Philosophy: When Science Was 'Natural Philosophy'

Physics used to be philosophy.

For centuries, natural philosophy covered physics, chemistry, and biology. Newton even titled his masterwork Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica—"Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy."

Then the split.

As fields matured, they broke off from philosophy. The term gained a narrower meaning focused on metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics.

Philosophy: When Science Was 'Natural Philosophy'

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