"Therefore I would not have it unknown to Your Holiness, the the only thing which induced me to look for another way of reckoning the movements of the heavenly bodies was that I knew that mathematicians by no means agree in their investigation thereof"
- Nicolaus Copernicus
About this Quote
Nicolaus Copernicus was a 16th century astronomer who recommended a heliocentric version of the universe, which positioned the sun at the center of deep space as opposed to the Earth. In this quote, Copernicus is clarifying to the Pope why he was trying to find a new method to compute the motions of the heavenly bodies. He mentions that the reason he was searching for a new means was due to the fact that mathematicians could not agree on their examination of the activities. This recommends that Copernicus understood the limitations of the existing mathematical versions and was trying to find an extra accurate means to determine the motions of the celestial bodies. This quote likewise reveals Copernicus' devotion to locating a much better way to recognize the universe, and his desire to test existing concepts. Copernicus' work eventually led to the advancement of modern astronomy as well as the understanding of the universe that we have today.
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