Robert Hatch

SUBTOPIC: 

The Newtonian Synthesis: A Meeting of Minds

OBJECTIVES:

The students will:

1. re-write and discuss Newton’s four rules of reasoning in their own words2) distinguish between observation and interpretation
2. understand how perspective (in time and space) affects observations and interpretations of the significant scientists
3. understand that the Newtonian synthesis did not put an end to the study of science by solving all problems, but opened whole new lines of investigation, both theoretical and observational
4. understand that Newton’s influence was not limited to science alone

Background Information

If one were asked to name the most important scientist of Western Civilization, the name Isaac Newton would more than likely roll off the tongue. Newton’s synthesis of previous science knowledge-work into a consistent mathematical theory of the world was the crown jewel of the Scientific Revolution and a key to the Enlightenment.

Newton also merged the two opposing trends of 17th-century science–the empirical inductive method and the rational deductive method. Through the proper balance of the two, Newton created a basis for scientific methodology which exists in all of the natural philosophies today.

Newton’s influence extends into the social sciences and has had a major influence on the structure of the American governmental and other national experiences.

Although current research in physics indicates fallacies and limitations to the Newtonian view, Isaac Newton is recalled as a founding father of modern thought. As Newton “stood on the shoulders of giants” for a better view, now we too may search for new truth, and our vantage is from above his shoulder.

Newton began his investigations into natural science by establishing rules to guide his scientific and philosophical observation. Students often have difficulty determining what may be presumed as consistent and constant, and what factors may be deemed as variables in their experience.

ACTIVITY #1:

Making Observations and Interpretations

           1 class period

MATERIALS:  

ANY NON-SCIENTIFIC FILM WITH A STORY LINE DEVELOPED IN A NATURAL SETTING    e.g. “Survival.” US Park Service. [*a film depicting four rescue efforts]

PROCEDURE:

1. Choose 10 minutes of the film to show.
   1. First, show the film without audio and have students make as observations as possible during the film. Do NOT explain what you mean by observation. Do NOT show the ending. Assign the following homework:
   2. b) Observe the sky as much as possible during the next 24 hours and record your observations. Pay attention to the position and appearance of objects in the sky, time of day and your position on Earth.
2. During the next class period, divide students into four groups of 6 have each group compile a list of observations based on the film.
3. Have a spokesperson read each list.
4. Discuss the difference between an observation and an interpretation.
5. Have each group eliminate any interpretations and explain to the class why only observations may be used. The groups should explain to the class what conclusion they believe the film will have. Make the same assignment as in Procedure #1.

ACTIVITY #2:

The Conclusion

           30 minutes

PROCEDURE:

Show the film used in Activity #1 with audio. Discuss the differences in interpretations that the sense of hearing produces. Make the same assignment as in Activity #1, Procedure #1.

ACTIVITY #3:

Color Illusions

           1 class period

PROCEDURE:

1. Show a large yellow circle using an overhead projector or construct one on paper with a white background. Ask for observations, then show blue, red and green circles. The class will agree that all but color-blind people see the colored circles.
2. Now ask that they stare at one circle for 1-3 minutes. Quickly remove it. Most will see a different color.
3. Discuss how visual receptors, after becoming too tired to see one color, eliminate the color from white light. This is why only the other colors can be seen after a certain amount of time. Relate this to becoming acclimated to certain odors. Discuss the difficulties in making accurate observations. Make the same assignment as before.

ACTIVITY #4:

Comparing Observations

           2 class periods

PROCEDURE:

1. Divide into four groups of 6 each.
2. Compare sky observations and make a summary which you may read to the class. Discuss the concept that the “ancients” and we have basically the same visual opportunities to observe the sky.

ACTIVITY #5:

Preparation

            1 class period

MATERIALS:   

WORLD HISTORY TEXTS, ENCYCLOPEDIAS, ACCESS TO A LIBRARY OR REGERENCE MATERIALS

PROCEDURE:

1. Prepare a student handout or an overhead projection listing of Newton’s four Rules of Reasoning (see attachment). Working with your class, discuss each of the rules, restate them in terms students are comfortable with, and illustrate each with a variety of examples.
2. The students should prepare their own simplified set of Newton’s rules.
3. Review with the students the impact of the Newtonian Synthesis and of Newton’s Rules of Reasoning.
4. Explain to students that in just a few days an extraordinary meeting will take place in this classroom. Some of the great thinkers of the Age of Newton will have a meeting of the minds.

ACTIVITY #6:

Researching the Character

           1-2 class periods

PROCEDURE:

1. Prepare a list of names of some of the great thinkers/leaders of the Enlightenment from a variety of fields, or have students brainstorm to produce such a list (perhaps using the appropriate section of the World History textbook).

   Examples:
   Government Philosophy/Theology/Law

   • Louis XIV
   • Thomas Hobbes
   • Peter the Great
   • John Locke
   • Maria Theresa
   • Spinoza
   • Catherine the Great
   • Montesquieu
   • Elizabeth I
   • Voltaire
   • Oliver Cromwell
   • Rousseau
   • David Hume
   • Hugo Grotius

   Literature Science and Technology

   • Johnathon Swift
   • Isaac Newton
   • Alexander Pope
   • Rene Descartes
   • Voltaire
   • Robert Hooke
   • Madame de Stael

   Music/Art

   • Christopher Wren
   • Johann Sebastian Bach
   • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
2. Group your class into teams. Select five or six of the individuals from your list, making sure that each category is represented. Each team selects an individual from this shortened list. The job of each team is to thoroughly research its chosen thinker/leader and to prepare one of its members to portray this historical figure at a meeting in a salon.
3. Make sure teams understand that they must prepare their historical figures to stay “in character.” The topic for discussion is:
   “Are Newton’s Rules of Reasoning applicable outside of science?”

4. Allow sufficient time for research. Select a student to portray Isaac Newton, and serve as moderator.

ACTIVITY #7:

Meeting of Minds

           1 class period

PROCEDURE:

1. On the appointed day, assemble your “minds.”
2. The moderator, “Isaac Newton,” should give a brief introduction, introduce his guests, and begin the meeting by posing the question:
   “Are my rules of reasoning applicable outside of science?”
3. Each historical figure should be given a minute or two to make some opening remarks. The discussion should proceed informally, hopefully in a lively fashion.

Suggestions:

1. You may wish to consult Steve Allen’s series “A Meeting of Minds” (which may be on video, or use his book of the same title) to see how this format was used for other topics. Originally, it was telecast in 1978.
2. If you are working with a large, highly motivated class, you may wish to set up two meetings with two different lists of historical characters.
3. Be sure you include historical figures who would have differed from Newton (e.g. Rousseau, Hume, Hooke) as well as some who might have agreed.
4. Students may have problems figuring out what “in character” means. You may wish to jump-start them with a few pointed suggestions.

Examples:

1. John Locke– An English philosopher who was greatly influenced by Newton’s work. Locke thought that the goal of philosophy should be to solve problems, including those that affect our daily lives. Reason was seen as our guide in all things. Locke thought that the concept of “natural law” could be used in religion as well as in physics.
2. Johnathan Swift– An English writer who distrusted the new cosmology. In his novel Gulliver’s Travels (1726), he used his savage satire to describe an academy of scientists and mathematicians engaged in absurd experiments.
3. Jean Jacques Rousseau– One of the more influential philosophers, he criticized what he believed was excessive reliance on reason. He urged a return to a simple, natural life.
4. David Hume– A Scottish philosopher. He questioned the value of human reason. Hume pointed out that there was not proof of the existence of natural law. He said that reason was no better than faith as a source of knowledge.

Bibliography

Allen, Steve. A Meeting of Minds. New York: Crown Publication,  1978-79.

Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Project Physics. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1971.

Thayer, H.S. Newton’s Philosophy of Nature. New York: Hafner Publishing Company, 1953.