Galileo Galilei

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An Italian physicist and astronomer named Galileo Galilei founded modern science. He studied and researched many areas of what is now called physical science. Among other innovations, one of his more famous discoveries was changing the worldview of how the sun revolved around the earth. Galileo found through his research that the earth revolved around the sun, disputing the belief held by The Roman Catholic Church that the earth was the center of the universe. He refused to obey orders from Rome to terminate discussions of his theories and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Galileo's theories and inventions that were thought to be unconventional are now the baseline of modern science today.

The life of Galileo Galilei began in Pisa, Italy on February 15, 1564. His family was of lower nobility, which did not hinder the greatness he was to later achieve. Galileo began his early education at the Pisan School of Jacopo Borghini, where he showed an interest in mechanics. In 1574, he and his family moved to the town of Florence where he attended monastery school. Galileo was later withdrawn from monastery school by his father in 1579, presumably because of too much religious influence.

In 1581, he enrolled as a student in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Pisa. His father had hoped that he would study medicine, however, Galileo's interest became focused on natural philosophy. He began his study of the pendulum while he watched a suspended lamp swing back and forth in the cathedral of Pisa. Unfortunately, due to financial difficulties he had to leave the university and return to Florence.

Determined to continue his research, Galileo made his first trip to Rome in 1587 with hopes of making himself known to t...

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... current views. His research and interest to solve theoretical and scientific problems launched his success, making him one of the most renowned scientists of all time. His discoveries and theories, although at the time were thought of as unorthodox, proved to be most meaningful to modern science today. Galileo is not only dubbed as the "father of modern science", but truly was the founder of most theological and scientific methods used today.

References

Seeger, Raymond J. Galileo Galilei, His Life and His Works.

New York: Pergamon Press, 1966.

Segre, Michael. In the Wake of Galileo. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1991.

"Galileo Galilei." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol 6. 2003

Sobel, David. "Galileo's Battle for the Heavens." Nova. PBS Online. Jan. 2003. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/galileo

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