Abstract
THE sixteenth century is commonly regarded as marking the birth of modern science. It owes this distinction mainly to the achievements of a small number of men, of whom Copernicus, Vesalius, Gilbert, Tycho Brahe, Gesner, Libavius, Bruno, Fracastoro and Porta are the most famous. These constituted a very small percentage of the authors who enjoyed some sort of reputation among their contemporaries for their views on natural phenomena. Prof. Thorndike deals with about 1,200 such writers. The vast majority of them were of little, if any, scientific importance.
A History of Magic and Experimental Science
Vols. 5 and 6: The Sixteenth Century. By Prof. Lynn Thorndike. (History of Science Society Publications, New Series 4.) Vol. 5. Pp. xxii + 695. Vol. 6. Pp. xviii + 766. (New York: Columbia University Press; London: Oxford University Press, 1941.) 66s. 6d. net.
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WOLF, A. A History of Magic and Experimental Science. Nature 148, 296–297 (1941). https://doi.org/10.1038/148296a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/148296a0
