Galileo Galilei

Galileo Galilei

1564-1642
This great Italian scientist may be more responsible for the development of the scientific method of anyone. Galileo was born in Pisa, in 1564. While young people studying at the University of Pisa, but stalled because of financial affairs. Even so in 1589 he could be the position of lecturer at the university. A few years later he joined the University of Padua and stayed there until the year 1610. In this period he created a pile of scientific discoveries.
His first important contribution in the field of mechanics. Aristotle taught that heavier objects fall faster than lighter objects, and generations of intellectuals swallowed the opinion of the great Greek philosophers of this influence. However, Galileo decided to try first is whether, and through a series of experiments he concluded that Aristotle was wrong. The truth is, both heavy and light objects fall at the same speed except to the extent they decelerates due to a shift in the air. (Incidentally, the habit of throwing objects Galileo's experiment from the tower of Pisa apparently unconsciously). Knowing this, Galileo took further steps. By carefully measuring the distance of the fall he had at the time of the specified object and received evidence that the distance traversed by a falling object is directly balanced by the number of seconds squared falling objects. This discovery (which means the uniform acceleration) has its own significance. Even more importantly capable of collecting the results of Galileo's discoveries with mathematical formulas. Extensive use of mathematical formulas and mathematical methods is an important attribute of modern science.
Galileo's other major contribution was his discovery of the law of inertia. Previously, people believe that objects moving by themselves tend to be more slowly and completely stopped if there is no power that add strength to keep moving. But Galileo's experiments proved that the assumption was wrong. Where the power to slow down, such as shifting, can be eliminated, moving objects tend to keep moving indefinitely. This is an important principle that has been repeatedly affirmed by Newton and coupled with the system itself as the first law of motion of one of the vital principle in science. Leaning Tower of Pisa which is considered used by Galileo to demonstrate the laws of the fall of some object  Galileo's most famous invention is in the field of
astronomy. The theory of astrology in the early 1600s are in a situation of uncertainty. Disagreement occurs between the adherents of the theory of Copernicus that the sun-centric theory and adherents of the older, the earth-centric. Around the year 1609 Galileo expressed his belief that Copernicus was in the right side, but this time he did not know how to prove it. In 1609, Galileo discovered the telescope heard that people in the Netherlands.  

 Though Galileo was only heard vague about the equipment, but thanks to his genius he was able to create his own telescope. With this new tool he turned his attention to the sky and just within a year he had managed to make a series of major discoveries.
He saw the moon is not flat but lumpy, full of craters and mountains. Heavenly bodies, in summary, it is not flat and smooth but irregular as the face of the earth. He looked at the Milky Way and seems to him that he was not at all but rather a kind of fog consists of a large number of stars with the naked eye is like a mixed and mingle with one another.
Then the eye on planets and Saturn appeared to him like a bracelet circled. Jupiter glanced at his telescope and he knew there were four moons circling around the planet. Here is very clear to him that celestial bodies may revolve around a planet other than Earth. Preoccupation to-be: staring at the sun and seemed to him there are spots in the face. Indeed there are other people who also see the previous spots, but Galileo published his findings in a more effective and put the trouble spots of the sun was a concern the world of science. Furthermore, his research turned to the planet Venus, which has a similar right with the long-term months. This is an important part of the evidence that confirmed the theory of Copernicus that the earth and all the other planet revolves around the sun.
Illustration of the law of Galileo lever learned from the book Galileo and Mathematical Demonstration Talk

The discovery of the telescope and a spate of discoveries of Galileo is throwing up the ladder of fame. Meanwhile, support for the Copernican theory led him to deal with the church who opposed it all out. Conflicts of this church reached its peak in the year 1616: he was ordered to refrain from spreading the Copernican hypothesis. Galileo was squashed with this restriction for many years. Only after the Pope died in 1623, he was replaced by those who admired Galileo. The following year, the new pope - Urban VIII - foreshadows even vaguely that the ban is no longer forced to make Galileo.
Six years later Galileo spent time preparing the important scientific work Dialogue About Two Important Systems of the World. This book is a great demonstration of the things that may include support for the theory of Copernicus and the book was published in 1632 with special permission from the church censorship. Even so, the rulers of the church responded with a furious attitude and when Galileo published books directly dragged to face the Religious in Rome on charges of violating the ban in 1616.
But clearly, many church authorities are not happy with the decision to punish a famous scholar. Even under the law of the church at that time, the case of Galileo was questioned and he was just sentenced lightly. Galileo was not imprisoned but only got house arrest in his own house which is quite good in a villa in Arcetri. In theory he can not receive visitors, but in fact the rule was not implemented properly. Another penalty against him was that he publicly retracted his opinion that the earth revolved around the sun. 69-year-old scientist is execute in open court. (There is a famous story that is not necessarily true that Galileo after he pulled back his opinions down to earth and whispered softly, look, he's still moving. In the city he wrote Arcetri he continued working in the field of mechanics. Galileo died in 1642.
Galileo's great contribution to the advancement of science has long been recognized. The significance lies in its role as the law of inertia of scientific discovery, discovery telescope, astronomical observations of the field and prove his genius hypothesis of Copernicus. And more important is its role in terms of the development methodology of science. Generally, the natural philosophers based his opinion on the thoughts of Aristotle and to make investigations and phenomena qualitatively categorized. Instead, Galileo set of phenomena and make observations on a quantitative basis. Careful emphasis on quantitative calculation has since become the basis of scientific investigation in subsequent periods.
Galileo may have more responsibility than any person with an attitude to empirical scientific investigation. It was he, and not the others, who first emphasized the importance of show trials, he rejects the notion that scientific issues can be decided together with the power, if power is the name of the Church or the rules of Aristotle's argument. He also balked schemes rely on the use of complicated reasons, and instead rely on a solid experimental basis. Ingenious century scholars discussed the long-winded middle of what should happen and why things happen, but Galileo insisted on the importance of conducting experiments to ascertain what actually happened. Scientific view is not clearly palpable mystical, and in this connection he is even more modern than his successors, such as Newton.
Galileo, can be considered a religious person. Regardless of the sentence imposed on him and his confession, he was not averse to both religions and churches. The rejection of the experiment was the church authorities to suppress the efforts of science inquiry. The next generation is very reasonable Gahlileo admired as a symbol of dogma and to rebel against the authoritarian rule that tried to handcuff the independence of thinking. Its importance was again more prominent role it plays in terms of laying the foundations of modern scientific method.