8-4MathandScience

WHAT ADVANCEMENTS IN MATH AND SCIENCE WERE MADE IN THE ELIZABETHAN ERA, AND HOW DID THESE ADVANCEMENTS AFFECT PEOPLE'S LIVES, INCLUDING SHAKESPEARE'S LIFE? //Answer Prepared by Nathan G.

 During Shakespeare’s time, many advancements occurred in the fields of math and science. The most noticeable advancement during his time was astronomy. According to www.elizabethan-era.org, many people believed in astrology- the idea that stars and planets can control or influence events on the Earth. Shakespeare even stated in one of his works, King Lear, that “these late eclipses of the sun and moon portend no good to us.” The famous astronomers of Shakespeare’s time were Galileio and Kepler. Galileo introduced one of the fist telescopes and observed the sun and the planets. While observing the moon, he recorded his notes and published them into his book The Starry Messenger. He observed the moon’s orbit, phases, and surface. Galileo found that the sun nor the Earth was the center of the Universe. Many people, and the Church, disagreed with this idea. Meanwhile, Kepler was figuring out laws of planetary motion and orbits. His theories soon led to the discovery of gravity. These new discoveries were making people interested in the stars and the planets. Also during Shakespeare’s time, advancements in the medical field were being made by Vesalius. Vesalius was the first person to give a careful description of the human body. His descriptions were made by dissections of humans. To find bodies, scientists would go to graveyards and dig up recently buried bodies. This practice was hated by the Church and was illegal because it went against morals of the time. These new medical advancements made people interested in parts of the body and how they function.

Lastly, math was an important part of discoveries in Shakespeare’s time. Newton had just invented calculus and more applications of math were emerging, such as astronomical distances, heights of very tall objects, and ship navigation. Math was used more than ever on ships because of the inventions of the sundial and compass. From Louise Pritchard’s book ////Shakespeare////, I learned that navigators could now predict the ocean tides, and distance needed to travel from one port to another. Through many discoveries in math and science, people were becoming more intrigued in the world around them.

Works Cited // // "Elizabethan Astrology." Elizabethan Era. 16 Apr 2009 <[]>.

"Elizabethan Science and Technology." __Shakespeare Info__. 5 Apr 2009 <[]>.

Laroque, François. The Age of Shakespeare. New York: Abrams, 1993.

Mowat, Barbara, and Paul Werstine. A Midsummer Night's Dream. New York: Washington Square Press, 1993.

Porter, Roy. London: A Social History. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1995.

Pritchard, Louise. Shakespeare. 1. New York: DK, 2002. //