The Thomistic Institute

Prof. Nuno Castel-Branco examines Nicolaus Steno’s innovative use of focused interdisciplinarity during the Scientific Revolution, tracing Steno’s groundbreaking shift from anatomy to geology and theology by integrating mathematics, mechanical philosophy, and collaboration across European scientific circles.This lecture was given on July 17th, 2025, at Dominican House of Studies.For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.About the Speakers: Prof. Nuno Castel-Branco is a historian of early modern culture and science. He is especially interested in the social and intellectual interactions between disciplines such as physics, medicine, and theology in early modern Europe and its global expansion. He is currently concluding a book about the emergence of the new sciences in seventeenth-century Europe through the fascinating career of Nicolaus Steno. He argues that Steno’s greatest innovation was introducing methods and ideas from various disciplines, especially math