French philosophical development

Reaumur, Rene-Antoine Ferchault de (1683-1757) French Philosopher, naturalist Rene-Antoine Reaumur was born in La Rochelle, France, in 1683. After studying mathematics in Bourges, he moved to Paris in 1703 at age 20 under the care of a relative. Like most scientists of the time, he made contributions in a number of areas, including meteorology. His work in mathematics allowed him entrance to the Academy of Sciences in 1708. Two years later, he was put in charge of compiling a description of the industrial and natural resources in France, and as a result developed a broad-based view of the sciences. It also inspired him into the annals of weather and climate with the invention of a thermometer and temperature scale. 

The other great scientist, during the period of Galileo was R. Descartes (1590-1650). He was a French philosopher, mathematician and scientist, who spent about 20 years of his life in Dutch republic. He is called the father of modem philosophy. He developed Cartesian coordinate system, which connected Euclidean geometry with algebra. 

During the Renaissance, Europeans developed instruments that could refine these ancient Greek theories. The Italian scientist Galileo, for example, used a closed glass container with a system of gauges that showed how air expands and contracts at different temperatures (the principle of the thermometer). The French philosopher Blaise Pascal developed what became the barometer, a device to measure surrounding levels of atmospheric pressure. 

Once Galileo had demonstrated the inconsistencies in Aristotle s theory of motion and Kepler had formulated the laws of planetary motion, the only remaining obstacle to the development of a mathematical model of the solar system was the law of inertia, still based on uniform circular motion. This final problem was removed by the French mathematician and philosopher, Descartes. 

French mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes and French lawyer and mathematician Pierre de Fermat developed... 

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