which was also known as the water closet. This time around, the toilet caught on.

In 1040, gunpowder was invented, which revolutionized warfare today. The Chinese used it with fireworks, to help entertain the public. It was then used for the first time in Europe during the battle of Crecy, in 1346.

Finally, the printing press was invented. Around 1463, Johannes Gutenburg created the printing press. Ink, moveable type, paper, and the press had already been invented, Gutenburg combined them to create the printing press. Before it was created, monks hand to hand write out all books, which could take years. This resulted in the price of books going up. In fact, the first book to be mass produced was the Bible.

For a video on Leonardo Da Vinci's inventions go to Leonardo Da Vinci Video __Bibliography__ Made in the Renaissance by Christine Price (pg 35-38) Science in the Renaissance by Lisa Mullins(pg 5-6. 12-15) [] []