Historical Periods Greek Hellenic: 500 – 300 BCE Greek Hellenistic: Roman Empire: 1 st C BCE – 476 CE Early mid ages: Byzantine empire: 4 th C – 15 th C Islamic Golden Age: 8 th C – 13 th C Late middle ages: Renaissance: 14 th – 17 th C Scientific Revolution: 17 th C Enlightenment: 18 th C Industrial revolution: 19 th C Modern period: 20 th - ???

Aristotle’s Natural Philosophy I.Life (384 – 322 BCE) and Works Lyceum II.The Origin of Natural Philosophy III. Metaphysics and Epistemology IV. Aristotle’s Metaphysics and Epistemology V.Aristotle’s Cosmology VI. Motion VII. Biology VIII. Achievements

II. The Origins of Natural Philosophy Democracy, sophists Democracy, sophists Philosophy of knowledge Philosophy of knowledge Philosophy of knowledge Philosophy of knowledge Competition Competition Greek Gods Greek Gods Prosperity, slave state Prosperity, slave state Contact with other cultures Contact with other cultures Why Greece?

Three Forms of Philosophy Logic, ethics, natural (physics) philosophy Logic, ethics, natural (physics) philosophy all are ways of knowing all are ways of knowing Greeks valued all knowledge Greeks valued all knowledge rational animals rational animals macrocosm/ macrocosm/microcosm "All men by nature desire to know." Aristotle

The Circle

Parmenides (520 – 480) Being and not being Being and not beingnot beingnot being All change is a logical impossibility All change is a logical impossibility Zeno of Elea (490 – 430) Change of place (motion) is Change of place (motion) is impossible (Zeno) impossible (Zeno) Zeno’s paradoxes Significance: Everyone following Parmenides must address Everyone following Parmenides must address Led to questioning how we know what we know Led to questioning how we know what we know (epistemology) (epistemology)epistemology Led to a confrontation: logic versus the senses Led to a confrontation: logic versus the senses A. The question of change III. Metaphysics and Epistemology Metaphysics EpistemologyMetaphysics Epistemology

B. The question of knowledge Epistemology the senses versus the intellect the senses versus the intellect senses unreliable senses unreliable auditory illusion auditory illusion auditory illusion auditory illusion Real truth through the exercise of reason alone Real truth through the exercise of reason alone Importance: attention directed to reasoning, argumentation

C. The Question of the Stuff “ That of which all things consist, from which they first come and into which they are ultimately resolved … the element and origin of all things.” Aristotle Thales (624 – 546 BCE) 1. Water Mechanistic MechanisticMechanistic Deterministic DeterministicDeterministic 2. Atoms Democritus (460 – 370 BCE)

3. Numbers: The Pythagoreans Pythagoras ( BCE) a 2 + b 2 = c 2 Pythagorean theorem Music of the spheres Significance: application of mathematics to Nature

4. Earth, air, water, fire Empedocles Empedocles ( ) ( ) LoveStrife solid, gas, liquid, energy Dominant paradigm until 19 th Century Love and Strife Resolve quesiton Of change

Forms are the true reality Forms are the true reality characteristics characteristics 1.Eternal (Changeless) 2.Incorporeal (No physical body) 3.True reality 1.Mathematician (geometer) 2.Benevolent 3.Rational 4.Not omnipotent: Only a creator god Carpenter analogy Carpenter analogy 4. Templates for the sensible world 4. Templates for the sensible world Demiurge: the divine craftsman Demiurge: the divine craftsman D. Plato ( BCE) 1. The Two Worlds: Sensible and Forms

2. Plato’s Stuff Construction of the Cosmos based on geometric principles Construction of the Cosmos based on geometric principles Earth, air, water, and fire not basic elements Earth, air, water, and fire not basic elements Made of five platonic (regular) solids Made of five platonic (regular) solidsplatonic (regular) solidsplatonic (regular) solids Tetrahedron = Fire Octahedron = air Icosahedron = water Cube = earth Dodecahedron = aether First three can change by rearrangement of equilateral triangles First three can change by rearrangement of equilateral triangles For example: 2 tetrahedrons (fire) = 1 octahedron (air)

IV. Aristotle’s Metaphysics and Epistemology IV. Aristotle’s Metaphysics and Epistemology A.Metaphysics: Plato versus Aristotle 1.Plato: properties of physical things from the Forms (external) 2. Aristotle: physical is reality; internal properties = form and matter Form = properties (weight, color, etc) Form = properties (weight, color, etc) Matter = structure (substance) Matter = structure (substance) B. Epistemology 1. Start with senses 2. Leads to knowledge Example: observation of dogs Common sense! 3. Induction leads to deduction Induction deductionInduction deduction Form and matter cannot be separated Form and matter cannot be separated

C. Nature and Change 1. Change happens Form changes; matter stays the same 2. 3 categories of being Not, potential, actual

C. Nature and Change 3. Cause of change All natural things behave according to their nature All natural things behave according to their nature Biological: inner driving force Biological: inner driving force Four causes Four causes Formal cause: properties that can change Formal cause: properties that can change Material cause: unchanging matter Material cause: unchanging matter Efficient cause: agent of causation Efficient cause: agent of causation Final cause: goal, purpose (teleology) Final cause: goal, purpose (teleology) Examples: Examples: Statue Statue Newborn baby Newborn baby (compare to atomists) The 4 elements: earth and water- down; air and fire- up The 4 elements: earth and water- down; air and fire- up

HotCold DryWet D. Aristotle’s Stuff FireAirEarth Water Reducible Reducible Not geometrically Not geometrically Sensible qualities Sensible qualities Cold and dry = Hot and dry = = Hot and wet = Cold and wet Changeable Changeable Natural places: Earth and Water: down Air and Fire: up

Fifth element (quintessence) = aether Fifth element (quintessence) = aether Cosmos completely filled with the aether Cosmos completely filled with the aether No void (argument against void) No void (argument against void)

Other properties of the 4 elements Heavy or light Heavy or light Earth heaviest – water – air - fire lightest Earth heaviest – water – air - fire lightest Heaviest falls to center Heaviest falls to center Proof Earth is at center of universe Proof Earth is at center of universe Proof Earth is spherical Proof Earth is spherical Lightest ascend to lunar sphere Lightest ascend to lunar sphere If unimpeded: If unimpeded: Proof that Earth is stationary Proof that Earth is stationary Physical reality: Physical reality: Movements blocked Movements blocked Mixtures of things Mixtures of things

V. Aristotle’s Cosmology 2 (concentric) sphere model 2 (concentric) sphere model Problem with planetary motion Problem with planetary motion Problem with planetary motion Problem with planetary motion A. Eudoxus – Plato Model (student of Plato’s) Greeks not concerned with physical reality Greeks not concerned with physical reality Greeks concerned with circles Greeks concerned with circles Zodiac Celestial equator equator Solstice Ecliptic Equinox Equinox Solstice The Celestial Sphere

V. Aristotle’s Cosmology A. Origin of Cosmos B. Properties of the Universe 1. Sphere divided into upper and lower regions a. Celestial region Unchanging cycle Unchanging cycle Perfect circular motion Perfect circular motion Filled with aether Filled with aether Celestial spheres Celestial spheres Change and degeneration Change and degeneration Unmoved mover Unmoved mover (prime mover) (prime mover) “in the whole range of time past … no change … of the outermost heavens” “all motion involves a mover” b. Sublunar region Made up of the 4 elements Made up of the 4 elements

VI. Motion A. No motion without a mover B. Two types of motion 1. Natural motion (internal force) Up: fire and air Up: fire and air Towards natural place in a straight line Towards natural place in a straight line Down: water and earth Down: water and earth 2. Forced motion (external force) Not in a straight line Not in a straight line Motion stops when external force removed Motion stops when external force removed Problem: projectiles Problem: projectiles

C. Celestial motion 1. Unchanging 2. Perfect, circular motion 3. Problem with seven wandering stars: sun, moon, 5 planets 5 planets Retrograde motion of Mars Retrograde motion of Mars Retrograde motion of Mars Retrograde motion of Mars Solution: each “star” given own sphere (Eudoxus) Solution: each “star” given own sphere (Eudoxus) 55 circles plus fixed star sphere 55 circles plus fixed star sphere 4. Ultimate cause of motion: unmoved (prime) mover Celestial spheres seek to emulate perfection of p.m. Celestial spheres seek to emulate perfection of p.m.

VII. Biology VII. Biology A. History of Animals 1. Father of Biology, Zoology, Invertebrate Zoology 2. Over 500 species described 3. Begin with description, then explain

B. Classification 1. Red blooded Oviparous quadrupeds Oviparous quadrupeds Viviparous quadrupeds Viviparous quadrupeds Marine mammals Marine mammals Birds Birds Fish Fish

B. Classification 2. Bloodless

C. Souls (Internal organizing principles) 1. Nutritive soul- nourishment, growth, reproduction All that plants have All that plants have 2. Sensitive soul – sensation and motion Animals have this plus nutritive soul Animals have this plus nutritive soul 3. Rational soul Only humans have Only humans have Souls do not survive death Souls do not survive death

D. Great Chain of Being (scala naturae) Implications for evolution Implications for evolution

VIII. Achievements VIII. Achievements 1.Nature of Stuff and how to know it 2.Change and causation 3.Structure of Cosmos 4.Nature of deity (prime mover) 5.Authority on disciplines a.Terrestrial dynamics b.Meteorology c.Planetary astronomy d.Geology e.Physiology f.Chemistry g.Biology i.Zoology ii.intertidal marine invertebrates 6. Immediate problems: projectile and planetary motion

Rembrandt, Aristotle contemplating a bust of Homer

Raphael, The School of Athens Raphael, The School of Athens