A HISTORY OF THE

INDUCTIVE SCIENCES,

FROM

THE EARLIEST TO THE PRESENT TIME.




BY

WILLIAM WHEWELL, D. D.,

Master of Trinity College, Cambridge.


THE THIRD  EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS

IN TWO VOLUMES.

NEW YORK:
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY


1858


This electronic edition prepared by Dr. David C. Bossard
from original documents in the library holdings of Dartmouth College.

February, 2006.

Copyright © 2006 by Dr. David C. Bossard.  All rights reserved.

[042] In our history, it is the progress of knowledge only which we have to attend to. This is the main act of our drama... Our narrative will therefore consist mainly of successive steps of generalization. ... [The] primary movements, when the Inductive process, by which science is formed, has been exercised in a more energetic and powerful manner, may be distinguished as the Inductive Epochs of scientific history; and they deserve our more express and pointed notice. They are, for the most part, marked by the great discoveries and the great philosophical names... But... these epochs have not occurred suddenly and without preparation. They have been peceded by a period, which we may call their Prelude, during which the ideas and facts on which they turned were called into action; were gradually evolved into clearness and connection, permanency and certainty; till at last the discovery which marks the epoch, seized and fixed forever the truth which had till then been obscurely and doubtfully discerned. And again, when this step has been made by the principal discoverers, there may generally be observed another period, which we may call the Sequel of the Epoch, during which the discovery has acquired a more perfect certainty and a more complete development among the leaders of the advance.

CONTENTS.


DEDICATION TO WILLIAM HERSCHEL   005  006

PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION   007  008  009  010  011

CONTENTS  12

INDEX OF PROPER NAMES  23  023  024  025  026  027  028  029  030  031  032

INDEX OF TECHNICAL TERMS  33  033  034  035  036  037  038  039

SUPERSCRIPTION  40  040

INTRODUCTION  41  041  042  043  044  045  046  047  048  049  050  051  052  053  054
[043] To the formation of science, two things are requisite; -- Facts and Ideas; observation of Things without, and an inward effort of Thought; or, on other words, Sense and Reason. ... Real speculative knowledge demands the combination of the two ingredients; -- right reason, and facts to reason upon.
BOOK I.

HISTORY OF THE GREEK SCHOOL PHILOSOPHY, WITH REFERENCE TO PHYSICAL SCIENCE.


CHAPTER I.  PRELUDE TO THE GREEK SCHOOL PHILOSOPHY.

 055  056  057  058  059  060  061  062

Sect. 1. First Attempts of the Speculative Faculty in Physical Inquiries  55
Sect. 2. Primitive Mistake in Greek Physical Philosophy 60

CHAPTER II.  THE GREEK SCHOOL PHILOSOPHY.
 063  064  065  066  067  068  069  070  071  072  073  074  075  076  077  078  079

Sect. 1. The General Foundation of the Greek School Philosophy  63
Sect. 2. The Aristotelian Physical Philosophy  67
Sect. 3. Technical Forms of the Greek Schools  78
1. Technical Forms of the Aristotelian Philosophy  73
2. Technical Forms of the Platonists  75
3. Technical Forms of the Pythagoreans  77
4. Technical Forms of the Atomists and Others  78

CHAPTER III.  FAILURE OF THE PHYSICAL PHILOSOPHY OF THE GREEK SCHOOLS.
 080  081  082  083  084  085  086  087  088  089  090  091  092  093  094

Sect. 1.  ResuitoftheGreekSehoolPhilosophy  80
Sect. 2.  Cause of the Failure of the Greek Physical Philosophy  88
BOOK II.

HISTORY OF THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES IN ANCIENT GREECE.


INTRODUCTION  95   095

CHAPTER I.  EARLIEST STAGES OF MECHANICS AND HYDROSTATICS.
 096  097  098  099

Sect. 1. Mechanics  96
Sect. 2. Hydrostatics  98

CHAPTER II.  EARLIEST STAGES OF OPTICS  100   100  101  102  103  104

CHAPTER III.  EARLIEST STAGES OF HARMONICS  105  105  106  107  108  109  110
BOOK III.

HISTORY OF GREEK ASTRONOMY.

INTRODUCTION  111  111

CHAPTER 1.  EARLIEST STAGES OF ASTRONOMY.
 112  113  114  115  116  117  118  119  120  121  122  123  124  125  126  127  128  129  130  131  132  133  134  135  136  137

Sect. 1. Formation of the Notion of a Year  112
Sect. 2. Fixation of the Civil Year  113
Sect. 3. Correction of the Civil Year (Julian Calendar)  117
Sect. 4. Attempts at the Fixation of the Month  118
Sect. 5. Invention of Lunisolar Years  120
Sect. 6. The Constellations  124
Sect. 7. The Planets  126
Sect. 8. The Circles of the Sphere  124
Sect. 9. The Globular Form of the Earth 182
Sect. 10. The Phases of the Moon  134
Sect. 11. Eclipses  135
Sect. 12. Sequel to the Early Stages of Astronomy  136

CHAPTER II.  PRELUDE TO THE INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF HIPPARCHUS 138
  138  139  140  141  142  143  144

CHAPTER III.  INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF HIPPARCHUS.
 145  146  147  148  149  150  151  152  153  154  155  156

Sect. 1. Establishment of the Theory of Epicyles and Eccentrics  145
Sect. 2. Estimate of the Value of the Theory of Eccentrics and Epicycles. 151
Sect. 3. Discovery of the Precession of the Equinoxes  155

CHAPTER IV.  SEQUEL TO THE INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF HIPPARCHUS.
 157  158  159  160  161  162  163  164  165  166  167  168  169  170  171  172  173  174  175  176  177  178  179  180  181  182  183  184

Sect. 1. Researches which verified the Theory  157
Sect. 2. Researches which did not verify the Theory  159
Sect. 8. Methods of Observation of the Greek Astronomers  161
Sect. 4. Period from Hipparchus to Ptolemy  166
Sect. 5. Measures of the Earth  169
Sect. 6. Ptolemy's Discovery of Evection  170
Sect. 7. Conlusion of the History of Greek Astronomy  175
Sect. 8. Arabian Astronomy  176
BOOK IV

HISTORY OF PHYSICAL SCIENCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES.

INTRODUCTION.  185  185  186

CHAPTER I.  ON THE INDISTINCTNESS OF IDEAS OF THE MIDDLE AGES.
 187  188  189  190  191  192  193  194  195  196  197  198  199  200

1. Collections of Opinions  187
2. Indistinctness of Ideas in Mechanics  188
3. Indistinctness of Ideas shown in Architecture  191
4. Indistinctness of Ideas in Astronomy  192
5. Indistinctness of Ideas shown by Skeptics  192
6. Neglect of Physical Reasoning in Christendom  195
7. Question of Antipodes  195
8. Intellectual Condition of the Religious Orders  197
9. Popular Opinions  199

CHAPTER II.  THE COMMENTATORIAL SPIRIT OF THE MIDDLE AGES  201
 201  202  203  204  205  206  207  208  209  210

1.  Natural Bias to Authority  202
2.  Character of Commentators  204
3.  Greek Commentators of Aristotle  205
4.  Greek Commentators of Plato and Others  207
5.  Arabian Commentators of Aristotle  208

CHAPTER III.  OF THE MYSTICISM OF THE MIDDLE AGES 211

  211  212  213  214  215  216  217  218  219  220  221  222  223  224  225  226  227

1. Neoplatonic Theosophy  212
2. Mystical Arithmetic  210
3. Astrology  218
4. Alchemy.  224
5. Magic  225

CHAPTER IV.  OF THE DOGMATISM OF THE STATIONARY PERIOD.
 228  229  230  231  232  233  234  235  236  237  238

1. Origin of the Scholastic Philosophy  228
2. Scholastic Dogmas  230
3. Scholastic Physics 235
4. Authority of Aristotle among the Schoolmen  236
5. Subjects omitted. Civil Law. Medicine  238

CHAPTER V.-PROGRESS OF THE ARTS IN TilE MIDDLE AGES.
 239  240  241  242  243  244  245  246  247  248  249  250  251  252  253  254

1. Art and Science  239
2. Arabian Science  242
3. Experimental Philosophy of the Arabians  243
4. Roger Bacon  245
5. Architecture of the Middle Ages  246
6. Treatises on Architecture  248
BOOK V.

HISTORY OF FORMAL ASTRONOMY AFTER THE STATIONARY PERIOD.

INTRODUCTION  255  255  256

CHAPTER I.  PRELUDE TO THE INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF COPERNICUS  257
 257  258  259  260  261

CHAPTER II.  INDUCTION OF COPERNICUS. THE HELIOCENTRIC THEORY ASSERTED ON FORMAL GROUNDS  262
 262  263  264  265  266  267  268

CHAPTER III.  SEQUEL TO COPERNICUS. THE RECEPTION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COPERNICAN THEORY.

 269  270  271  272  273  274  275  276  277  278  279  280  281  282  283  284  285  286  287  288  289

Sect. 1.First Reception of the Copernican Theory  269
Sect. 2. Diffusion of the Copernican Theory  272
Sect. 3. The Heliocentric Theory confirmed by Facts. Ga1ileo's Astronomical Discoveries  276
Sect. 4. The Copernican System opposed on Theological Grounds  280
Sect. 5. The Heliocentric Theory confirmed on Physical Considerations.
(Prelude to Kepler's Astronomical Discoveries.) 287
[286] The meaning which any generation puts upon the phrases of Scripture, depends, more than is at first sight supposed, upon the received philosophy of the time. Hence, while men imagine that they are contending for Revelation, they are, in fact, contending for their own interpretation of Revelation, unconsciously adapted to what they believe to be rationally probable. And the new interpretation, which the new philosophy requires, and which appears to the older school to be a fatal violence done to the authority of religion, is accepted by their successors without the dangerous results which were apprehended. When the language of Scripture, invested with its new meaning, has become familiar to men, it is found that the ideas which it calls up, are quite as reconcilable as the former ones were, with the soundest religious views. And the world then looks back with surprise at the error of those who thought that the essence of Revelation was involved in their own arbitrary version of some collateral circumstance.  At the present day we can hardly conceive how reasonable men should have imagined that religious reflections on the stability of the earth, and the beauty and use of the luminaries which revolve round it, would be interfered with by its being acknowledged that this rest and motion are apparent only.


CHAPTER IV.  INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF KEPLER.
 290  291  292  293  294  295  296  297  298  299  300  301

Sect. 1. Intellectual Character of Kepler  290
Sect. 2. Kepler'sDiscovery of his Third Law  293
Sect. 3. Kepler's Discovery of his First and Second Laws. Elliptical Theory of the Planets  296

[290] Several persons, especially in recent times, who have taken a view of the discoveries of Kepler, appear to have been surprised and somewhat discontented that conjectures, apparently so fanciful and arbitrary as his, should have led to important discoveries.  They seem to have been alarmed at the Moral that their readers might draw, from the tale of a Quest of Knowledge, in which the Hero, though fantastical and self-willed, and violating in his conduct, as they conceived, all right rule and sound philosophy, is rewarded with the most signal triumphs.

[291] What is Invention, except the talent of rapidly calling before us many possibilities, and selecting the appropriate one? ... All who discover truths must have reasoned upon many errors, to obtain each truth. ... If many of Kepler's guesses now appear fanciful and absurd, because time and observation have refuted them, others, which were at the time equally gratuitous, have been confirmed by succeeding discoveries in a manner which makes them appear marvellously sagacious; as, for instance, his assertion of the rotation of the sun on his axis, before the invention of the telescope.

[292] We may notice as another peculiarity of Kepler's reasonings, the length and laboriousness of the processes by which he discovered the errors of his first guesses.  One of the most important talents requisite for a discoverer, is the ingenuity and skill which devises means for rapidly testing false suppositions as they offer themselves. This talent Kepler did not possess: he was not even a good arithmetical calculator.... But his defects in this respect were compensated by his courage and perseverance.

[298] We may judge the difficulty of casting off the theory of eccentrics and epicycles, by recollecting that Copernicus did not do it at all, and that Kepler only did it after repeated struggles; the history of which occupies thirty-nine Chapters of his book.

[301] [Kepler's] numerous and fanciful hypotheses had discharged their office, when they had suggested to him his many lines of laborious calculation, and encouraged him under the exertions and disappointements to which these led.  The result of this work was the formal laws of the motion of Mars, established by a clear induction, since they represented, with sufficient accuracy, the best observations. And we may allow that Kepler was entitled to the praise which he claims in the motto on his first leaf.  Ramus had said that if any one would construct an astronomy without hypothesis, he would be ready to resign to him his prefessorship in the University of Paris. Kepler quotes this passage, and adds, "it is well, Ramus, that you have run from this pledge, by quitting life and your professorship; if you held it still, I should, with justice, claim it." This was not saying too much, since he had entirely overturned the hypothesis of eccentrics and epicycles, and had obtained a theory which was a mere representation of the motions and distances as they were observed.

CHAPTER V.  SEQUEL TO THE EPOCH OF KEPLER. RECEPTION, VERIFICATION, AND EXTENSION OF THE ELLIPTICAL THEORY.
 302  303  304  305  306  307  308  309  310

Sect. 1. Application of the Elliptical Theory to the Planets  302
Sect. 2.  " " Moon 303
Sect. 3. Causes of the farther Progress of Astronomy  305

THE MECHANICAL SCIENCES.


BOOK VI.

HISTORY OF MECHANICS, INCLUDING FLUID MECHANICS.

INTRODUCTION  311   311

CHAPTER I.  PRELUDE TO THE EPOCH OF GALILEO.
 312  313  314  315  316  317  318  319  320  321

Sect. 1.Prelude to the Science of Statics  312
Sect. 2. Revival of the Scientific Idea of Pressture. -- Stevinus. -- Equilibrium of Oblique Forces  316
Sect. 3. Prelude to the Science of Dynamics. -- Attempts at the First Law of Motion  319

CHAPTER II.  INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF GALILEO. -- DISCOVERY OF THE LAWS OF MOTION IN SIMPLE CASES.

 322  323  324  325  326  327  328  329  330  331  332  333  334  335  336  337  338  339

Sect. 1. Establishment of the First Law of Motion  322
Sect. 2. Formation and Application of the Motion of Accelerating Force -- Laws of Falling Bodies  324
Sect. 3. Establishment of the Second Law of Motion. -- Curvilinear Motions  330
Sect. 4. Generalization of the Laws of Equilibrium. -- Principle of Virtual Velocities  331 Sect. 5. Attempts at the Third Law of Motion. -- Notion of Momentum 334

CHAPTER III.  SEQUEL TO THE EPOCH OF GALILEO. -- PERIOD OF VERIFICATION AND DEDUCTION  340
 340  341  342  343  344

CHAPTER IV.  DISCOVERY OF THE MECHANICAL PRINCIPLES OF FLUIDS.
 345  346  347  348  349  350  351

Sect. 1. Rediscovery of the Laws of Equilibrium of Fluids  345
Sect. 2. Discovery of the Laws of Motion of Fluids  348

CHAPTER V.  GENERALIZATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF MECHANICS.
 352  353  354  355  356  357  358  359  360  361

Sect. 1. Generalization of the Second Law of Motion. -- Central Forces 352
Sect. 2. Generalization of the Third Law of Motion. -- Centre of Oscillation. -- Huyghens  356

CHAPTER VI.  SEQUEL TO THE GENERALIZATION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF MECHANICS. -- PERIOD OF MATHEMATICAL DEDUCTION. -- ANALYTICAL MECHANICS  362
 362  363  364  365  366  367  368  369  370  371  372  373  374  375  376  377  378  379  380  381  382  383  384

1. Geometrical Mechanics. -- Newton, &c.  363
2. Analytical Mechanics. -- Eulcr 363
3. Mechanical Problems  364
4. D'Alembert's Principle  365
5. Motion in Resisting Media. -- Ballistics  365
6. Constellation of Mathematicians  366
7. The Problem of Three Bodies  367
8. Mécanique Céleste, &c  371
9. Precession.-- Motion of Rigid Bodies  374
10. Vibrating Strings  375
11. Equilibrium of Fluids. -- Figure of the Earth. -- Tides  376
12. Capillary Action 377
18.Motion of Fluids  378
14. Various General Mechanical Principles  380
15. Analytical General ity. -- Connection of Statics and Dynamics  381

BOOK VII.

HISTORY OF PHYSICAL ASTRONOMY.


CHAPTER I.  PRELUDE TO THE INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF NEWTON  385
 385  386  387  388  389  390  391  392  393  394  395  396  397  398

CHAPTER II.  THE INDUCTIVE EPOCH OF NEWT0N. -- DISCOVERY OF THE UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION OF MATTER, ACCORDING TO THE LAW OF THE INVERSE SQUARE OF THE DISTANCE  399
 399  400  401  402  403  404  405  406  407  408  409  410  411  412  413  414  415  416  417  418  419

1. Sun's Force on Different Planets  399
2. Force in Different Points of an Orbit  400
3. Moon's Gravity to the Earth  402
4. Mutual Attraction of all the Celestial Bodies  406
5. " " Particles of Matter  411
Reflections on the Discovery  414
Character of Newton  416

CHAPTER III.  SEQUEL TO THE EPOCH OP NEWTON. -- RECEPTION OF THE NEWTONIAN THEORY.
 420  421  422  423  424  425  426  427  428  429  430  431  432

Sect. 1. General Remarks  420
Sect. 2. Reception of the Newtonian Theory in England  421
Sect. 3. " " Abroad  429

CHAPTER IV.  SEQUEL TO THE EPOCH OF NEWTON, CONTINUED VERIFICATION AND COMPLETION OF THE NEWTONIAN THEORY.
 433  434  435  436  437  438  439  440  441  442  443  444  445  446  447  448  449  450  451  452  453  454  455  456  457  458  459  460  461

Sect. 1. Division of the Subject  433
Sect. 2. Application of the Newtonian Theory to the Moon 434
Sect. 3.  "  " Planets, Satellites, and Earth  488
Sect. 4. Application of the Newtonian Theory to Secular Inequalities  444
Sect. 5. "  "  to the new Planets  446
Sect. 6. "  "  to Comets  449
Sect. 7. "  "  to the Figure of the Earth. 452
Sect. 8. Confirmation of the Newtonian Theory by Experiments on Attraction  456
Sect. 9. Application of the Newtonian Theory to the Tides  457

CHAPTER V.  DISCOVERIES ADDED TO THE NEWTONIAN THEORY.
 462  463  464  465  466  467  468  469

Sect. 1. Tables of Astronomical Refraction  462
Sect. 2. Discovery of the Velocity of Light. -- Römer  463
Sect. 3. Discovery of Aberration. -- Bradley  464
Sect. 4. Discovery of Nutation  465
Sect. 5. Discovery of the Laws of Double Stars.-The Two Herschels  467

CHAPTER VI.  THE INSTRUMENTS AND AIDS OF ASTRONOMY DURING THE NEWTONIAN PERIOD.
 470  471  472  473  474  475  476  477  478  479  480  481  482  483  484  485  486  487  488

Sect. 1. Instruments  470
Sect. 2. Observatories  476
Sect. 3. Scientific Societies  478
Sect. 4. Patrons ofAstronomy  479
Sect. 5. Astronomical Expeditions  480
Sect. 6. Present State of Astronomy  481

ADDITIONS TO THE THIRD EDITION.

INTRODUOTION  489  489  490
BOOK I.  THE GREEK SCHOOL PHILOSOPHY.

THE GREEK SCHOOLS.

 491  492  493  494  495  496
The Platonic Doctrine of ideas  491

FAILURE OF THE GREEK PHYSICAL PHILOSOPHY.
Bacon's Remarks on the Greeks  494
Aristotle's Account of the Rainbow  495

BOOK II.  THE: PHYSICAL SCIENCES IN ANCIENT GREECE.

 497  498  499  500  501  502

PIato's Timaeus and Republic  497
Hero of Alexandria  501

BOOK III.  THE GREEK ASTRONOMY.

 503  504  505  506  507  508  509  510

INTRODUCTION  503

EARLIEST STAGES OF ASTRONOMY.
The Globular Form of the Earth  505
The Heliocentric System among the Ancients  506
The Eclipse of Thales  508
BOOK IV.  PHYSICAL SCIENCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES.

 511  512  513  514  515  516  517  518  519  520  521  522

General Remarks  511

PROGRESS IN THE MIDDLE AGES.

Thomas Aquinas  512
Roger Bacon  512
BOOK V.  FORMAL ASTRONOMY

 523  524  525  526  527  528  529  530  531  532  533  534  535 

PRELUDE TO COPERNICUS.
Nicolas of Cus  523

THE COPERNICAN THEORY.
The Moon's Rotation  524
M. Foucalt's Experiments  525

SEQUEL TO COPERNICUS.
English Copernicans  526
Giordano Bruno  530
Did Francis Bacon reject the Copernican Doctrine?  530
Kepler persecuted  532
The Papal Edicts against the Copernican System repealed  534
BOOK VI.-MECHANICS.

 536  537  538  539  540  541  542  543

PRINCIPLES AND PROBLEMS.
Significance of Analytical Mechanics  536
Strength of Materials  538
Roofs -- Arches -- Vaults 541
BOOK VII.  PHYSICAL ASTRONOMY.

 544  545  546  547  548  549  550  551  552  553  554  555
 556  557  558  559  560  561  562  563  564  565  566

PRELUDE TO NEWTON
TheAncients  544
Jeremiah Horrox  545
Newton's Discovery of Gravitation  546

THE PRINCIPIA
Reception of the Principia  548
Is Gravitation proportional to Quantity of Matter?  549

VERIFICATION AND COMPLETION OF THE NEWTONIAN THEORY.
Tables of the Moon aud Planets  550
The Discovery of Neptune  554
The Minor Planets  557
Anomalies in the Action of Gravitation   560
The Eartli's Density  561
Tides  562
Double Stars  563

INSTRUMENTS.
Clocks  565-566