Francis Bacon: Novum Organum (New Method)

The scientific revolution 16th century

• Bacon was a politician, rumors that he was the one who wrote Shakespeare’s play. Another
rumor is that he staged his own death. Not only new methods of science but new values of
science.
• This period witnessed scientific events that no age had aver. Discoveries, and inventions were
unprecedented to any number in times of history.
• Revolution; overthrowing an old arrangement/ science and replaced this old science with a new
science
• Isaac newton, capernicous, galileo,
• Old science: (Geo-centric) people believed that the earth was flat and in the center of the
universe, planets rotate around the earth in perfect circles. The sun was mobile and earth was
immobile. Catholics believed the geo-centric so if anyone questioned this. Believed to have
four main elements, fire, air (both light, tendency to be upwards) , water earthly, soil, tendency
to be at the center of the earth), and that all these elements have a telos (purpose). Teleological
view; motion is defined as the telos purpose
• New science: (Helio-centric) planets move around the sun Elliptically by kepler laws. Galileo,
observed dark spots on the surface of the sun and made the discovery of dark spots on the sun
which contradicted that planets were perfect. Found guilty of heresy (anti-religious) in the
church and forced into the state of house arrest. The universe is made of infinite number of
particles or elements. New is not telos but rather mechanical equations and combinations. Pen
falls down because of calculation and gravitation. Robert Boyle; experiment proved that water
can be pumped upwards. (volume with pressure)
• It was not easy to be a scientist back then.
• Empirical philosopher, he expressed on the value of experience
• Triangle figure (reason, understanding instruments, and the 5 senses):
• Rejected the old sciences, not effective, doesn’t rely on instruments, were concepts that
weren’t derived from experience. These were deductive methods. The scientific method should
be an inductive method

• Idols: some one you can look up to. false concepts, false notions that belong to the human
mind. These are dangerous to the human mind because they prevent the human mind from
arriving to the truth
• Four idles:
1. Idols of the tribe: false concepts that belong to the human nature (tendency to look into
positive evidence, evidence that would confirm our opinions,
2. Idols of the cave/den: false weaknesses that vary from 1 individual to another (depending on
language, education)(ex: different individuals have diff tendencies in how they understand
things, to look at differences, or similarities but good is to look at both
3. Idols of the marketplace: false notions that arise from the way we use language(there is a
danger when we use language we use words that have no meaning-not a luxurious point.
Example; there is no such thing as a primemover, useless. The word humidity, was not
defined accurately by scientists of that time. We illuminate the meanings words, and the
meaningful ones we define by induction
4. Idols of the theatre: he makes a comparison between plays (theatre captivate the minds of
the author) and systems of philosophy(captivated the minds of its followers, come to believe
things of the world in light or in relation to these Philosophical systems, they had
brainwashed its followers to believe things that are necessarily true: sooo we try to destroy
the undermines of these philosophical system (Aristotle-teleological science and Aquinas)

Bacon stressed on the need to introducing new values in science and society
1. The value of science becoming a profession in modern times. (in medieval times it was a
hobby) because it required focus, dedication , and especially paid scientists
1. Science needing funding, resources facilities. Because research requires money to pay
personnel.
2. Science should be viewed as a cumulative activity: where the ideas in science develop,
accumulate on each other. It is not done as an individual activity, as a body of knowledge
that collectively works together to arrive at truth and knowledge. You need to build up on the
works of others.
3. Science & religion : Bacon did not believe that science and christianity are opposites but
rather he said they complement each other. That they are separate activities, you find the
truth about the world doing science not in religion. Science is in service of God. Science
should be viewed as the servant of god-> thats how they complement each other. Because of
the kinds of things that science can produce in the world. The benefits, the effects offer the
service of god
4. Science & power: The connection between science and power. The more a nation is
advanced in science, the more it can achieve power over nature, and the more it can achieve
political power. Ex: England (shipbuilding)

• Passage 95: those who have treated of the sciences have been either empirics or dogmatical
Analogy: to make a metaphor as science as an insect
Ants; they collect food and store it for future use; a scientist who only collects data and stores it
in memory (observation is not enough, rely on tools instruments and senses)
spiders; weave cobwebs out of their own substance; rely on mind or understanding
bees: extract pollen and transform it into honey; beeline scientist would collect data and would
then “digest" making sense of it, give an explanation using his mind
Which comes first, the mind or senses
For bacon the instruments & senses come first,
but today the starting point is intuition, theory mind.

1. Man is the minister and interpreter of nature. (keyword: observation), science and knowledge
can’t be reached only by observation. (observation & experience)
2. Unassisted hand; understanding instruments. Instruments: tools/experiment tools. 5 senses:
touch/taste/audibility/vision/scent (naked eye without assistance) (understanding, thinking,
reasoning)
3. Knowledge of power:
4. Present(old) science: Is useless
5. Old science were useless: attraction, repulsion,
19 x 22
• Two ways
• Trust: senses/particular: deductive: start from generalization the deduce specific conclusion
(necessity follows)
• Trust: senses and particular:inductive: move from many specifics till you reach a
generalization. (end result: conclusion. cant be with necessity, its probability)
Therefore in order to expect new in science, new methods must be discovered