Section 2.

Intellectual Revolutions

Copernican Revolution

Copernican Revolution was started by Nicolaus Copernicus (mathematician and

astronomer), who was born on 19 February 1473, in Cracow, Poland. It is more commonly called
Copernican astronomy, which challenged the Ptolemaic model of geocentricism (earth is the
center of the universe). Copernicus introduced the cosmologic idea of heliocentric universe
(heliocentricism, sun is the center of the universe) through his essay Commentariolus written
sometime between 1510 and 1514.

At first, it was rejected by the public because people cling into their religious belief that
the earth is the center of the universe, since earth was the first to be created by God. The model
had been proven to have had simplified the orbits of the planets and answered issues that were
unexplained by the geocentric model. Finally, it was accepted by the people and had become the
start or the birth of modern astronomy and became a turning point in the study of cosmology
which made a relevant intellectual revolution.

Darwinian Revolution

The Darwinian Revolution refers to Darwinian theory of evolution or Darwinism by

English naturalist, biologist, and geologist Charles Darwin. This theory of evolution completed
the Copernican Revolution by drawing out for biology the notion of nature as a lawful system of
matter in motion. The adaptations and diversity of organisms, the origin of novel and highly
organized forms, even the origin of humanity itself could now be explained by an orderly process
of change governed by natural laws. It was introduced by Darwin in his book, in 1859, The
Origin of Species, ushering in a new era in the intellectual history of humanity. Darwin was
deservedly credited for the theory of biological evolution: accumulated evidence demonstrating
that organisms evolve and discovered the process, natural selection, by which they evolve
(survival of the fittest).

Though it became controversial for contradicting the teachings of the church about
Creation, Darwinism is undeniably a very important intellectual revolution. It was able to
rationalize the development of organisms and the evolution of all forms of life through a lawful
and an orderly process of nature.

Freudian Revolution

Freudian Revolution was popularized by Sigmund Freud, (born May 6, 1856, Freiberg,
Moravia, Austrian Empire [now Příbor, Czech Republic]), an Austrian neurologist, and
psychoanalyst. He was the founder of psychoanalysis or psychoanalytic theory that changed
people’s perception of psychology as under philosophy. Psychoanalysis focuses on the
explanation of human behavior or personality, a product of conflicting elements id, ego, and
superego. It was at once a theory of the human psyche, a therapy for the relief of its ills, and an
optic for the interpretation of culture and society.

Freud contended that dreams played a fundamental role in the psychic economy. The
mind’s energy—which Freud called libido and identified principally, but not exclusively, with
the sexual drive as a fluid and malleable force capable of excessive and disturbing power.
Although controversial, this theory is widely credited for its dominance in the practice of
psychotherapy during the early 20th century. Freud’s work still influences the modern
psychodynamic therapies that are used to treat a myriad of psychological disorders.

Section 2.2

Cultural Revolutions

Chinese Cultural Revolution

The Chinese Cultural Revolution, also called Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, is a
sociopolitical movement in China from 1966 until 1976 launched by Mao Zedong, then
Chairman of the Communist Party of China. The revolution aimed to preserve the true
Communist ideology in the country by purging remnants of capitalist and traditional elements
from Chinese society, and to re-impose Mao Zedong’s thought as the dominant ideology within
the Party. The decade was marked by Mao's return to a position of power after the Great Leap
Forward, which paralyzed China politically and negatively affected the country's economy and
society to a significant degree through a bloody and terrorizing revolt.

It might not be a military coup but, in its aftermath, the nation came effectively under
martial law for several years because military was the only institution nationwide that was still
intact and able to carry out government responsibilities. The revolution had inspired other
countries to stage their own version of martial law but it primarily hindered China to emerge as
world power 20 to 25 years earlier.

Iranian Cultural Revolution

Marred by blood, the Iranian Cultural Revolution, also called Iran's Islamic Revolution,
signaled an indisputable sea of change that saw the ouster of Iran's king, Shah Mohammad Reza
Pahlavi, and the instalment of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini as the new supreme leader of the
Islamic Republic. The revolution made Iran gain influence and strength and as a nation with an
ideology independent of East and West and placed political Islam at the centerstage of the
Middle Eastern politics.

Sexual Revolution

Sexual Revolution, being clearly defined by social behaviors, is characterized by the

sexual culture that showed an influential change in sexual morality and sexual behavior
throughout the Western world, mainly during the 1960s and 1970s. Also known as the time of
sexual liberation, the revolution is a social movement that challenged what individuals had
previously seen as sexual norms. it pushed for social acceptance for intercourse outside of
monogamous and heterosexual relationships resulting to increased marriages and more freedom
on individuals, as well as the feeling of being less deviant.

The revolution gave way to the birth of the first issue of Playgirl and production of new
contraceptives that hit the market, giving women power and control, which they had never this
way before (Crooks, 2011). In the 1960s, Intrauterine devices (IUDs) first began being
manufactured and marketed in the United states, which gave women even more options in terms
of methods for birth control (Kathleen, 2011). This era was mainly dedicated to women
empowerment.

Section 2.3

Neolithic Revolutions

Mesoamerican Revolution

Mesoamerican Revolution was started in the parts of Mexico and Central America by the
American Indians, the most-advanced native people in the Western Hemisphere, who lived in
small, permanent settlements, and way of life called sedentism. They ate different foods and
obtained, processed, and stored them in new ways. They began to domesticate wild plants and
animals, a process by which human selection causes changes in the genetic material of plants and
animals.

Mesoamerica had proven itself to be a significant agricultural region because it started

the evolution of plant domestication, the foundations of modern life, and food production which
allow for later innovations such as surplus food production, growing populations, class
differences, the growth of religion, cities, writing, and building of complex social organization.
The Mesoamericans were known for the Mesoamerican Triad plants composed of maize, squash,
and beans which became the staple of their diets. This group of people was the first to apply light
detection and ranging (LiDAR), a laser-based remote-sensing technology in penetrating
overlying vegetation and forest canopies, which is generating a fundamental shift in
Mesoamerican archaeology and has the potential to transform research in forested areas
worldwide.

Asian Revolution

The Asian Revolution was known for its wealthy rice production and for the
domestication of root crops, known as vegeculture, that includes yams, taro, corn, and tubers of
the Araceae (carbohydrate-rich staple tropical crops.

Middle Eastern Revolution

Middle Eastern revolution began in Abu Hureyra, an early Natufian village on the
Euphrates River. Results of excavations divulged the complexity yet the importance of the
process of domestication. The first settlers were sedentary foragers but, over time, they began
domesticating rye, wheat, and barley. Their reliance on hunting gazelle diminished as they
became scarce and they had to rely on domesticated sheep and goats.

These people produced the first domesticated plants by horticulture, the growing of
domesticated plants using hand tools relying on natural sources of water and fertilization by
organic means. Eventually, the village grew and they had to intensify their food production
through agriculture, characterized mainly by the growing of crops in permanent plots using
plows, irrigation, and fertilizer.

African Revolution

African revolution started in Sahel, the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition
in Africa between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian Savanna to the south, known for its
lakes and abundant wild grasses and foragers. This had supported the emergence of pastoralism,
an economic strategy in which people rely on domesticated animals for most of their food.
Millet, sorghum, and rice, which are indigenous to Africa, are capable of thriving over drought
and are planted around lakesides at the start of the dry season.

Section 2.4

Economic Revolutions

Green Revolution

Green revolution refers to the renovation of agricultural practices that begun in Mexico in
the 1940s. During this period, technologies started to spread worldwide in the 1950s and 1960s,
significantly increasing the volume of calories produced per acre of agriculture. Fertilizers
largely what made the Green Revolution possible, but agricultural practices were changed
because the high-yield varieties developed during this time were too dependent on fertilizers.

Irrigation also played a large role by storing water that was used in the farms. However,
the increased amount of food production has led to overpopulation worldwide, leaving some
places like Africa not significantly benefited from the Green Revolution. Among the major
problems surrounding the use of these technologies, though, were lack of infrastructure,
governmental corruption, and insecurity in nations. But despite these struggles, this period had
changed the way agriculture is conducted worldwide, benefiting the people of many nations in
need of increased food production.

Commercial Revolution

Commercial revolution was a period of European economic expansion, colonialism, and

mercantilism which lasted from approximately the 16th century until the early 18th century. It
helped set the stage for the Industrial Revolution and was responsible for the creation of private
banking, money economy, trading organizations, and the development of European feudal
monarchies into national states.
Section 2.5

Technological Revolutions

Information Revolution

Information revolution paved the way for the development of technologies such as
computers, digital communication, and microchips in the second half of the 20th century that has
led to the dramatic reduction in the cost of obtaining, processing, storing, and transmitting
information in all forms including texts, graphics, audios, and videos.

Industrial Revolution
Industrial revolution is the most-known example of technological revolution. It was
where the process of change from an agrarian and handicraft economy to one dominated by
industry and machine manufacturing. Began in Britain in the 18th century, it spread to the other
parts of the world and first popularized by the English economic historian Arnold Toynbee
(1852–83) to describe Britain’s economic development from 1760 to 1840.

At this period, technological changes took place which included the following: (1) the use
of new basic materials, chiefly iron and steel, (2) the use of new energy sources, including both
fuels and motive power, such as coal, the steam engine, electricity, petroleum, and the internal-
combustion engine, (3) the invention of new machines, such as the spinning jenny and the power
loom that permitted increased production with a smaller expenditure of human energy, (4) a new
organization of work known as factory system, which entailed increased division of labor and
specialization of function, (5) important developments in transportation and communication,
including the steam locomotive, steamship, automobile, airplane, telegraph, and radio, and (6)
the increasing application of science to industry. These technological changes made possible a
tremendously increased use of natural resources and the mass production of manufactured goods.

Digital Revolution

Digital revolution started with one fundamental idea – the Internet, which enabled the
sweeping changes brought about by computing and communication technology, starting from
circa 1950 with the creation of the first general-purpose electronic computers.

During this time, digital computers and digital record keeping became the norm. The
introduction of digital technology also changed the way humans communicate, now via
computers, cell phones, and the internet. It had initially resulted in broad social impacts and
widespread lifestyle changes, which continues until at present. This technological advancement
increased and improved the ability to communicate and find important information. It also made
globalization possible which has, in turn, resulted in more effective and efficient business
productivity. But, unfortunately, it has been believed to have decreased personal privacy, diluted
professional journalism, and made separating personal and professional life more difficult. This
revolution led way to the Information Age.