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Catholic Scientists
– gave the first geometrical analysis of the rainbow
While 13th century authors failed to provide an accurate explanation for
the rainbow, at the turn of the fourteenth century Theodoric was able to
give one of the first correct geometrical analyses of this phenomenon,
which was "probably the most dramatic development of 14th- and
15th-century optics". [1][2] Merton College sheltered a group of dons devoted to natural science, mainly physics, astronomy and mathematics, rivals of the intellectuals at the University of Paris. Bradwardine was one of these Oxford Calculators, studying mechanics with William Heytesbury, Richard Swineshead, and John Dumbleton. The Oxford Calculators distinguished kinematics from dynamics, emphasising kinematics, and investigating instantaneous velocity. They first formulated the mean speed theorem: a body moving with constant velocity travels the same distance as an accelerated body in the same time if its velocity is half the final speed of the accelerated body. They also demonstrated this theorem — the foundation of "The Law of Falling Bodies" — long before Galileo, who is generally credited with it. The mathematical physicist and historian of science Clifford Truesdell, wrote: [3] The now published sources prove to us, beyond contention, that the main kinematical properties of uniformly accelerated motions, still attributed to Galileo by the physics texts, were discovered and proved by scholars of Merton college.... Bradwardine's theories on the insolubles including the liar paradox were a great influence on the work of Jean Buridan The simplest version of the paradox is the sentence: This statement is false. (A) This statement is not true. (B) If (B) is neither true nor false, then it must be not true. Since this is what (B) itself states, it means that (B) must be true. Since initially (B) was not true and is now true, another paradox arises. See : Can God Lie ? A page from Oresme's Livre du ciel et du monde, 1377, showing the celestial spheres In his Livre du ciel et du monde Oresme discussed a
range of evidence for and against the daily rotation of the Earth on its
axis.[9] From astronomical considerations, he maintained that if the
Earth were moving and not the celestial spheres, all the movements that
we see in the heavens that are computed by the astronomers would appear
exactly the same as if the spheres were rotating around the Earth. He
rejected the physical argument that if the Earth were moving the air
would be left behind causing a great wind from east to west. In his view
the Earth, Water, and Air would all share the same motion.[10] As to the
scriptural passage that speaks of the motion of the Sun, he concludes
that "this passage conforms to the customary usage of popular speech"
and is not to be taken literally.[11] He also noted that it would be
more economical for the small Earth to rotate on its axis than the
immense sphere of the stars.[12] Nonetheless, he concluded that none of
these arguments were conclusive and "everyone maintains, and I think
myself, that the heavens do move and not the Earth."[13] He was also elected burgomaster of Chemnitz. His popularity was, however, short-lived. Chemnitz was a violent centre of the Protestant movement, while Agricola never wavered in his allegiance to the Roman Catholic Church ... he was forced to resign his office. … In spite of the early proof that Agricola had given
of the tolerance of his own religious attitude, he was not suffered to
end his days in peace. He remained to the end a staunch Catholic, though
all Chemnitz had gone over to the Lutheran creed, and it is said that
his life was ended by a fit of apoplexy brought on by a heated
discussion with a Protestant divine. He died in Chemnitz on 21 November
1555; so violent was the theological feeling against him, he was not
allowed to be buried in the town to which he had added such lustre.
Amidst hostile demonstrations, he was carried to Zeitz, some 50
kilometers away, and buried there. ... eventually earning him the title of the Father of Biomechanics. ... Borelli returned to Messina in 1668 but was quickly forced into exile for suspected involvement in political conspiracies. Here he first became acquainted with ex-Queen Christina of Sweden who had also been exiled to Rome for converting to Catholicism. Borelli lived the rest of his years in poverty, teaching basic mathematics at the school of the convent where he had been allowed to live. He never saw the publication of his masterwork, De Motu Animalium (On the Movement of Animals) as it was published posthumously, financed by Christina and his benefactors at the convent. … For these discoveries, Borelli is labeled as the father of modern biomechanics and the American Society of Biomechanics uses the Borelli Award as its highest honour for research in the area.
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