The Scientific Revolution WebQuest

Each person below was important to the Scientific Revolution. Click on the names to be
taken to a website that has the answer to the listed questions.
Make sure you read the information fully and answer the questions thoroughly!
Copernicus
1. Where was Copernicus born and what did he do in his early life?
He was born on Feb. 19, 1473 and studied at the University of Krakow. He studied liberal
arts/medicine and focused his attention on astronomy.
2. Besides astronomy, what did Copernicus study in school?
Besides astronomy, Copernicus studied mathematics, philosophy, liberal arts, and medicine law.
3. What different occupations did Copernicus engage in?
He faithfully performed ecclesiastical duties, practiced medicine and wrote a treatise on
monetary reform.
4. What was Copernicus Heliocentric Theory?
This theory was a shift from the thought that humans were the center of everything. Copernicus
proposed that a rotating Earth revolving with the other planets about a stationary central Sun
could account in a simpler way for the same observed phenomena of the daily rotation of the
heavens, the annual movement of the Sun through the ecliptic, and the periodic retrograde
motion of the planets.
5. When did Copernicus reportedly receive a copy of his printed theory?
He reportedly received a copy of his printed theory on his deathbed, May 24, 1543.
Kepler
1. Where was Kepler born and where did he receive his education?
Johannes Kepler was born in Weil der Stadt in Swabia, in southwest Germany in 1571.He
received his education at the Protestant university of Tuebingen where he studied theology.
2. Who did he replace after serving as his assistant?
Kepler served as Tycho Brahe's assistant until the latter's death in 1601 and was then appointed
Tycho's successor as Imperial Mathematician
3. What was Keplers mother accused of being?
His mother was accused of being a witch.
Galileo
1. What invention did Galileo improve upon?
He improved the telescope.
2. What did he discover with his new invention?
With his new invention he discovered the moons of the planet Jupiter and the phases of the
planet Venus.
3. What accepted theory was he required to teach the at University of Pisa?
Galileo was required to teach the accepted theory of his time that the sun and all the planets
revolved around the Earth which was called the Geocentric Theory
4. Whose theory was he exposed to at the University of Padua?

He was exposed to the theory, proposed by Nicolaus Copernicus that stated that the Earth and
all the other planets revolved around the sun.
5. What was he convicted of and what was the disposition of his sentence?
In 1633 the Inquisition convicted him of heresy and forced him to publicly withdraw his support
of Copernicus. They sentenced him to live in prison but because of his age he was able to serve
house arrest at his villa in Arcetri outside of Florence.
6. Who was born in the year that Galileo died?
Isaac Newton was born the year that Galileo died.
Francis Bacon
1. By todays standards, Bacon did things at a young age.
a. When did he enter college?
He entered Trinity College Cambridge at the age of twelve years old.
b. When did he become a member of the House of Commons?
He became a member of the House of Commons at the age of 23 years old.
2. What was Bacons fathers role in the Queens court?
Bacon's father was the lord keeper of the seal of Queen Elizabeth I.
3. Describe Bacons method.
Bacon's method was Novum Organum which is a new method to replace that of Aristotle. He
thought that his method would eventually disclose and bring into sight all that is most hidden
and secret in the universe. His method involved collection of data, judicious interpretation,
carrying out of experiments and learn the secrets of nature by organized observation of its
regularities.
Rene Descartes
1. What is the source of this account of Descartes life?
This account of Descartes life is from `A Short Account of the History of Mathematics' (4th
edition, 1908) by W. W. Rouse Ball.
2. What was Descartes excuse for sleeping late?
His excuse for sleeping late was that when he visited Pascal in 1647 he told him that the only
way to do good work in mathematics and to preserve his health was never to allow anyone to
make him get up in the morning before he felt inclined to do so.
3. What were Descartes chief contributions to mathematics?
Descartes's chief contributions to mathematics were his analytical geometry and his theory of
vortices, and it is on his researches in connection with the former of these subjects that his
mathematical reputation rests.
4. Besides mathematics, what other science did Descartes delve into?
Besides mathematics, Descartes delved into light and optics, philosophy, medicine, motion,
laws of nature, and astronomy.
Isaac Newton
1. What was Newtons involvement with the English money system?
Newton was elected Member of Parliament for the University of Cambridge to the Convention
Parliament of 1689, and sat again in 1701-1702. Meanwhile, in 1696 he had moved to London
as Warden of the Royal Mint. He became Master of the Mint in 1699, an office he retained to his

death. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1671, and in 1703 he became
President, being annually re-elected for the rest of his life.
2. When did Isaac Newton become Sir Isaac Newton?
Isaac Newton became Sir Isaac Newton in 1705.
3. Besides his work with the law of gravity, what were Newtons other interests?
Besides his work with the law of gravity, Newton was interested in physical science, chemistry,
early history of Western civilization and theology, historical studies, theology, and optics.
4. What were Newtons posthumous (after death) publications?
After his death the books which were published include The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms
Amended, The System of the World, first draft of Principia, Observations upon the Prophecies of
Daniel and lastly the Apocalypse of St. John.