Chemistry in the Scientific Revolution

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"Scientific revolution" has many meanings, the most common being the overthrow of one theory for another. The "revolution" concerning the theory of continental drift and plate tectonics is a recent example of such a revolution. Much rarer, however, has been those kinds of global scientific revolutions which radically alter our view of the world around us. While there may be more, four readily come to mind: the Scientific Revolution of the 16th and 17th Centuries, the Darwinian Revolution, the Einsteinian Revolution and the Revolution ensuing from Quantum Theory. These revolutions represent not just a change in theories or sets of theories, but a radical shift of our views of ourselves and our place in the Universe. Studies of these global revolutions consequently remain centrally important for understanding both science and human nature itself. Dr. Davis is examining the papers of one of the central figures in the first scientific revolution, Robert Boyle. Boyle, second only to Newton, made lasting contributions to the establishment of the mechanical philosophy. As an experimental scientist and aggressive polemicist, Boyle sought to demonstrate the philosophical, theological, and scientific deficiencies of the Aristotelian, Renaissance and Cartesian systems of nature. It is in no small part owing to Boyle's defense of atomism that Newton and his followers also rejected these other systems. Despite his importance, Boyle's unpublished papers have never been analyzed as a whole for what they reveal about the development of his thought. Collaborating with Dr. Michael Hunter of the University of London, Dr. Davis will undertake an analytical study of he relationship of Boyle's unpublished and published writings. The long term goal is to complete a work which will shed entirely new light on our understanding of a man whose work can be seen as a microcosm of the scientific revolution.