This history of the birth of modern science shatters the illusion that science is 'dry' and divorced from culture by exploring the powerful clashes between traditions and value systems that gave rise to it. The author shows how many of the characteristics that distinguish science today emerged in the midst of the wars and plagues of the seventeenth century and defines what was new about this form of knowledge.

About the Author
Paolo Rossi is Professor emeritus at the University of Florence and member of the "Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei". In 1985 he was awarded the Sarton Medal of the History of Science Society. His previous books in English include Francis Bacon from Magic to Science (1968), Philosophy Technology and the Arts in the Early Modern Era(1970), and The Dark Abyss of Time: The History of the Earth and the History of the Nations from Hooke to Vico (1984)

Reviews
"Rossi presents in intelligent and informative ways glimpses of the worldviews, concepts, and instruments that are at the root of modern science, and how these came to be ... The book is clearly the work of a scholar who knows his materials and understands what science is all about, making it an eminently good piece of work." Choice

"The greatest strength of this work comes out of Rossi's extensive and deep knowledge of the primary sources that he analyzes throughout. His discussions of key texts and of the positions of significant figures are detailed and useful. He provides clear summaries of an impressive number of texts... The nonspecialists targeted as the readers of this work will discover early modern science to be a richly complex and fascinating subject that can be studied with an abundance of primary sources." Pamela O. Long, in Isis

Book Information
ISBN 9780631227113
Author Paolo Rossi
Format Paperback
Page Count 288
Imprint Wiley-Blackwell
Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Weight(grams) 440g
Dimensions(mm) 231mm * 155mm * 22mm