Thinking with Objects: The Transformation of Mechanics in the Seventeenth Century

Thinking with Objects offers new interpretations of the transformation of mechanics in the 17th century. Traditional accounts have focused on laws, notably the law of inertia, and on a limited selection of areas in physics, such as the trajectory of projectiles and orbital motion. By giving center stage to objects - the lever, the inclined plane, the beam, the pendulum, the spring, and falling and projected bodies - Domenico Bertoloni Meli provides a comprehensive account of mechanics as it was understood at the time, including novel analyses of water management and the emergence of elasticity. He also offers fresh readings of major texts such as Galileo’s Discourses Concerning Two New Sciences , Descartes’ Principles of Philosophy , and Newton’s Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy . The emphasis on objects is anchored to the reevaluation of an ancient and Renaissance tradition in which Pappus of Alexandria and Guidobaldo dal Monte occupy a nodal position; dal Monte’s reliance on Pappus for his foundational concerns marks a significant episode in the history of mechanics and is crucial for understanding Galileo. The similarities and tensions between dal Monte and Galileo serve as a springboard for reexamining how mechanics was practiced in the 17th century. Examining objects can help us understand how knowledge was transferred between the study and practice of mechanics and can challenge artificial dichotomies between practical and conceptual pursuits, mathematics and experiment.