San Antonio College Library

Because of Galileo's courageous campaign to change the methods of doing science, physicist Albert Einstein called him "the father of modern physics--indeed, of modern science altogether." A devout Catholic who wanted the church to maintain its authority and wisdom, Galileo worked tirelessly to persuade the church authorities to stop insisting that the sun revolved around a stationary earth, when there was evidence to prove otherwise. Galileo's persistence...

"The book offers a fascinating account of the six trips Galileo made to Rome, from his first visit at age 23, as an unemployed mathematician, to his final fateful journey to face the Inquisition. The authors reveal why the theory that the Earth revolves around the Sun, set forth in Galileo's Dialogue, stirred a hornet's nest of theological issues, and they argue that, despite these issues, the Church might have accepted Copernicus if there had been...

Galileo (1564-1642) is one of the most important and controversial figures in the history of science. Tackling Galileo as astronomer, engineer, and author, this book places him at the centre of Renaissance culture. It draws extensively on Galileo's voluminous letters, many of which were self-censored and sly.

"The precursor of the Age of Reason, perhaps the most dramatic figure in the history of science and foremost amongst its martyrs, Galileo Galilei was born in Pisa in 1564, of an impoverished aristocratic Florentine family. He was educated at the Jesuit monastery of Vallombrosa and at the university of Pisa. During his twenty-one years as Professor of Mathematics at Pisa and Padua, Galileo discovered the isochronism of the pendulum, disproved the accepted...

"The son of a musician, Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) tried at first to enter a monastery before engaging the skills that made him the foremost scientist of his day. Though he never left Italy, his inventions and discoveries were heralded around the world. Most sensationally, his telescopes allowed him to reveal a new reality in the heavens and to reinforce the astounding argument that the Earth moves around the Sun. For this belief, he was brought...