Galileo
Galilei
Galileo
Galilei was born in the year 1564 in Pisa, Italy, the son of a well known
musician.
This brilliant scientist and astronomer is most famous for his early development of the telescope for use in
astronomy, being the first to see the moons of Jupiter and other celestial objects.
Galileo was indeed an incredible man. After studying in Pisa, he held
the chair in mathematics in Pisa and later in Padua University.
During this time he studied mechanics, designed and made magnetic compasses
for use by the military and gained a patent for the design of a machine to
raise water levels. In addition to his work
on temperature measurement, resulting in the basic fundamentals seen in
today's "Galileo thermometers", he invented the microscope and, in a
completely different area, was the first to realise how the swinging
of a pendulum could be used to measure time.
Through his work in astronomy, Galileo supported the theory originated by
Copernicus, that the earth moved around the Sun and this was to have a major
impact on his remaining life. The Copernicus theory was in direct
conflict with the opinions of the Church, which held that the Earth was the
centre of the Universe. Eventually, and under immense pressure from the
Church, he publicly retracted his support for the Copernicus theory, although
privately he continued to support it. Even so, Galileo spent the last 10 years of his life sentenced to almost
complete seclusion, having dared to offend the Church.
During much of this time, Galileo was supported by his daughter but she died in
1634. In the last years of his life, Galileo was completely blind
and eventually died in his villa in Arcetri on January 8th 1642.
If
you would like to know more about how much our modern world owes to this
amazing man, a more detailed account can be found at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
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