Editing History of physics (section)

== Ancient history ==
{{further|History of astronomy}}

Elements of what became physics were drawn primarily from the fields of [[astronomy]], [[optics]], and [[mechanics]], which were methodologically united through the study of [[geometry]]. These mathematical disciplines began in [[Ancient history|antiquity]] with the [[Babylonia]]ns and with [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenistic]] writers such as [[Archimedes]] and [[Ptolemy]]. [[Ancient philosophy]], meanwhile, included what was called "[[Physics]]".

===Greek concept===
The move towards a rational understanding of nature began at least since the [[Archaic Greece|Archaic period]] in Greece (650–480 [[BCE]]) with the [[Presocratics|Pre-Socratic philosophers]]. The philosopher [[Thales of Miletus]] (7th and 6th centuries BCE), dubbed "the Father of Science" for refusing to accept various supernatural, religious or mythological explanations for natural [[phenomenon|phenomena]], proclaimed that every event had a natural cause.<ref>"This shift from ecclesiastical reasoning to scientific reasoning marked the beginning of scientific methodology." Singer, C., ''A Short History of Science to the 19th Century'', Streeter Press, 2008, p. 35.</ref> Thales also made advancements in 580 BCE by suggesting that water is [[Arche|the basic element]], experimenting with the attraction between [[magnet]]s and rubbed [[amber]] and formulating the first recorded [[Cosmology|cosmologies]]. [[Anaximander]], developer of a proto-[[evolution]]ary theory, disputed Thales' ideas and proposed that rather than water, a substance called ''[[Apeiron (cosmology)|apeiron]]'' was the building block of all matter. Around 500&nbsp;BCE, [[Heraclitus]] proposed that the only basic law governing the [[Universe]] was the principle of change and that nothing remains in the same state indefinitely. He, along with his contemporary [[Parmenides]] were among the first scholars to contemplate on the role of [[time]] in the universe, a key concept that is still [[Problem of time|an issue in modern physics]].

[[File:Aristotle Altemps Inv8575.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Aristotle]] (384–322 [[BCE]])]]

During the [[Classical Greece|classical period]] in Greece (6th, 5th and 4th centuries BCE) and in [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenistic times]], [[natural philosophy]] developed into a field of study. [[Aristotle]] ({{langx|el|Ἀριστοτέλης}}, ''Aristotélēs'') (384–322 BCE), a student of [[Plato]], promoted the concept that observation of physical phenomena could ultimately lead to the discovery of the natural laws governing them.{{Citation needed|date=May 2018}} Aristotle's writings cover physics, [[metaphysics]], [[poetry]], [[theater]], [[music]], [[logic]], [[rhetoric]], [[linguistics]], [[politics]], [[Forms of government|government]], [[ethics]], [[biology]] and [[zoology]]. He wrote the first work which refers to that line of study as "Physics"&nbsp;– in the 4th century BCE, Aristotle founded the system known as [[Aristotelian physics]]. He attempted to explain ideas such as [[motion (physics)|motion]] (and [[gravity]]) with the theory of [[classical elements|four elements]]. Aristotle believed that all matter was made of aether, or some combination of four elements: earth, water, air, and fire. According to Aristotle, these four terrestrial elements are capable of inter-transformation and move toward their natural place, so a stone falls downward toward the center of the cosmos, but flames rise upward toward the [[circumference]]. Eventually, [[Aristotelian physics]] became popular for many centuries in Europe, informing the scientific and scholastic developments of the [[Middle Ages]]. It remained the mainstream scientific paradigm in Europe until the time of [[Galileo Galilei]] and [[Isaac Newton]].

Early in Classical Greece, knowledge that the Earth is [[Sphere|spherical]] ("round") was common. Around 240&nbsp;BCE, as the result of [[Eratosthenes#Measurement of Earth's circumference|a seminal experiment]], [[Eratosthenes]] (276–194 BCE) accurately estimated its circumference. In contrast to Aristotle's geocentric views, [[Aristarchus of Samos]] ({{langx|el|Ἀρίσταρχος}}; {{Circa|310|230 BCE}}) presented an explicit argument for a [[Heliocentrism|heliocentric model]] of the [[Solar System]], i.e. for placing the [[Sun]], not the [[Earth]], at its centre. [[Seleucus of Seleucia]], a follower of Aristarchus' heliocentric theory, stated that [[Axial tilt|the Earth rotated around its own axis]], which, in turn, [[Orbit|revolved around]] the Sun. Though the arguments he used were lost, [[Plutarch]] stated that Seleucus was the first to prove the heliocentric system through reasoning.

[[File:Domenico-Fetti Archimedes 1620.jpg|thumb|upright|The ancient Greek mathematician [[Archimedes]], developer of ideas regarding [[fluid mechanics]] and [[buoyancy]].]]

In the 3rd century BCE, the [[Greek mathematics|Greek mathematician]] Archimedes of Syracuse {{langx|el|[[wikt:Ἀρχιμήδης|Ἀρχιμήδης]]}} (287–212 BCE)&nbsp;– generally considered to be the greatest mathematician of antiquity and one of the greatest of all time&nbsp;– laid the foundations of [[Fluid statics|hydrostatics]], [[statics]] and calculated the underlying mathematics of the [[lever]]. A scientist of classical antiquity, Archimedes also developed elaborate systems of pulleys to move large objects with a minimum of effort. The [[Archimedes' screw]] underpins modern hydroengineering, and his machines of war helped to hold back the armies of Rome in the [[First Punic War]]. Archimedes even tore apart the arguments of Aristotle and his metaphysics, pointing out that it was impossible to separate mathematics and nature and proved it by converting mathematical theories into practical inventions. Furthermore, in his work ''[[On Floating Bodies]]'', around 250 BCE, Archimedes developed the law of [[buoyancy]], also known as [[Archimedes' principle]]. In mathematics, Archimedes used the method of exhaustion to calculate the area under the arc of a [[parabola]] with the summation of an infinite series, and gave a remarkably accurate approximation of [[pi]]. He also defined the [[Archimedean spiral|spiral bearing his name]], formulae for the [[volume]]s of surfaces of revolution and an ingenious system for expressing very large numbers. He also developed the principles of equilibrium states and [[center of mass|centers of gravity]], ideas that would influence future scholars like Galileo, and Newton.

[[Hipparchus]] (190–120 BCE), focusing on astronomy and mathematics, used sophisticated geometrical techniques to map the motion of the stars and [[planet]]s, even predicting the times that [[Solar eclipse]]s would happen. He added calculations of the distance of the Sun and Moon from the Earth, based upon his improvements to the observational instruments used at that time. Another of the early physicists was [[Ptolemy]] (90–168 CE) during the time of the [[Roman Empire]]. Ptolemy was the author of several scientific treatises, at least three of which were of continuing importance to later Islamic and European science. The first is the astronomical treatise now known as the ''[[Almagest]]'' (in Greek, Ἡ Μεγάλη Σύνταξις, "The Great Treatise", originally Μαθηματικὴ Σύνταξις, "Mathematical Treatise"). The second is the ''[[Geography (Ptolemy)|Geography]]'', which is a thorough discussion of the geographic knowledge of the [[Greco-Roman world]].

Much of the accumulated knowledge of the ancient world was lost. Even of the works of the many respectable thinkers, few fragments survive. Although he wrote at least fourteen books, almost nothing of Hipparchus' direct work survived. Of the 150 reputed [[Aristotelianism|Aristotelian]] works, only 30 exist, and some of those are "little more than lecture notes".{{According to whom|date=June 2018}}

===India and China===
{{further|History of science and technology in China|History of Indian science and technology}}
[[File:Hindu-arabic1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The Hindu-Arabic numeral system. The inscriptions on the [[edicts of Ashoka]] (3rd century BCE) display this number system being used by the Imperial [[Maurya Empire|Mauryas]].]]
Important physical and mathematical traditions also existed in [[History of science and technology in China|ancient Chinese]] and [[History of Indian science and technology|Indian sciences]].

[[File:Su Song Star Map 1.JPG|left|thumb|upright=1.6|[[Star map]]s by the 11th century Chinese [[polymath]] [[Su Song]] are the oldest known [[Woodblock printing|woodblock-printed]] star maps to have survived to the present day. This example, dated 1092,<ref group="note">Click the image to see further details.</ref> employs the cylindrical[[equirectangular projection]].<ref>{{citation |last=Miyajima |first=Kazuhiko |year=1998 |title=Projection Methods in Chinese, Korean and Japanese Star Maps |journal=Highlights of Astronomy |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=712–715 |doi=10.1017/s1539299600018554 |doi-access=free }}</ref>]]

In [[Indian philosophy]], Maharishi [[Kanada (philosopher)|Kanada]] was the first to systematically develop a theory of atomism around 200 BCE<ref>Oliver Leaman, ''Key Concepts in Eastern Philosophy.'' Routledge, 1999, p. 269.</ref> though some authors have allotted him an earlier era in the 6th century BCE.<ref>{{harvnb|Chattopadhyaya|1986|pp=169–170}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Choudhury|2006|p=202}}</ref> It was further elaborated by the [[Buddhist atomism|Buddhist atomists]] [[Dharmakirti]] and [[Dignāga]] during the 1st millennium CE.<ref>Stcherbatsky 1962 (1930). Vol. 1. p. 19.</ref> [[Pakudha Kaccayana]], a 6th-century BCE Indian philosopher and contemporary of [[Gautama Buddha]], had also propounded ideas about the atomic constitution of the material world. The [[Vaisheshika]] school of philosophers believed that an atom was a mere point in [[space]]. It was also first to depict relations between motion and force applied. Indian theories about the atom are greatly abstract and enmeshed in philosophy as they were based on logic and not on personal experience or experimentation.

In [[Indian astronomy]], [[Aryabhata]]'s ''[[Aryabhatiya]]'' (499&nbsp;CE) proposed the [[Earth's rotation]], while [[Nilakantha Somayaji]] (1444–1544) of the [[Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics]] proposed a semi-heliocentric model resembling the [[Tychonic system]].

The study of [[magnetism]] in [[History of China#Ancient China|Ancient China]] dates to the 4th century BCE (in the ''Book of the Devil Valley Master'').<ref>Li Shu-hua, "Origine de la Boussole 11. Aimant et Boussole", ''Isis'', Vol. 45, No. 2. (Jul., 1954), p.175</ref> A main contributor to this field was [[Shen Kuo]] (1031–1095), a [[polymath]] and statesman who was the first to describe the [[Compass|magnetic-needle compass]] used for navigation, as well as establishing the concept of [[true north]]. In optics, Shen Kuo independently developed a [[camera obscura]].<ref name="needham volume 4 part 1 98">[[Joseph Needham]], Volume 4, Part 1, p. 98.</ref>

===Islamic world===
{{main|Physics in the medieval Islamic world|Science in the medieval Islamic world}}
{{see also|List of scientists in medieval Islamic world}}
[[File:Ibn al-Haytham crop.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Ibn al-Haytham]] ({{Circa|965–1040}}).]]

In the 7th to 15th centuries, scientific progress occurred in the Muslim world. Many classic works in [[India]]n, [[Assyria]]n, [[Sassanian|Sassanian (Persian)]] and [[Greece|Greek]], including the works of Aristotle, were translated into [[Arabic]].<ref name=RobinsonCambridge>{{cite book |editor=Robinson, Francis |editor-link=Francis Robinson |title=The Cambridge Illustrated History of the Islamic World |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |pages=228–229}}</ref> Important contributions were made by [[Ibn al-Haytham]] (965–1040), an [[Arab]]<ref>Esposito (2000)، The Oxford History of Islam، Oxford University Press,، p. 192. “Ibn al-Haytham (d. 1039), known in the West as Alhazan, was an Arab mathematician, astronomer, and physicist. His optical compendium, Kitab al-Manazir, is the greatest medieval work on optics”.</ref> or [[Persians|Persian]]<ref>{{Harvard citation|Child|Shuter|Taylor|1992|p=70}}, {{Harvard citation|Dessel|Nehrich|Voran|1973|p=164}}, Understanding History by John Child, Paul Shuter, David Taylor, p. 70. "Alhazen, a Persian scientist, showed that the eye saw light from other objects. This started optics, the science of light. The Arabs also studied astronomy, the study of the stars."</ref> scientist, considered to be a founder of modern [[optics]]. Ptolemy and Aristotle theorised that light either shone from the eye to illuminate objects or that "forms" emanated from objects themselves, whereas al-Haytham (known by the Latin name "Alhazen") suggested that light travels to the eye in rays from different points on an object. The works of Ibn al-Haytham and [[al-Biruni]] (973–1050), a Persian scientist, eventually passed on to Western Europe where they were studied by scholars such as [[Roger Bacon]] and [[Vitello]].<ref>{{Harvtxt|Glick|Livesey|Wallis|2005|pp=89–90}}</ref>

Ibn al-Haytham used controlled experiments in his work on optics, although to what extent it differed from Ptolemy is debated.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Mark |title=From Sight to Light: The Passage from Ancient to Modern Optics |publisher=The University of Chicago Press |year=2015 |pages=225 |bibcode=2014fslp.book.....S |quote=The same holds for Alhacen’s methodology. It may look modern because of its strong empirical bias and reliance on controlled experiments, but Ptolemy’s approach was no less empirical, and it, too, was based on controlled experiments. In addition, Alhacen’s two most modern-looking experiments are based on physically unobtainable precision in equipment design and observation, so we are left to doubt that he actually carried them out as described— except, of course, in his mind. And these experiments were not new in conception. They were clearly based on equivalent ones in Ptolemy’s Optics, although Alhacen had to reformulate them in significant and creative ways to accommodate the testing of light rays rather than visual rays.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Darrigol |first=Olivier |title=A History of Optics from Greek Antiquity to the Nineteenth Century |publisher= Oxford University Press |year=2012 |pages=20}}</ref> Arabic mechanics like Bīrūnī and [[Al-Khazini]] developed sophisticated "science of weight", carrying out measurements of specific weights and volumes.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Lindberg |first1=David |title=The Cambridge History of Science, Volume 2, Medieval Science |last2=Shank |first2=Michael |year=2013 |pages=984–1108}}</ref>

[[Avicenna|Ibn Sīnā]] (980–1037), known as "Avicenna", was a polymath from [[Bukhara]] (in present-day [[Uzbekistan]]) responsible for important contributions to physics, optics, philosophy and [[medicine]]. He published his theory of [[Motion (physics)|motion]] in ''[[Book of Healing]]'' (1020), where he argued that an impetus is imparted to a projectile by the thrower. He viewed it as persistent, requiring external forces such as [[air resistance]] to dissipate it.<ref name=Espinoza>{{cite journal | last1 = Espinoza | first1 = Fernando  | date = 2005 | title = An analysis of the historical development of ideas about motion and its implications for teaching | journal = Physics Education | volume = 40 | issue = 2| page = 141 | doi=10.1088/0031-9120/40/2/002|bibcode = 2005PhyEd..40..139E | s2cid = 250809354 }}</ref><ref name="Nasr">{{Cite book |author=Nasr |first1=Seyyed Hossein |author-link1=Seyyed Hossein Nasr |title=The Islamic intellectual tradition in Persia |last2=Razavi |first2=Mehdi Amin |date=1996 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-0-7007-0314-2 |page=72}}</ref><ref name="Sayili">{{cite journal |author=Sayili |first=Aydin |author-link=Aydin Sayili |date=1987 |title=Ibn Sīnā and Buridan on the Motion of the Projectile |journal=Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences |volume=500 |issue=1 |pages=477–482 |bibcode=1987NYASA.500..477S |doi=10.1111/j.1749-6632.1987.tb37219.x |s2cid=84784804}}</ref> Ibn Sina made a distinction between 'force' and 'inclination' (called "mayl"), and argued that an object gained mayl when the object is in opposition to its natural motion. He concluded that continuation of motion is attributed to the inclination that is transferred to the object, and that object will be in motion until the mayl is spent. This conception of motion is consistent with [[Newton's first law of motion]], [[inertia]], which states that an object in motion will stay in motion unless it is acted on by an external force.<ref name=Espinoza /> This idea which dissented from the Aristotelian view was later described as "[[Theory of impetus|impetus]]" by [[John Buridan]], who was likely influenced by Ibn Sina's ''Book of Healing''.<ref name="ibn sina and buridan">Sayili, Aydin. "Ibn Sina and Buridan on the Motion the Projectile". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, vol. 500(1). pp. 477–482.</ref>

[[File:Image-Al-Kitāb al-muḫtaṣar fī ḥisāb al-ğabr wa-l-muqābala.jpg|upright=1.2|thumb|A page from [[Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī|al-Khwārizmī]]'s ''[[The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing|Algebra]]''.]]

[[Hibat Allah Abu'l-Barakat al-Baghdaadi]] ({{Circa|1080|1165}}) adopted and modified Ibn Sina's theory on [[projectile motion]]. In his ''Kitab al-Mu'tabar'', Abu'l-Barakat stated that the mover imparts a violent inclination (''mayl qasri'') on the moved and that this diminishes as the moving object distances itself from the mover.<ref name="Gutman">{{Cite book|title=Pseudo-Avicenna, Liber Celi Et Mundi: A Critical Edition|first=Oliver|last=Gutman|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|year=2003|isbn=90-04-13228-7|page=193}}</ref> He also proposed an explanation of the [[acceleration]] of falling bodies by the accumulation of successive increments of [[Power (physics)|power]] with successive increments of [[velocity]].<ref>[[Alistair Cameron Crombie|Crombie, Alistair Cameron]], ''Augustine to Galileo 2'', p. 67.</ref> According to [[Shlomo Pines]], al-Baghdaadi's theory of motion was "the oldest negation of Aristotle's fundamental dynamic law [namely, that a constant force produces a uniform motion], [and is thus an] anticipation in a vague fashion of the fundamental law of [[classical mechanics]] [namely, that a force applied continuously produces acceleration]."<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=1970 |title=Abu'l-Barakāt al-Baghdādī, Hibat Allah |encyclopedia=[[Dictionary of Scientific Biography]] |publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons |location=New York |last=Pines |first=Shlomo |volume=1 |pages=26–28 |isbn=0-684-10114-9}} ([[cf.]] Abel B. Franco (October 2003). "Avempace, Projectile Motion, and Impetus Theory", ''Journal of the History of Ideas'' '''64''' (4), pp. 521–546 [528].)</ref> Jean Buridan and [[Albert of Saxony (philosopher)|Albert of Saxony]] later referred to Abu'l-Barakat in explaining that the acceleration of a falling body is a result of its increasing impetus.<ref name="Gutman" />

[[Ibn Bajjah]] ({{Circa|1085}}–1138), known as "Avempace" in Europe, proposed that for every force there is always a [[Reaction (physics)|reaction]] force. Ibn Bajjah was a critic of Ptolemy and he worked on creating a new theory of velocity to replace the one theorized by Aristotle. Two future philosophers supported the theories Avempace created, known as Avempacean dynamics. These philosophers were [[Thomas Aquinas]], a Catholic priest, and [[Duns Scotus|John Duns Scotus]].<ref name=":1" /> [[Galileo Galilei|Galileo]] went on to adopt Avempace's formula "that the velocity of a given object is the difference of the motive power of that object and the resistance of the medium of motion".<ref name=":1">{{Citation|last=Gracia|first=Jorge J. E.|chapter=Philosophy in the Middle Ages: An Introduction|date=2007-11-26|pages=1–11|publisher=Blackwell Publishing Ltd|isbn=9780470996669|doi=10.1002/9780470996669.ch1|title=A Companion to Philosophy in the Middle Ages}}</ref>

[[Nasir al-Din al-Tusi]] (1201–1274), a Persian astronomer and mathematician who died in Baghdad, introduced the [[Tusi couple]]. [[Nicolaus Copernicus|Copernicus]] later drew heavily on the work of al-Din al-Tusi and his students, but without acknowledgment.<ref name="cosmosmagazine.com">{{cite web |url=https://cosmosmagazine.com/society/top-10-ancient-arabic-scientists |title=Top 10 ancient Arabic scientists |publisher=Cosmos magazine |date=2011-01-06 |access-date=2013-04-20}}</ref>

===Medieval Europe===
{{main| European science in the Middle Ages}}
Awareness of ancient works re-entered the West through [[Latin translations of the 12th century|translations from Arabic to Latin]]. Their re-introduction, combined with [[Islam and Judaism|Judeo-Islamic]] theological commentaries, had a great influence on [[Medieval philosophy|Medieval philosophers]] such as [[Thomas Aquinas]]. [[Scholasticism|Scholastic European scholars]], who sought to reconcile the philosophy of the ancient classical philosophers with [[Christian theology]], proclaimed Aristotle the greatest thinker of the ancient world. In cases where they did not directly contradict the Bible, Aristotelian physics became the foundation for the physical explanations of the European Churches. Quantification became a core element of medieval physics.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Crombie |first=A. C. |date=1961 |title=Quantification in Medieval Physics |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/228677 |journal=Isis |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=143–160 |doi=10.1086/349467 |jstor=228677 |issn=0021-1753}}</ref>

Based on Aristotelian physics, Scholastic physics described things as moving according to their essential nature. Celestial objects were described as moving in circles, because perfect circular motion was considered an innate property of objects that existed in the uncorrupted realm of the [[celestial spheres]]. 
Motions below the lunar sphere were seen as imperfect, and thus could not be expected to exhibit consistent motion. More idealized motion in the "sublunary" realm could only be achieved through [[Mechanics (Aristotle)|artifice]], and prior to the 17th century, many did not view artificial experiments as a valid means of learning about the natural world. Physical explanations in the sublunary realm revolved around tendencies. Stones contained the element earth, and earthly objects tended to move in a straight line toward the centre of the earth (and the universe in the Aristotelian geocentric view) unless otherwise prevented from doing so.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lindberg|first=David C.|title=The Beginnings of Western Science|date=1992|publisher=University of Chicago Press|doi=10.7208/chicago/9780226482064.001.0001|isbn=978-0-226-48231-6}}</ref>

Aristotle's physics was not scrutinized until [[John Philoponus]], who relied on observation rather than verbal argument like Aristotle.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://homepages.wmich.edu/~mcgrew/philfall.htm | title=John Philoponus, Commentary on Aristotle's Physics | access-date=15 April 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160111105753/http://homepages.wmich.edu/~mcgrew/philfall.htm | archive-date=11 January 2016 | url-status=dead }}</ref>
Philoponus' criticism of Aristotelian principles of physics served as an inspiration for [[Galileo Galilei]] ten centuries later,<ref name="dialogTwoNewSciences">{{cite book |last=Galileo | authorlink= Galileo | date=1638 |title=[[Two New Sciences]] |quote=in order to better understand just how conclusive Aristotle's demonstration is, we may, in my opinion, deny both of his assumptions. And as to the first, I greatly doubt that Aristotle ever tested by experiment whether it be true that two stones, one weighing ten times as much as the other, if allowed to fall, at the same instant, from a height of, say, 100 cubits, would so differ in speed that when the heavier had reached the ground, the other would not have fallen more than 10 cubits.<br />Simp. – His language would seem to indicate that he had tried the experiment, because he says: We see the heavier; now the word see shows that he had made the experiment.<br />Sagr. – But I, Simplicio, who have made the test can assure[107] you that a cannon ball weighing one or two hundred pounds, or even more, will not reach the ground by as much as a span ahead of a musket ball weighing only half a pound, provided both are dropped from a height of 200 cubits.}}</ref> during the [[Scientific Revolution]]. Galileo cited Philoponus substantially in his works when arguing that Aristotelian physics was flawed.{{sfn|Lindberg|1992|page=162}}<ref>{{Cite book| chapter-url=https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/philoponus/| title=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy| chapter=John Philoponus| publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University| year=2018| access-date=11 April 2018| archive-date=22 April 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422010906/https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/philoponus/| url-status=live}}</ref> In the 1300s [[Jean Buridan]], a teacher in the faculty of arts at the [[University of Paris]], developed the [[theory of impetus|concept of impetus]]. It was a step toward the modern ideas of inertia and momentum.<ref>{{Cite book| chapter-url=https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/buridan/| title=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy| chapter=John Buridan| publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University| year=2018| access-date=11 April 2018| archive-date=22 April 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422012611/https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/buridan/| url-status=live}}</ref>

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