Galileo

John L. Heilbron (Department of History, University of California Berkeley)

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English

Oxford University Press
26 September 2012

Biography: science, technology & engineering; Early modern history: c 1450 to c 1700; Mathematics & Sciences; Popular science; Astronomy, space & time

Just over four hundred years ago, in 1610, Galileo published the Siderius nuncius, or Starry Messenger, a 'hurried little masterpiece' in John Heilbron's words. Presenting to the world his remarkable observations using the recently invented telescope - of the craters of the moon, and the satellites of Jupiter, observations that forced changes to perceptions of the perfection of the heavens and the centrality of the Earth - the appearance of the little book is regarded as one of the greatest moments in the history of science. It was also a point of change in the life of Galileo himself, propelling him from professor to prophet. But this is not the biography of a mathematician. Certainly he spent the first half of his career as a professor of mathematics and has been called 'the divine mathematician'. Yet he was no more (or less) a mathematician than he was a musician, artist, writer, philosopher, or gadgeteer. This fresh lively new biography of the 'father of science' paints a rounded picture of Galileo, and places him firmly within the rich texture of late Renaissance Florence, Pisa, and Padua, amid debates on the merits of Ariosto and Tasso, and the geometry of Dante's Inferno - debates in which the young Galileo played an active role. Galileo's character and career followed complex paths, moving from the creative but cautious humanist professor to a 'knight errant, quixotic and fearless', with increasing enemies, and leading ultimately and inevitably to a clash with a pope who was a former friend.

By: John L. Heilbron (Department of History University of California Berkeley)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 40mm
Weight: 812g
ISBN: 9780199655984
ISBN 10: 0199655987
Pages: 528
Publication Date: 26 September 2012
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for Galileo

The book is perhaps most impressive for Heilbrons deep immersion in the rich context of his story, particularly the personal, social, and intellectual relations among lesser actors who are often treated as mere names while the spotlight shines on Galileo. Michael H. Shank, Science & Education Heilbron has produced that rare marvel, a splendid new view of a familiar figure, a witty, absorbing, and convincing account of the man and his epoch, destined for the wide readership Galileo himself once had. Eileen Reeves, ISIS