The readings of Darnton, Dobbs and Jacob illuminate how social, political and religious elements were crucial to the development and spread of modern science. ... For example, Jacobs notes that the Stoic religion emphasized an "eternal cosmic cycle of birth, expansion, conflagration, contraction, and regeneration.""3 This cycle of the cosmos was later applied to the behavior of the universe and life. ... Jacob recalls how the "Aristotelian idea of a finite universe came into conflict with the Christian doctrine of divine omnipotence. ... In this instance the scientific theory of a finite u...

• Word Count: 1480
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

As a result, Brecht and his family exiled themselves from the country and took up residence in Denmark, where the first version of the Life of Galileo, then called The Earth Moves, was written, not because Brecht had interest in the man or his research, but because the conflicts Galileo encountered in his lifetime could create a parallel to Brecht's modern world, which was highly influenced and controlled by the Nazis in the late 1930's. In this premiere version of the play, Brecht's Marxist views allow him to outline themes of control, the good for all humanity, freedom of e...

• Word Count: 2841
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: Undergraduate