COPERNICUS

(1473-1543)

The ratio of man to nature and God is defined not only by personal sympathies, knowledge and ignorance, but also public opinion, tradition, and the level of development of philosophy and science. What is becoming more significant in the late Middle Ages, science and technology, not to mention the great geographical discoveries, the higher rose the authority of Nature.

Philosophy of Nature - natural philosophy - has evolved at least three directions. First determined by the success of mathematics, mechanics, technology and thought Universe as a mechanism. Second inclined towards a long-standing Plato of the universe as an organism, endowed with life and mind, the concept of Nature and God joined together (pantheism). Third avoided such generalizations, and content with data of experimental science and common sense.

Scientific evidence magnificent ancient guesses were presented by Nicholas Copernicus.

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Arguing about the sphericity of the universe, he repeated the speculative idea of Pythagoras about the most perfect figure. But the sphericity of the Earth with remarkable insight, he explained that it "from all sides tends to its center. " Copernicus′ heliocentric system was independent of the biblical world view. He referred to the ancient thinkers, calling the Sun ruler of the world, which, as it were, upon the throne of the king′s, manages his family, revolving around the stars . . . ".

Nicolaus Copernicus was born in Torun (Poland) in the family of the merchant. At the age of ten, lost his father and was raised in the house of his uncle, enlightened Bishop Luke Vattsenrode. He graduated from the University of Cracow, where he studied mathematics, astronomy, medicine and law, he continued his studies at universities in Italy (in Bologna, Padua, Ferrara). He studied canon law, became a master of arts, seriously interested in astronomy.

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Returning to his homeland, became a canon of the cathedral in Frombork. He not only preached, but also treated the patients to engage in economic affairs, and most importantly - developing a new model of the world, based on ideas of Aristarchus of Samos.

Mathematically, the complex system of Ptolemy, in which the center of the universe is the Earth, meet church canons. This is not bothered Copernicus. He wrote a treatise "On the inversion of the Heavenly Spheres" by offering his mathematically grounded model of the universe with the sun in the center (heliocentric model instead of the geocentric system of Ptolemy). His work, published in Nuremberg, Copernicus dedicated to Pope Paul III. But in 1616 the book was banned by the church, the ban was abolished after 212 years.

Copernicus was aware that goes against conventional wisdom. "But I know - he wrote - that thinking-man philosopher judgments are far from the crowd as he is engaged in search for the truth in all things, to the extent as is permitted by God to human reason.

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I also believe that we must avoid the views that are alien to the truth . . . If there are any words of vanity, which, being ignorant of all mathematics, yet taken them to judge on the basis of any place of Scripture, false witness, and perverted to their purpose, will dare to pursue it and blame my work, I, no stopping, I can ignore their judgments, as frivolous. "

Scientific knowledge Copernicus compared with the divine revelation as the surest way of understanding the truth, as a means of elevation of feelings and thoughts, as a source of radiant joy of knowledge.

Despite the completeness and elegance of the heliocentric system, it opens the way for further searches and discoveries of Copernicus was aware of the limitations of their knowledge: "All the above is reduced to the proof of the immensity of the sky compared to the size of the Earth. But how far this immensity extends, that we do not know. " His natural philosophy was primarily a scientific rather than speculative.

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From the preface to Nicolaus Copernicus books on rotation:

- . . . As soon as some will know that those of my books written about the rotation of the spheres of the world, I gave the globe, some movement, they at once with a cry of men shall revile me, and such opinions. But not to such an extent, I really like my work, so as not to pay attention to the views of others about them.

- . . . I took the trouble to read the books of the philosophers, who could only get it, trying to find, did not express it when someone views that the global scope of an existing movement, distinct from those that involve teaching in mathematics education. At first I found in Cicero that Niket expressed opinions on the motion of the Earth, then I found in Plutarch, that this view held, and some others.

- . . . I have no doubt that capable scientists and mathematicians will agree with me, unless (which requires first and foremost, this philosophy), they do not want superficial, and deeply learn and think about everything that is proposed by me in this work .

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- . . . It′s no secret that Lactantius, generally speaking the famous writer, but a small mathematician, almost child-like reasoning about the shape of the Earth, osmeivaya those who argued that the Earth is spherical. Therefore, scientists should not be surprised if we will also someone from such ridicule. Mathematics is written for mathematicians . . .

- . . . Because the goal of all the noble science - to divert people from the evils and the direction of his mind for the better, most of all it can do astronomy because it represents the mind of almost unbelievably great pleasure . . .