.jpg)
The Complete History of Science
A podcast exploring the history of science from the beginning. We will cover all of the most important scientific discoveries from Archimedes to Newton to Einstein. The aim is to give a complete overview of how science evolved and how it shaped the modern world.
Support the show and keep it going:
https://buymeacoffee.com/completehistoryofscience
Website:
https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/
Follow me on BlueSky for updates:
https://bsky.app/profile/gethinrichards.bsky.social
YouTube:
https://youtube.com/@thecompletehistoryofscience
Music credit:Folk Round Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Photo credit: "L0015096EB" by Wellcome Library, London is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Image has been cropped.
Episodes
43 episodes
The Harmony of Johannes Kepler [Johannes Kepler Part 4]
In 1610 reports reached Prague that Galileo had discovered new planets, and Kepler felt compelled to find out for himself what had actually been seen. Reading Starry Messenger and later observing through a borrowed telescope, he became...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 8
•
43:23
.jpg)
Christmas Special 2025 - Q and A
Merry Christmas! Answering listener questions as well as some long standing FAQs. Enjoy!
•
28:15
The New Astronomy [Johannes Kepler Part 3]
After years of struggle, Johannes Kepler finally had the tools and data to wage what he called his “War with Mars.” Rejecting ancient assumptions he used Tycho Brahe’s observations to discover his first two laws of planetary motion. His New...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 7
•
39:25
Let Me Not Seem to Have Lived in Vain [Johannes Kepler Part 2]
In 1600, Johannes Kepler arrived at Tycho Brahe’s castle hoping to escape religious persecution and gain access to the most precise astronomical data in Europe. Their relationship was strained by clashing temperaments — Tycho’s secrecy an...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 6
•
34:19
Secrets of the Universe [Johannes Kepler Part 1]
Johannes Kepler rose from a difficult childhood to become a brilliant but unconventional student, deeply influenced by his Lutheran faith, Copernican astronomy, and a belief in divine harmony within the cosmos. In Graz he developed his bo...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 5
•
42:49
Tycho's World System [Tycho Brahe Part 3]
Tycho Brahe’s observations of the Great Comet of 1577 and his discovery of atmospheric refraction led him to reject solid celestial spheres and reassess the structure of the cosmos. Seeking an alternative to both the Ptolemaic and Copernican sy...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 4
•
28:38
Hven is a Place on Earth [Tycho Brahe Part 2]
In 1576, Tycho Brahe was offered something no astronomer had ever received before: an island of his own. On the remote Baltic isle of Hven, Tycho set out to build the most advanced observatory in Europe. But just as construction beg...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 3
•
21:08
A New Star [Tycho Brahe Part 1]
13/06/25 - Episode was removed due to audio errors and reuploaded. Sorry!In 1572, a mysterious new star appeared in the sky, defying the ancient belief that the heavens never changed. Tycho Brahe, a Danish nobleman with a passion f...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 2
•
35:08
The Lodestone, the Compass and the Magnetic Earth
In this episode we trace the early development of magnetism and the compass—from ancient Chinese navigation to the groundbreaking insights of medieval and Renaissance Europe. The episode highlights the work of Peter Peregrinus, a 13th-cent...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 1
•
31:48
Circulation! [William Harvey Part 3]
At the start of the 17th century Harvey finally put all of the pieces in place. He had discovered that blood circulates through the body with the heart acting as a pump. Realising that he was undermining a millenia of Galenism, he s...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 7
•
23:51
Be Still My Beating Heart [William Harvey Part 2]
In 1602, William Harvey joined the College of Physicians to secure his medical career, but behind the scenes, he was conducting bold anatomical research. Through dissections, vivisections, and innovative experiments on blood flow and the ...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 6
•
20:57
Aristotle My General, Fabricius My Guide [William Harvey Part 1]
In late 1599, William Harvey, having completed his B.A. at Cambridge, sought further education abroad. His father, a successful businessman, funded his journey to Padua, a renowned center of medical learning. At Padua, Harvey encoun...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 5
•
18:47
Realdo Colombo and the Pulmonary Transit of the Blood
Realdo Colombo, a former student and colleague of Vesalius, challenged aspects of Galenic anatomy and made significant strides in understanding blood circulation. Through vivisection, Colombo discovered that blood circulates through the l...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 3
•
19:26
The World of Andreas Vesalius [Vesalius Part 1]
The background and early life of the great renaissance anatomist Andreas Vesalius.
•
Season 6
•
Episode 1
•
21:29
On the Revolutions [Copernicus Part 2]
This episode explores the pivotal encounter in Nicolaus Copernicus's later life when he met the young mathematician known as Rheticus. Rheticus, a prodigy from the University of Wittenberg, sought out Copernicus in Frombork, Poland, to learn mo...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 4
•
22:20
A More Reasonable Arrangement [Copernicus Part 1]
In this episode we delve into the early life of Nicolaus Copernicus, the astronomer who challenged the geocentric model of the universe. From his upbringing in Torun, Poland, to his academic journey at Jagiellonian University and travels to Bol...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 3
•
30:07
The Apogee of Islamic Astronomy
In the late medieval period, while Europe obsessed over Aristotle's natural philosophy, the Islamic world entered the zenith of astronomical discoveries. In this episode, we explore the remarkable contributions of two great astronomers, al-Tusi...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 1
•
18:13
Roger Bacon
In this episode we delve into the life and legacy of the enigmatic Roger Bacon. Once considered a magician with fantastical abilities, Bacon's reputation transformed over the centuries, oscillating between mystical figure and scientific pioneer...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 6
•
17:03
Medieval Mechanics
Perhaps the greatest orginal contribution to science in the medieval period was initiated at Merton College Oxford. A group of scholars worked to mathematise nature and prove new theorems decribing motion. Meanwhile in Paris, anothe...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 5
•
17:53
The University
In the later medieval period, Europe's bustling new cities developed a new type of institution, The University. In this episode we explore the early university and in particular its relationship with Aristotle's natural philosophy, which ...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 4
•
15:22