He receives a very good musical education. When he was ten years old, his family moved to hometown his father, Florence, and then Galileo was sent to school in a Benedictine monastery. There, for four years, he studied the usual medieval disciplines with the scholastics.

Vincenzo Galilei chooses the honorable and lucrative profession of a doctor for his son. In 1581, the seventeen-year-old Galileo was enrolled as a student at the University of Piraeus at the Faculty of Medicine and Philosophy. But the state of medical science at the time filled him with discontent and repelled him from a medical career. At that time, he accidentally attended a lecture on mathematics by Ostilo Ricci, a friend of his family, and was amazed at the logic and beauty of Euclid's geometry.

He immediately studied the works of Euclid and Archimedes. His stay at the university becomes more and more unbearable. After spending four years there, Galileo left it shortly before completion and returned to Florence. There he continued his studies under Ritchie, who appreciated the extraordinary abilities of the young Galileo. In addition to purely mathematical questions, he got acquainted with technical achievements. He studies ancient philosophers and modern writers and in a short time acquires the knowledge of a serious scholar.

Discoveries of Galileo Galilei

Law of pendulum motion

Studying in Pisa with his observability and sharp mind, he discovers the law of motion of the pendulum (the period depends only on the length, not on the amplitude or weight of the pendulum). Later, he proposes the design of a device with a pendulum for measuring at regular intervals. In 1586, Galileo completed his first solo study of hydrostatic balance and built a new type of hydrostatic balance. AT next year he wrote a purely geometric work "Theorems of a rigid body".

Galileo's first treatises were not published, but are rapidly spreading and coming to the fore. In 1588, commissioned by the Florentine Academy, he delivered two lectures on the shape, position, and extent of Dante's Hell. They are filled with the theorems of mechanics and numerous geometric proofs, they are used as a pretext for the development of geography and ideas for the whole world. In 1589, the Grand Duke of Tuscany appointed Galileo a professor at the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Pisa.

In Pisa, the young scientist again encounters educational medieval science. Galileo must learn the geocentric system of Ptolemy, which, along with the philosophy of Aristotle, adapted to the needs of the church, is recognized. He does not communicate with his colleagues, argues with them, and at first doubts many of Aristotle's statements about physics.

The first scientific experiment in physics

According to him, the movement of the Earth's bodies is divided into "natural", when they tend to their "natural places" (for example, downward movement for heavy bodies and "ascending" movement) and "violent". The movement stops when the cause disappears. "Perfect celestial bodies" is a perpetual movement in perfect circles around the center of the Earth (and the center of the world). To disprove Aristotle's assertion that bodies fall at a speed proportional to their weights, Galileo makes his famous experiments with bodies falling from a leaning tower at Pisa.

This is actually the first scientific experiment in physics and with it Galileo introduces new method acquiring knowledge from experience and observation. The result of these studies is the treatise "The Fall of Bodies", which sets out the main conclusion about the independence of speed from the weight of a falling body. It is written in a new style for scientific literature - in the form of a dialogue, which reveals the main conclusion about the speed, which does not depend on the weight of the falling body.

The lack of a scientific base and low pay force Galie to leave the University of Pisa before the expiration of the three-year contract. At that time, after the death of his father, he must take over the family. Galileo is invited to take up the chair of mathematics at the University of Padua. The University of Padua was one of the oldest in Europe and was known for its spirit of freedom of thought and independence from the clergy. Here Galileo worked and quickly earned a name as an excellent physicist and a very good engineer. In 1593, his first two works were completed, as well as "Mechanics", in which he outlined his views on the theory of simple machines, invented proportions with which it is easy to perform various geometric operations - drawing enlargement, etc. His patents for hydraulic equipment also preserved.
In the lectures of Galileo at the university, official views are voiced, he teaches geometry, Ptolemy's geocentric system and Aristotle's physics.

Acquaintance with the teachings of Copernicus

At the same time, at home, among friends and students, he talks about various problems and sets out his own new views. This duality of life, Galileo is forced to lead for a long time, until he becomes convincing in his ideas in the public space. It is believed that even in Pisa, Galileo became acquainted with the teachings of Copernicus. In Padua, he is already a convinced supporter of the heliocentric system and has as his main goal the collection of evidence in this favor. In a letter to Kepler in 1597, he wrote:

“Many years ago I turned to the ideas of Copernicus and with my theory I was able to fully explain a number of phenomena that, in general, could not be explained by opposing theories. I have come up with many arguments that refute opposing ideas.”

Galilean tube

At the end of 1608, news reaches Galileo that an optical device has been discovered in the Netherlands that allows you to see distant objects. Galileo, after working hard and processing hundreds of pieces of optical glass, built his first telescope with a magnification of three times. This is a system of lenses (eyepieces), now called the Galilean tube. His third 32x telescope looks at the sky.

Only after a few months of observation did he publish his amazing findings in a book:
The moon is not perfectly spherical and smooth, its surface is covered with hills and depressions, similar to the Earth.
The Milky Way is a collection of numerous stars.
The planet Jupiter has four satellites that circle around it like the Moon around the Earth.

Despite the fact that the book is allowed to be printed, this book actually contains a serious blow to Christian dogmas - the principle of the difference between "imperfect" earthly bodies and "perfect, eternal and unchanging" celestial bodies has been destroyed.

The motion of Jupiter's moons has been used as an argument in favor of the Copernican system. The first bold astronomical achievements of Galileo do not attract the attention of the Inquisition, on the contrary, they brought him great popularity and influence as a renowned scientist throughout Italy, including among the clergy.

In 1610, Galileo was appointed "the first mathematician and philosopher" in the court of the ruler of Tuscany and his former student, Cosimo II de' Medici. He leaves the University of Padua after 18 years of residence there and moves to Florence, where he is released from any academic work and can only do their own research.

The discovery of the phases of Venus, the observation of the ring of Saturn and sunspots were soon added to the arguments in favor of the Copernican system. He visited Rome, where he was greeted by the cardinals and the pope. Galileo hopes that the logical perfection and experimental justification of the new science will force the church to recognize this. In 1612, his important work Reflection on Floating Bodies was published. In it, he provides new evidence for the law of Archimedes and opposes many aspects of scholastic philosophy, asserting the right of reason not to obey the authorities. In 1613 he wrote a treatise on sunspots in Italian with great literary talent. At that time, he also almost discovered the rotation of the Sun.

Prohibition of the teachings of Copernicus

As Galileo and his disciples were already under attack, he feels compelled to speak and write his famous letter to Castelli. He proclaimed the independence of science from theology and the uselessness of Scripture in the research of scientists: "... in mathematical disputes, it seems to me, the Bible belongs to the last place." But the spread of opinions about the heliocentric system seriously disturbed theologians, and in March 1616, with the decree of the Holy Congregation, the teachings of Copernicus were banned.

Many years of silence begin for the entire active milieu of Copernican supporters. But the system becomes apparent only when, in 1610-1616. astronomical discoveries were the main weapon against the geocentric system. Now Galileo strikes at the very foundations of the old, unscientific worldview, influencing the deepest physical roots of the world. The struggle resumed with the appearance in 1624 of two works, including "Letter to Ingoli". In this work, Galileo expounds the principle of relativity. The traditional argument against the motion of the Earth is discussed, namely that if the Earth were rotating, a stone thrown from a tower would lag behind the surface of the Earth.

Dialogue on the two main systems of the world - Ptolemy and Copernicus

In subsequent years, Galileo was immersed in work on the main book, which reflected the results of his 30 years of research and reflection, the experience gained in applied mechanics and astronomy, and his general philosophical views of the world. In 1630, an extensive manuscript entitled "Dialogue on the two main systems of the world - Ptolemy and Copernicus" was completed.

The exposition of the book was built in the form of a conversation between three people: Salviatti, a staunch supporter of Copernicus and the new philosophy; Sagredo, which is wise man and agrees with all of Salviatti's arguments, but is initially neutral; and Simplicchio, defender of the traditional Aristotelian concept. The names Salviatti and Sagredo were two friends of Galileo, and Simplicio was in honor of the famous commentator on Aristotle of the 6th century Simplicius, and in Italian it means "simple".

The dialogue gives an idea of ​​almost all of Galileo's scientific discoveries, as well as his understanding of nature and the possibilities of studying it. He stands on materialistic positions; believes that the world exists independently of human consciousness and introduces new methods of research - observation, experience, thought experiment and quantitative mathematical analysis instead of offensive reasoning and references to authority and dogma.

Galileo considers the world to be unified and changeable, without dividing it into "eternal" and "variable" substance; denies absolute motion around a fixed center of the world: “Can I reasonably ask you if there is any center of the world at all, because neither you nor anyone else has proven that the world is finite and has a definite form, not infinite and unlimited. Galileo made great efforts to get his work published. He makes a number of compromises and writes to readers that he does not adhere to the teachings of Copernicus and provides a hypothetical possibility that does not correspond to reality and must be rejected.

The prohibition of "Dialogue"

For two years he collected permission from the highest spiritual authorities and the censors of the Inquisition, and in early 1632 the book went out of print. But very soon there is a strong reaction from theologians. The Roman pontiff was convinced that he was depicted under the image of Simplicio. A special commission of theologians was appointed, which declared the work heretical, and the seventy-year-old Galileo was summoned to trial in Rome. The process initiated by the Inquisition against him lasts a year and a half and ends with a verdict according to which the "Dialogue" is prohibited.

Renunciation of one's views

On June 22, 1633, in front of all the cardinals and members of the Inquisition, Galileo reads the text of the renunciation of his views. This event allegedly speaks of the complete suppression of his resistance, but in fact this is the next big compromise that he must make in order to continue his scientific work. The legendary phrase: "Eppur si muove" (and yet it spins) is justified by his life and work after the process. It is said that he uttered this phrase after the abdication, however, in fact, this fact is an artistic fiction of the 18th century.

Galileo is under house arrest near Florence, and, despite almost losing his sight, he is working hard on a new great work. The manuscript was smuggled out of Italy by her admirers, and in 1638 it was printed in the Netherlands under the title Lectures and Mathematical Proofs of Two New Sciences.

Lectures and mathematical proofs of two new sciences

Lectures are the pinnacle of Galileo's work. They were written again as a conversation for six days between three interlocutors - Salviati, Sagredo and Simplicchio. As before, Salvati plays a leading role. Simplicio no longer argued, but asked questions only for more detailed explanations.

On the first, third and fourth days, the theory of the movement of falling and thrown bodies is revealed. The second day is dedicated to the topic of materials and geometric balance. The fifth lecture contains mathematical theorems, and the last contains incomplete results and ideas about the theory of resistance. He has smallest value among six. With regard to material resistance, Galileo's work is pioneering in this area and plays an important role.

The most valuable results are contained in the first, third and fifth lectures. This is the highest point that Galileo reached in his understanding of motion. Considering the fall of bodies, he sums up:

"I think that if the resistance of the medium were completely removed, all bodies would fall at the same speed."

The theory of uniform rectilinear and equilibrium motion is further developed. The results of his numerous experiments on free fall, motion on an inclined plane and the motion of a body thrown at an angle to the horizon appear. The time dependence is clearly formulated and the parabolic trajectory is investigated. Again, the principle of inertia has been proven and is used as fundamental in all considerations.

When the Lectures go out of print, Galileo is completely blind. But in last years his life he works. In 1636 he proposed a method exact definition longitudes at sea using the satellites of Jupiter. His dream is to organize numerous astronomical observations from different points earth's surface. To this end, he negotiates with the Dutch Commission for the adoption of his method, but is refused and the church forbids his further contacts. In his last letters to his followers, he continues to make important astronomical considerations.

Galileo Galilei died on January 8, 1642, surrounded by his students Viviani and Toricelli, his son and representative of the Inquisition. Only after 95 years, his ashes were allowed to be transported to Florence, two other great sons of Italy, Michelangelo and Dante. His resourceful scientific work passing through strict criteria time, gives him immortality among the names of the brightest artists of physics and astronomy.

Galileo Galilei - biography of life and his discoveries

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Galileo Galilei (1564-1642). The fame of this scientist was great during his lifetime, and, growing with each century, by our time has made him one of the most revered scientists.

Galileo Galilei was born into an aristocratic Italian family; his grandfather was the head of the Florentine Republic. After studying at the monastery, he entered the University of Pisa. Lack of money forced the young man to return home (1585). But his abilities were so great, and his inventions were so witty, that already in 1589 Galileo was a professor of mathematics. AT renowned universities he is engaged in teaching, researches the processes of mechanics. The young professor is gaining immense popularity with students and authority with the authorities. While in Padua, Galileo develops new technologies for the industry of the Republic of Venice.

The scientist's studies in astronomy led to the first conflicts with the church. Galileo Galilei modified a newly invented telescope to view the sky. They discovered the mountains on the moon, it was found that Milky Way- This is a cluster of individual stars, satellites of Jupiter have been discovered. To the suspicions of the Inquisition was added the distrust of colleagues who claimed that what was seen through a telescope was an optical illusion.

Nevertheless, the glory of Galileo becomes pan-European. He becomes an adviser to the Duke of Tuscany. The position allows you to engage in science and discoveries follow one after another. The study of the phases of Venus, sunspots, research in the field of mechanics and the main discovery - heliocentrism.

The claim that the Earth moves around the Sun has seriously alarmed the Roman Catholic Church. Galileo's theory was also opposed by many scientists. However, the Jesuits became the main enemy. Galileo Galilei expressed his views in printed works, which often contained caustic attacks on the powerful order.

The ban on heliocentrism by the church did not stop the scientist. He published a book where he presented his theory in the form of a polemic. However, in one of the stupid characters of the published book "Dialogues ...", the chapter catholic church recognized himself.

The Pope was furious and the intrigues of the Jesuits fell on fertile ground. Galileo was arrested and held in prison for 18 days. The scientist was threatened with the death penalty at the stake, and he preferred to renounce his views. The phrase “And yet it spins” was attributed to him by journalists when compiling a biography.

The rest of the days the great Italian spent under a kind of house arrest, where the jailers were his old enemies, the Jesuits. A few years after the death of the scientist, his only grandson took the monastic vows and destroyed the manuscripts of Galileo that he kept.

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Galileo Galilei (Italian Galileo Galilei; February 15, 1564 - January 8, 1642) was an Italian philosopher, physicist and astronomer who had a significant impact on the science of his time. Galileo is mainly known for his observations of the planets and stars, his active support of the heliocentric world system, and his experiments in mechanics.

Galileo was born in 1564 in Pisa, Italy. At the age of 18, on the instructions of his father, he entered the University of Pisa to study medicine. While at the university, Galileo Galilei became interested in mathematics and physics. Soon he was forced to leave the university for financial reasons and began to study independent research mechanics. In 1589, Galileo returned to the University of Pisa on an invitation to teach mathematics. He later moved to the University of Padua where he taught geometry, mechanics and astronomy. At that time, he began to make significant scientific discoveries.

Everyone can speak confusedly, few can speak clearly.

Galileo Galilei

In 1609, Galileo Galilei independently built his first telescope with a convex lens and a concave eyepiece. The tube gave approximately a threefold increase. Soon he managed to build a telescope giving a magnification of 32 times. Observations through a telescope showed that the Moon was covered with mountains and pitted with craters, the stars lost their apparent size, and for the first time their colossal distance was comprehended, Jupiter found its own moons - four satellites, the Milky Way broke up into separate stars, a huge number of new stars became visible. Galileo discovers the phases of Venus, sunspots and the rotation of the Sun.

Based on observations of the sky, Galileo concluded that the heliocentric system of the world proposed by N. Copernicus is correct. This was at odds with the literal reading of Psalms 93 and 104, as well as the verse from Ecclesiastes 1:5, which speaks of the stillness of the earth. Galileo was summoned to Rome and demanded to stop promoting his views, to which he was forced to comply.

In 1632 the book "Dialogue about two major systems world - Ptolemaic and Copernican". The book is written in the form of a dialogue between two supporters of Copernicus and one supporter of Aristotle and Ptolemy. Despite the fact that the publication of the book was allowed by Pope Urban VIII, a friend of Galileo, a few months later the sale of the book was banned, and Galileo was summoned to Rome for trial, where he arrived in February 1633. The investigation dragged on from April 21 to June 21, 1633, and on June 22 Galileo had to pronounce the text of the abdication offered to him. In the last years of his life he had to work in the most difficult conditions. At his Villa Archertri (Florence), he was under house arrest (under constant supervision of the Inquisition) and was not allowed to visit the city (Rome). In 1634, Galileo's beloved daughter, who had cared for him, died.

Galileo Galilei died on January 8, 1642, he was buried in Archertri, without honors and tombstone. Only in 1737 was his last will fulfilled - his ashes were transferred to the monastic chapel of the Cathedral of Santa Croce in Florence, where on March 17 he was solemnly buried next to Michelangelo.

From 1979 to 1981, at the initiative of Pope John Paul II, a commission for the rehabilitation of Galileo Galilei worked, and on October 31, 1992, Pope John Paul II officially recognized that the Inquisition had made a mistake in 1633, forcing the scientist to renounce the theory of Copernicus by force.

I prefer to find one truth, even in insignificant things, than to argue for a long time about greatest questions without reaching any truth.

Galileo was born in 1564 in the Italian city of Pisa, in the family of a well-born, but impoverished nobleman Vincenzo Galilei, a prominent music theorist and lute player. Full name Galileo Galilei: Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de Galilei (Italian: Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de "Galilei). Representatives of the Galilean family have been mentioned in documents since the 14th century. Several of his direct ancestors were priors (members ruling council) of the Florentine Republic, and Galileo's great-great-grandfather, a well-known physician who also bore the name of Galileo, was elected head of the republic in 1445.

The family of Vincenzo Galilei and Giulia Ammannati had six children, but four managed to survive: Galileo (the eldest of the children), the daughters of Virginia, Livia and younger son Michelangelo, who later also gained fame as a lute composer. In 1572 Vincenzo moved to Florence, the capital of the Duchy of Tuscany. The Medici dynasty ruling there was known for its wide and constant patronage of the arts and sciences.

Little is known about Galileo's childhood. With early years the boy was attracted to art; throughout his life he carried a love of music and drawing, which he mastered perfectly. In his mature years, the best artists of Florence - Cigoli, Bronzino, and others - consulted with him about issues of perspective and composition; Cigoli even claimed that it was to Galileo that he owed his fame. Based on the writings of Galileo, one can also conclude that he had a remarkable literary talent.

Galileo received his primary education in the nearby monastery of Vallombrosa. The boy was very fond of learning and became one of the best students in the class. He considered the possibility of becoming a priest, but his father was against it.

In 1581, the 17-year-old Galileo, at the insistence of his father, entered the University of Pisa to study medicine. At the university, Galileo also attended lectures on geometry (previously he was completely unfamiliar with mathematics) and became so carried away by this science that his father began to fear that this would interfere with the study of medicine.

Galileo was a student for less than three years; during this time, he managed to thoroughly familiarize himself with the works of ancient philosophers and mathematicians and earned a reputation among teachers as an indomitable debater. Even then, he considered himself entitled to have his own opinion on all scientific issues, regardless of traditional authorities.

Probably during these years he became acquainted with the theory of Copernicus. Astronomical problems were then lively discussed, especially in connection with the just carried out calendar reform.

Galileo is rightfully considered the founder of not only experimental, but - to a large extent - theoretical physics. In his scientific method, he consciously combined thoughtful experiment with its rational reflection and generalization, and personally gave impressive examples of such studies. Sometimes, due to a lack of scientific data, Galileo was wrong (for example, in questions about the shape of planetary orbits, the nature of comets, or the causes of tides), but in the vast majority of cases, his method led to the goal. Characteristically, Kepler, who had more complete and accurate data than Galileo, drew correct conclusions when Galileo was wrong.

Between Contemporaries was based mainly on the great discoveries he made with the telescope. Indeed, they gave a lot of very important new knowledge about the heavenly bodies, and almost every one of them served as a new proof of the truth of the system. Copernicus. The spots on the illuminated part of the moon, the broken outlines on the edge of the illuminated part of it, viewed through a telescope, turned out to be irregularities on its surface, and Galileo had already compared them with the mountains of our the globe. Observing the sun, Galileo discovered spots on it, from the movement of which it became obvious that the sun rotates about its axis. Observing Venus, Galileo saw that it had the same phases as the moon. (Copernicus has already said that it must necessarily be so). Galileo discovered the satellites of Jupiter, and made a lot of observations on them in order to determine the law of their rotation around their planet; he realized that the time differences shown by clocks at different longitudes when observing the eclipse of one or another satellite of Jupiter can serve to determine the difference in these longitudes, and he tried to compile such tables of the movements of the satellites of Jupiter that would have the accuracy necessary for this determination. The Dutch government understood the importance of this allowance for navigation and asked Galileo not to quit work until it was completed; but death ended it before the end.

Galileo discovered the ring of Saturn. (With the weakness of the telescopes through which he made his observations, this ring seemed to be part of the planet itself; that it was separated from it by a distance, he saw only Huygens). Galileo's discoveries also provided important new knowledge about the stars. He saw that the Milky Way consisted of stars, the faint radiance of which merges for the simple eye into a bright band; in the same way, many of the hazy patches turned out to be composed of stars.

Portrait of Galileo Galilei. Artist D. Tintoretto, ca. 1605-1607

But no matter how brilliant the astronomical discoveries of Galileo, his discoveries in mechanics are no less important; only his works elevated it to the degree of science. He dispelled the former erroneous notions about the law of motion, found true ideas about it. Aristotle's false opinions about the essence of motion, while remaining dominant, greatly interfered with the disclosure of the laws of motion. The concepts of Archimedes were the only grounds for inferring truth. Guido Ubaldi and the Dutch mathematician Stevin already took the positions of Archimedes as the basis of their works and expanded some of them. But confused, completely erroneous concepts of movement continued to dominate. Before Galileo, there were almost no attempts at all to consider the facts of motion from a mathematical point of view. Galileo laid a solid foundation for mechanics with his research on the motion of falling and ejected bodies, on the swing of a pendulum, and on the fall of a body along an inclined plane. The laws of motion, found by him and based on the concept of free fall acceleration, became the initial truths for all subsequent studies of the mechanical order of natural phenomena. Without Galileo's discoveries in mechanics, Newton's discoveries would hardly have been possible.

Galileo's students continued his work. One of them, Casteli (born in 1577, died in 1644), successfully applied the concepts of Galileo developed by Galileo to the movement of water. general laws movement and thanks to this he successfully fulfilled the order given to him by Urban VIII to regulate the course of the rivers of the papal state. Another disciple of Galileo, Toricelli(born in 1618, died in 1647) became famous for the discovery that air has gravity; this eliminated the erroneous opinion that nature does not tolerate emptiness (horror vacui).