University of Maryland - Fall 2004
HIST 401
Study Questions for Topic 1
The Aristotelian World View; Science in Antiquity

Questions numbered in multiples of 5 are essay questions (equivalent to 40% on midterm exam); the others are short-answer, one or two paragraphs (10%).

* indicates questions that will not be on an exam but may be used for extra-credit assignments.

"Identify" means give nationality, profession or field of research, major contribution to science/philosophy and its date within ± 100 years.  For a concept or term, explain its meaning and historical significance, including the name of its inventor or person most often associated with it.

If you are unsure about the meaning of any word in the readings or lectures, use a dictionary or ask in class. Exams may include questions asking for the definitions of unusual words that are important in the history of science.

None of these questions may be answered simply "yes" or "no."

When handing in answers for extra credit, indicate which question you are answering by giving its number (e.g. "Topic 1, no. 6")

1. *Lindberg offers 8 definitions of "science."  Pick the one you consider the most accurate and explain why.
2. According to Lindberg, the invention of writing made possible the development of science and philosophy.  What are 2 different reasons for this?
3. *On what page is Map 2 in Lindberg's book? What is its scale (how many miles to inch)? (State the source of the data you used).
4. *Who is David Lindberg?  What is the name of the author he cites in note 3, Chapter 1, and when was the cited work published?
5. *What are the Hindu-Arabic equivalents of the following Babylonian numbers?
   Show your calculations.
   

   Place:	60	1	1/60
   (a)
   (b)

   What are the Babylonian equivalents of the following Hindu-Arabic numbers?

   (c)

   1998

   (d)

   1/4

6. *Cohen says "The symbol for Pluto is an obvious monogram." But it has an additional significance. What is it?
7. How did Ptolemy's theory explain the fact that Mars appears brighter during its retrograde motion than at other times? Could the Eudoxus-Aristotle model explain this fact?
8. *What are the first and last years of (a) the 5th century B.C.; (b) the 1st century A.D.; (c) the 20th century A.D.
9. "The Milesians were materialists and monists" (Lindberg). Explain: who was the earliest Milesian philosopher, when and where did he live, what do "materialist" and "monist" mean?
10. Thales's theory that everything is made of water "cannot be equated with, nor does it anticipate, any modern theory. But comparing the past with the present is a sure recipe for distorting the achievements of the past." Explain what Lindberg means by this statement, and discuss another example of a past theory or discovery that has been distorted by comparing it with present knowledge.
11. What is the "mechanistic worldview" as conceived by Leucippus and Democritus?
12. Give 2 examples of Greek philosophers who introduced "immaterial principles." What were those principles?
13. Why is observation less important than reason as a source of knowledge, according to Plato?
14. *What are the 4 elements and their natures, according to Plato? Explain why only 3 can change.
15. How can the world be both stable and changeable? Discuss the answers of Heraclitus, Parmenides and Plato and defend your own opinion.
16. *Lindberg writes on p. 44: "it is often the fate of foundational questions to seem pointless to later generations who take the foundations for granted." Identify and briefly discuss one example other than those mentioned on this page.
17. Explain the difference between "forms" for Plato and for Aristotle.
18. How did Aristotle's theory of change avoid Parmenides' objection?
19. Explain the difference between Aristotle's "experience" and Francis Bacon's "experiment."
20. no question
21. no question
22. *What are the 4 terrestrial elements and their natures according to Aristotle? Explain why it is easier to change earth to water than to air.
23. How did Aristotle prove that, if a body A moves faster through a thinner medium B than through a denser medium D, then the existence of a void would lead to an absurd consequence? Why is the concept of "void" incoherent in Aristotelian physics?
24. What is the shape of the Earth according to Aristotle? What were 2 reasons for this conclusion?
25. *Estimate the ratio of the Earth-Sun to the Earth-Moon distance using the method of Aristarchus, assuming that you have observed the angle between those distances to be 89°. Compute the correct ratio to 2 significant figures using modern data.
26. no question
27. Aristotle applies the "rules of proportion" to conclude that if force F can move object B a distance C in time D, then F will move (1/2)B a distance 2C in time D or A will move (1/2) B a distance C in time (1/2) D. But, he says, it does not necessarily follow that A can move 2B a distance (1/2)C in time D. Why not? Aristotle's theory of motion is sometimes represented by the formula V is proportional to F/R, where v = velocity, R = resistance. State one case in which the formula is consistent with Aristotle's theory and one in which it is not.
28. What is the cause of motion of planets and stars in the heavens, according to Aristotle?
29. What evidence did Strato cite to demonstrate that heavy bodies accelerate as they fall?
30. Compare the scientific theories of Aristotle and Epicurus including basic assumption, ability to explain observations and moral/ethical implications.
31. *Explain the nature and function of "pneuma" in Stoic philosophy.
32. Explain the differences (technical and philosophical) between the astronomical theories of Eudoxus and Aristotle.
33. What was the astronomical theory of Aristarchus? Why was it rejected? Give two reasons.
34. Why does Eratosthenes' method for estimating the size of the Earth give a much more accurate answer than Aristarchus' method for estimating the ratio of the Earth-Sun to the Earth-Moon distance?
35. *Look up the exact dates of the equinoxes and solstices for the period June 2002-June 2004 and calculate the lengths of the 4 seasons. Show how the unequal lengths of the seasons are qualitatively explained from (a) Ptolemy's eccentric model; (b) Ptolemy's equant model; (c) Kepler's First and Second Laws. Use diagrams.
36. Show how Ptolemy's epicycle-deferent model explains retrograde motion. Use a diagram.
37. Explain the difference between intromission and extramission theories of vision; name one supporter of each among the ancient Greeks.
38. Why does a straight stick look bent when part of it is under water? With the aid of a diagram, give Ptolemy's explanation for the refraction of light at the interface between two transparent media such as aid and water. Label the actual position of the object seen (O), the eye (E), the interface (ABC) and the line to it (DF), the image I (apparent position of the object), the angle of incidence I and the angle of refraction r, show the direction of the ray.
39. Consider the Aristotelian description of a bicycle. (A) Explain how its natural motion is a result of the substances of which it is composed. (B) Does it have any natural motion qua bicycle? ( C ) How can it acquire a violent motion more easily than a rock with the same weight?
40. If you throw a ball up, it keeps moving up (for a short time) after it leaves your hand. Why is this a problem for Aristotle? What additional hypothesis does he invoke to explain the motion? How is this problem connected with the problem of the void?
41. What is "a nature" according to Aristotle? (Not according to Antiphon, etc.) Give an example of something that has a nature, and of something that doesn't.
42. Describe the 4 kinds of cause (not to be confused with modes) as defined by Aristotle, and give an example of each (other than the one given by Lindberg, the statue).
43. Using your own example, similar to one of Aristotle's, explain the difference between a potential cause and an actual cause, and show that a particular actual cause exists and ceases to exist simultaneously with its effect, while this may not be true of a potential cause. Give another example in which this does not seem to be true (i.e. effect does not cease when actual cause ceases)
44. According to Aristotle, different sciences may be characterized as either "understanding the fact" or "understanding the reason why." Give two examples of pairs of related science that differ in this way, and state the general principle used to distinguish members of such pairs.
45. Explain and discuss Dear's statement that "the historian has no stake in adjudicating the truth of past convictions."
46. What are Scientific Revolutions according to Kuhn? What 3 characteristics do his 3 examples share?
47. Why is the following sentence incoherent (or just wrong)? "In the Ptolemaic system planets revolve about the earth; in the Copernican they revolve about the sun"
48. Explain Kuhn's statement "Aristotelian physics inverts the ontological hierarchy of matter and quality that has been standard since the middle of the 17th century."
49. How are the following terms defined in Aristotelian physics? (A) motion; (B) quality.
50. Discuss why the following question should or should not be considered offensive: "Why did wealth and power become distributed among different societies as they now are, rather than in some other way?" Give Diamond's 3 reasons (which he rejects) why it might be offensive.
51. How does the example of an acorn growing into an oak tree help to explain Aristotle's concept of natural motion?
52. How does Kuhn's statement "revolutionary change is holistic" apply to the change from Aristotle's to Newton's physics?
53. How does Kuhn's statement that "revolutionary change requires changes in the taxonomy of scientific language" apply to the transition from Aristotle to Newton?
54. Identify: syllogism.
55. Explain and discuss the statement "Human history took off around 50,000 years ago, at the time of ... our Great Leap Forward." What are Diamond's criteria for the "Leap" and how do we know when it happened? Where is it likely to have happened, and what is the evidence?
56. What is Stigler's Law of Eponymy? Give one example from the history of science.
57. What is a "proximate factor"? Why does Diamond consider it unsatisfactory in explaining why western Eurasia came to dominate other regions?
58. How did the invention of farming lead to the rise of early societies and their dominance over others?
59. Identify: equant.
60. What happened at Cajamarca (Peru) on Nov. 16, 1532 and what is the significance of that event for world history? Discuss the role of 4 or 5 proximate factors that explain the event, and why the opposite event did not occur.
61. What is the difference between "internal" and "external" explanations in interpreting the history of science?  Give an example of each.

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