AbstractsPhilosophy & Theology

A Copernican Universe

by Dianna Maria Dønns




Institution: Roskilde University
Department:
Year: 2012
Keywords: Copernican revolution; Immanuel Kant, Thomas Kuhn
Record ID: 1119219
Full text PDF: http://rudar.ruc.dk/handle/1800/9135


Abstract

In 1543 Nicolaus Copernicus published his book ‘On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres’. In this book Copernicus suggested reversing the placements of the sun and the earth, thus leaving the sun as the center of the solar system. In this report I will describe the transformation this brought along according to Thomas Kuhn. Furthermore I will draw a parallel to Immanuel Kant’s ‘Copernican revolution’ in Philosophy and clarify the significance of this innovation. This report focuses on bringing this astronomical revolution forward; the Copernican turn was the main reason for the shift in paradigms and I will apply Kuhn’s theory on the shift in paradigms and again, draw a parallel to the shift in paradigms, which Philosophy experienced due to the theory of cognition by Kant.