Historical and Epistemological Reflections on the Culture of Machines around the Renaissance: How Science and Technique Work?

Abstract

This paper is divided into two parts, this being the first one. The second is entitled 'Historical and Epistemological Reflections on the Culture of Machines around Renaissance: Machines, Machineries and Perpetual Motion' and will be published in Acta Baltica Historiae et Philosophiae Scientiarum in 2015. Based on our recent studies, we provide here a historical and epistemological feature on the role played by machines and machineries. Ours is an epistemological thesis based on a series of historical examples to show that the relations between theoretical science and the construction of machines cannot be taken for granted, a priori. Our analysis is mainly based on the culture of machines around 15 th and 17 th centuries, namely the epoch of Late Renaissance and Early Modern Age. For this is the period of scientific revolution and this age offers abundant interesting material for researches into the relations of theoretical science/construction of machines as well. However, to prove our epistemological thesis, we will also exploit examples of machines built in other historical periods. Particularly, a discussion concerning the relationship between science theory and the development of science art crafts produced by non-recognized scientists in a certain historical time is presented. The main questions are: when and why did the

A Bridge between Conceptual Frameworks

“…33 these disunified 32 see my ( , 2000b( , 2007a, 2014a. Given any such accepted theory-newtonian theory, classical electrodynamics, quantum theory, general relativity, quantum electrodynamics, or the standard model-endlessly many disunified rivals can be easily concocted to fit the available phenomena even better that the accepted unified theory.…”

“…Aoe transforms the nature of science, the nature of philosophy of science, and the nature of the relationship between the two. 14;2014a). traditionally, philosophy of science has been conceived of, and practised, as a meta discipline, studying science in the same way as astronomers study the moon or distant galaxies.…”

“…Besides facing theoretical thematic […] he was busy with civil, military facts as he reported in his work on fortifications (Pisano and Capecchi 2009, p. 28; see also Pisano and Bussotti 2014). Besides facing theoretical thematic […] he was busy with civil, military facts as he reported in his work on fortifications (Pisano and Capecchi 2009, p. 28; see also Pisano and Bussotti 2014).…”

Historical and Epistemological Reflections on the Culture of Machines around the Renaissance: Machines, Machineries and Perpetual Motion

“…on mechanics-machineries and perpetual motion Very fascinating from a historical point of view is the role played by perpetual motion in practical science (Angrist, 1968;Angrist & Loren, 1967;Dircks, 1869;1870), a kind of motion which is impossible (Capecchi & Pisano, 2010b;Pisano & Bussotti, 2014a;2014b;2015). In this case, we will see that many scholars, engineers and constructors hoped to create a perpetuum mobile because they ignored that this is impossible.…”

“…As a correlated article, the reader will find three previous paragraphs in the first above-mentioned article (Pisano & Bussotti, 2014a).…”