>>Get your backpack ready; let's brainstorm another trip! This week in our whirlwind tour
of the history of science, let's travel to the 16th century—the 1500s. I hope you'll
make some meaningful and unexpected discoveries this week as we explore the strange new world
of the century of the reformation, the era of Vesalius, early printed herbals, New World
natural history, Paracelsus, Henry VIII, and Shakespeare. Though we have a limited time
to visit, we'll not be like tourists in London or Padua who seek fast food at McDonald's.
Our aim will be to get to know these 16th century scientists in terms of their own place
and time, not just in terms of modern science. What most interests you about the 16th century?
This was the age of the Protestant Reformation. In 1517, Martin Luther posted his Ninety-Five
Theses in Wittenburg, which ignited the theological debates and the political and social movements
known as the Reformation. From 1545 to 1563, the Catholic Counter-Reformation began with
the calling of the Council of Trent. And in England, King Henry VIII, who reigned from
1509 to 1547, broke with the Catholic Church over the right to divorce his wives. Queen
Elizabeth I completed the establishment of the Anglican Church in Britain, with the Elizabethan
settlement during her reign from 1558 to 1603. What do you appreciate most about 16th century
art? Are you familiar with the works of Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt, or other Dutch masters
of this period? How might their naturalistic styles of depiction reflect a cultural context
for science?
Have you visited The Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, or any other Reformation
era districts of European cities? What were your impressions of life in the 16th century?
Do you speak or read German, Dutch, Danish, or some other language of the early Reformation
countries? What do you most appreciate about 16th century literature? Have you read Shakespeare
or Edumund Spenser's Faerie Queene? What is your favorite book or movie related to 16th
century Europe, or to the Reformation? As always when we're planning a trip, we want
to better understand what people in this place and time were up to. What are some similarities
between 16th century culture and our culture today? How might these similarities help us
to understand 16th century science? And what are some differences between 16th century
culture and our culture today? How might these differences pose an obstacle to our understanding
of 16th century science? What do you think is the chief barrier or prejudice that obstructs
modern appreciation of science in the Reformation era? What do you know about the life sciences
in the 16th century? Have you heard of Vesalius or Paracelsus? Have you seen an early printed
herbal? Are you interested in New World natural history? What is your favorite topic or figure
in 16th century science?
Please share your thoughts on these things. What are your starting assumptions?