How Did John Harrison's Final Clock?

Ancient Greek astronomers made some amazing mathematical and philosophical discovers about our universe. From the Hellenistic Greek observations in approximately 300 B.C.E., to the invention of the first telescope in the seventeenth century, to the launching of today’s space probes, one thing is evident: astrological observations are imperative to creating a calendar.

The events that unfolded to result in “the intellectual landmark of Newton’s Principia” illustrated the collaborative nature of astronomy throughout Europe, especially England, in

“But you are rather waiting to hear from me how it occurred to me to venture to conceive any motion of the earth, against the traditional opinion of astronomers and almost against common sense…” (39).

Captain James Cook added exponential territories to Britain’s colonial possessions during his three voyages. Cook’s exploration of the Pacific Ocean contributed to Britain’s huge territorial gains, increased wealth, and influenced Europe’s romantic fascination with the science of mapping, charting and classifying the world. Cook was a supremely gifted surveyor and star navigator. His discoveries and the accurate cartographic depiction of them, were of incomparable benefit to his contemporaries. Captain Cook made three exemplary voyages of exploration and discovery. These voyages brought unimaginable new views of scientific, geographic, and cultural knowledge to a modernizing European world on the verge of the Enlightenment. Although Cook himself was not steeped in this intellectual movement, which was gradually moving away from the traditions of received opinions and Christian thoughts, the results of his Pacific voyages made major contributions to the scientific and cultural knowledge that led to the enlightenment of his colleagues and philosophers. Cook’s explorations and ‘discoveries’ were indeed new to the Western world, but to the Pacific islanders they had been known for thousands of years. The knowledge Cook provided to his contemporaries in turn, was used to justify colonisation of the ‘discovered’ lands. This essay will present two arguments. The first argument will demonstrate how the voyages of Captain James Cook added to the colonial possessions of the British

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) was a German astronomer who believed in the heliocentric theory. Kepler is a clear example of the narrow line that separated science and religion. Nonetheless, his ideas would show that things could be solved through reason alone. He believed that the harmony of the human soul could be found through numerical relationships that existed between planets. He found that the planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Uranus, Jupiter, and Saturn all revolved at different times. For example, the earth revolved around the sun in a year while Saturn revolved around the sun in fifty years. From this, Kepler found a mathematical ratio, nine to the two-thirds power, to explain this phenomenon. This was revolutionary to humanity’s place in the universe. People were shocked that the universe could be explained by math alone rather than religion. This went strongly

The coffeehouses allowed both students and scientists to discuss their ideas and achievements in a relaxed environment. This was what members of the Royal Society, Britain’s scientific institution, enjoyed so much about them. Wren, the founder, and Hooke, a member, talked about the behaviour of springs with each other. Hooke also shared his ideas about medical remedies with other members at the coffeehouses. Most prominent, though, was Wren, Hooke and Halley’s (another member of the Royal Society) discussion on the theory of gravity, which then progressed to whether or not elliptical shapes of planetary orbits were consistent with gravitational force that diminished with the inverse square of distance. The three men never agreed on an answer. Which was why, a few months later when Wren met Isaac Newton in Cambridge, he asked the famous scientist the very same question they had debated. Newton said that yes, an inverse-square law of gravity would give rise to elliptical orbits, although he could not confirm it because he had no proof. That same year, Newton, having become determine to prove this theory, sent Halley a paper with the proof he had discovered. Halley went on to publish one of history’s greatest books of science called “Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy.” So, were it not for coffeehouses, Wren, Hooke and Halley may never have discussed this topic, leading to one of the world’s most important scientific discoveries.

Ben Franklin came up with the idea of Daylight Savings Time back in 1784. Though the idea wasn't too popular among the states of the country, it later became a huge benefit to the society.

Every night it was possible, he would sit and watch the stars with his sister Caroline, and his brother Alexander who came from Hanover. If the night was overcast, he would position a watchman should the clouds move, he was to be summoned so he could observe the stars. When the weather permitted he would watch the stars with his sister Caroline, who would record the information. In the daytime, he would monitor the construction of the telescopes, many of which he sold for income to supply for the operation. [1]“His largest instrument, too cumbersome for regular use, had a mirror made of speculum metal, with a diameter of 122 centimeters (48 inches) and a focal length of 12 meters (40 feet). Completed in 1789, it became one of the technical wonders of the 18th century.” His support mainly came from his sister, Caroline. Through countless hours of dedication and support from his sister he was able to accomplish much in his lifetime.

William Henry, born on a plantation in Virginia was also born into a political family; his father, Benjamin Harrison signed the declaration of independence. William being born into a political family was expected to

In 1830, Barthelemy Thimmonier, a French tailor, patented the first functional sewing machine that used a hooked embroidery-type needle to produce a chain stitch. However, in 1841, after successfully using his machines to mass produce army clothing, his production facility was destroyed and he was almost killed by other tailors in the town who were angry and threatened by the machine’s efficiency and utility. In America during the early 1830’s, a New York inventor, Walter Hunt, produced the first sewing machine that created a lockstitch. As a result, thinking changed and duplication of the human hand stitch was no longer the standard that inventors were measured by. Hunt at that time did not see the promise of his invention and did not file for a patent to protect it. He sold his interest for a small fee. (Museum of American Heritage, 2010).

Throughout history, examples of technological advances against the approval of the general populations are in abundance. In the early to mid 1600’s, Galileo Galilei made many scientific and mathematical discoveries. However, in this time period, many did not agree with his claims as when the Church ordered Galileo to keep quiet about his theories about the Earth orbiting around the Sun.

Prior to Galileo’s time, the Greek and medieval mind, science was a kind of formalism, a means of coordinating data, which had no bearing on the ultimate reality of things. The point was to give order to complicated data, and all that mattered was the hypothesis that was simplest to understand and most convenient. Astronomy and mathematics were regarded as the playthings of intellectuals. They were accounted as having neither philosophical nor theological relevance. There was genuine puzzlement among Churchmen that they had to get involved in a quarrel over planetary orbits.

In summer of 1609, Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) pointed his revolutionary astronomical telescope to the heavens under the starry Venetian sky; his greatly important observations unveiled the mysteries of universe and would end up changing the course of scientific thought forever. Galileo lived in an age where there was much status quo, when scientists and philosophers would accept scientific and religious doctrine that had stood for hundreds, if not thousands, of years instead of challenging the accepted knowledge in favor of intellectual progress. Galileo’s scientific methods lead to significant discoveries explaining key scientific laws, such as the

Prior to the Age of Discovery, Europeans have enhanced their technology and increased their geographical knowledge. In the past, European navigated through the seas by observing their environment or by using portolan charts to guide them through them the Mediterranean sea. However, because of Prince Henry the Navigator, Europeans were able to travel farther with much more accuracy. Henry designed a nautical map which helped explorers travel away from shore without the possibility of being lost. This gave them the opportunity to discover more land, past their usual limits seen in the portolan charts. Not only was he able to create an efficient map, he also taught others the knowledge

With his theory tested with pendelums, almost 100 years later, his theory was used for the invention of the pendulum clock by Christiaan Huygens.