Vocabulary

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Video

 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

 

Galileo Galilei was a mathematician, physicist, philosopher, and astronomer. He is often considered the father of modern science.

Paul Ronney, Aerospace and Mechanical Engineer, University of Southern California: “Galileo was the one who really put together the principles of experiment, theory, and mathematics together into a common framework.”

Amy Mainzer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “Probably more than anyone else, Galileo was really the person responsible for developing modern astronomy.”

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Galileo was born in Pisa, Italy, in 1564. He was educated in a Jesuit monastery before he studied medicine at the University of Pisa.

Galileo first gained fame when he discovered what is now called the Law of the Pendulum.

Dr. Laura Danly, Griffith Observatory: “One day in the cathedral he was watching the lamps that were hanging from the ceiling and saw them swaying back and forth . . . and started thinking about the nature of a pendulum.”

Paul Ronney, Aerospace Engineer, USC: “He found that the amplitude of the swing doesn’t matter but the length of the pendulum does, and this became the genesis of regulation of clocks, for which he became instantly famous.”

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Galileo also gained fame by supposedly using the Leaning Tower of Pisa to prove the law of constant acceleration.

Paul Ronney, Aerospace Engineer, USC: “It’s said that Galileo dropped two steel balls of different masses but the same material from the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and they landed at the same time, in contrast to what Aristotle would have predicted.”

Amy Mainzer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “What’s important about this is not only the result but the fact that he ushered in this new method of doing science where you conduct an experiment to test a hypothesis.

He showed that you have to do more than just think something is true; you have to prove it.”

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In 1609 Galileo heard about a telescope built by a Dutch eyeglass maker. He soon built his own — 32 times more powerful, and started studying the heavens.

Dr. Laura Danly, Griffith Observatory: “When Galileo looked at Jupiter through a telescope he discovered four tiny little lights that seemed to circle Jupiter; those are what are now referred to as the Galilean moons.”

Paul Ronney, Aerospace Engineer, USC: “This confirmed Copernicus’s idea that celestial bodies rotate each other. He also looked at Venus and found that it had phases.”

Amy Mainzer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “This discovery was revolutionary because it really proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Earth is not the center of the universe.”

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During his life Galileo published his findings in several manuscripts.

Most of these earned him the ire of the Catholic Church, which eventually labeled him a heretic. He was sentenced to house arrest for the last years of his life and died on January 8th, 1642.

Dr. Laura Danly, Griffith Observatory: “Galileo was really the father of Western science. Prior to his time there really was not the same sensibility of experimental science.”

Amy Mainzer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “Galileo is fundamentally responsible for what we know about the universe today.”

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Questions

 

Agronomy. Was Galileo Galilei strictly an astronomer?

Anatomy. Did Galileo operate in the same manner as Aristotle, Archimedes, Eratosthenes, and Aristarchus?

Anthropology. In his youth, Galileo studied at an academy and lyceum. True or false?

Archaeology. Did Galileo come up with his Law of the Pendulum while pondering on his desk?

Astronomy. Galileo conducted an experiment in a laboratory room — and confirmed Aristotle’s law of falling bodies. Is this right or wrong?

Biology. Was this a breakthrough in science?

Botany. Did Galileo Galilei invent the telescope? What did he do with his telescope?

Chemistry. During his lifetime, Galileo Galilei was honored and praised for his accomplishments. Is this correct or incorrect?
 
 
 
Ecology. My classmates and I learned (a lot) about Galileo Galilei and other scientists in school and university. Yes or no?

Geology. Who are some of your favorite scientists? Which scientists have had an impact on your major or career?

Physics. My friends and I would like to be great scientists, like Aristotle, Archimedes, Avicenna, Averroes, Nicholas Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, Charles Darwin, Alexander von Humboldt, Nikola Tesla, Richard Feynman, Carl Sagan.

Physiology. There is not enough, the right amount, or too much emphasis on science education?

Psychology. What might happen in the future?

Zoology. What should or could people, schools, governments do?