Well, I am certain that in the United States that no child is left behind without knowing who Galileo was. If for some reason you missed it, I recommend that you go to YouTube and look up the song; "Rhapsody," by Queen. Then, why not watch a video about Galileo. Next, it makes sense to read a biography about his life, and why it is important to consider the ramifications of what went on in that time during his life as he made his new discoveries and challenged the science of his day.
One book which I recently read, and it is a quick one-night read - is a book that I would also recommend to you. This book is not a new book, and it may be difficult to find, but I did see there were some copies on eBay. The name of the book is;
"Galileo" by Arthur S. Gregor, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, NY, 1965, 191 pages, Library of Congress Number: 65-1478.
Although this book was written 48-years ago, it is an excellent account of Galileo's life, after all Galileo Galilei grew up in the sixteenth century so it's all history either way you look at it. Although Galileo is well-known for his astronomy work, you must know he also contributed to science in many other ways, for instance in health and medicine, as he designed a device to measure the human pulse, which worked extremely well, even if it was more or less a very crude instrument.
You can imagine how tough it was for Galileo to go against the proverbial wisdom of the church, as well as those considered by Aristotle and Ptolemy. Indeed we all know a terrible thing was done to Galileo for his work and scientific discovery, which quelled other dissenters of the time from coming forth in support of his findings. He died before he realized that the scientific world would later hold his name in such high-esteem that high school and junior high school students are required commit his name and scientific claims to memory.
One book which I recently read, and it is a quick one-night read - is a book that I would also recommend to you. This book is not a new book, and it may be difficult to find, but I did see there were some copies on eBay. The name of the book is;
"Galileo" by Arthur S. Gregor, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, NY, 1965, 191 pages, Library of Congress Number: 65-1478.
Although this book was written 48-years ago, it is an excellent account of Galileo's life, after all Galileo Galilei grew up in the sixteenth century so it's all history either way you look at it. Although Galileo is well-known for his astronomy work, you must know he also contributed to science in many other ways, for instance in health and medicine, as he designed a device to measure the human pulse, which worked extremely well, even if it was more or less a very crude instrument.
You can imagine how tough it was for Galileo to go against the proverbial wisdom of the church, as well as those considered by Aristotle and Ptolemy. Indeed we all know a terrible thing was done to Galileo for his work and scientific discovery, which quelled other dissenters of the time from coming forth in support of his findings. He died before he realized that the scientific world would later hold his name in such high-esteem that high school and junior high school students are required commit his name and scientific claims to memory.
He observed the Moon and Earth's shadow upon it, as well as transits of other planets against the Sun to help prove his hypothesis. He had secured all the ample evidence needed, and evidence so obvious that any observer could not deny, except for one thing, he went against the grain of the powers that be, all too powerful powers indeed. I hope you will please consider all this, and also consider how we are challenged in our own time and doomed to repeat past period mistakes if we don't learn our lessons.