The 71 best famous phrases of Copernicus
Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 - 1543) was a prominent Polish scientist and astronomer of the Renaissance to whom we owe many contributions in this discipline.
Among his most outstanding achievements we find the formulation of the heliocentric theory, which explained that the center of the universe is not the Earth, as used to be thought, but the Sun.
Great phrases of Nicholas Copernicus
He studied in Krakow and Rome until he was considered one of the most brilliant thinkers of his time.
In today's article we are going to know the theories, thoughts and phrases of Copernicus, one of the most relevant thinkers of our millennium.
1. Nature never does anything superfluous, nothing useless, and knows how to extract multiple effects from a single cause.
On majestic complexity of the natural world.
2. I am not so in love with my own opinions that I am ignorant of what others may think about them.
His humble and dialoguing personality is reflected in this sentence.
3. If by chance there are charlatans who, while being ignorant of all mathematics, presuming a judgment on them by some passage of scripture, maliciously distorted of their meaning, dare to reject and attack this structuring of mine, I do not pay attention to them at all, to the point that I condemn their judgment as reckless.
Putting the points on the i's to his detractors.
4. Knowing that we know what we know and knowing that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge.
Great reflection on what is known and what is known that is not known.
5. First of all, we must know that the universe is spherical.
A maxim that was not known at the time.
6. The ocean envelops the Earth and fills the deepest abysses of it.
Reflection of geographical cut.
7. As seated on a royal throne, the Sun governs the family of planets that revolve around it.
A great metaphor to understand the role of the Sun in our solar system.
8. In the middle of everything is the Sun. Well, who in this beautiful temple would put this lamp in a better place, from which everything could be illuminated?
Another ode to the star king.
9. The movement of the Earth alone is enough to explain so many apparent inequalities in the heavens.
The speed at which the Earth is moving is absolutely incredible.
10. Mathematics is written for mathematicians.
To reflect on this exact science.
11. The earth along with its surrounding waters must, in fact, have a shape such as that revealed by its shadow, since it outshines the moon with the arc of a perfect circle.
Poetic astronomical phrase.
12. Furthermore, since the sun remains stationary, what appears as the movement of the sun is actually due rather to the movement of the earth.
About the movement of each of the planets and stars.
13. That nobody expects anything certain from astronomy, since it offers us nothing certain; If, by abandoning this discipline, someone takes for real what was made for another use, they will end up more crazy than by getting into it.
A phrase by Copernicus on astronomical science.
14. Near the sun is the center of the universe.
Over the years, it seems that Copernicus was wrong in this statement.
15. Of all visible things, the highest is the sky of the fixed stars.
Light years from our gaze.
16. The things I am saying now may be obscure, but they will become clear where they belong.
Certainly many of Copernicus' teachings were confirmed in later centuries.
17. Know the mighty works of God, understand his wisdom, majesty and power; To appreciate, to a degree, the wonderful workings of his laws, surely all of this must be a way of pleasant and acceptable worship to the Most High, for whom ignorance cannot be more grateful than knowledge.
On the believing side of him.
18. Each light has the shadow of it, and each shadow has a morning after.
Phrase of philosophical aspect of the great Nicholas Copernicus.
19. The Universe has been forged for us by a supremely good and ordered Creator.
Other reflection on God.
20. Trismegistus calls him a "visible God"; Sophocles' Electra, "that which contemplates all things." And so the sun, as if resting on a royal throne, governs the family of stars that revolve around.
Over the sun.
21. Nations are not ruined by a single act of violence, but gradually and almost imperceptibly by the depreciation of their circulating currency, through its excessive quantity.
About inflation.
22. The massive mass of the earth is actually reduced to insignificance compared to the size of the heavens.
All enormity is in a way relative.
23. Among the authorities, it is generally agreed that the Earth is at rest in the middle of the universe, and they consider it inconceivable and even ridiculous to have the opposite opinion. However, if we consider it more closely, the question will still remain unresolved, and so decidedly that we should not despise it. For every apparent change with respect to position it is due to the motion of the observed object, or the observer, or even an uneven change of both.
Another phrase about relativity.
24. Those who know that the consensus of many centuries has sanctioned the conception that the Earth remains at rest in the center of the heavens as its center, I would regard, as I regard it as pronounced insanity, if I made the opposite claim that the Earth is moves.
To think about the strength of social consensus.
25. Because what could be more beautiful than the heavens that contain all the beautiful things.
About the majesty of the universe.
26. I am aware that the ideas of a philosopher are not subject to the judgment of ordinary people, because his effort is to seek the truth in all things, to the extent that human reason allows it God.
On the epistemology of his time.
27. Also, since the sun remains stationary, anything that appears as a movement of the sun is more due to the movement of the Earth.
Another discovery about research on the relationship between the Earth and the Sun.
28. In so many important ways, then, the planets bear witness to the mobility of the earth.
Looking outwards you can get to know the Earth better.
29. In the first book I will describe all the positions of the spheres, along with the movements that I attribute to the Earth, so that the book contains, as it were, the general structure of the universe. In the remaining books I relate the movements of the remaining stars, and all spheres, to the mobility of the Earth, so that I can establish to what extent the movements and appearances of the remaining stars and spheres can be saved, if they refer to the movements of the Land.
Advancing the structure of his scientific writings.
30. Now I will recall that the motion of celestial bodies is circular, since the proper motion for a sphere is rotation in a circle.
Another conclusion reached by previous findings.
31. First of all, we must note that the universe is spherical.
Another of the starting points that this scientist used.
32. Contempt for the novelty and unconventionality of my opinion almost led me to completely abandon the work I had undertaken.
Copernicus, confessing the psychological impact that opinions against his work had on him.
33. Astronomy is written for astronomers. To them my work will also seem, unless it is wrong, to make some contribution.
A joint effort to better understand the reality of the stars.
34. However, the generalized planetary theories, advanced by Ptolemy and most of the others Astronomers, despite being consistent with the numerical data, also seemed to present a difficulty not less. Because these theories were not adequate unless they also conceived of certain equalizing circles, which made the planet seems to move at all times with uniform speed neither in its deferent sphere nor in the center of its own epicycle.
A critical look at the works of previous researchers.
35. In the midst of everything the sun dwells.
Another of the main conclusions of this scientist about the solar system.
36. It is the duty of an astronomer to compose the history of celestial movements through careful and expert study.
An opinion about the role of the astronomer.
37. Because when a ship floats calmly, the sailors see its movement reflected in everything outside, while, on the other hand, they assume that they are immobile, along with everything on board. In the same way, the movement of the earth can undoubtedly produce the impression that the entire universe is spinning.
About a subjective impression that does not reflect reality.
38. Although all good arts serve to turn man's mind away from vices and lead him to better things, this function can be more fully executed by this art, which also provides intellectual pleasure extraordinary.
Art can channel fundamental needs.
39. Not only did the phenomena of the others follow from this, but they also linked both the order and magnitude of all the planets and spheres like the sky itself, that nowhere could one thing be altered without confusion between the other parts and in the whole universe.
A logical chain that compromises several scientific conclusions.
40. Therefore, having obtained the opportunity from these sources, I also began to consider the mobility of the earth.
More explanations on the beginnings of the investigations of Copernicus on the planetary movement.
41. Consequently, since nothing is stopping the Earth from moving, I suggest that we should now consider also whether several movements satisfy it, so that it can be considered as one of the planets. Because, it is not the center of all revolutions.
42. We are taught all this the movement of the Earth on the axis of it and around the sun in the order of succession, in which these phenomena (various planetary events) happen, and for the harmony of the world, if we just do it, as the saying goes, look at the matter with both eyes.
43. When, therefore, I had considered this uncertainty of traditional mathematics, I began to tire that it did not exist a more definite explanation of the movement of the world-machine established in our name by the best and most systematic builder of all, among the philosophers who had studied so exactly in other respects the smallest details regarding to the sphere.
Another of Copernicus' phrases in which he talks about his motivations.
44. For a traveler going from anywhere to the north, that pole of the daily rotation gradually rises higher, while the opposite pole falls an equal amount.
Another reflection based on mathematical logic.
45. So, influenced by these advisers and by this hope, I have finally allowed my friends to publish the work, as they had asked me for for a long time.
More considerations about how tricky it is to publish certain conclusions.
46. We consider it to be a certainty that the earth, enclosed between poles, is bounded by a spherical surface.
The description of a general belief.
47. Therefore, it would not be unknown to the Holiness of him, the only thing that prompted me to look for another way to calculate the movements celestial bodies was that he knew that mathematicians by no means agree in their investigation of the themselves.
The lack of consensus drives research.
48. The two revolutions, I mean the annual revolutions of the decline and the center of the Earth, are not completely the same; that is, the return of the decline to its original value is slightly ahead of the center period. Therefore, it necessarily follows that the equinoxes and solstices seem to anticipate their timing, not because the sphere of the fixed stars moves towards the east, but the equatorial circle moves towards the west, at an angle to the plane of the ecliptic in proportion to the declination of the axis of the globe earth.
Appreciations on the axes of movement.
49. The strongest affection and the greatest zeal should, I believe, promote studies related to the most beautiful objects. This is the discipline that deals with the divine revolutions of the universe, the movements of the stars, sizes, distances, uprisings and scenarios.. because what is more beautiful than the sky?
In defense of the aesthetic component of astronomy.
- Since, then, there is no objection to the mobility of the Earth, I believe that now it must be considered whether various movements are appropriate for her, so that she can be considered as one of the stars wandering. One more step in the line of reasoning that this researcher undertook.
51. So if the value of the arts is measured by the subject matter they deal with, this art - which some call astronomy, other astrology, and many of the ancients the consummation of mathematics - would be by far the most outstanding. This art, which is like the chief of all the liberal arts and the most worthy of a free man, leans on almost all the other branches of mathematicians. Arithmetic, geometry, optics, geodesy, mechanics, and all the rest offer themselves at your service.
An appreciation of the value of the scientific field that Copernicus covered.
52. It is seen that no more stars are established in the north, while in the south no more rising stars are seen.
An observation to the celestial vault.
53. I have no doubt that certain educated men, now that the novelty of the hypotheses in this work has been widely publicized - since it establishes that the Earth is moving, and that the Sun is motionless in the middle of the universe - are extremely shocked, and think that academic disciplines, correctly established once and for all, should not be bothered. But if you are willing to judge the matter thoroughly, you will find that the author of this work has done nothing worthy of censure.
About the impact his discoveries had on its historical context.
54. The true laws cannot be reached by the use of reason; and from those assumptions, motions can be calculated correctly, both for the future and for the past.
55. Nor is it necessary for these hypotheses to be true, or even probable, but it is sufficient if they simply produce calculations that agree with the observations.
A reflection on the process of creating knowledge scientifically.
56. I myself consider that gravity is nothing more than a certain natural inclination with which the architect of all things infuse the parts to come together in one unit and whole coming together in the shape of a globe earth.
A curious explanation about the operation of gravity that starts from the concept of God.
57. The apparent retrograde and direct movement of the planets does not arise from their movement, but from the Earth.
Another of Copernicus' phrases that show the way in which he expressed his greatest discovery.
58. It is easy to believe that the Sun, Moon and other luminaries among the wandering stars also have this tendency, that, by their action, retain the rounded shape in which they are revealed, but nevertheless travel their orbits of several ways. If then the Earth also performs other movements, such as the center, they must necessarily be similar to those observed in a similar way in many external bodies in which we find an orbit annual.
Considerations about the movements of the stars and their relationship with those of the Earth.
59. Consequently, since nothing is stopping the Earth from moving, I suggest that we should now consider also whether several movements satisfy it, so that it can be considered as one of the planets.
Interesting reflection.
60. What appears to us as movements of the Sun does not arise from its movement, but from the movement of the Earth and our sphere, with which we rotate around the sun like any other planet. So the earth has more than one movement.
The description of the rotational and translational movements.
61. Some think that the earth remains at rest. But Philolaus the Pythagorean believes that, like the sun and the moon, it revolves around fire in an oblique circle. Heraclides of Pontus, and Ephantus the Pythagoras make the earth move, not in a progressive motion, but as a wheel in a rotation from west to east around its own center.
A review of the different perspectives on the nature of planet Earth.
62. Therefore, I set myself the task of rereading the books of all the philosophers that were available to search if they ever someone had believed that the movements of the spheres of the universe were different from those professed by mathematics in schools.
Explaining the motivations and starting point of it.
63. I doubted for a long time whether to bring to light my treatise, written to demonstrate the movement of the Earth, or whether it would not be better to follow the example of the Pythagoreans and some others, who used to transmit the mysteries of his philosophy simply to their relatives and friends, not in writing, but by personal contact, as Lysias's letter to Hipparchus.
This researcher feared the reprisals that his discoveries could lead to.
64. Through constant observation and meaningful contact with the divine order of the structure of the world, arranged by the wisdom of God, who would not be guided to admire the Builder who creates it everything!
A mixture of Christian faith and use of the principles of science.
65. After addressing this very difficult and almost insoluble problem, I came to the conclusion of how it could be solved with less and much simpler constructions than were previously used, if you were to grant me some assumptions (which are called axioms).
On the need to start from presuppositions.
66. The center of the Earth is not the center of the universe, but only of gravity and the lunar sphere.
About the relative importance of our planet.
67. The ratio of the Earth's distance from the Sun to the height of the sky is much smaller than the ratio of the radius of the Earth with its distance from the Sun, that the distance from the Earth to the Sun is imperceptible compared to the height of the firmament.
Incredible analysis.
68. Any movement that appears in the sky does not arise from any movement of the sky, but from the movement of the earth. The Earth together with its surrounding elements makes a complete rotation at its fixed poles in a daily movement, while the firmament and the highest sky remain unchanged.
A clear summary about the main discovery of Copernicus.
69. All these phenomena proceed from the same course, which is found in the movement of the Earth. But the fact that none of these phenomena appear in the fixed stars shows their immense elevation, causing even the circle of its annual movement or apparent movement to disappear from our eyes.
An estimate about the great distance that the celestial bodies are.
70. Not a few other very eminent and learned men made the same request, urging that I should no longer, for fear of refusing, give my work for the common benefit of the students of Mathematics.
About the dissemination of the discoveries of this scientist.
71. I can easily conceive, Holy Father, that as soon as some people learn that in this book that I have written about revolutions of the celestial bodies, I attribute certain movements to the Earth, they will immediately claim that I and my theory must be rejected.
The ideas of Copernicus were considered dangerous to Christian doctrine.