Deck 29: The Scientific Revolution and Its Enlightened Aftermath

Question 1

What was the field of study for Isaac Newton's major contributions?

A) Astronomy.
B) Education.
C) Bible studies.
D) Physics.
E) Geometry.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Newton made his greatest contribution to the world by

A) insisting that the physical world had rational, lawful principles.
B) discovering and enunciating the law of gravity.
C) encouraging young scientists to continue to think and experiment.
D) convincing many people to give up their superstitious beliefs.
E) describing the way in which governments of the world could function rationally.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

What was the most obvious common denominator among the Enlightenment thinkers?

A) Their belief in democracy.
B) They all embraced atheism.
C) Their commitment to reform.
D) Their desire for empirical research.
E) Their unwillingness to disagree with each other.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

After the Thirty Years' War, people's thoughts and studies began to turn again to

A) religion.
B) government.
C) science.
D) economic gain.
E) exploration.

Question 5

In her famous treatise, Vindication on the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft

A) urged society to allow women to fulfill their sexual needs, thus becoming one of the early advocates of "free love."
B) pushed for equal rights for women, becoming, in actuality, the founder of feminism.
C) spoke out so harshly against the writings of the male philosophes that her work was banned in France.
D) argued that women were as intelligent as men, and was devastated when it appeared that not even women cared to hear what she had to say.
E) described women as "slaves," thus alienating the very audience she was trying to reach.

Question 6

Who was the scientist who spent his last years under house arrest because of his publicized discoveries and his unwillingness to retract his findings?

A) Nicholas Copernicus.
B) Isaac Newton.
C) Tycho Brahe.
D) Galileo Galilei.
E) René Descartes.

Question 7

What were the two most basic characteristics of the Enlightenment?

A) Science and religion.
B) Democracy and freedom.
C) Optimism and rationality.
D) Faith and prayer.
E) Science and pessimism.

Question 8

After the period of the ancient Hellenistic Greek astronomers, who was the first to advance the concept of heliocentrism?

A) Nicholas Copernicus.
B) Tycho Brahe.
C) Galileo Galilei.
D) Johannes Kepler.
E) Isaac Newton.

Question 9

The outstanding figure of the 18th Century economic thought was the Scotsman Adam Smith.What was the central idea of his writings?

A) Adam Smith thought mercantilism was the key to national wealth..
B) He suggested that absolutely no government interference with business was optimal.
C) Adam Smith advocated for more education for the consumer.
D) He supported as little government intervention in business as possible.
E) He wanted an increase in the variety of goods and services available to the public.

Question 10

During the growth of the study of mathematics-based science, philosophy was considered

A) redundant.
B) secondary.
C) extremely important.
D) nonsensical.
E) rational.

Question 11

What was the real problem of medieval and Renaissance science?

A) It was based on superstition.
B) The sciences relied on the church.
C) The sciences were relying on the nobility.
D) It was driven by the evidence.
E) The sciences relied on ancient authorities.

Question 12

Which of the following was true of the scientists and the new science?

A) The scientists were all Catholic.
B) None of the scientists were Christian or belonged to any church.
C) The truth of science had no political agenda.
D) The various churches largely ignored the scientists and their science.
E) Since science is secular, it did not threaten the church in any way.

Question 13

More than anything else, the faith in which of the following concepts was the distinguishing innovation of the Enlightenment?

A) Divine Providence.
B) Democracy.
C) The aristocracy.
D) Perfectibility.
E) Absolutism.

Question 14

Which of the following uses the practice of interpreting the results of experiments based on observation?

A) The Socratic method.
B) The Platonic plan.
C) Deductive reasoning.
D) The empirical method.
E) Inductive reasoning.

Question 15

John Locke believed

A) that humans can learn from their environment and improve their lives.
B) in the concept of original sin.
C) that checks and balances were important in government.
D) that his destiny was to steer England through the rough waters of the Glorious Revolution.
E) that governmental reform was more important than scientific discovery.

Question 16

Perhaps the most important factor in Europe's gaining of new knowledge about the world in the 16th century was

A) Europeans' insatiable curiosity.
B) an improved understanding of astronomy.
C) an enormous leap in mathematical capabilities.
D) the reports of explorers in the New World.
E) new geographic information.

Question 17

Enlightenment reformers believed that the leaders of most rigidly organized religious groups had as their main purpose

A) obtaining money from unsuspecting people.
B) convincing good people that they were filled with sin because of the original sin of Adam and Eve.
C) preventing people from listening to what reformers had to say.
D) frightening people into following established church laws.
E) hiding the truth − that people could reason out what they believed for themselves, without help from church authorities.

Question 18

Whose work contributed most to removing Aristotle from his revered position as the master physicist?

A) Copernicus
B) Galileo
C) Newton
D) Descartes
E) Brahe

Question 19

Inductive reasoning, first developed by Frances Bacon, required that one

A) gather data and then make generalizations.
B) consistently and carefully observe phenomena before developing any generalizations or preconceived ideas.
C) observe with one's senses and then develop one or more hypotheses.
D) make some basic assumptions and then perform experiments to see if they are valid.
E) observe, experiment, test, and then present newly verified information to the world.

Question 20

The scientific developments of the Enlightenment period had the greatest impact on

A) religious scholars.
B) the highly educated.
C) city dwellers.
D) peasants.
E) explorers.

Question 21

Which of these elements would Enlightenment philosophes have found to be of least value?

A) process
B) religion
C) invention
D) education
E) rationalism

Question 22

Denis Diderot and Jean d'Alembert accomplished the editing of the ____________________.

Question 23

Which is the truest statement of philosophe beliefs?

A) Sin is the leading cause of human misery.
B) Government should have a strong executive power.
C) All humans are equal in social and political rights.
D) Ignorance is the major cause of inhumanity.
E) Most people are capable of ruling if taught the way.

Question 24

The majority of the audience for the Enlightenment was which of the following groups?

A) urban poor
B) educated upper class
C) merchant middle class
D) clergy
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 25

On which of the following did the Enlightenment political thinkers NOT agree?

A) State supervised, mandatory education.
B) Equality before the law.
C) Abolition of most forms of censorship.
D) Religious toleration.
E) Limited monarchical power.

Question 26

Most of the Enlightenment thinkers and activity are associated with which of the following?

A) The United States
B) England
C) Spain
D) France
E) Italy

Question 27

____________________ is the downgrading of all that is religious or miraculous.

Question 28

In an effort to make science comprehensible and accessible to the masses, the French produced the most comprehensive literary work of the Enlightenment period.What was that immensely successful literary work called?

A) The Spirit of the Laws.
B) Essay Concerning Human Understanding.
C) The Social Contract.
D) The Encyclopedie.
E) Wealth of Nations.

Question 29

____________________ became associated with inductive reasoning and the empirical method.

Question 30

What form of government did most of the Enlightenment philosophes believe would be best for the most people?

A) A republic.
B) True democracy.
C) An economic oligarchy.
D) A constitutional monarchy.
E) A theocracy.

Question 31

More than anything else, the faith in ____________________ is the distinguishing innovation of the Enlightenment.

Question 32

All of the ideas of the philosophies flowed together in the concept of ____________________.

Question 33

In the realm of education, the most influential philosophe was

A) Rousseau.
B) Voltaire.
C) Condorcet.
D) Descartes.
E) Diderot.

Question 34

The most significant 18th century economic thinker was

A) Locke.
B) Hume.
C) Adams.
D) Rousseau.
E) Smith.

Question 35

In the Enlightenment reformers' view, what would be the salvation of humankind?

A) The Catholic Church.
B) The Protestant Church.
C) A fully educated people.
D) A strong monarch.
E) A free market economy.

Question 36

Adam Smith's ____________________ promoted the gospel of free trade and minimal governmental interference in business.

Question 37

Most philosophes believed that state supported churches should be ____________________.

Question 38

The agnostic Dutch Jew Baruch Spinoza left Judaism and rejected the idea of a personal deity, but perceived God in all ____________________.

Question 39

The Science of Man, well developed by the 18th century, has now become known as ____________________.

Question 40

____________________ was the leading political spokesperson cited during England's Glorious Revolution.

Question 41

Elaborate on the impact of the Enlightenment in various nations.

Question 42

Which of the scientists was the most significant? Explain your answer.

Question 43

How did the church respond to the Scientific Revolution and what factors explain their response?

Question 44

How does the European view of science change from the Medieval Period into the Scientific Revolution?

Question 45

Discuss the audience and impact of the Enlightenment on European society.

Question 46

Discuss the overall philosophy of the Enlightenment thinkers.Include examples in economics, education, the sciences, government, and the idea of progress.