This is a collection of extracts selected from widely known texts by such figures as Copernicus, Newton, and Lavoisier, as well as others, all chosen to provide a perspective on broad topics of social, cultural and intellectual history and to illuminate the contemporary concerns of the early modern period. The selection of extracts highlights the emerging technical preoccupations of this period, whilst the accompanying introductions and annotations make these sometimes complex texts highly accessible. The book follows a broad chronological sequence and provides new ways of viewing the scientific ideas and practices that underpinned European expansion during this crucial time in history. The primary source materials in this collection stand alone as texts in themselves, but in illustrating the scientific components of early modern societies they also make this book ideal for teachers and students of European history.