Galileo

Galileo was born in 1564 near Pisa, Italy. He was one of the pioneering figures not only of the Italian Renaissance, but a key founding figure in the history of modern science, particularly in the fields of mathematics, astronomy and physics.

Galileo had first contemplated a career in medicine but became interested in mathematics after attending a lecture on geometry. He followed a teaching career that began in Florence and he was later appointed chair of the Mathematics Department at the University of Pisa in 1589.

During his tenure at Pisa, Galileo was to conduct several of his important experiments including his analysis of projectile motion and the inclined plane experiments.

The experiments on falling objects that Galileo conducted were based on his theoretical position that Aristotle was wrong in stating that the rate at which a body falls is proportionate to its mass. To prove his hypothesis, Galileo timed the rate at which objects of different weights fell from the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It was also while Galileo was living in Pisa that he observed the swinging chandelier in the Cathedral of Pisa and developed his work on pendulums and the duration of their motions.

In 1592, Galileo would move to Padua having been offered a position as Professor of mathematics at the University of Padua. Galileo would stay in Padua for almost twenty years. It was during his Padua years that Galileo entered upon his inventive and productive years: he designed what we would now call a calculator, and in 1609, he made a 20-power telescope. The first telescope was made in 1906 by Dutch opticians, but Galileo's' telescope would be different from the Dutch model.

Based on Copernicus' studies on the movement of the earth, Galileo also devised a mechanical explanation of the tides. It was also during his Padua years that Galileo wrote his thesis on engines and their roles in the generation of power. At the same time, he revived his experiments on motion on inclined planes and pendulums. In 1604, he arrived at the principles of falling bodies. It was in the same year also that he returned to his investigations of motions and theorized through careful observations that projectiles travel on parabolic paths.

In 1604, Galileo was caught up in a debate with other scholars regarding the Aristotelian view on the fixity of the heavens. Through his own observations of the heavens which included studies of the planets, the moon and the milky way, Galileo knew first-hand that his colleagues--many of whom did not have telescopes--and Aristotle were wrong. His own investigations of the heavenly bodies led to several important discoveries. He discovered the four moons of Jupiter and the phases of the planet Venus.

Galileo's next professional appointment was that of court mathematician to the Grand Duke of Tuscany. In this capacity, Galileo was able to devote his time to his studies and research. Through his work particularly in his observations of the solar system, Galileo came to agree with the Copernican view of the universe. Galileo's work, however, contradicted the position of the church. In 1615, in his letter to the Grand Duchess Christina, Galileo made what may be regarded today as one of the first arguments for academic freedom--namely, the right of scholars to free inquiry. In the following year, the Holy Office in Rome issued an edict against Copernicus and by association, Galileo fell into disfavor with the church. He was permitted to write an explanation on the differences between the Ptolemaic and Copernican views of the universe by Pope Urban VIII. This study was known as the Dialogue.

Nevertheless, Galileo was tried by the Roman Inquisition in 1632 and ordered never to teach the Copernican view again. It would be over three hundred years--1992 to be exact-- before the indictment against Galileo would be lifted by the Catholic Church.

Galileo was condemned to life imprisonment in 1633 for heresy and all of his works were banned in Italy. Outside Italy, however, the Dialogue was translated and read by scholars all over Europe.

Eventually, Galileo's sentence was commuted to house arrest. He was placed under the custody of the Archbishop of Siena. Later, he was permitted to live in his own home close to the city of Florence. In his remaining years, Galileo completed his studies on motion that would someday form the basis of the study of dynamics. Galileo died on January 8, 1642.

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