"anorton" wrote in message

However the pure logic of Aristotle crippled science for 2000
years:
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question...3142654AACy8XW

Because of him we didn't advance beyond the Romans until 1700~1800.
jsw


It is unfair to blame that on Aristotle alone. The main problem was
that his conclusions were incorporated into the dogma of the church.
As Galilleo among many others found out, the church did not like
anyone questioning their dogma.

This is a little ironic because one of the things Aristotle got
right was that things are not necessarily so just because someone in
a high position says they are.

Galileo was building on the work of Copernicus, who unlike Galileo was
tactful enough to convince Pope Clement VII. The Church knew the
ancient theory was faulty but was still seeking and arguing internally
over a suitable replacement, one that wouldn't soon embarrass them if
disproven. Galileo spoke up too loudly and too soon.

"As long as a hypothesis allows reliable computation, it does not have
to match what a philosopher might seek as the truth."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolaus_Copernicus
One could say that of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics too.

Aristotle's mistakes were confusing energy level with substance, and
discounting experimentation as inherently flawed. Earth, water, air
and fire correspond to solid, liquid, gas and plasma. Experimental
accuracy depended on the clock and instrument makers' ability to make
better measuring tools, especially accurate screw threads. Can you
measure precisely how long an object takes to fall one, two and three
feet?

jsw