Galileos Work :: essays research papers

Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564 in Pisa, Italy. In 1570 his family relocated to Florence. Galileo pioneered " observational scientific method" and was the first to use a refracting range to light up important astronomical discoveries. In 1581, Galileo studied at the University of Pisa. There he became interested in the workings of science and concluded that the period (the cartridge clip in which a pendulum swings back and forth) does not depend on the trend of the swing (the isochronisms).In 1609 Galileo learned of the invention of the telescope in Holland. From the barest description he constructed a vastly superior model. Galileo made a serial of profound discoveries using his new telescope, including that the moon has craters, valleys, and mountains much the like the acress terrain. He also was able to see four teeny-weeny lights orbiting near the planet Jupiter. He was then able to conclude that it too was moons. Galileo was also able to discove r that the planet Venus had phases much like our Moon.As a professor of astronomy at University of Pisa, Galileo was required to get wind the accepted theory of his time that the sun and all the planets revolved around the Earth. Later at University of Padua he was exposed to a new theory, proposed by Nicolaus Copernicus, that the Earth and all the other planets revolved around the sun. Galileos observations with his new telescope convinced him of the truth of Copernicuss sun-centered or heliocentric theory. In 1610, Galileo published a defy, The Starry Messenger, describing his findings that supported the Copernican theory. Galileos support for the heliocentric theory got him into get at with the Roman Catholic Church. He was forced to abandon his astronomical pursuits. But, Galileo retaliated by publishing a book, Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems. This book cause more arguments with the church service due to it were in Italian which was a direct conflict with th e church. In 1633 the Inquisition convicted him of heresy and forced him to forego (publicly withdraw) his support of Copernicus. They sentenced him to life imprisonment, but because of his advanced age allowed him serve his bound under house arrest at his villa outside of Florence, Italy. It was not until 1992 that the church publicly forgave Galileo. But due to the timeframe, the damage had already been done.