Galileo Galilei

Galileo Galilei was born on 15 February 1564, in Pisa (formerly a part of Duchy of Florence) in Italy. Galilei was the eldest in a family of 6 children. Galilei was born to Vincenzo Galilei (a famous musician, composer and musical theorist) and Giulia Ammannati. Galileo’s full name was Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei. When he turned 8 his family moved to Florence. He stayed with Jacopo Borghini for two years and studied in Camaldolese Monastery at Vallombrosa which was situated 35 kms away from Florence.

Galielo had immense interest in fine art too. In 1588 He was chosen as the art instructor at the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno situated in Florence. Galileo indulged himself in teaching various perspectives of art and a very different art form, chiaroscuro (a monochromatic picture made out of using different colour shades giving out a bold contrast in the whole composition). During his role as a teacher at Accademia, Galileo befriended Florentine painter Cigoli. This friendship continued for life. Cigoli had once used one of Galileo’s observations on moon in his painting. Galileo was driven by Renaissance art. He also got attached to the city art. All these influences led to an aesthetic mentality in Galileo. In 1592 Galileo shifted his base to the University of Padua where he taught geometry, mechanics, and astronomy for many years till 1610.

From 1592 to 1610 Galileo carried out his notable discoveries on astronomy, kinetics in science, improvement of telescope and on motion and strength of materials. Galileo researched on fundamental, pure as well as practical applied science.

Galileo was a great follower and an advocate of the theories of Nicolaus Copernicus. It was Copernicus’ heliocentric cosmology (sun in the centre of the universe around which planets and stars revolved) which Galileo affirmed and reaffirmed all his life. In 1615, the Copernican theory was negated by Cardinal Bellarmine as he said that the Copernican heliocentric cosmology could not be affirmed. Bellarmine had brought out a writing saying that only "a true physical demonstration that the sun does not circle the earth but the earth circles the sun" could save the affirmed Copernican theory.

In 1619 Galileo got involved in a controversy over a dispute with Father Orazio Grassi (mathematics professor at the Jesuit college of Romano) on the nature of comets.

In 1623 Galileo published The Assayer (Il Saggiatore). This book rejected Grassi’s ideas. Galileo was wrong in his idea of comets and their light reflection. By the time Assayer was published, the basic argument spread far and wide. However, the greatest quality and contribution of Galileo’s Assayer is its rich scientific ideas and how science should be practically used and practiced. Assayer is regarded as a scientific manifesto even today.

Galileo had always believed in the heliocentric cosmology where sun was in the middle and that earth was immovable. According to Galileo he was adhering to the Bible and the religious scriptures which also affirmed to this theory.

It was 1616 when public attacks on the Copernican theories and ideas had risen very high and this very year Galileo went to Rome to persuade the Roman Catholic Church not to ban Copernicus’ ideas. However, Galileo’s quest went astray when an Inquisition ordered Cardinal Bellarmine to threaten Galileo with the order that Galileo should not by any means try to "hold or defend" the idea of the Earth moving and the sun being static at the centre. Galileo continued disobeying the church. He, however, did not meddle in too much controversy but did spread heliocentric cosmology.

In the 1638 Galileo became completely blind. He suffered from fever and heart palpitations, which resulted in Galileo’s death on January 8, 1642. He was 77 years old at the time of his death.