Scientific Rev
...especially in Europe. During this time, the centuries-old beliefs of the people, which were based on dogma and religion, were challenged by a number of intellectuals who based their thinking on experimentation and mathematical analysis to understand the physical world around them. This revolutionary change in the way of thinking led to the application of knowledge to practical uses and propelled the Western world from the Dark Ages to the modern age. The significance of the period, which later came to be known as the period of Scientific Revolution, lies in the fact that the scientific developments of the time affected all aspects of the peoples' lives and led to the continuing dominance of the Western world over the rest of the world to this day.
The European Enlightenment developed in part due to an energetic group of French thinkers who thrived in the middle of the eighteenth century: the philosophes. This group was a mix of people who pursued a variety of intellectual interests: scientific, mechanical, literary, philosophical, and sociological. They were united by a few common themes: an unwavering doubt in the perfectibility of human beings, a fierce desire to dispel erroneous systems of thought (such as religion) and a dedication to systematizing the various intellectual disciplines.
The central ideas of the philosophe movement were Progress: Human history is largely a history of the improvement of humanity in three respects: a) developing a knowledge of the natural world and the ability to manipulate the world through technology; b) overcoming ignorance bred of superstitions and religions; c) overcoming human cruelty and violence through social improvements and government structures. Deism is a term coined in the philosophe movement and applies to two related ideas: a) religion should be reasonable and should result in the highest moral behavior of its...
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