BERGAMO
Overview
Date/time interval
Syllabus
Course Objectives
The course aims to provide in-depth knowledge of the fundamental aspects of the emergence of modern science and its cultural, social, and political implications, adopting a historical and interdisciplinary perspective. Through the analysis of historical texts and documents, students will develop methodological and critical skills to interpret the processes underlying the transformation of science and technology during the transition to modernity.
The learning experience is designed to foster students’ abilities in reading, analysis, and critical reflection on scientific and cultural phenomena, as well as the formulation of coherent and well-founded arguments useful for the design and evaluation of educational and formative interventions. Moreover, the course promotes operational and methodological competences to work in educational, social, and institutional contexts with a flexible and aware approach.
Course Prerequisites
No prerequisites are required for admission
Teaching Methods
Lectures.
The teaching method will be designed to encourage active participation and discussion of the covered topics.
The course includes in-class discussions of excerpts from the most representative works of the birth of modern science.
Assessment Methods
The exam consists of a written test with 3 open-ended questions to be completed within a maximum of two hours. Each answer is graded up to a maximum of 10 points based on: a) relevance to the question; b) analytical and synthesis skills; c) language proficiency. Grades are given on a scale of thirty. The test covers the entire course program to assess understanding of the topics discussed. Specific details of the written test format will be provided during the course lectures.
Contents
The course is organized into five distinct parts.
The first part introduces the scientific revolution, examining the cultural and intellectual heritage of antiquity and the Middle Ages, as well as the epistemological transformations that lead to the emergence of modern science.
The second part analyzes the cultural, social, and institutional factors that foster the rise of the new science, highlighting the role played by scientific institutions and social dynamics in the seventeenth century.
The third part is dedicated to the presentation of the new cosmological system developed by Copernicus and Kepler, which represents a radical break with the traditional worldview.
The fourth part examines the history of Galileo's telescope and the astronomical discoveries it enabled, emphasizing their fundamental role in the advancement of modern science. Simultaneously, it explores the debate surrounding the relationship between science and religion, with particular reference to the origins of Galileo’s troubled relationship with the Roman Curia.
The fifth and final part focuses on the study of scientific academies in the seventeenth century and the transformation of institutional and academic spaces of science, assessing their role as centers for the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge in modernity.
Online Resources
More information
Non-attending students are encouraged to register on the course’s Moodle platform, within the e-learning section, to access the materials discussed during lectures and to participate in the learning activities.