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Galileo
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--the craters of the moon, the satellites of Jupiter--Galileo dramatically challenged our idea of the perfection of the heavens and the centrality of the Earth in the universe. Indeed, the appearance of the little book is regarded as one of the great moments in the history of science.
Here is a major new biography of Galileo, a fresh and much more rounded view of the great scientist than found in previous works. Unlike previous biographers, Heilbron shows us that Galileo was far more than a he was deeply knowledgeable in the arts, an expert on the epic poet Ariosto, a fine lutenist. More important, Heilbron notes that years of reading the poets and experimenting with literary forms were not mere sidebars--they enabled Galileo to write clearly and plausibly about the most implausible things. Indeed, Galileo changed the world not simply because he revolutionized astronomy, but because he conveyed his discoveries so clearly and crisply that they could not be avoided or denied. If ever a discoverer was perfectly prepared to make and exploit his discovery, it was the dexterous humanist Galileo aiming his first telescope at the sky.
In Galileo, John Heilbron captures not only the great scientist, but also the creative, artistic younger man who would ultimately become the champion of Copernicus, the bête-noire of the Jesuits, and the best-known of all martyrs to academic freedom.
Here is a major new biography of Galileo, a fresh and much more rounded view of the great scientist than found in previous works. Unlike previous biographers, Heilbron shows us that Galileo was far more than a he was deeply knowledgeable in the arts, an expert on the epic poet Ariosto, a fine lutenist. More important, Heilbron notes that years of reading the poets and experimenting with literary forms were not mere sidebars--they enabled Galileo to write clearly and plausibly about the most implausible things. Indeed, Galileo changed the world not simply because he revolutionized astronomy, but because he conveyed his discoveries so clearly and crisply that they could not be avoided or denied. If ever a discoverer was perfectly prepared to make and exploit his discovery, it was the dexterous humanist Galileo aiming his first telescope at the sky.
In Galileo, John Heilbron captures not only the great scientist, but also the creative, artistic younger man who would ultimately become the champion of Copernicus, the bête-noire of the Jesuits, and the best-known of all martyrs to academic freedom.
508 pages, Paperback
First published October 14, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
December 26, 2011
More of a historical tome on the politics and religion of 16th century Europe than a biography, the book meanders through every avallable detail, boring for the most part and bordering on the interesting and the sensational at times. Not recommended for light reading.
August 16, 2014
Maybe a 3.5…Somebody wrote "choppy" in her review, and I think that nails the problem with this book. I found it very difficult to read, and I am good at, and love math! (and science, and biographies, and Italy). I think that Heilbron decided to write this completely chronologically, and has way too much detail on every aspect of Galileo's life (all well-documented: there are 100+ pages of notes). There will be great detail on all the people in his life at any given time (family, royalty, academics, etc.) and then suddenly 5 pages of very intricate math with beautifully rendered diagrams and then just as suddenly back to his move to wherever, and all the people there. Five chapters later some name will be mentioned with no reminder of who this person is (although there is a list of people in the back). Heilbron can be gloriously witty at times, but the wit is buried in the midst of somewhat clunky sentences. I really wanted to like this book, but I was very glad to finish it.
July 29, 2020
This is a brilliant biography: learned and amusing, but also clear and intelligible. Heilbron is not an Aristotelian, but he is sympathetic to Aristotelianism, and knows a lot about it.
September 5, 2011
I genuinely enjoyed the author's voice...to quote Shaw "all genuinely intellectual work is humorous". This biography humanized Galileo for me, laid out the mathematics clearly, and debunked many popular misconceptions I entertained about him and his relations with the papacy.
If the sheer volume of the volume puts you off, don't let it. Half is research notes on the text itself, and I must confess, I didn't miss them. DO read the foreword, though.
If the sheer volume of the volume puts you off, don't let it. Half is research notes on the text itself, and I must confess, I didn't miss them. DO read the foreword, though.
September 17, 2020
This is firmly aimed at the specialists rather than general readers. The equation sections are probably not comprehensible to anyone below uni-level mathematicians/scientists (they certainly weren't comprehensible to me), but I liked that it takes an in-depth look at Galileo's life. We get to know about his background, his personal life and what was going on around him in Italy at that time. Some of the topics people argued over at the time seem a little daft to us now, like Galileo devoting time to calculating and mapping out the precise dimensions of Hell from the descriptions given in Dante's "Inferno". Of course, in the 16th and early 17th century, religion played a larger part in people's lives, more people genuinely believed in that kind of thing, compared to our increasingly secular modern Europe.
I came to this book already knowing that Galileo's work got him into trouble with the Catholic church of the time, but the author explains how Galileo had a long history of getting into arguments with a wide range of people. He was deeply stubborn and seems to have become rather arrogant as his career developed. In some cases, he held grudges and carried on feuds with people for decades, even satirising them in some of his published works. I get the feeling if Galileo was alive today, he'd probably spend half his time feuding with rivals on Twitter.
The author does a good job of explaining the various religious factions, the existing theories about the universe and the fact that the Catholic church had adopted one theory and dismissed any others which could not be made to fit precisely with Biblical teachings. Which was a problem for Galileo when he began making his observations and providing evidence that the Earth was not at the centre of everything as the Church taught...
Overall, it's a comprehensive look at his life and the impact his work has had on the world. The author does not shy away from pointing out flaws in Galileo's thinking, or in his attitude to others (he had a habit of taking credit for work by other people). Equally, it's interesting to note how the Catholic church gradually - and by "gradually", I mean "over centuries" - came to admit they had acted harshly in banning Galileo's books and trying to stop him teaching people about his observations of the universe. The illustration section includes portraits of Galileo and the key people around him - as well as reproductions of his sketches of the Moon. It can get a little difficult to keep track of the names of everyone mentioned, so there is a list at the back of the book with brief biographies.
I came to this book already knowing that Galileo's work got him into trouble with the Catholic church of the time, but the author explains how Galileo had a long history of getting into arguments with a wide range of people. He was deeply stubborn and seems to have become rather arrogant as his career developed. In some cases, he held grudges and carried on feuds with people for decades, even satirising them in some of his published works. I get the feeling if Galileo was alive today, he'd probably spend half his time feuding with rivals on Twitter.
The author does a good job of explaining the various religious factions, the existing theories about the universe and the fact that the Catholic church had adopted one theory and dismissed any others which could not be made to fit precisely with Biblical teachings. Which was a problem for Galileo when he began making his observations and providing evidence that the Earth was not at the centre of everything as the Church taught...
Overall, it's a comprehensive look at his life and the impact his work has had on the world. The author does not shy away from pointing out flaws in Galileo's thinking, or in his attitude to others (he had a habit of taking credit for work by other people). Equally, it's interesting to note how the Catholic church gradually - and by "gradually", I mean "over centuries" - came to admit they had acted harshly in banning Galileo's books and trying to stop him teaching people about his observations of the universe. The illustration section includes portraits of Galileo and the key people around him - as well as reproductions of his sketches of the Moon. It can get a little difficult to keep track of the names of everyone mentioned, so there is a list at the back of the book with brief biographies.
July 25, 2016
This is an in-depth examination of Galileo's life and work. No quick read (it helps to have pencil and paper handy to work through the examples, and a dictionary close at hand!), but it certainly provides great insight into how Galileo thought through the problems he is so famous for attacking. It is also not about hero worship, as the author provides a clear-eyed description of Galileo's increasingly confrontational approach to promoting his views on the Copernican system, an approach that the author suggests was largely responsible for the famous renunciation of Copernicanism that Galileo was forced to make.
July 25, 2021
Immense in erudition, but the tone is grating throughout. Heilbron, perhaps on the model of Ariosto's Orlando Furioso, aims at irony, but mostly succeeds in sounding jaundiced.
One happy exception: Heilbron's comment on how perilious life in Pisa must have been back in the 1590s when philosophers were throwing chunks of wood and lead off the roofs and out of windows to test Aristotle's proposition that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones (p. 44).
One happy exception: Heilbron's comment on how perilious life in Pisa must have been back in the 1590s when philosophers were throwing chunks of wood and lead off the roofs and out of windows to test Aristotle's proposition that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones (p. 44).
April 10, 2013
Tedious, pompous, misogynistic, heavy handed, choppy - I found this virtually unreadable. Worst of all - CHOCK FULL OF ALGEBRA!!! O.K., I can't really hold THAT against it, but if you have bad Algebra class flashbacks consider yourself warned.
January 10, 2021
Galileo lived during an amazing time that he contributed to. There was not only the exploration of the planet going on, but there was also the exploration of science and new ideas that were consigning the ancient ideas of the physical world, such as Aristotle’s, to the trash heap of history. Tycho Brahe and Kepler were measuring the sky and its events as never before. Copernicus had come out with his ideas on the sun being in the center of the universe and not the earth. The Catholic Church did not like this because it went against what they believed the Bible said about how God made his creation. The politically correct action was to go along with the Church. Galileo was anything but politically correct. Galileo is not defined by his conflict with the Church that he lost with house arrest for the rest of his life. He was the most important and primary developer of modern physics who believed that if something was immeasurable, then it needs to be made measurable.
Heilbron’s biography is good at covering Galileo and what he discovered. However, it is a rather difficult read. True, some of this is due to Galileo himself and how he lived – his was not a simple life. In addition, the religious and secular politics were complicated, and Galileo was deft at using the patronage system in Florence and Rome. As a result, he interacted with a lot of people. So, be prepared for all that. The book though is rather too erudite. Its language does not help clarify. It assumes the audience are intellectuals who understand the arcane references that are made. One must be careful following the train of thought. Plus, the author goes into some rather detailed mathematical explanations of Galileo’s laws of motion – which were critical to debunking Aristotle and rival scientists. One can skim over these if the math is not interesting as it would not take away from the overall story.
I have not read other book-length biographies of Galileo, so I cannot do a comparison. So, whereas I learned a lot from this biography, it did not need to be such a tough slog. Nevertheless, I would recommend it to others interested in Galileo, but with the caveat that a reader may need perseverance to get through it. It does give a good exposition of Galileo’s interactions with the Church and how he ended up in house arrest. It is not as straightforward as others have said (Church bad, Galileo good) – expect some nuance.
Heilbron’s biography is good at covering Galileo and what he discovered. However, it is a rather difficult read. True, some of this is due to Galileo himself and how he lived – his was not a simple life. In addition, the religious and secular politics were complicated, and Galileo was deft at using the patronage system in Florence and Rome. As a result, he interacted with a lot of people. So, be prepared for all that. The book though is rather too erudite. Its language does not help clarify. It assumes the audience are intellectuals who understand the arcane references that are made. One must be careful following the train of thought. Plus, the author goes into some rather detailed mathematical explanations of Galileo’s laws of motion – which were critical to debunking Aristotle and rival scientists. One can skim over these if the math is not interesting as it would not take away from the overall story.
I have not read other book-length biographies of Galileo, so I cannot do a comparison. So, whereas I learned a lot from this biography, it did not need to be such a tough slog. Nevertheless, I would recommend it to others interested in Galileo, but with the caveat that a reader may need perseverance to get through it. It does give a good exposition of Galileo’s interactions with the Church and how he ended up in house arrest. It is not as straightforward as others have said (Church bad, Galileo good) – expect some nuance.
July 8, 2018
I got this as an audiobook because I wanted to know more about the historical events. However, approximately 1/3 of the book is essentially a geometry text and contains many detailed diagrams that are read out loud. As you can imagine, this does not really translate well into an audiobook, especially when listening to it during the morning commute.
The historical portions were very well written and the audio performance was also very good. I will most likely obtain a hard copy of the book at some point in the future.
The historical portions were very well written and the audio performance was also very good. I will most likely obtain a hard copy of the book at some point in the future.
February 2, 2017
Beautifully written. Great review by Own Gingrich here http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/26/boo...
November 8, 2021
Folks not inclined towards mathematics will struggle with the meat of this book. My standardized test scores argue that I *am* mathematically inclined, and I still struggled with it. But it's a very good read, and I like how it places emphasis on Galileo as artist - never thought much about that side of him before, but it makes sense that it would inform his research and attitudes towards authority.
April 4, 2014
Heilbron's biography of the great reforming scientist, mathematician, and sometime philosopher is thorough and deep, and provides a good look into the mind of the man. It suffers only from the expected emphasis on the astronomer and proponent of heliocentrism and advocate of his own ego.; we learn less of his personal, private life, and so the image created remains less than fully formed.
What is done is done well, however, and often impressively so. The presentations of Galileo's major works and their development are thoroughly researched and strongly presented. One also gets looks, less thorough but instructive nonetheless, of some of his less major and/or flawed work, such as his unfortunate expositions on the tides. The author's efforts, however, do slide downward in scope, effort, and final value to the reader as he takes the story along. By the conclusion, a reader feels as if the author has tired of the controversy, tumult, and slow-moving drama of the story of Galileo's confrontation with the Church and its rear-guard action against an assault on the untenable science to which it unwisely wed. Heilbron does still a better job than most at presenting the sequence and subtext of events, well noting the seriousness of the matter from all perspectives, though with the expected bias toward the modern position.
This is a very good biography of a massively important and obviously flawed figure in the history of the west. While long, it is not a slog of a read. The book is well-documented with notes and references, and thus serves well the academic as well as the intelligent lay reader.
What is done is done well, however, and often impressively so. The presentations of Galileo's major works and their development are thoroughly researched and strongly presented. One also gets looks, less thorough but instructive nonetheless, of some of his less major and/or flawed work, such as his unfortunate expositions on the tides. The author's efforts, however, do slide downward in scope, effort, and final value to the reader as he takes the story along. By the conclusion, a reader feels as if the author has tired of the controversy, tumult, and slow-moving drama of the story of Galileo's confrontation with the Church and its rear-guard action against an assault on the untenable science to which it unwisely wed. Heilbron does still a better job than most at presenting the sequence and subtext of events, well noting the seriousness of the matter from all perspectives, though with the expected bias toward the modern position.
This is a very good biography of a massively important and obviously flawed figure in the history of the west. While long, it is not a slog of a read. The book is well-documented with notes and references, and thus serves well the academic as well as the intelligent lay reader.
November 18, 2013
Really funny, fair, subtle and compelling book on Galileo's life and times, especially his humanistic training in Pisa and early university life in Venice. Heilbron's interpretation of Galileo's final contest with the pope (that the Dialogue was more or less commissioned by Rome to prove that the Church's rejection of Copernican theory wasn't based on ignorance of the science and that the book easily passed the censor except for Simplicio's speech at the end) puts a slightly new spin on things, and Galileo's progression toward eventual sainthood is wonderful irony and would have made him very happy. It's not a great book for total beginners with the subject matter and assumes a fair amount of prior knowledge of the basic history and familiarity with Newtonian physics and plane geometry. I enjoyed it more on a second visit after returning to it following a couple of easier and less academic books on the era (and several visits to wikipedia to refresh myself on the theory of motion).
Read
July 31, 2011This is a very detailed book on a mathematical level about what Galileo's contributions were as a mathematician--which was not off putting for me, but might be hard reading for someone with no interest whatsoever in math--this doesn't so much focus on his astrological contributions, except in the matters that they got him into big trouble. Galileo was not one to underestimate his personal value, and was shocked when the Inquisition caught up with him and labelled him a heretic--he was under arrest, with limited visitors from then on,. This, compounded by the plague sweeping through italy and killing off many of his family members made the end of the story sad--he therefore made his most important contributions as a young man, but who knows what another time might have held for him. A great read.
January 5, 2013
Good description of the history going on around Galileo and the politics of Church vs Science. Really immerses you in the complex nature of the arguments including equipping you with literary insight into the allusions that were used at the time. Frankly, the Audiobook was difficult because so much is done diagrammatically in the real book.
April 21, 2013
This is an academic biography. In addition to covering the life of Galileo, the book provides insight into the scientific, political, and religious atmosphere of the era. There is lots of detail (perhaps more than necessary) about the people involved in his life, about the scientific challenges of the times,and about the mathematics involved in Galileo''s astronomical studies.
June 1, 2016
This took me forever to read, and having finally finished it, doesn't seem worth it. I haven't really come away with a better sense of Galileo as a person. The science was written for scientists or mathematicians by the end I wasn't even skimming it so much as skipping it (totally out of character for me). And it just made an interesting story boring. Alas.
Read
August 21, 2011most of it was way over my head. I did enjoy his honesty as he approached life and desire to learn the truth. This is a very complex book not for the easily discouraged reader
Want to read
December 1, 2010recommended by Marsha/booklist online
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews