<biography, history of philosophy> Italian mathematician and scientist (1564-1642) who developed modern scientific method and applied it to the study of astronomy and terrestrial motion. Author of Il Saggiatore (The Assayer) (1623), Dialogo Sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo (Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems) (1632), and Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche intorno a due nuove scienze (Discourse on Two New Sciences) (1638). Despite his careful delineation of scientific and religious concerns in Considerations on the Copernican Opinion (1615), Galileo's advocacy of Copernican astronomy earned him condemnation by the church. Artifacts from Galileo's career are displayed at the Museum of the History of Science in Florence, and his Lettere (Letters) are available on-line. Recommended Reading: Stillman Drake, Galileo at Work: His Scientific Biography (Dover, 1995); The Cambridge Companion to Galileo, ed. by Peter K. MacHamer (Cambridge, 1998); Stillman Drake, Essays on Galileo and the History and Philosophy of Science (Toronto, 2000); and Dava Sobel, Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love (Penguin, 2000).
[A Dictionary of Philosophical Terms and Names]
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