Galileo Galilei Essay Research Paper Galileo GalileiThe

Galileo Galilei Essay, Research Paper

Galileo GalileiThe paper which I will be writing will discuss the life, discoveries, and the modern impact of the scientific accomplishmentsof Galileo Galilei. Born in Pisa, Italy in 1564, Galileo entered Pisa University as a medical student in 1581 and became aprofessor of mathematics at Padua. An astronomer and mathematician, Galileo was, unfortunately for himself, a man aheadof his time. Galileo discovered the law of uniformly accelerated motion towards the Earth, the parabolic path of projectiles,and the law that all bodies have weight. Among his other accomplishments was the improvement of the refracting telescopein 1610 and his advocacy of the Copernican theory which brought him into a conflict of ideas and truths between himself andthe Inquisition. He was condemned by the church whose theories threatened everything that was taught by the priesthoodas the holy truth and he was eventually broken by the Inquisition. Before being ultimately defeated by the church, however,Galileo made many contributions to the world of physics. His scientific discoveries and endeavors were only a portion of hiscontributions to the scientific community. Galileo’s methods of testing and proving his theories were also of major importancesince these painstaking and exact methodologies would lay the groundwork for future scientific discoveries. His brilliancebrought about a new era in scientific advancement and his defeat at the hands of the church put a stop to the scientificrevolution which he had started. In 1993 the Vatican formally recognized the validity of Galileo Galilei’s scientific work. References Cited1. GALILEO: PIONEER SCIENTIST – Stillman Drake 19902. GALILEO A LIFE – James Reston, Jr. 19413. COLLEGE MATHEMATICS JOURNAL – May 1994, Volume 25 Issue 3, p 193 Galileo Galilei was a great scientist and pioneer in the fields of mechanics, astronomy, thermometry, and magnetism, althoughmechanics and astronomy were his main passions. He was arguably one of the brightest men who ever lived. Galileodiscovered and enhanced many scientific discoveries of his time period and was highly regarded as a Mathematician andNatural Philosopher. Galileo was persecuted for his views on Earth’s relationship with the rest of the heavens since hebelieved that the Earth revolved around the Sun and that the heavens were constantly changing and evolving. Since Galilei’svision of a metamorphosing universe came in direct conflict with the views of Aristotle, views held by and supported by thechurch, Galileo was eventually called before the Inquisition and forced to recant his views. Nonetheless, Galileo Galilei madesignificant contributions to the scientific community and he is remembered as a great scientist and innovator. Galileo Galilei was born in 1564 in Pisa, Italy (then a part of the Duchy of Tuscany), to Vincenzo Galilei, a musician, andGiulia Ammannati. Galileo studied medicine at the university of Pisa from 1581 to 1585, but his real interests were inmathematics and natural philosophy and Galileo left the university in 1585 without a degree. It was during this time framethat Galileo began to doubt conventional science, since much of what he was being taught at that time as scientific fact wasconflicting with the evidence which he saw in his hands-on medicalobservations(Hitzeroth, Heerboth, The Importance ofGalileo, pp 14-15). Following his period as a student, Galileo tried his hand at teaching.Galileo began privately teaching in Florence and he returned to the university of Pisa to teach mathematics in 1589. Galileotaught at the university of Pisa until 1592 when he was appointed professor of mathematics at Padua (the university of theRepublic of Venice.) Galileo’s duties as a professor of mathematics at Padua were to teach Euclidean geometry and standard(geocentric) astronomy to medical students. The medical students at that time were expected to know some astronomy inorder to make use of astrology in their medical practices. In Padua, he continued his physics research in the area of mechanicsand astronomy. In the area of mechanics is where Galileo’s most famous observations were exhibited. The traditional theory accepted bynearly everyone at that time was Aristotle’s theory that heavier objects, when dropped from the same height as lighter ones,will fall at a faster rate. In opposition to this notion, Galileo stated that with the removal of outside influences such as windresistance, both objects will fall simultaneously at virtually the same speed. Although a very popular story of Galileo statesthat he attempted to prove this theory by dropping different weights from the campanile (leaning tower) of the Duomo in Pisa,this particular experiment was never actually proven to have occurred. However, a similar experiment had already been madeby the Flemish engineer Simon Stevin in 1586. Galileo has said that his interest in Aristotle’s Theory about falling objectswas aroused when, during a hailstorm, he noticed that both large and small hailstones hit the ground at the same time. Thisobservation caused Galileo to seriously doubt Aristotle’s Theory since according to Aristotle, the larger-sized hailstones wouldhave had to have fallen from a much greater height and at virtually the same time as the lighter hailstones in order for themto reach the ground at the same time (which Galileo found very improbable.)Galileo was also very much interested in astronomy. Tycho Brahe, a Da