Date/Time
Date(s) - 13 Sep 2016
5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Location
Columbia University Faculty House
Category(ies) No Categories
Ptolemy, Epytoma… Almagestu{m} (Venice, 1496)
On Tuesday, September 13 at 5:30pm in Faculty House, the first Seminar in the Renaissance of 2016-2017 will take place. The lecture will be in Faculty House at 5:30, followed by dinner, also in Faculty House, at 7 pm for those wishing to continue the discussion with the speaker ($30 by check only, payable to Columbia University).
Below please find Professor Westman’s abstract:
“Copernicus and the Astrologers”
Robert S. Westman
University of California, San Diego
Nicolas Copernicus’s hypothesis that the earth is a planet revolving together with five other planets around a stationary sun is one of the best known claims in the history of science. First announced publicly in print in 1543, historians often describe Copernicus’s proposal as the beginning of the Scientific Revolution. But what was the question to which Copernicus’s hypothesis was the answer? In The Copernican Question: Prognostication, Skepticism and Celestial Order (2011), Westman argues that crucial clues lie in the late-fifteenth century controversy about the status of astrology– although not a single word about astrology exists in any of Copernicus’s extant writings. In this talk, Westman extends his thesis based upon new evidence.
Please make sure to notify our new Rapporteur, Barbara Vinck [email protected], by Tuesday 6 September if you plan to attend and, especially, if you plan to dine with us. There is no need to contact the Rapporteur if you do not plan to attend.