Standard 6.3 explains how Europe changed from a region focused on tradition and religion into a global force that reshaped the world between 1450 and 1760. It begins with intellectual shifts like the Renaissance, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment, which encouraged people to question authority and use reason. These changes led to new ways of thinking about science, government, and individual rights.

At the same time, European nations began exploring the world for wealth, power, and trade. New technology made long-distance travel possible, leading to contact between Europe, Africa, and the Americas. This contact created the Columbian Exchange and new global trade systems, including triangular trade and the transatlantic slave trade.

These developments caused major economic, political, and social changes. Europe gained wealth and power, while indigenous populations declined due to disease and conquest, and millions of Africans were enslaved. The Atlantic World became deeply interconnected, but this connection came with both growth and long-term inequality that still impacts societies today.

The Scientific Revolution changed how people understood truth by replacing tradition with observation, experimentation, and reason. Thinkers like Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton challenged long-held beliefs about the universe and proved that natural laws govern the world. The development of the scientific method shifted authority away from the Church and ancient texts toward evidence and logical reasoning.