The struggle for a scientific worldview astronomy presentation. Abstract: Astronomy

1. SYSTEM OF THE WORLD SYSTEM OF THE WORLD 2. VIEWS OF THE WORLD OF THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS VIEWS OF THE WORLD OF THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS 3. VIEWS OF THE WORLD OF THE PEOPLES OF INTERFLIVES VIEWS OF THE WORLD OF THE PEOPLES OF INTERFLIVES 4. THE UNIVERSE ACCORDING TO THE ANCIENTS GREEKS UNIVERSE ACCORDING TO THE ANCIENT GREEKS 5. SYSTEM OF THE WORLD ACCORDING TO ARISTOTE SYSTEM OF THE WORLD ACCORDING TO ARISTOTLE 6. ASTRONOMICAL CONCEPTS IN INDIA ASTRONOMICAL CONCEPTS IN INDIA 7. PTOLEMY’S SYSTEM OF THE WORLD PTOLEMAIC SYSTEM OF THE WORLD 8. CONCEPTS OF THE WORLD IN THE MIDDLE AGES CONCEPT OF THE WORLD IN THE MIDDLE AGES 9. SYSTEM OF THE WORLD BY COPERNIUS THE WORLD SYSTEM ACCORDING TO COPERNIUS 10. THE STRUGGLE FOR A SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW THE STRUGGLE FOR SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW

The world system is ideas about the location in space and movement of the Earth, Sun, Moon, planets, stars and other celestial bodies. Already in ancient times, the first ideas about the place of the Earth in the Universe were formed. These world systems were extremely naive: a flat Earth, under which there is an underworld, and above it rises firmament. Fig.1. First celestial globe

In their ideas about the world around them, the ancient peoples proceeded primarily from the testimony of their senses: the Earth seemed flat to them, and the sky was a huge dome stretching over the Earth. The picture shows how the vault of heaven rests on four high mountains, located somewhere “in Fig.2. The idea of ​​the world of the ancient Egyptians at the edge of the world." Egypt is located in the center of the Earth (every nation put its country at the center of the world). The heavenly bodies seem to be suspended in the firmament.

The ideas about the world of the ancient Chaldeans of the peoples who inhabited Mesopotamia from the 7th century BC were also close to the ancient Egyptian ones. e. According to their views, the Universe was a closed world, in the center of which was the Earth. The Chaldeans considered the sky to be a large dome, towering above the world and resting on the “dam of heaven.” It was made from hard metal supreme god Map do com. During the day the sky reflected sunlight, and at night it served as a dark blue background for the play of the gods of the planets, the Moon and the stars. Fig.3. Ideas about the world of the peoples of Mesopotamia

Fig.4. The Universe According to the Ancient Greeks Like many other peoples, the ancient Greeks imagined the Earth to be flat. They considered the earth to be a flat disk surrounded by a sea inaccessible to humans, from which the stars emerge every evening and into which they set every morning. The sun god Helios rose every morning in a golden chariot and made his way across the sky.

Fig.5. Geocentric system of the world according to Aristotle The great Greek philosopher Aristotle understood that the Earth has the shape of a ball and gave one of the strongest evidence of this - the round shape of the Earth’s shadow on the Moon during lunar eclipses. But Aristotle considered the Earth to be the center of the world. He believed matter to consist of four elements, which form, as it were, four spheres: the sphere of earth, water, air and fire. The earth is motionless, and the heavenly bodies revolve around it.

Fig.6. Astronomical ideas in India The sacred books of the ancient Hindus reflect their ideas about the structure of the world, which have much in common with the views of the Egyptians. According to these ideas, dating back to the third millennium BC, a flat Earth with a huge mountain in the center is supported by four elephants, which in turn stand on a huge turtle swimming in the ocean.

Fig.7. Ptolemy's World System Astronomer Claudius Ptolemy, who worked in Alexandria in the 2nd century AD. summed up the work of ancient Greek astronomers, as well as his own astronomical observations, and built the most advanced theory of planetary motion based on Aristotle’s geocentric system of the world. To explain the observed loop-like movements of the planets, Ptolemy proposed that the planets move in small circles around some points that are already orbiting the Earth.

Fig.9. System of the world according to Copernicus According to the heliocentric system of the world, the center of our planetary system is the Sun. The planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn orbit around it. The only celestial body that orbits the Earth is the Moon.

The teachings of Copernicus were not immediately recognized. Supporters of the heliocentric system of the world were brutally persecuted by the church. According to the verdict of the Inquisition, the outstanding Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned in Rome in 1600. In 1633, another Italian scientist Galileo Galilei appeared before the Inquisition. The elderly scientist was forced to sign a “renunciation” of his views. M.V. Lomonosov fought against the clergy for the right to disseminate genuine knowledge about the structure of the Universe. Lomonosov ridiculed obscurantists in a witty and attractive poetic and satirical form. Fig. 10. G. Galileo Fig. 11. J. Bruno Fig.12. M.V. Lomonosov

1. Astronomy

2. History of astronomy

2.1 Ancient concept of the Universe

2.2 Discovery of Copernicus

2.3 Giordano Bruno

2.4 Galileo Galilei

3. Astrology

3.1 What is astrology today

3.2 Astronomy and astrology

References

1. Astronomy

Astronomy is a science that studies the movement, structure and development of celestial bodies and their systems. The knowledge it accumulates is applied to the practical needs of humanity. The word “astronomy” itself comes from the Greek words Astron - luminary and nomos - law.

Astronomy arose on the basis of human practical needs and developed along with them. The beginnings of astronomy existed thousands of years ago in Babylon, Egypt and China for the purposes of measuring time and orientation by cardinal points. And in our time, astronomy is used for navigation, to determine the exact time and for other practical needs.

Astronomy studies the physical nature of celestial bodies and their influence on the Earth. For example, the Moon and the Sun cause the ebb and flow of tides on Earth. Various types of solar radiation, sometimes of varying intensity, affect processes in the earth’s atmosphere and the life activity of organisms. Various phenomena on Earth and in space are interconnected and interdependent.

Astronomy studies matter in the Universe in states and scales that are not feasible in physical laboratories. Therefore, astronomy helps expand the physical picture of the world and stimulates the development of physics and mathematics. She, in turn, uses their methods and conclusions. Astronomy is also interconnected with other sciences, for example, chemistry and geology.

Having learned to predict the appearance of comets and the onset of eclipses of the Sun and Moon, astronomy began the fight against superstitions. It shows the possibility of a natural scientific explanation of the origin of the Earth and other celestial bodies.

Astronomy is a science based on observations. But recently, flybys of celestial bodies and landings on them have been supplying astronomy with experimental material. Objects of astronomical research - celestial bodies that were until recently inaccessible - have become available for direct study (of course, only the closest ones).

2. History of astronomy

2.1 Ancient concept of the Universe

A correct understanding of the observed celestial phenomena did not come immediately. Representatives of the best minds of humanity worked long and hard in search of truth. They had to fight ignorance, inertia, and age-old prejudices, which were supported by the church, which instilled a religious worldview.

Priests - ministers of religion - used science to assert their power. The establishment of calendar dates associated with celestial phenomena encouraged priests to study these phenomena. The priests accumulated a lot of factual data about celestial phenomena, but did not know how to explain them correctly.

In ancient times, there was an idea that the Earth was motionless and flat, covered, like a cap, by a solid dome of the sky. The heavenly bodies were considered either messengers of the gods or lamps created by God to decorate the sky.

The development of navigation required the ability to navigate by celestial bodies. The brightest of them are the planets. As they move across the sky, they describe loops. Trying to explain the movement of the planets, they proceeded from the idea of ​​the immobility of the Earth and the roundness of the sky. Philosopher and scientist of the 4th century. BC e. Aristotle believed that each planet was mounted on a crystal sphere. The spheres are nested inside each other and revolve around the spherical Earth. The stars are fixed on the last and most distant sphere.

Later, in the 2nd century. n. e., the ancient Greek scientist Ptolemy explained the loop-like motion of the planets by the fact that each planet moves uniformly in a circle, the center of which evenly revolves around the stationary Earth. Ptolemy selected the ratios of the radii of circles and the periods of revolution of the planets so that, according to his theory, it was even possible to pre-calculate the position of the planets in the sky. This was required by the practice of navigation. The system of the world with the Earth in the center was called geocentric (in Greek, Earth is ge).

2.2 Discovery of Copernicus

XV-XVI centuries were the era of great geographical discoveries and the associated expansion of trade, the strengthening of the bourgeois class and the intensification of its struggle against feudalism. The development of trade required the development of navigation, and astronomy was necessary for navigation. Calculations of celestial phenomena according to Ptolemy's theory, in particular the positions of the planets in the sky, were no longer accurate enough. In addition, they became very cumbersome, because with the increase in the accuracy of observations, Ptolemy's theory had to be very complicated.

The idea of ​​the Universe, according to Ptolemy, corresponded to the biblical picture of the world with a stationary Earth in the center. Raising one's hand against Ptolemy's theory meant starting a revolution in science, challenging the powerful church.

This revolutionary step was carried out by the great Polish scientist Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543). Having reflected for a long time on the geocentric system of the world of Ptolemy, Copernicus came to the conclusion that it was fundamentally erroneous. In its place, Copernicus put forward a heliocentric system of the world with the Sun in the center (Sun - in Greek - Helios). Thus, Copernicus declared the Earth not the center of the Universe, but only one of the planets revolving around the Sun. This was the greatest revolution in concepts, which had a colossal influence on the entire further development of sciences.

Copernicus explained the change of day and night by the daily rotation of the Earth, the change of seasons by the inclination of the Earth's rotation axis to the plane of the Earth's orbit and the rotation of the Earth around the Sun. Copernicus explained the apparent annual movement of the Sun along the ecliptic by the movement of the Earth around the Sun. He correctly arranged the planets according to their distance from the Sun and gave the Earth third place in this row. Copernicus explained the loop-like motion of planets against the background of stars by a combination of the movement of the observer with the Earth and the movement of the planet. The truth of the new, heliocentric system of the world was confirmed by the discoveries of Galileo.

2.3 Giordano Bruno

The ideas of Copernicus were adopted by the Italian writer and philosopher Giordano Bruno (1548-1600). In his bold thoughts he went further than Copernicus. He argued that the stars are also suns, similar to ours, but very far from us. He taught that the Universe is infinite and the number of stars and planets in it is infinite, and that life exists on many of the planets. This further contradicted church teachings and undermined their credibility.

For his scientific ideas, Bruno, who did not want to give them up, was burned alive at the stake by decision of the Inquisition. This is how the church dealt with the visionary thinker who drew logical philosophical conclusions from Copernicus’ theory.

2.4 Galileo Galilei

The outstanding Italian scientist Galileo Galilei made many discoveries in astronomy. In 1609, he made a small telescope (he knew about the invention of the telescope in 1608 in Holland) and used it to observe celestial bodies. Pointing his telescope at the sky, Galileo confirmed Copernicus' theory with his discoveries.

Thus, Galileo discovered the phases of Venus. He found that such a change is possible only if Venus revolves around the Sun, and not around the Earth. Galileo discovered mountains on the Moon and measured their height. It turned out that there is no fundamental difference between the Earth and the sky - the “receptacle of the deity”. Mountains similar to those on Earth turn out to exist on the celestial body. And it became easier to believe that the Earth is just one of these luminaries.

Galileo discovered four satellites of the planet Jupiter. Their orbit around Jupiter disproved the idea that only the Earth was at the center of rotation. Galileo discovered spots on the Sun and, based on their movement, concluded that the Sun rotates around its axis. Spots on the Sun, considered an emblem of “heavenly purity,” also refuted the idea of ​​a supposed fundamental difference between the Earth and the sky. The Milky Way in the field of view of the telescope broke up into many faint stars. The Universe appeared before man as something incomparably grander than the small world supposedly circling around the Earth in the ideas of Aristotle and Ptolemy.

Galileo's propaganda of the teachings of Copernicus in Italian, accessible to a wider readership, aroused the ire of the churchmen. After all, before him, scientists wrote their works in Latin. At first, the teachings of Copernicus were declared false, heretical, and its propaganda was prohibited. Galileo did not heed this prohibition, and he was summoned to trial. In 1633, under pain of torture, the elderly scientist was forced to officially renounce his views and “repent” for spreading the teachings of Copernicus.

But even after this forced repentance, the churchmen kept Galileo under house arrest and forbade him to publish books related to astronomy.

3. Astrology

Astrology is the most ancient field of knowledge that has reached us. According to esoteric doctrine, in a dispute about the precedence of astronomy and astrology, the latter undoubtedly wins. It is from here, long before the appearance of astronomical knowledge in its current understanding (i.e., open and publicly available), that the development of the science of the sky and the Cosmos begins. The beginning of astrology is as mysterious as the end of Atlantis. Astrology came to Earth in the form of secret knowledge of priests about the world, planetary and earthly cycles that govern the universe.

It appeared simultaneously in many cultures: in ancient Egypt, in China, in India, among the Mayan Indians, and in a later period in the Middle East. Now it is impossible to trace its origins, where and when it arose, historical knowledge allows us to assert that even in Ancient Egypt it already existed as an established system of knowledge, it is also striking that astrology existed throughout the entire history of human development and has not lost its relevance even this day. Many sciences used the knowledge that astrology revealed; for example, Hippocrates said that a doctor who did not have a good command of astrological knowledge could not be allowed to practice. And politicians and generals did not start any more or less serious enterprise without the advice of an astrologer.

The consciousness of our ancestors was very different from ours, they were inclined to consider any phenomenon, any process in unity with the rest of the world, people knew that everything in the world is interconnected and that a phenomenon occurring at one level (say, in the human body) is similar to a phenomenon occurring at the same time on another level (for example, in heaven or, say, in the state). Our consciousness, to our misfortune, is structured differently. We, children of so-called progress and the science and scientific style of thinking behind it, tend to separate one from the other. We have a lot of sciences that describe the diverse world from various angles, but we cannot look at the world as a single whole. Astrology allows you to look at the world as a single whole.

Now, from the point of view of science, astrology is a typical pseudoscientific doctrine and a type of fortune-telling magic. At the same time, science recognizes that at a certain stage of its development, astrology objectively stimulated the development of observational astronomy, mathematics, meteorology and other fields of knowledge. Just 300 years ago, astrology could not be called a pseudoscience, but later, with the development of human knowledge about the structure of the universe, its falsity became obvious.

3.1 What is astrology today

As a social phenomenon, modern astrology is no less complex than, say, sports. Having heard from a stranger that his interests lie in the field of sports, you will not be able to immediately understand what exactly he does: runs and jumps, trains athletes, leads a team, organizes competitions or writes about sports.

The concept of “astrology” has now become as multifaceted and non-specific as “sports”. There are practicing astrologers with purely commercial interests, mainly engaged in a very strict division of the media and book publishers. Their knowledge of astrology is limited to a routine set of vague phrases and the ability to handle simple (and not created by them) computer programs for calculating a horoscope.

There are academic astrologers who are more concerned with self-affirmation than making money. Their commercial activities are limited to training students in astrology courses and academies, as well as consulting to small firms. Their main interest is related to self-education, gaining prestige among colleagues, preparing textbooks and speaking at conferences. This is the point - in 1996, the United Russian Astrological Congress was held under the motto “Professionalism in Astrology.” Almost without exception, these are people with university degrees; Among them you can often find candidates and even doctors of science. But they are unconditionally devoted to the astrological idea and have finally broken with their natural-scientific past.

Finally, the word “astrology” is also pronounced with some embarrassment by “ordinary” scientists - astronomers, physicists, biologists. There are few of them, but they exist. These natural scientists admit to being interested in astrology as a starting point and a possible "database" for studying cosmic influences on the Earth and its biosphere. Of course, we leave aside historians of science, sociologists and psychologists: for them astrology is a subject of study.

Which astrology do we mean when we talk about the need to fight it? Yes, very simply - the one that, without being science, dresses up in its clothes. Modern science is based on firmly established facts; This is its strength, this is also its limitation. As long as there are no reliable experimental or observational facts, the scientist cannot indulge in fantasies; for this purpose, there are other specialists (in our time, for some reason, they are united by the concept of “creative intelligentsia,” as if a scientist or engineer were not worthy of it).

By the way, “relying on firmly established facts” does not at all mean blindly believing in truths that were once found by someone. Quite the contrary: engineering developments based on the laws of physics test these laws daily and hourly, testing them in a variety of combinations, in new unexpected conditions. As soon as there is even a hint of discrepancy with the existing scientific theory in the operation of our machines or in the observed natural phenomena, it is immediately modernized, generalized, or even rejected altogether. Experimenters are constantly competing to see who will be the first to notice this “hint,” and theorists are constantly competing to see who, based on the discovered “hint,” will offer a more accurate model of the phenomenon. Therefore, the limitations of modern science are not at all in its lack of creative potential, but in the requirement of a solid factual foundation under all constructions. Let's see what is known today about the influence of space on Earth.

3.2 Astronomy and astrology

Thus, the nature of the “mother-daughter” relationship between astronomy and astrology is a myth created in our time. Having been different at different times, now these relationships are similar to the relationship of unfamiliar neighbors from the same entrance: when they meet, they recognize each other, but even if they greet each other, it is coldly and without respect. This situation is unnatural, because the Cosmos is one and the science about it should be one...

The question of the merger of astronomy and astrology cannot be considered outside the concept of the synthesis of all sciences, and, if we look even more broadly, outside the concept of the synthesis of science and religion. For the first time, words about the synthesis of science and religion were spoken more than a hundred years ago and now they are heard more and more often and louder. Synthesis does not at all mean that a priest will take the place of a scientist in the laboratory, and lectures on strength of materials will be read from the pulpits of churches. It is still possible to talk about a real merger only in the most general terms, but in reality we can only talk about a rapprochement of positions. The first mutual steps towards each other are the spiritualization of science, on the one hand, and the translation of religious propaganda onto the basis of scientific facts, on the other. Today, in the laboratories of scientists, phenomena are increasingly observed that cannot be interpreted only within the framework of materialist doctrine.

The convergence of astronomy and astrology is one of the components of the general process of synthesis. In the future, it can serve as a striking example of the actual merging of the earthly and heavenly, material and spiritual. If astronomy is the materialized poetry of the Cosmos, then astrology is its spiritualized component. To acquire the existing volume of astronomical knowledge, humanity has expended enormous intellectual effort. Apparently, penetrating into the essence of astrology will also require great effort. But these efforts are of a special kind: the work of the intellect alone cannot be done here. Intuition is needed, but not in that simplified concept that is often identified in everyday life with instinct, but as the ability to spiritually penetrate into the essence of the universe.

References

Idelson N.I. Galileo in the history of astronomy // In collection. Galileo Galilei. Ed. acad. A. M. Deborina. - M.-L.: Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1943.

Astrology // Encyclopedic Dictionary. Ed. Brockhaus F.A. and Efron I.A. - St. Petersburg, 1890.

Astronomical picture of the world and its creators / A. I. Eremeeva. - M.: Nedra, 1984. - 224 p.

History of astronomy: Trans. from English / A. Pannenkuk. - M.: Nauka, 1966. - 592 pp.: ill.

Antonov V., Akhmedov A. Fortune telling or foresight // Science and religion, 1981, No. 7.

A correct understanding of observed celestial phenomena has evolved over centuries. Do you know about the origins of astronomy in Ancient Egypt and China, about the later achievements of ancient Greek scientists, about the observations of the priests and their false ideas about nature, about their use of their knowledge for their own benefit. The priests also created astrology - a false doctrine about the influence of planets on the character and destinies of people and nations and about the imaginary possibility of predicting fate by the location of the stars.

You are also familiar with the geocentric system of the world, developed in the 2nd century. n. e. ancient Greek scientist Claudius Ptolemy. He “placed” the spherical, but motionless Earth at the center of the world, around which all the other luminaries revolved (Fig. 29). Ptolemy explained the apparent loop-like motion of the planets by a combination of two uniform circular motions: the movement of the planet itself in a small circle and the rotation of the center of this circle around the Earth. However, as observational data on the motion of the planets accumulated, Ptolemy's theory required more and more complications, which made it cumbersome and implausible. The obvious artificiality of the increasingly complex system and the lack of sufficient agreement between theory and observations required its replacement. This was done in the 16th century. the great Polish scientist Nicolaus Copernicus.

Copernicus discarded the dogmatic position about the immobility of the Earth, which had dominated the minds of people for centuries. Having placed the Earth among the ordinary planets, he pointed out that the Earth, occupying third place from the Sun, along with all the planets, moves in space around the Sun and, in addition, rotates around its axis. Copernicus boldly argued that it was precisely the rotation of the Earth and its revolution around the Sun it is possible to correctly explain the then known celestial phenomena and the visible loop-like motion of the planets (Fig. 16 and 30). This revolution in astronomy and worldview, made by the heliocentric theory of Copernicus, as F. Engels noted, freed the study of nature from religion.

Galileo Galilei, who first pointed a telescope at the sky, correctly interpreted his discoveries as confirmation of Copernicus' theory. Thus, Galileo discovered the phases of Venus. He found that such a change is possible only if

Rice. 29. System of the world according to Ptolemy.

if Venus revolves around the Sun and not around the Earth. Galileo discovered mountains on the Moon and measured their height. It turned out that there is no fundamental difference between the Earth and celestial bodies, for example, mountains similar to mountains on Earth existed on the celestial body. And it became easier to believe that the Earth is just one of these bodies.

Galileo discovered four satellites of the planet Jupiter. Their orbit around Jupiter disproved the idea that only the Earth was at the center of rotation.

Galileo discovered spots on the Sun and, based on their movement, concluded that the Sun rotates around its axis. The existence of spots on the Sun, which was considered an emblem of “heavenly purity,” also refuted the idea of ​​a supposed fundamental difference between the earthly and the heavenly.

The Milky Way in the field of view of the telescope broke up into many faint stars. The Universe appeared before man as something incomparably grander than the small world supposedly circling around the Earth, according to the ideas of Aristotle, Ptolemy and medieval clergy. The Church, as you already know from history and physics courses, dealt with Giordano Bruno, who did

Rice. 30. When observed from Earth, the projection of the planet onto the sky creates a loop (the drawing is made in a “sideways” projection).

bold philosophical conclusions from the discovery of Copernicus. M. V. Lomonosov (1711 -1765) led a brave struggle against the churchmen for the right to disseminate genuine knowledge about the structure of the Universe. Lomonosov ridiculed obscurantists in a witty and attractive poetic and satirical form.

The emancipation of human thought, the refusal to blindly follow the limited dogmas of the church, the call for a bold materialistic study of nature - this is the main, universal result of the struggle of Copernicus, Bruno and Galileo for a scientific worldview.

One of the main requirements for any scientific theory is that the theory must convey previously unknown facts and phenomena. The ability of a theory to provide is at the same time a criterion of its truth, its correspondence to the laws of the real world.

In astronomy, theoretical predictions are verified by observations. A brilliant example of scientific advancement in the field of studying the Universe, foresight, which is based on knowledge of the laws of planetary motion and the law of universal attraction, was the discovery of the planet Neptune.

Commenting on this outstanding event in the history of natural history, F. Engels wrote that the Copernican world system for a long time remained a hypothesis, rather controversial, but still a hypothesis. However, after the discovery of Neptune, the validity of this hypothesis can be considered residually proven.

Methodological considerations. In connection with the discovery of Neptune, made through theoretical prediction, students can be given several more examples of amazing scientific predictions. These include extremely accurate forecasts for tens and hundreds of years in advance of the moments of solar and lunar eclipses, pre-calculation of the future positions of the planets, as well as those made at one time on the basis periodic table Mendeleev's elements transfer the properties of new ones chemical elements and numerical predictions of theoretical physicists about the existence of elementary particles unknown to this.

wow planets and astrology. The visible movements of the planets relative to the constellations, the movements that are the result of the rotation of these celestial bodies around the Sun, are related to the routine attempt of our ancestors to discover the connection between celestial phenomena and the fate of people. It's about about astrology, which was based on erroneous mystical ideas about the influence of heavenly bodies on human life.

Astrologers believed that the future of every inhabitant of the Earth was “written” in the sky by the location of the planets and other celestial bodies at the moment of his birth.

In fact, it is clear that there is and cannot be any real causal connection between the location of the planets and the shares of people. If only because the planets have fallen into flames and cannot have any tangible physical influence on the Earth. Since these celestial bodies do not have any strong electromagnetic vibration, their only influence on the Earth could be gravitational influence.

However, interplanetary distances are so large, and the masses of the planets are so insignificant compared to the solar one, that their gravitational influence on the Earth, as well as its fluctuations associated with the mutual movements of the Earth and planets, practically cannot change the course in any significant way earthly processes. After all, as you know, the force of attraction weakens in proportion to the square of the distance. Therefore, even the small Moon, due to its proximity to the Earth, predetermines tidal phenomena on it, immeasurably more powerful than the giant Jupiter, from whose orbit we are separated by about 600 million km.

THE FIGHT FOR A SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW

Astronomy in to a greater extent than any other science related to ideological issues. This is understandable: after all, it is astronomy that makes the greatest contribution to understanding the place of man and humanity in the Universe, in the study of the relationship “Man - the Universe”.

One of the main provisions of materialistic dialectics is the idea of ​​the deep unity of man and the world (in particular, man and the Universe), although at the same time there is a fundamental qualitative difference between them - natural and social.

And idealism and religion “tear” the world, opposing it to man. From the point of view of objective idealism and religion, the world is “mysterious” and “unknowable”, and man is not a product of natural self-development
matter, and the result is “creation”.

Geocentric system of the world. In the Middle Ages, the dominant position was occupied by the religious picture of the world, based

what was the geocentric system of Aristotle - Ptolemy, sanctified by the church and reduced to the rank of infallible truth.

However, it would be wrong to consider the Aristotle-Ptolemy system itself “anti-scientific.” For its time it was quite scientific system. From a single point of view, it explained the visible movements of the celestial bodies and made it possible to predict their future visible positions on the celestial sphere with sufficient accuracy for the practical needs of that era.

Another thing is that this system turned out to be wrong, but it was an important step towards the truth. But the middle-new church was not interested in the truth. She was attracted to the picture of the world of Aristotle and Ptolemy by something else: the central location of the Earth in the universe, which fit well with religious ideas. That's why the church changed geocentric system world into religious dogma.

As we have already noted, the primary material for scientific research comes from observations. At the same time, one of the most important questions in the theory of knowledge is the question of whether observations provide reliable information about the properties of the surrounding world.

This question is not accidental, since in the process we are careful about all kinds of errors and inaccuracies that can give rise to incorrect, illusory ideas about the world that do not correspond to the true state of affairs. These may be random errors, errors related to disabilities and imperfection of human sensitive organs, psychological state observer, with design features measuring instruments, with observation conditions.

For example, various visual illusions that arise as a result of the structural features of our eyes are well known. Situations that give rise to all kinds of optical illusions and that can mislead observers can, in particular, arise during astronomical observations and

surveillance. Due to this, the obtained data may turn out to be unreliable, and in some cases, such that it significantly distorts the real picture of the monitoring phenomena. And incorrect, twisted ideas about reality often become fertile ground for all kinds of religious speculation. The classic astronomical illusion, to which our ancestors fell victim, is well known - the illusion of the daily rotation of all celestial bodies around the Earth. The globe rotates around its axis from setting to the east, and it seems to us that the Sun, Moon, planets and stars are moving in the opposite direction.

Another phenomenon of the cosmic order, which is illusory in nature and which we observe almost every day. It seems to us that the disk of the Sun has the same diameter as the disk full month. In reality, the dormouse diameter is approximately 400 times larger than the monthly diameter. But the Sun is 400 times farther from the Earth, and for this reason the apparent angular sizes of both luminaries for an earthly observer are almost the same. By the way, it is for this reason that a small Moon can (this occurs during solar eclipses) completely block the huge disk of the daylight.

The “cosmic illusion”, which played a significant role in the development of planetary astronomy, is also connected with the consequences of Mars. As a result of the enormous distance during telescopic observations, individual small details on the surface of this planet merge into solid lines, which to some astronomers seemed like a system hydraulic structures, built smart residents Mars. When the automatic interplanetary stations that flew to Mars transmitted detailed images of the surface of the planet, the illusory nature of the Martian “channels” became absolutely clear.

Scientific revolution of Copernicus. The end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries were times of profound changes in the history of Eurosurveillance. Due to this, the obtained data may turn out to be unreliable, and in some cases, such that it significantly distorts the real picture of the monitoring phenomena. And incorrect, twisted ideas about reality often become fertile ground for all kinds of religious speculation. The classic astronomical illusion, to which our ancestors fell victim, is well known - the illusion of the daily rotation of all celestial bodies around the Earth. The globe rotates around its axis from setting to the east, and it seems to us that the Sun, Moon, planets and stars are moving in the opposite direction.

The terrestrial position of the observer is also associated with the petal-like movement of planets among the stars. This is also an illusory phenomenon, since the planets actually do not describe any loops, but move around the Sun in elliptical orbits. “Loops” are a poser phenomenon that arises due to the fact that we observe the planets from the moving Earth, that is, in the earth’s reference frame.

Another phenomenon of the cosmic order, which is illusory in nature and which we observe almost every day. It seems to us that the disk of the Sun has the same diameter as the disk of the full Moon. In reality, the dormouse diameter is approximately 400 times larger than the monthly diameter. But the Sun is 400 times farther from the Earth, and for this reason the apparent angular sizes of both luminaries for an earthly observer are almost the same.

By the way, it is for this reason that a small Moon can (this occurs during solar eclipses) completely block the huge disk of the daylight.

An interesting illusion also arises when observing meteor showers. When the Earth encounters a swarm of solid particles, they burst into the atmosphere and collide with air molecules, evaporate and disintegrate into atoms. In turn, the atoms are excited, ionized, and in this case a flux appears. An observer on earth sees a spectacular spectacle - a rain of falling stars. To him

it seems that the trajectories of luminous particles come out from one point in the sky - the radiant, although in reality these trajectories are almost parallel to each other.

The “cosmic illusion”, which played a significant role in the development of planetary astronomy, is also related to observations of Mars. As a result of the enormous distance during telescopic observations, individual small details on the surface of this planet merge into continuous lines, which to some astronomers seemed like a system of hydraulic structures built by the smart inhabitants of Mars. When the automatic interplanetary stations that flew to Mars transmitted detailed images of the planet’s surface, the illusory nature of the Martian “channels” became absolutely clear.

Methodological considerations. It is useful to draw students’ attention to the fact that in astronomy we encounter discrepancies between the visible and the real especially often. For example, we need to remind you once again that when we look at the sky, all the luminaries seem to us to be located at the same distances from the Earth, as if on the inner surface of a giant bullet - celestial sphere.

Moreover, the usual patterns of constellations are formed by stars, which in reality are located at different distances from the Earth and from one another and are only projected into the same region of the celestial sphere. In general, finding out which space object is closer and which is further away is not an easy task even for astronomers armed with special equipment. Direct measurements make it possible to determine the distances only for relatively close space objects. For further studies, they will have to spend a lot of effort to find out whether the system of celestial bodies that interests them is really the only physical system of mutual objects or whether its constituent parts are only projected into the same region of the celestial sphere.

Scientific revolution of Copernicus. The end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries were times of profound changes in the history of Euronia.

According to Engels, it was “an era that required titans and which gave birth to titans in terms of strength of thought, passion and character, in terms of versatility and eternity.”

One of these titans was the great Polish scientist G. Copernicus, who developed the heliocentric system of the world and thereby carried out the greatest revolution in the phenomena of the universe, which had a huge impact on all subsequent development of science.

“The revolutionary act by which the study of nature declared its independence...” wrote F. Engels in “Dialectics of Nature”, “was the publication of an immortal work in which Copernicus threw down - albeit timidly and, so to speak, only on his deathbed - a challenge church authority in matters of nature.

This is where the chronology of the liberation of natural history from theology begins, although the clarification of individual mutual claims between them has dragged on until the present day and in some minds is far from being completed even now. But from that time on, the development of sciences also took enormous strides, which, if I may say so, progressed in proportion to the square of the distance (in time) from its exit point” 2.

Meaning scientific revolution Copernicus is not credited, however, with the fact that she reduced our Earth to the status of an ordinary planet solar system and thus caused extremely swipe according to the religious picture of the world.

Having revealed the posing, illusory nature of the visible daily movement of the heavenly bodies and the loop-like movements of the planets, Copernicus thereby established an extremely important methodological principle in science: “The world may not be the way we directly perceive it to be.”

It became clear that identifying what was directly perceived with reality without careful comprehensive verification could lead to incorrect, distorted ideas about the world around us.

Methodological considerations. When studying the section of the program dedicated to the struggle for a scientific worldview, it is very important to focus students’ attention on the fact that situations in which the observed phenomena are illusory in nature, when studying space processes occur quite often. And therefore, drawing certain conclusions about the properties of the real world directly from the results of observations must be done with great caution. Such actions always contain potential danger mistakenly perceive what is seen as real, and thereby contribute to the guilt of certain errors.

From Copernicus to Newton. The teachings of Copernicus became a powerful impetus for the liberation of people's consciousness from churchly religious ideas about the universe. He gained followers who did quite a lot both to promote and disseminate this teaching, and for its further development.

One of them was the Italian thinker Giordano Bruno, a passionate fighter against scholastic philosophy. In many of his statements about the infinity of the universe, the plurality of inhabited worlds, the unity of the laws of nature, Bruno rose to true materialism. Thus, Bruno in many ways went further than Copernicus, whose teaching was associated with the idea of ​​​​the real estate of the Sun, its central position in the world and the existence of a sphere of fixed stars that limits the Universe.

An invaluable contribution to the development of natural science and its liberation from medieval scholasticism was made by

Galileo Galidei. He was the first to systematically introduce experiment into science, as well as mathematical and geometric modeling of natural phenomena. His telescopic guards and the discoveries made thanks to them became
Let us confirm the main provisions of the teachings of Copernicus.

One of Galileo's main achievements was the discovery of the principle of inertia, which laid the foundations of classical mechanics.

Studying the movement of planets around the Sun, Kepler looked for the force that “pushes” these celestial bodies and does not allow them to stop.

After the discovery of the principle of inertia, it became clear that we need to look for the force that turns the uniform rectilinear motion of the planets into a curvilinear one. The law of action of this force - the force of attraction - was discovered by Isaac Newton.

Church and science. The teachings of Copernicus dealt the first tangible blow to the religious worldview. And it was not just that the religious picture of the world was being destroyed. The ideas that the church declared to be the absolute infallible truth were destroyed. And this could not but raise doubts about infallibility and other religious dogmas. The process of gradual weakening of religious power over the minds of people, freeing the masses from the influence of a religious worldview began.

Subsequent development of science, various practical applications scientific knowledge has determined that scientific ideas gained more and more authority among wide circles of people. In the light of scientific data, religious ideas about the world looked less and less grounded and more and more naive.

How did the “relationship” between the church and science develop from the Middle Ages to the present day? As a result of the activities of Copernicus, Bruno and Galileo, the church was already forced in the Middle Ages in a certain way reconsider your positions. And subsequently, changes in historical conditions more than once forced defenders of religion to adapt to new conditions. This one is especially clear
the process of adaptation can be seen in the example of the Catholic Church.

Two centuries pass, the 19th century begins. The new capitalist formation is gaining leading positions in marriage, and the role of science is growing. The Catholic Church cannot ignore this fact. And at the Vatican Council in 1869-1870. the thesis was proclaimed about the possibility of knowing God by the natural light of the mind through knowledge of the modern world.

But at that time it was not so much an attempt to bring religion and science closer together, but rather the church’s desire to neutralize the atheistic significance of scientific discoveries and prevent their influence on people’s minds. Therefore, it was persistently repeated that one should not place particularly high hopes on the human mind, and it was strongly emphasized that science should not
come into conflict with the truths of faith, but only contribute to their justification.

The 20th century, with its rapid social, scientific and technological progress, again significantly changed the situation in the world. The authority of religion began to decline, its sphere of influence steadily decreased. And this again could not but affect the activities of the church, in particular its attitude towards science and scientific progress.

The successes of natural history in the 20th century forced, for example, the Catholic Church to take new steps towards “rapprochement” with science. Theoretical basis Today's Catholicism is Thomism - the teaching of the 13th century Christian theologian Thomas Aquinas about the harmony between faith and knowledge. Based on this doctrine, which insists that in religion and science the supposedly common source is the divine mind, its modern supporters try to reconcile religious faith with scientific knowledge about the world.

“Modern fideism does not reject science at all,” Feuerbach wrote in his time, “it rejects only the “excessive claims” of science, namely, the claim to objective truth.”

The Catholic Church has created special astronomical observatories in Western European countries, equipped with advanced equipment. The learned monks conducted many hours of observations and made astronomical discoveries. Among them we can find the names of famous astronomers. In most of their statements, these Catholic scientists sought to show that the results of the study of the Universe not only do not explode faith in God, but, in fact, confirm the correctness of religious views.

However, the hopes of the leaders of the Catholic Church were not realized. The achievements of natural science over the last ten years not only did not lead to the idea of ​​God, but, on the contrary, convincingly testified in the interests of the material unity of the world. All attempts to directly interpret certain scientific results in a religious spirit did not and do not withstand any serious criticism. This circumstance, as well as the situation in the world that has changed, prompted the Second Vatican Council, which took place in 1962 - 1965, to take another step towards science.

It was solemnly declared that the church positively assessed scientific progress and from now on would not covet freedom of scientific research and the independence of science.

In November 1979, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, John Paul II, officially admitted for the first time that the great Italian scientist Galileo Galilei had suffered unjustly as a result of persecution by the church. The Pope said that the Inquisition had forced Galileo to renounce the teachings of Copernicus.

This action once again demonstrates that the modern church is ready to make any verbal concessions in order to create the appearance of the absence of contradictions between religion and science and confirm the possibility of their “peaceful coexistence.”

The true meaning of such tactics is quite obvious. If modern religion nothing can be opposed to scientific data in essence, if it is not able to fight science directly and directly, then it should be depicted on the right as if scientific activity was given from God and therefore not only does not contradict religion, but must necessarily lead to God.

As for the substantiation of religious ideas with the help of scientific data, then, since the direct “scientific evidence” of the existence of God turns out to be of little challenge and is easily refuted from scientific evidence
positions, Catholic theologians began to look for other ways and possibilities.

Yes, neo-Thomists were forced, if not to completely abandon the thesis behind which natural science should establish the existence of God, then at least to significantly improve it.

In a modernized form, it sounds approximately like this: the need for belief in the existence of God should be demonstrated through understanding the gaps in scientific knowledge and putting together various scientific data.

God is beyond the reach of science, some theologians say, for example, he is beyond its borders. Therefore, evidence of its existence should be sought in the “blank spots” of modern natural science, in those problems that science cannot resolve.

Supporters of this point of view, not without reason, respect that it is much more convenient and profitable to interpret in religious terms not what has already been discovered by natural science, but what is still unknown... Although from the position of science this method of naturally “scientific” justification of religion does not stand up, understandable, no criticism. Sooner or later, science successfully solves the problems that face it, and thereby eliminates any “white spots”.

The official theorists of Russian Orthodoxy take a slightly different position regarding science, who generally try, if possible, to bypass the issue, one way or another connected with the relationship between science and religion.

While flirting with science, the modern church at the same time tries to assign responsibility for all the difficulties that the masses are facing in Western world, on scientific and technological progress. This is one of the favorite tactics that the church in capitalist countries readily uses to maintain believers and increase their number. At the same time, we strongly support the fact that science has not yet been able to satisfy the most pressing needs of people - to provide people with long life without disease and with enough food. This is how a hostile attitude towards science is formed, distrust in its capabilities, the idea that science is supposedly dealing with problems that it should not deal with.

It is clear that the objection to the enormous positive role that science has played and continues to play in the development of human society, its colossal contribution to the progress of earthly civilization, is not based on anything. If it were not for science, we would probably still live at best at the level of the Middle Ages and would have no airplanes, no cars, no machine tools, no radio, no television, no medical devices, and many other things that determine the face of modern civilization.

As for specific scientific achievements, then it makes no sense to ask questions about whether they are good or bad, useful or harmful. It is impossible to answer such a question “in general.” Everything depends on specific historical conditions.

Any scientific discovery can benefit people. But in certain social conditions, in a class antagonistic society, it can, in principle, be used to the detriment of people, turned towards their destruction. In particular, in the countries of modern imperialism there are certain forces interested in inciting military hysteria, using the latest achievements physics, chemistry, biology, electronics, automation for the creation of barbaric weapons of mass destruction.

At the same time, the following question also arises: perhaps religious theorists are still right in some ways, perhaps science really is “from the wrong beginning” and is not exactly doing that? For example, instead of intensively studying the Universe, exploring the world of elementary particles, all scientific efforts and resources should be directed to developing methods for treating diseases and prolonging human life.

Undoubtedly, both of these tasks are of paramount importance, and their solution is given great importance. But this does not mean that all other tasks can be put off for a long time. First of all, because marriage needs "and space research, and in atomic energy, and in knowledge of the laws of the structure of matter, and much more. But also because the development is very the hard way and the solution of one or another specific task sometimes requires an integrated approach, the use of data from different sciences.

Yes, let’s say, modern medicine widely relies on the achievements of physics, electronics, biology, space medicine, and mathematical research methods. The same close connections exist between physics and biology, biology and chemistry, geology and astronomy, etc. And connections like these are not accidental.

Based on vast experience in understanding the world around us, modern science has come to the conclusion about the need for a systematic approach to studying different phenomena nature. In other words, any phenomenon must not be studied in isolation, not artificially separated from other phenomena, but considered in its entirety with those natural processes with which it is directly or indirectly connected.

Methodological considerations. We examined the question of the relationship between science and religion mainly in the context of Catholicism, since of all modern churches it is catholic church(and partly Orthodox) pays most attention to this issue.

When studying this section of the astronomy course, it is especially important to note that at the center of the struggle between science and religion, in essence, there has always been the question of the place and role of man in the universe, about the meaning of human existence.

This is how it was at the time when the scientific and religious pictures of the world opposed each other, and this is how things stand now, when theologians no longer enter into disputes with science on specific issues of the universe. In this regard, the philosophical understanding of the achievements of natural science, the systematic analysis of all the latest scientific discoveries and problems from the positions of atheism and dialectical materialism, regardless of whether theologians have already managed to interpret and falsify these discoveries and problems in religious terms, becomes especially important. Therefore, a student of astronomy and physics must not only carefully follow the development of these sciences, but also be constantly aware of the ideological problems that arise in the process of their development.

The weakness and failure of modern idealistic philosophy manifest themselves in that it contradicts both the development of science and progressive social movements; it causes protest both from spiritually persistent, incorruptible scientists, and from all those for whom the interests of the people and the bright future of humanity are more important than the interests of the owners of capital.

In countries that the apologists of imperialism hypocritically call the “free world,” the ideological struggle between progressive and reactionary worldviews, between supporters of materialism and idealism is increasingly flaring up. It is led by Marxist cadres united in communist organizations. But often people emerge from among the bourgeois intelligentsia themselves who understand the reactionary role of philosophical idealism and oppose it.

Among them is such a progressive philosopher as Barrows Dunham, a courageous fighter against spiritual and political reaction in the United States, a sharp critic of retrograde philosophies and social myths. Exposing the crushing and degradation of philosophy in the writings of pragmatists and positivists, Dunham highly raises the dignity of philosophy, seeing in it an expression of the interests and aspirations of the people. “...For me, the most attractive thing about philosophy is that its origins go back to the people,” he writes in his book “Giant in Chains.” For Dunham, philosophy is not a scholastic "analysis of language"; “philosophy,” he writes, “is the guide to life,” “philosophy is the theory of the liberation of humanity” 18.

The Japanese philosopher Yanagida Kenjuro, having embarked on the path of struggle for peace, for the democratic rights of the Japanese people and for ridding them of foreign dependence, became convinced that idealistic philosophy weakens a person and stupefies his mind with unrealizable illusions. Yanagida Kand-

Zuro found the courage to abandon this deceptive philosophy, subject it to criticism and take the position of a scientific, materialistic worldview. He wrote in My Journey into Truth:

“The place of the collapsed idealistic philosophy has been replaced by a new, Marxist, materialist philosophy, which dominates the minds of our youth. This is understandable, because what more As social contradictions in a country occupied by foreign troops intensify, the truth of dialectical materialism becomes clearer to the broad masses” 19 .

Bzrrose Dunham and Yanagida Kenjuro are not alone. One can name many progressive philosophers and scientists who are fighting against philosophical idealism, defending and promoting dialectical materialism.

In the USA, Howard Selsam, Harry Wells and other Marxists are in the forefront of the fighters for materialism. The famous progressive philosopher John Somerville is actively working to familiarize the American people with the Marxist-Leninist worldview. Roy Wood Sellers, Corliss Lamont and Paul Crosser were close to materialism and did a lot to expose idealistic philosophy. In England, M. Cornforth, J. Lewis, A. Robertson, and major scientists J. Bernal, D. Haldane, who made a significant contribution to the common cause of the struggle for a progressive worldview, enjoy deserved fame. French and Italian Marxists R. Garaudy, J. Canal, M. Spinella, C. Luporini and many others have great merit in the dissemination of advanced philosophical ideas. The works of Eli Gortari (Mexico), X. Theodoridis (Greece) show that in other countries of the world materialist philosophy is conquering the minds of people.

Along with the defense of materialism by people who came to it through active social activities and philosophical reflections, materialism is receiving increasing support from the leading representatives of modern natural science. Many important scientific discoveries of recent decades have become convincing proof of the correctness of Marxist philosophical materialism.

Einstein's theory of relativity proved the inextricable connection of space and time with matter and its movement and confirmed the doctrine of dialectical materialism about space and time as forms of existence of matter. Nuclear physics has revealed the complex structure of the atomic nucleus and discovered many elementary particles of matter, giving new justification for the position of Marxist philosophical materialism about the inexhaustibility of matter, about the infinite variety of its forms. Diagnostics gradually became established in physics.

a lexical view of a microparticle as a unity of matter and field, a unity of corpuscular and wave properties.

Advances in the field of physical sciences were accompanied by serious advances in chemistry, biology, and physiology. The achievements of theoretical natural science contributed to the enormous progress of technology. The three great scientific and technological advances of our time - the use of atomic energy, electronics and rocket technology - began new era in the history of the productive forces of mankind, immeasurably increasing its power over nature. Artificial Earth satellites and space rockets opened up the real prospect of a person going beyond the limits earth's atmosphere and exploration of space.

All these and other discoveries and achievements confirm the truth of dialectical materialism and often force positivist-minded scientists to reconsider their views. It is significant, for example, that A. Einstein in last period In his life, he began to increasingly speak out in favor of materialism, and such prominent scientists as L. Infeld and Louis de Broglie, who had previously sided with positivism, eventually went over to the side of materialism.

Some of the greatest scientists (N. Bohr, W. Heisenberg), who for decades led the positivist movement in physics, lately began to abandon a number of positivist positions and criticize them. Among the scientists and philosophers who join positivism, there are already people who have begun to waver, who sympathize with materialism and are drawn to it.

Huge value the latest discoveries in the field of natural science is, in particular, that they undermine the old, metaphysical worldview and highlight the dialectical view of the world. V.I. Lenin, who in his book “Materialism and Empirio-Criticism” summarized the processes taking place in physics at the beginning of the 20th century, with with good reason stated: “Modern physics lies in childbirth. It gives birth to dialectical materialism” 20. These words of Lenin retain all their significance for the physics of our days.

Modern natural science in the course of its own development, it comes to recognize the method of materialist dialectics. This was understood by such outstanding physicists of our time as Paul Langevin, Frederic Joliot-Curie and a number of other scientists. They became conscious supporters of dialectical materialism.

In our time, in order to wage a successful struggle against reactionary philosophy, in order to firmly stand in the positions of the materialist worldview and be able to defend it, it is not enough to consider oneself a materialist; for this you need to be a conscious supporter of dialectical materialism.