Galileo: Scientist, Scholar, Rebel

1718 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Galileos research

Seventeenth-century European study was controlled by two powerful forces: the Roman Catholic Church, headed by the Pope, and ancient philosophy dominated by the 2000-year-old ideas of the Greek philosopher, Aristotle. The Church had an overwhelming influence on the lives of most Europeans. During Galileo’s time one in twelve people living in Rome was either a cleric or a nun.1 The Church forbid any teaching that deviated from what was taught in the Bible. To enforce this control, the Church set up the Inquisition. Galileo was targeted by the Inquisition for his observations and experiments. 2 Because his teachings differed from the socially accepted ideas of Aristotle, the Inquisition believed he should be persecuted. Even though Galileo’s observations were much more factual than Aristotle’s and, more important, backed up by experiments and the use of the telescope, he was still sentenced to house arrest for life.
Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564, in Pisa Italy.3 Galileo was born into a family considered nobility, and his father, Vincenzo Galilei, was an accomplished musician.4 Galileo was tutored privately and also educated by his father until the age of eleven, when his family moved to Florence and sent him to a Jesuit monastery to study medicine.5 Three years after his son began school, Vincenzo was surprised to learn Galileo had decided to become a monk. Somewhat angered, his father withdrew him from the monastery, and Galileo continued his high school education in Florence.
At age seventeen Galileo began college at the University of Pisa, where he reluctantly studied medicine. 6 Throughout his first term attending the university, Galileo became more interested in mathematics than medicine. A court mathematician, by the name of Ostillo Ricci, noticed Galileo in his lectures.7 Impressed with Galileo’s knowledge, he urged Galileo change his major to mathematics. Against his father’s wishes, Galileo changed courses, and by the end of his first term he was a mathematics undergraduate.8
Galileo made his first important discovery while attending the University of Pisa. Galileo noticed a swinging lamp above him during a church sermon. Extremely bored, Galileo conducted an experiment to see if the amount of time in between each swing was the same. Using hi...

... middle of paper ...

...i. School of Mathmatics and St. Andrews, Scotland, August 1995; available from http://www.history.mcs.standrews.ac.uk/history/mathmatics/galileo.html;Internet.
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.
7 Jack Meadows, The Great Scientists. Oxford University; New York, 1987, p. 35.
8 Deborah Hitzeroth and Sharon Heerbor, Galileo Galilei. Lucent Books Inc; California, 1992, p.15.
9 Ibid., p.16.
10 J.V. Field, Galileo Galilei. School of Mathmatics and St. Andrews, Scotland, August 1995; available from http://www.history.mcs.standrews.ac.uk/history/mathmatics/galileo.html;Internet.
11 Ibid.
12 Galileo Galilei- Astrology. Available from http://www.astrology.about.com/library/weekly/aa0zz00b.
13 Ibid.
14 Ibid.

17 Ibid.
18 Jack Meadows, The Great Scientists. Oxford University; New York, 1987, p.41.
19 Deborah Hitzeroth and Sharon Heerbor, Galileo Galilei. Lucent Books Inc; California, 1992, p.24.
20 Jack Meadows, The Great Scientists. Oxford University; New York, 1987, p.44.
21 Ibid., p.45.
22 Giorgio De Santillan, The Crimes of Galileo. Time Inc; University of Chicago Press, 1962, p.185.
23 Ibid., p.257.
24 Ibid.
25 Jack Meadows, The Great Scientists. Oxford University; New York, 1987, p.48.
26 Ibid

Show More
Related

  • Sociological Analysis Of Arctic Hysteria

    1222 Words  | 3 Pages

    In her article “Arctic Hysteria in Salem?” written in 1990, Zeller provides the argument that a physical condition known as Arctic Hysteria is responsible for the Salem witch accuser’s erratic and irrational behaviour. Zeller notes the condition develops when an individual is deficient in calcium uptake and absorption, inadequate exposure to light, and decreased activity. Furthermore, she argues the circumstances in Salem presented ideal conditions for Arctic Hysteria symptoms to develop. Arctic Hysteria is characterized by “screaming, disordered speech, violent disruptive behavior, and hallucinations.” It is unquestionable that Zeller used an extensive amount of sources, however much of her research was focused on the Arctic and Eskimo population to explain the accusers behaviour. Zeller like Caporael acknowledges “that a true cause of the strange behaviours will probably never be

    Read More

  • Galileo's Act of Civil Disobedience

    561 Words  | 2 Pages

    Galileo was born in Pisa Italy on February 15, 1564. Galileo was the first born child to Vincenzo Galilei and Giulia Ammannati. His family moved to Florence Italy after living in Pisa for ten years. In Florence he received education at the Camaldolese monastery in Vallombrosa. Later on in his life he decided to study medicine at the University of Pisa to study medicine. Wh...

    Read More

  • Louisiana Purchase Dbq

    443 Words  | 1 Pages

    Jefferson recognized that the purchase would be “beyond constitutional,” (Jefferson) but his desire to expand America undermined his “legal scruples” (book). The Republicans and Thomas Jefferson supported the acquisition, because it was favorable to the “immediate interests of” the “western citizens” (book). The also believed it would create a more safe and peaceful environment, in a way that would separate French and American authorities. The federalists on the other hand, disagreed with the treaty for various reasons. They were worried that westward expansion would increase wages on the Atlantic coast by “reducing and lowering the value of real estate in their region” (book). The federalists knew that the states to that would be created from the new land would be settled by Jeffersonian Republicans, ultimately establishing a stronger Republican foothold in the country. Despite the feuds between the two groups, the Senate ratified the treaty with a vote of twenty-six to six, and on December 20, 1803, America took possession of the Louisiana

    Read More

  • Analysis of Galileo's Letter

    710 Words  | 2 Pages

    Galileo Galilei was an Italian scientist, often referred to as “the father of modern physics”. He was one of the inventors of the telescope and a strong proponent of Copernicanism. Galileo used his invention to make astronomical observations which supported Copernicus’ heliocentric model of the universe. These discoveries led to a fierce dispute, because they contradicted the theory which was prevalent at the time – that the universe followed a geocentric model, a theory, which had been accepted by the Catholic Church. To address this dispute, Galileo wrote a letter to Tuscany’s Grand Duchess Christina, in which he presented his position on the relation between science and religion, stating that the Bible does not contradict science.

    Read More

  • Nicolai Copernicus

    1209 Words  | 3 Pages

    Copernicus was born on February 19, 1473 in Thorn, Poland. He was the youngest son of four children and the son of a prosperous merchant. Following his father's death, his Uncle Lukas Watzelrode, bishop of Ermland, adopted him. Copernicus began his studies in Thorn and then at the University of Cracow where he studied mathematics and became very interested in humanistic studies.1 Copernicus left Cracow for Italy where he went to the Universities of Bologna and later Padua. He studied many different subjects including mathematics, canon law, and astronomy. Copernicus received a degree in medicine at the University of Padua, and went on to receive his doctorate from the University of Ferrara in canon law.

    Read More

  • How Did The Louisiana Purchase Establish American Nationalism

    421 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Louisiana Purchase helped to establish America’s nationalism by gaining and expanding land. In 1800 France gained New Orleans. Thomas Jefferson, who was president at the time, made an attempt to gain use of the Mississippi river so he sent an ambassador to France to do so. Also in 1803, Napoleon Bonaparte needed to gain money to fight the British so he offered to sell the entire Louisiana territory to the U.S. The U.S. accepted and bought the territory for 15 million doubling size of U.S.

    Read More

  • Disputes Before 1803: The Louisiana Purchase

    1562 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Louisiana Purchase began long before 1803 with conflicts between Spain, France, and the United States of America. One of many disputes began in 1754 with the beginning of the The French and Indian War, which was the result of ongoing frontier tensions between the French and the British, and ended with The Treaty of Paris in 1763. Great Britain’s victory at the end of the French and Indian War resulted in the writing and signing of the Treaty of Paris, 1763, which forced the French to surrender all of their North American territory. Until 1799, France had been controlled by a monarchy, but from 1789 to 1799 there was a revolution in France that led to the people seizing control of the government and placing Napoleon Bonaparte in charge.

    Read More

  • Louisiana Purchase Geography

    460 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Louisiana Purchase changed the U.S geographically in 1803. The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the U.S. It also was the start of the westward settlement movement. Thomas Jefferson bought Louisiana territory for 15 million (us) dollars from Napoleon, who at the time was France's emperor. The reason Napoleon sold the Louisiana to the U.S is because he was planning to have a huge empire in U.S but he he got into some economic trouble in Europe and decided to sell Louisiana for 15 million dollars in order to pay his debt in Europe.

    Read More

  • Louisiana Purchase Advantages

    678 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Louisiana Purchase increased the United States by approximately 828,000 square miles, nearly doubling the size of the young country (http://www.encyclopedia.com). The purchase was so large that it has been described as one of the greatest real estate deals in history. The Louisiana Territory stretched from the Mississippi River all the way to the Rocky Mountains and included what would eventually become 15 new states. With all the land that was gained, it allowed the growing population to expand westward. Now that Americans were starting to settle into their new land this clearly made the US the leading force in North America. Soon this would lead to Manifest Destiny, the idea that the US would expand reaching coast to coast. This showed European countries that America can make deals and negotiate with them despite being a new country and that they were on their way to becoming a power to be reckoned

    Read More

  • Louisiana Purchase Conflicts

    674 Words  | 2 Pages

    After the Louisiana Purchase in 1804, the United States' size doubled giving Americans more opportunities for trade and manifestation. As Americans continued to explore the new lands, granted from the Louisiana Purchase, they claimed the lands as if it is rightfully theirs. This concept of continuously expanded west led to conflicts such as the Mexican-American War. After the Americans won the Mexican-American War, more lands were given to the US. The Southern states wanted the new lands to be beneficial for plantations to spread slavery, however, the Northern states wanted the new states to be free slave states. From 1820 to 1860, sectional conflicts divided the country and caused new political ideas and various compromises to emerge affecting

    Read More

  • The Scientific Revolution and The Enlightenment

    1738 Words  | 4 Pages

    Galileo Galilei was an Italian philosopher born in 1564. As an adult, he didn’t believe the universal geocentric theory of the planets and heavens which was established by the Catholic Church. The church taught that the Earth was the center of the universe and everything revolved around our planet. Another theory that the Church supported was that the Earth stood still while the sun rose and set every day. Society in the 1500’s believed that the Pope spoke for God through a divine connection and to against the church was to go against God. To speak out against the church in this time was strictly taboo. If one was to speak against the church was considered to be heresy, which is exactly what happened to Galileo. Galileo invented the telescope and began studying the heavens above and noticed that changes within the stars and planets. He noticed that the “stars” that surrounded Jupiter moved. He came to the conclusion through rational thinking, that the Copernicus’ heliocentric theory was correct. Copernicus was a scientist and philosopher whose theory proposed that the sun was stationary and the heavens orbit around the sun. Galileo tried to convince the church not to aboli...

    Read More

  • Louisiana Purchase Essay

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the United States obtained roughly 828,000,000 square miles of region from Germany, in this manner multiplying the span of the youthful republic. What was known as Louisiana Territory extended from the Mississippi River in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west and from the Gulf of Mexico in the south to the Canadian fringe in the north. Part or all of 15 states were in the long run made from the area bargain, which is viewed as a standout amongst the most imperative accomplishments of Thomas Jefferson's administration.

    Read More

  • World War II

    1611 Words  | 4 Pages

    New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Britannica Online, The Encyclopedia. 3. Then, the "3." http://www.school.eb.com/proxygsu-scob.galileo.usg.edu/eb/article-53533 (accessed March, 2011).

    Read More

  • Essay On Popular Culture

    1686 Words  | 4 Pages

    Time is at a premium to take popular culture more seriously as a terrain of academic inquiry and ensuring a significant change in the outlooks of people at large turning it into more of established discipline. Conceptual barriers between so-called high and low culture have broken down, accompanying an explosion in scholarly interest in popular culture, which encompasses all diverse media. The question whether popular culture can actually resist dominant ideology, or even contribute to social change, is much more difficult to answer. A conscious effort by all can not only bring a positive change in attitude and ideas in relation to discrimination, but make huge social changes for a better world in the days to come.

    Read More

  • Galileo Galilei

    750 Words  | 2 Pages

    Galileo was born in Pisa, Italy on February 15th, 1564. His father, Vincenzo was a music teacher and musician. After his family moved to Florence, Galilei was sent to a monastery to be educated. He was so happy there that he decided to become a monk, but his father wanted him to be a medical doctor and brought him home to Florence. He was never really interested in medicine and studied mathematics at the University of Pisa. He was especially interested in famous mathematicians like Euclid (geometry) and Archimedes. In fact in 1586 he wrote his first book about one of Archimedes theories. He eventually became head of mathematics at the University of Pisa where he first wrote about a very important idea that he developed. It was about using experiments to test theories. He wrote about falling bodies in motion using inclined planes to test his theories.

    Read More

More about Galileo: Scientist, Scholar, Rebel

Open Document