Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy

Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy
Author :
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Total Pages : 216
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781400831098
ISBN-13 : 1400831091
Rating : 4/5 (98 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy by : Rhonda Martens

Download or read book Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy written by Rhonda Martens and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2009-08-16 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Johannes Kepler contributed importantly to every field he addressed. He changed the face of astronomy by abandoning principles that had been in place for two millennia, made important discoveries in optics and mathematics, and was an uncommonly good philosopher. Generally, however, Kepler's philosophical ideas have been dismissed as irrelevant and even detrimental to his legacy of scientific accomplishment. Here, Rhonda Martens offers the first extended study of Kepler's philosophical views and shows how those views helped him construct and justify the new astronomy. Martens notes that since Kepler became a Copernican before any empirical evidence supported Copernicus over the entrenched Ptolemaic system, his initial reasons for preferring Copernicanism were not telescope observations but rather methodological and metaphysical commitments. Further, she shows that Kepler's metaphysics supported the strikingly modern view of astronomical method that led him to discover the three laws of planetary motion and to wed physics and astronomy--a key development in the scientific revolution. By tracing the evolution of Kepler's thought in his astronomical, metaphysical, and epistemological works, Martens explores the complex interplay between changes in his philosophical views and the status of his astronomical discoveries. She shows how Kepler's philosophy paved the way for the discovery of elliptical orbits and provided a defense of physical astronomy's methodological soundness. In doing so, Martens demonstrates how an empirical discipline was inspired and profoundly shaped by philosophical assumptions.


Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy Related Books

Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy
Language: en
Pages: 216
Authors: Rhonda Martens
Categories: Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2009-08-16 - Publisher: Princeton University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Johannes Kepler contributed importantly to every field he addressed. He changed the face of astronomy by abandoning principles that had been in place for two mi
Kepler's Philosophy and the New Astronomy
Language: en
Pages: 215
Authors: Rhonda Martens
Categories: Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2000-10-29 - Publisher: Princeton University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Here, Rhonda Martens offers the first extended study of Kepler's philosophical views and shows how those views helped him construct and justify the new astronom
Johannes Kepler and the New Astronomy
Language: en
Pages: 146
Authors: James R. Voelkel
Categories: Biography & Autobiography
Type: BOOK - Published: 2001-10-11 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) is remembered, along with Copernicus and Galileo, as one of the greatest Renaissance astronomers. A gifted analytical thinker, he ma
Measuring Shadows
Language: en
Pages: 263
Authors: Raz Chen-Morris
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2016-03-31 - Publisher: Penn State Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In Measuring Shadows, Raz Chen-Morris demonstrates that a close study of Kepler’s Optics is essential to understanding his astronomical work and his scientifi
Johannes Kepler
Language: en
Pages: 144
Authors: James R. Voelkel
Categories: Juvenile Nonfiction
Type: BOOK - Published: 2001-10-11 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) is remembered, along with Copernicus and Galileo, as one of the greatest Renaissance astronomers. A gifted analytical thinker, he ma