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400 BCE
Aristotle explained the geocentric theory
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160
Ptolemy supported the geocentric theory
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1543
Nicolaus Copernicus reasoned the heliocentric theory
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1543
Andreas Vesalius published On the Fabric of the Human Body - detailing dissection of human bodies
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Zacharias Janssen invented the microscope
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The Baroque Period began in art, music, and architecture
Bach and Handel were composers -
Galileo developed the law of pendulum
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Johannes Kepler published the first two laws of planetary motion
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William Harvey showed that the heart acted as a pump to circulate blood throughout the body
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Francis Bacon published Novum Organum which encouraged the experimental method
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Galileo was put under house arrest by an Inquisition for supporting Copernicus' theory
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Rene Descartes published Discourse on Method which set forth his reasoning
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Evangelista Torricelli developed the first mercury barometer
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Thomas Hobbes published Leviathan - social contrast
people give up rights to a strong ruler who maintains order -
Robert Boyle created Boyle's Law
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Issac Newton published his law of gravity
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John Locke explained his theory of "natural rights"
life, liberty, and property -
Mary Astell wrote A Serious Proposal to the Ladies - addressing lack of educational opportunities for women
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Anton van Leeuwenhoek saw red blood cells for the first time
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Gabriel Fahrenheit made the first thermometer to use mercury in glass
32 degrees = freezing; 212 degrees = boiling -
Emilie du Chaptalet translated Newton's work from Latin into French
a mathematician and physicist -
Francois-Marie Arouet changed his name to Voltaire and goes on to champion individual freedoms
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The enlightened despot, Frederick II, began his rule of Prussia
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Andres Celsius created a scale for the mercury thermometer
0 degrees = freezing; 100 degrees = boiling -
Montesquieu published On the Spirit of Laws - detailing separation of powers in the government
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Marie-Therese Geoffrin held her first salon of philosophes
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The Classical Period began in art, music, and architecture
Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven were composers -
Denis Diderot published the first volume of the Encyclopedia - a collection of enlightened thinkers works
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Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote The Social Contract - free individuals create a society and government
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The enlightened despot, Catherine the Great, began her rule of Russia
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Cesare Beccaria published On Crimes and Punishments - railing against common abuses of justice
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Joseph Priestly discovered oxygen
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Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence
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Antoine Lavoisier discovered and named gas oxygen
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The enlightened despot, Joseph II, began his rule of Austria
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The US enacted the Constitution - establishing a federal system, separation of powers, checks and balances
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The US Congress added the Bill of Rights to the Constitution
First 10 amendments -
Mary Wollstonecraft wrote a Vindication of the Rights of Woman - promoting women's education as virtuous
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Edward Jenner introduced a vaccine to prevent smallpox
